Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) is a project management methodology that has been a game changer in how construction firms approach, manage, and deliver successful projects. Traditional project delivery methods often operated in silos, with each stakeholder—owners, designers, contractors, and suppliers—working independently. In contrast, IPD emphasizes collaboration, collective decision-making, and shared responsibilities between parties, fostering a more cohesive and cooperative project environment where risks are reduced and project outcomes improved. 

Do these problems sound familiar in your business? 

• Significant material waste  

• Overproduction 

• Communication issues 

• Project delays 

• Inefficient use of Labour  

• Inefficient processes  

• Confusion between parties resulting in errors  

Is your firm a candidate for IPD methodology?  Here are some characteristics well suited for companies who wish to employ IPD as a practice:  

1. complex construction that requires sophisticated multi-trade coordination such as health-care facilities, manufacturing plants, and infrastructure projects.  
2. sufficiently large projects (>$50M) to support the increased initial administrative and participation costs  
3. where team members have a high level of trust and willingness to collaborate.  
4. each team member is familiar with and can contribute to a BIM (and PMIS).  
5. each team member has sufficient staff and can address issues in real time.  
6. the multi trade members have worked together in the past; and/or  
7. there is an opportunity for continued working relationships on subsequent projects.   

If your business meets all or most of these factors, then you should explore this opportunity further to understand the benefits you can enjoy from better project outcomes, to improved business relationships and accountability to scaling your business for growth . 

For IPD to work, there is a one contractual agreement made together and signed by all the parties involved (Project Manager, designers, contractor, suppliers etc).   

Here are some of the key elements of an IPD multi-party contract: 

• A structured approach to staffing and identification with each team member assigning their staff and one person identified who manages the day-to-day activities.  Decisions that will have a significant impact are made by an Executive team and votes must be unanimous to ensure equal say between parties. 

• A Target Cost and Design A project proposal is generated by this cooperative team outlining the performance goals, quality workmanship, schedule, budget, sustainability and long-term maintenance requirements.  This is where cost dictates design, where in a traditional approach a project is bound to have cost overruns because a contractor is incentivized to submit a bid that is as low as possible. 

• Incentive Pool where applicable, is predetermined by this group who sets the criteria and targets aligned to the project’s performance metrics.   Some measures of success can be:  # of punch list items at the end, delivery speed, # of square feet completed/day, safety record, etc. 

• Continuous Design Validation allows all parties visibility through an open book concept allowing immediate coordination for cost savings and design optimization ideas.  This is done through a BIM, eliminating the confusion and errors from multiple drawings and common issues resulting in cost overruns and project delays. 

• Joint Project Controls allows all parties to have equal control over decisions.  Project decisions are put into a matric by categories and subcategories for reach stage often housed in a Project management Information System 

An IPD has proven to be a very effective delivery model between parties who trust one another.  It dramatically decreases the risks that a project will be delivered late, over budget, and/or be lower quality than anticipated by the owner.  At the end of the day, this is an ideal worth working towards. 

Need Help? 

While IPDs may sound simple and everyone wants to use them, most fail because their organization and/or their team is not properly set up to work at this level.  

We know your business and have the right experience and skills to drive this initiative forward.  If you are interested to create an environment where these barriers to success are removed, we can accelerate the path to achieving IPDs as a standard practice for your project management team by utilizing the following solutions: 

Process Optimization Services: 

• Process Improvement and Maturity: TPG offers services to assess and improve process maturity, helping organizations to optimize workflows and achieve greater efficiency, while preparing to scale. 

• Training and Change Management: We tailor training programs to help your teams adapt to new processes and technologies, ensuring smoother transitions and improved alignment with IPD methods. 

• Improved Understanding of Accountabilities and Communication: We not only design the right solutions but also help to implement them taking a collaborative approach involving your team to enhance communication, information sharing and buy-in.  Our approach ensures that team members are involved in the process, reducing the risks associated with unclear roles and responsibilities later and sustainability of necessary changes. 

Reporting and Analytics: 

• Performance Metrics and KPIs: We can build analytical tools that provide the right insights into your project performance, helping you to track KPIs and identify areas for improvement. We help you to identify what matters and to integrate various systems and data to bring visibility to your operations.   

• Centralized Data and Information: Imagine having a single source of truth to ensure everyone is working with the same information, which is crucial for integrated efforts like IPD. 

Customization and Integration: 

• Tailored Solutions: Our team offers customization of software to fit your specific organizational needs, ensuring that each tool supports established processes and helps clarify roles and create more efficient workflows.