Early Contractor Involvement in the Lake Vermilion Dam Gate Replacement Project

The Lake Vermilion Dam, constructed in 1925, needed all ten original Tainter gates, a trash gate, and a concrete bridge deck replaced. With an ambitious design and construction schedule for a project with several unknowns, the owner, Aqua Illinois, chose a different procurement approach to include Early Contractor Involvement (ECI), which engaged a contractor to provide real-time feedback to the owner and engineer during design. During design, the contractor was hired directly by the owner, independently from the engineer. This arrangement allowed the team to collaborate on replacement options, risk planning, means and methods, cost drivers, scheduling, constructability reviews, major subcontractors, and work plans before settling on a final design and construction cost. Benefitting from ECI, construction concluded on budget and ahead of schedule. This article shows how ECI was implemented and includes lessons learned and will be of interest to those involved with procuring, designing, or constructing dam projects. ECI can streamline design and construction processes when applied correctly, resulting in condensed project schedules and improved quality.