Canadian Nuclear Laboratories’ “New Builds,” a trio of mass timber buildings for their Chalk River campus, is one of the largest projects in Canada to use an Integrated Project Delivery delivery model. A year after completion, HDR’s Project Delivery Principal, Susan Croswell, reflects on the collaborative efforts of the IPD partners and how the delivery model allowed the team to effectively deliver these mass timber facilities.
The Benefits of Integrated Project Delivery
Driving Innovation and Efficiency Through IPD
Integrated project delivery (IPD) is one of the fastest-growing procurement models in North America. It is rooted in a collaborative approach to informed decision-making early in the project, where the most value can be created. Close collaboration among all stakeholders improves communication and enables seamless data sharing between design and construction teams, ultimately boosting productivity and efficiency.
Historically, IPD has been used on public and private projects alike, achieving a success rate greater than 98% against established quantitative project performance measures. Qualitative measures of success include higher stakeholder engagement, greater respect for people and increased satisfaction by all team members involved, especially on large programs and complex projects.
At HDR, we believe IPD is a project delivery model that could fundamentally improve the architecture/engineering/construction industry. However, success with IPD is not guaranteed, and it isn’t an appropriate delivery model for every project. Explore our resources and examples that can help determine whether IPD is right for a project and help use it to its fullest potential.
IPD Industry Leaders
With more than 100 IPD projects representing more than 5 million square feet, we understand how to work in this collaborative and integrated style at any scale. We are committed to sharing lessons learned and best practices — regularly speaking about the benefits of IPD to both owners and construction and design partners at conferences and events throughout North America.
Reflecting on the Success of IPD at CNL
Intro to IPD
This article introduces IPD as an alternative delivery model that delivers value for everyone involved. Using the Canadian Nuclear Laboratories "New Builds" project as an example, Sue Croswell and Justin Perdue explain what IPD is and highlight how it is helping align expectations and outcomes on a multi-stakeholder, budget sensitive high profile project.
In this short two and half minute video, Justin Perdue succinctly describes how managing risk in a traditional design process can be inefficient and costly for the owner compared to how risk is managed with IPD. He demonstrates how shared responsibility for project risk in IPD helps mitigate potential risks and leads to cost savings in the long term.
Projects that Deliver Value
East Vancouver Integrated Health and Social Housing at 1st & Clark is designed to achieve long-term and comprehensive solutions by addressing both an urgent housing shortage as well as offering essential addictions services through an evidence-based substances withdrawal management centre. The IPD team achieved a 10% social procurement target and delivered the project at a reduced cost without sacrificing quality.
The New Hospital at UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center at Parnassus Heights kicked off at start of the pandemic, leading the IPD team to develop new, innovative ways of collaborating. The team met in a virtual “big room” and created a hybrid (physical and digital) full-scale mockup in a vacant parking structure. The hospital is envisioned as a new model for inpatient care in part by integrating “life” into the hospital — fine dining, art, provisions for families, and connections to nature — to inspire patients and staff to enhance healing wellness, and recovery.
The Pavilion at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is designed to enhance patient care and support Penn’s world-renowned researchers, clinicians, and faculty. The IPD team achieved various innovations in both design and construction despite major logistical constraints and delivered the project within 1.5% of the budget and ahead of schedule.
The Advocate Aurora Health, Ambulatory Program project enabled an IPD lean project delivery team to reimagine and reinvent ambulatory care across the state of Illinois and into Wisconsin. In addition to leaders from Advocate Aurora Health, the collaboration brings together designers, contractors, trade partners, suppliers, and fabricators to generate innovative, cost-saving solutions that would otherwise be difficult to reach. Over the past seven years HDR has completed approximately 32 projects resulting in cost savings of approximately 12.8%.
The Hubbard Center for Children is the first IPD project in Omaha. The co-located team is using various lean practices including Choose by Advantage (CBA) decision-making facilitated by A3 presentations to design and construct this $438 million, approximately 550,000 sf centre. The project is a part of the hospital’s larger Changing Lives Together Campaign to improve the health and well-being of the smallest and sickest among us for generations to come. Innovative workflow planning reduced the schedule by two months.
The "New Builds" at Canadian Nuclear Labs involves multiple projects, beginning with a master plan for the $500M CAD revitalisation of this campus to create a new, forward-looking science and technology centre of excellence aimed at solving some of society’s most pressing problems. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories is using IPD, as they seek an innovative, ground-breaking transformation, including a commitment to sustainable design. HDR led the effort to obtain a $3.96M CAD grant from the Natural Resources Canada’s Green Construction Through Wood program to explore the innovative uses of mass timber with CNL.
IPD Experts
Education, Science and Community Director, Canada
Project Delivery Principal
Civic Sector Leader