One way to reduce construction time, and clear up detours and delays as quickly as possible, is to focus on a common hold-up in road reconstruction: getting utility companies to work on your project when you need them to.

The key is to recognize and accommodate how utility companies budget, schedule, and relocate their facilities. With this knowledge, you could shave months off of your construction schedule. This will please everyone, particularly motorists who have little tolerances fordelays, detours, and disruptions.

Follow the money: To start off on the right foot, make sure thatthe utility company knows about your project and has budgeted for the utility work you need. Find out when their budget process begins and get  your project in the pipeline at least six months before their fiscal year ends. Be proactive! While utilities do a great job incoordinating with agencies on upcoming projects, don’t take their silence to mean they know about yours. Pick up the phone and make sureyour project gets programmed.

Some utility companies still maintain a contingency fund to address unexpected relocations. Others do not. This means that some utilities just cannot fit in unforeseen utility work. If you fail to get your project on their to-do list, it could be delayed simply because there is no money to do the work.

Get the process started: Send your contact the design plans as soon as there is enough meaningful detail to allow them to prepare an estimate and assign a project manager. Once a designer is assigned, make their life easy. Give them plans in a CADD format they can easily use. Find out how frequently they need to hear from you, then send them timely updates. If utilizing e-mail for an important transmittal, follow-up with a phone call to make sure they received it.

Utility companies generally insist on having preliminary plans in hand before they start their review process. For fast track, high-priority projects, however, they may accept concept plans as the basis upon which to work up a budget. Using these, they can visit the site, estimate the work required, and put the project in the pipeline.

Remember: Your failure to provide utility companies with timely information is your fault, not theirs and could significantly affect your construction schedule.

Use Partnering Agreements: Utility companies are receptive to the partnering concept, but will not take the lead in it. This means that an agency or municipality must take the time and responsibility for preparing the agreement and making it work. Common components include get-start and periodic coordination meetings; contract documents that detail how utility relocations will be coordinated with those of the contractor; and an agreement as to how the contractor and the utility company will share labor and equipment, for example, and who will pay for what items.

On a recent project, a partnering agreement required utility engineers to have an advance opportunity to comment on the Maintenance and Protection of Traffic (MPT) plans. The sequence of construction was flip-flopped to better accommodate the utility’s relocation needs. This allowed the contractor and the utility company to work in the right of way at the same time, reducing the time of construction by several months and pleasing businesses and the traveling public.

Avoid Scope Creep: Utility companies use the preliminary plans that you give them to scope out their work. If curb and right of way lines move, even by a foot, they are often forced to relocate above and below ground utilities for which they had not scheduled or budgeted. When water and sewer upgrades are added to a project, utilities are forced to address conflicts with individual gas, electric, phone, and data connections, often belatedly. Did you add street lighting at the last minute? Don’t forget to tell the utility company. Otherwise, the contractor will install poles that have no power. To gain cooperation and keep your project on track, try to anticipate these scenarios and work with your contact to address them.

Finally, if you want to develop and maintain a good relationship with your utilities, be professional. To get their cooperation, document the importance of the project, prove that funds are committed to completing it, and get it on the schedule. Don’t try to bump someone else’s project, especially if you were the one responsible for budget, schedule, and scope creep problems. Give the utilities a comfortable schedule and work with them to complete the project in a timely manner. They appreciate professionalism and a commitment to working with them as a team member.

Why Partner with Utilities?

Partnering can be a valuable tool in expediting construction. With partnering, a utility company could agree to perform their gas and electric relocations when the contractor is doing their water and sewer work. This allows both to work in the right of way at the same time, using one MPT set up. The parties agree in advance what portion of the MPT costs each will pay.

With a partnering agreement, a contractor could agree to excavate the trenches and dispose of any contaminated soils that may be found. The utility company might backfill the trenches and take responsibility for the quality of the compacted excavation. The owner could agree to provide the inspection for both operations. Everyone wins.