1、 Prepared by the AASHTO Subcommittee on Maintenance American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials 444 North Capitol Street, N.W., Suite 249 Washington, D.C. 20001 www.transportation.org (202) 624-5800 O Copyright 2002 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportati
2、on Officials. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission of the publishers. Code: GMPC-2 ISBN: 156051-187-7 Executive Committee 2002-2003 PRESIDENT James C. Codell, 111, Kentucky* VICE PRESIDENT Jose
3、ph Perkins, Alaska* SEC RETARY-TREASU RER: Larry Ki ng , Pen nsy lva n i a REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES REGION I: Carol Murray, New Hampshire, One-Year Term Brian Searles, Vermont, Two-Year Term REGION II: Fred Van Kirk, West Virginia, One-Year Term Whitting Clement, Virginia, Two-Year Term REGION 111:
4、Henry Hungerbeeler, Missouri, One-Year Term Mark Wandro, Iowa, Two-Year Term REGION IV: Tom Stephens, Nevada, One-Year Term Sleeter Dover, Wyoming, Two-Year Term NON-VOTING MEMBERS IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT Brad Mallory, Pennsylvania EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: John Horsley, Washington, D.C. *Elected at the
5、2002 Annual Meeting Anchorage, Alaska II 2002 AASHTO Highway Subcommittee on Maintenance Chair: David Sprynczynatyk, North Dakota Secretary: James B. Sorenson, FHWA ALABAMA Francis Allred (Equipment Focus Equipment Management Coordinator Department of Transportation 1409 Coliseum Boulevard, Room F10
6、1 Montgomery, AL 361 10 Group Chair) 334-242-6063 FAX: 334-262-5862 Ernail: allredfdot.state.al.us ALABAMA John E. Lorentson (Roadsides its content is based on the experience and practice of other agencies that have been using these types of contracts. This guide is not meant to advocate the use of
7、contracts or to serve as a “cookbook“ approach to such activities. Instead, it offers transportation agencies options based on the experiences of other agencies that have used these approaches. Audience The intended audience for this document spans a range of potential participants in the contract m
8、aintenance process. These include, but are not limited to: 1. State highway agencies, 2. Contractors, 3. 4. Local agencies, 5. Metropolitan transportation commissions, 6. Toll authorities, and 7. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) personnel, Members of the American Public Works Association (APWA)
9、 or National Association of County Engineers (NACE). 1.2 INTRODUCTION TO CONTRACT MAINTENANCE The term contract maintenance covers several different types of contracts. The following defi- nition is offered to describe this method of accomplishing maintenance functions. Contract maintenance is the u
10、se of a contract to outsource maintenance activities (either to the private sector or to another public agency) that had been done by the agency itself. Any type of maintenance can be performed by contract, including emergency, routine, and preventive maintenance activities. These include all routin
11、e and periodic maintenance activi- ties that may be required for the repair of highway and roadway surfaces, shoulders, bridges, tunnels, drainage facilities, signs, road markings, and light fixtures. Other agency operations, such as lighting and signal maintenance or snow and ice control, are also
12、contracted out by transportation agencies. Contract maintenance, also known as maintenance-by-contract and privatized maintenance, addresses the transfer of work traditionally conducted by the public sector to the private sector. 4 Introduction to Contract Maintenance Two distinct types of contracts
13、 are typically employed by SHAs. The most common type speci- fies the means and the methods to be used to accomplish specific maintenance activities. This type of contract is referred to as specification-based. The other type of contract is performance- based, in which all risk for the maintenance o
14、f certain assets are transferred from the agency to the contractor in accordance with level-of-service requirements outlined in the contract docu- ments. Virginia and Florida are two states that have been leaders in this type of contracting. In addition, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is
15、participating in a demonstration project of this type through a partnership with the Washington, D.C. Department of Public Works. Using these two contracting approaches, it is estimated that as of 1999 approximately $2.5 billion in maintenance work was contracted out to the private sector. A number
16、of state expe- riences with contract maintenance are presented as brief case studies in Chapter 5 of this guide. Benefits of Contract Maintenance Agencies generally undertake maintenance by contract because they expect to realize some advantage over their existing practices. Some of the primary bene
17、fits are discussed below. Address Customer Satisfaction Agencies that have experienced staff reductions recognize that contract maintenance is one way to provide the level of maintenance needed to meet customer expectations and/or agency goals. This can be accomplished several different ways: I. Con
18、tract maintenance provides the agency with a means to carry out maintenance activities that otherwise would not be done. For instance, an agency that provided adequate levels of maintenance prior to downsizing would be hard pressed to provide the same level of service with a reduction in the number
19、of maintenance crews. Contract maintenance affords these agencies an opportunity to use contract forces to provide the level of service needed. 2. With contract maintenance, an agency may be able to provide a higher level of service if it is used to perform activities that were previously deferred.
20、3. Agencies are able to reduce customer complaints when maintenance work is com- pleted on a more timely basis. improved Use of Limited Resources Another benefit of using contract maintenance is the ability to eliminate the ownership and maintenance of equipment for specialized activities. In the pa
21、st, agencies have owned and operated all the equipment needed to conduct the various maintenance activities for which they were responsible. For some agencies, this has resulted in a large inventory of specialized 5 Introduction to Contract Maintenance equipment that may not be used cost effectively
22、. At the other extreme, the lack of specialized equipment has restricted the ability of some agencies to take advantage of new maintenance techniques. Agencies practicing contract maintenance have been able to avoid these situations because contractors maintain equipment fleets. Since the contractor
23、 can offer services to mul- tiple agencies or clients, the cost for specialized equipment can be distributed to those clients, resulting in potentially lower costs for specialized maintenance procedures. This has allowed transportation agencies to allocate their limited resources to more appropriate
24、 uses. Lowered Life Cycle Costs Although there is some debate about whether contract maintenance saves an agency money, there is general agreement that maintenance contracts help to reduce the costs of periodic maintenance activities by leveling out some of the peaks and valleys associated with chan
25、ging maintenance needs. This is especially true in agencies with significant amounts of snow re- moval during winter months, who may find they have excess staff in the summer months. Using contractors to provide some or even all of these services can allow agencies to maintain a core maintenance sta
26、ff that is supplemented, as needed, under special circumstances. Other agencies have reported that the use of contract maintenance lowers the cost of activities when all related costs are taken into account. In addition to potentially reducing the cost of maintenance activities, fixed price, perform
27、ance-based contracts guarantee that throughout the life of the contract maintenance, costs will not vary. This fixed contracted cost can be a tremendous benefit for agencies that regularly experience fluctuations in maintenance funding. Increased Competitiveness and Taking Advantage of Advanced Tech
28、nology As agencies increase the amount of maintenance work performed by private industry under contract, more contractors are entering the marketplace and competition is increasing. In general, increased levels of competition serve to reduce overall bid prices. Additionally, in- creased competition
29、is an incentive to both the private sector and the agency to introduce innovations in equipment, materials, and maintenance techniques. This is especially true on contracts that are performance-based rather than specification-based. On performance-based contracts, as long as the contractor meets the
30、 level of service specified in the contract, innova- tive techniques can be used. In some instances, agencies have modified their internal specifica- tions based on observations of practice by contractors on performance-based jobs. Increased Cost-Effectiveness There is a limited amount of informatio
31、n that documents the improvements in cost-effective- ness that are possible through the use of contract maintenance. However, when the agency specifies their expectations for the contractor, rather than the method of completing the work, 6 Introduction to Contract Maintenance the.private sector may
32、be able to perform the work with greater flexibility and innovation, thereby leading to a higher quality product at a lower overall cost. Issues in Contract Maintenance The expected benefits have drawn a number of transportation agencies to the use of contract maintenance. However, some agencies hav
33、e also expressed concerns about how these con- tracts will impact their operations. These concerns should be identified in advance and ad- dressed during the contracting process before they adversely affect the performance of the contracted work. Defined Roles and Expectations For many agencies, the
34、ir first experience with contract maintenance can be unsettling. While the agency may attempt to anticipate contingencies through their standard contracts, modifi- cations are usually required to address special circumstances. Problems can still arise, however, when the agency and contractor have di
35、fferent interpretations or expectations. The performance-based asset preservation project under way in the District of Columbia is an example where this was recognized as an issue early in the contract. The District of Columbia project is a fixed-price project with payments made on a monthly basis a
36、ccording to the terms of the contract. In the contractors proposal, a mobilization period had been established al- though there was no maintenance performed while the contractors work force was being put into place. Since the mobilization period signified the start of the contract, the contractors p
37、ayments began immediately. However, the District staff was resistant to making payments since no maintenance work was being performed. Together, the two parties were able to work out a compromise to address the situation. This project is further discussed in the case studies in Chapter 5. It is also
38、 important for agencies to understand the type of contract that is established with the contractor, the contents of the contract and the roles of each party under the contract. Specifi- cation-based contracts call for the agency to dictate the means and methods of accomplishing the work. Performance
39、-based contracts, on the other hand, measure the outcome of the work, transferring the responsibility for the means and methods to the contractor. Reasonable Goals Performance-based contracts require that an agency identify performance standards that must be achieved by the contractor over a multi-y
40、ear period. Agencies with asset management systems in place have an advantage in setting these standards because historical condition information provides a solid basis for establishing reasonable expectations for performance. Without this information, agencies subjectively establish performance sta
41、ndards that may be higher or lower than existing conditions. The established performance standards have a tre- 7 Introduction to Contract Maintenance mendous influence on the overall cost of the project to the agency because contractors estab- lish their budgets based on their assessment of the work
42、 required to maintain the condition levels over the duration of the contract. In addition, the performance standards have a signifi- cant impact on the work priorities established by the contractor. Agencies should take steps to ensure that the performance standards established as part of a contract
43、 maintenance project are, in fact, the standards that are desired for the various assets since they will be the focus of the contractors actions. Displacement of Agency Workers Within an agency, one of the largest concerns among maintenance staff is the fear of losing their jobs. In most instances,
44、maintenance workers have not been displaced as a result of these types of contracts. Instead, the workers have been re-focused to improve and maintain the assets that are not being addressed through contract maintenance. However, agencies also face the risk of losing their most skilled staff to the
45、contractors themselves, thereby also losing in-house capabilities that took years to develop. Loss of Information Some agencies that are contemplating the use of performance-based contract maintenance fear that once the contractor takes over responsibility for the maintenance of certain assets, the
46、agency will no longer have access to information that is important for building asset manage- ment databases, or tracking asset performance over time. This issue can be avoided by requir- ing the contractor to provide the information that the agency requires on a regular basis. However, the data sti
47、ll needs to be validated, either by an independent contractor or by the agency itself. Costs and Deterioration of Equipment There are hidden equipment costs that may accompany contract maintenance, especially if the contracted work supplants existing agency capabilities. For example, if an agency ow
48、ns equip- ment that it stops using, it will have to continue to depreciate the equipment, so that costs are incurred even though the equipment is not being put to work. Also, if the agency ever expects to resume using such equipment, it may be faced with high replacement costs. This is also the case
49、 if the agency does not have the equipment or has fully depreciated equipment; contract maintenance may simply defer an expense that will be much larger in the future. Contract Costs While agencies contracting for maintenance likely expect a cost savings, the savings may not occur in some cases. If the agency does not have the in-house capabilities for which they are contracting and there is no alternative to contracting for the service, the costs may be exces- sive. Costs may also increase if competition is not fostered or if long-term contracts el
