Comparing Delivery Methods: Risk, Schedule, Cost, and Contractual Relationships

A side-by-side comparison of the four primary project delivery methods (Design-Bid-Build, CM at-Risk, Design-Build, and Integrated Project Delivery) across five dimensions: risk distribution, schedule characteristics, cost certainty, contractual structure, and collaboration level.

ARE · Practice Management

Overview

Every construction project starts with a decision that shapes everything downstream: how will this project be delivered? That choice determines who carries the risk, how fast the schedule moves, how much cost certainty the owner gets, and how the contracts connect the parties together.

The ARE expects you to compare four primary delivery methods across these dimensions. Design-Bid-Build (DBB) is the traditional sequential approach. Construction Management at-Risk (CMAR) brings the constructor in early while keeping design and construction contracts separate. Design-Build (DB) puts design and construction under one entity. Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) binds owner, designer, and constructor together through a multi-party agreement with shared risk and reward.

No single method works for every project. The right choice depends on the owner's risk tolerance, schedule pressure, need for cost certainty, and desire for collaboration. An owner comfortable absorbing more risk might choose IPD for the potential of better outcomes. An owner who wants maximum price competition might stick with DBB.

This topic walks through each method across five comparison dimensions. You need to understand not just what each method is, but when one outperforms another and why. Exam questions will put you in scenarios where you must recommend a delivery method or identify how risk shifts between parties depending on the structure chosen.

Essential

Think of delivery method selection as a five-axis decision. Each axis tells you something different about how the project will run. Let's break them apart, method by method. ## The Four Methods at a Glance Design-Bid-Build (DBB) follows a strict sequence: design first, then bid, then build. The owner contracts separately with the designer and the contractor. The contractor has zero input during design. This is the most traditional approach in U.S. construction and remains common in public-sector work where open competitive bidding is required by law. Construction Management at-Risk (CMAR) keeps separate design and construction contracts but brings the construction manager on board during the design phase. The CM provides cost estimating, constructability review, and scheduling input before a single shovel hits dirt. Once design is far enough along, the CM takes on construction risk, typically through a Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP).

Professional

Consider a municipal government planning a new community recreation center with a $15 million budget. The city council wants competitive pricing. State procurement law requires open bidding for public construction projects. The city has an experienced facilities department. Design-Bid-Build fits this scenario well. The open bidding requirement makes DB and IPD difficult to implement. The experienced facilities team can manage the sequential process. The completed design documents give the city a clear basis for comparing bids. The trade-off is schedule length, but the city is more concerned with price certainty and legal compliance than speed. The architect completes 100% construction documents before the project goes to bid, giving the city a precise scope against which contractors compete. If the lowest responsible bid comes in over budget, the city and architect can value-engineer the documents and rebid. That process is slow, but the cost number is real. Now shift the scenario.

TLDR

DBB: Sequential (design, bid, build). Owner holds most risk. Slowest schedule. Cost known late but firmly via competitive bids. No architect-contractor contract. Lowest collaboration.
CMAR: CM joins during design. CM takes construction risk at GMP. Moderate schedule compression possible. Progressive cost certainty. Separate owner-architect and owner-CM contracts.
DB: One entity, one contract, single point of responsibility. Spearin Doctrine does not apply. Fastest traditional schedule. Early cost commitment. Architect becomes subconsultant (watch flow-down provisions).
IPD: Multi-party contract. Shared risk/reward. Consensus decisions. No GMP in most cases; target cost instead. Highest collaboration (Level 3). Best for complex projects with experienced, trusting teams.
Risk spectrum: Owner risk highest in DBB, lowest in DB. IPD redistributes risk collectively.
Schedule spectrum: DBB slowest, DB fastest for traditional methods, IPD can match or beat DB.
Cost certainty: DBB gives firm price late. CMAR gives GMP mid-process. DB gives price early. IPD uses shared target cost.
Key distinction: IPD as philosophy (Levels 1-2) is not the same as IPD as delivery method (Level 3 multi-party contract).
Architect risk in DB: Reduced owner access, potential for contractual liabilities exceeding professional liability coverage.

ELI5

Imagine you want a meal. There are four ways to get it, and each one changes who does what, who takes the blame if something goes wrong, how fast you eat, and what it costs. Design-Bid-Build is like hiring a chef to write a recipe, then asking three cooks to bid on making it. You pick the cheapest cook. The recipe is done before any cooking starts, so you know exactly what you're getting. But if the recipe has a mistake, that's on you (you hired the chef). And dinner takes forever because writing the recipe and cooking happen one after the other. You cannot start cooking while the recipe is still being written. **CMAR is like hiring the cook to stand in the kitchen while the chef writes the recipe.

AREPractice Management

Comparing Delivery Methods: Risk, Schedule, Cost, and Contractual Relationships

2 min read213 words

Why Delivery Method Comparisons Matter on the ARE

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