Hired by the Austin Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority (CMTA), Spire provided dispute resolution services for the newly constructed MetroRail North Operations & Maintenance Facility. Approximately 28 acres, the MetroRail site services and accommodates 200 to 250 vehicles and light rail cars. The site also includes a two-story operations and maintenance building, a fuel and wash building, and several parking areas along the CMTA light rail line. The total size of the project is 104,000 SF.

How Did Spire Help?

Impacted by schedule delays and contractor performance, CMTA decided they needed to get to the truth of the allegations leveled by the project’s stakeholders. So CMTA asked Spire to develop an independent and impartial assessment based on a schedule delay analysis. This analysis then addresses the validity of delay issues regarding the contractor’s claims and their impacts on the project completion and performance of the contractor. Spire went on to perform an audit of the project contract, costs, schedule, quality assurance processes, and contractor performance on the North Operations and Maintenance Facility for the Austin CMTA.

Specifically, Spire evaluated the contractor’s schedules, recovery schedules, time impact analyses (TIAs), time extension requests, the owner’s management of the design process, quality assurance (QA) process, and contract administration process. Spire represented its findings in a fully documented expert report. Spire presented its findings in a manner easily understandable by its audience, which consisted of technical engineers, non-technical owners, and decision-makers. Spire’s efforts resulted in a significant recovery of funds for the owner.

Delay Analysis Methodologies

Numerous forensic schedule analysis methods can be used to quantify delays that occurred during a project. The most common delay analysis methods are as follows:

  • Impacted As-Planned
  • Collapsed As-Built
  • As-Planned vs. As-Built
  • Time Impact Analysis (TIA)
  • WINDOWS ANALYSIS

The appropriate selection of a delay analysis method is important to accurately quantify delays. Analysts must be aware of the strengths and limitations of each method to determine which one is most suitable for the case at hand. Several factors must be considered when selecting a delay analysis methodology including, but not limited to, contractual requirements, source data availability, budget, and time allowed for the analysis and size of the dispute.

CMTA

The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority is Austin’s public transportation provider, often referred to as CapMetro. Serving several towns in Travis and Williamson counties, CapMetro provides bus, paratransit services, and a rail system (MetroRail).