University of Iowa Construction Projects

For those of you who did not attend one of MBI’s Education Days last month, you may not be fully up to speed on upcoming construction projects at the University of Iowa.

We all know the devastating impact the flood of 2008 had on the Iowa City campus, but did you know:

• 22 major buildings were affected and 3 of them were lost.
• 2.5 million square feet had to be at least temporarily closed.
• The total economic impact of the flood has been estimated at $900 million.

Though planned construction at the University is not a silver bullet for all that ails the state’s construction industry, there will certainly be some good opportunities for contractors. University planners have indicated that they wish to be good partners with the construction industry. Their intent is to raise the bar when it comes to selecting contractors who produce quality, on-time results.

Contractors should be prepared to sell themselves. Some of the attributes that University officials will be considering are:

• Core values
• Owner satisfaction
• Self-performance capabilities
• Scheduling procedures
• Experience

Contractors must be able to differentiate themselves from the competition in more ways than just competitive bidding. For example, a general contractor may wish to include major subcontractors when making a presentation. If there is a history of successful collaboration among a specific group of contractors, it will be viewed as a positive.

Not all the work will consist of multi-million dollar projects. A University spokesman specifically mentioned a $327,000 project that was recently awarded to a contractor who was the sole bidder.

Our takeaway from the MBI presentation is that there will be opportunities for contractors of all sizes. For more information, visit the website for University of Iowa Facilities Management at: www.facilities.uiowa.edu/about/welcome.html.