N241: awarded for cooperation

The A.C. de Graafweg (N241) is an important east-west connection in the province of North Holland, but is also in the top 10 of most unsafe roads. To improve traffic safety, the 12-kilometer stretch is now being redesigned. This will also require "making way" for PWN's drinking water transport pipeline next to the road. The size and the expected complex phasing puzzle prompted both the province and the drinking water company to put their heads together to find a solution.
stabbing and collectively challenging the market. And in a very special way, too.

In making the plans for the redesign of the A.C. de Graafweg, we were inspired by the Market Vision, begins Sjoerd van Houten, program manager at the Province of North Holland. "The starting point of Market Vision is to realize projects with less disruption, at a fair price and in a sustainable way. We traveled all over the country looking at projects with the major inspiration being Rijkswaterstaat's project DOEN, actually a concrete implementation of Market Vision. In 2017, a team was then formed from the province and we started preparations, such as writing a project plan and contacting an engineering firm."

Strong together

Because of the scope of the project, it soon became apparent that it was going to be quite complex, says Rob Bloemsma, N241 project manager for the Province of North Holland. "The entire road structure has to be renewed, the drinking water transport pipeline has to be moved and there is no underlying road network over which traffic can be diverted. So we were facing a challenge. That was the reason we opted for a 'best value procurement' as early as the recruitment of the engineering firm. We never actually do that. Sweco came out on top. Together we started the preparations, drafting the provincial land use plan, land acquisition, and so on. At one point we spent three days wrestling with the enormous amount of cables and pipes in the route next to the road. This also involved Stef Goossens, project manager of PWN. Bending over all the drawings, we really only came to one conclusion: the phasing is so complex that it would be better to do it together."

Outside the comfort zone

After all plans, ideas and the provincial incorporation plan were approved and published, the two principals jointly marketed the project. "We held a nationwide market consultation, to which six contractors responded," Bloemsma said. "Three of them came up with the proposal to tender on a collaborative basis, making risks negotiable and shareable. That prompted us to once again go out and investigate around the country. We were triggered and inspired by the HWBP project Stadsdijken Zwolle. A project primarily focused on collaboration and with open accounting. We borrowed that idea, as it were, and deployed it for the redesign of the A.C. de Graafweg as well as the relocation of the drinking water transport pipeline. So the project was awarded solely on the basis of cooperation. Quite exciting for the market parties, because they had to step outside their comfort zone. That turned out to be unfounded, because we were absolutely impressed by the quality that was offered. After a fairly tough tender process, Boskalis eventually rolled out as the best."

Ahead of schedule

After an extensive preliminary process, there is now a very good implementation agreement. "Together with the construction team, we spent about 14 months getting to the bottom of the project and agreeing with each other. A period that we desperately needed," Bloemsma observes. Theo de Veer, team manager of group transport pipelines at PWN, agrees, saying, "This is the first construction team project for PWN together with the province of North Holland. This form of work allows us to better represent our interests to the province. On the one hand, we tried to preserve as much of the existing pipeline as possible and, where this was not possible, we contributed ideas on how the pipeline could be moved as efficiently as possible. At a location that we can easily access for future management and maintenance, at a sufficient distance from other cables and pipelines." Goossens adds: "The advantage of this cooperation is also that our work is included in Boskalis' planning. That saves us a lot of consultations, let alone any bottlenecks in execution. It benefits coordination." And this is also apparent in practice, because Van Baarsen Buisleidingen, which is taking on the pipeline relocation on behalf of Boskalis, is already two months ahead of schedule. Unlike the province, which operates more in the background during execution, PWN is emphatically present on the project and also provides the management supplies. "There is always a supervisor walking around outside," says Goossens. "Not so much to check on the contractor, but mainly to provide assistance, for example if a pipeline needs to be taken out of service. Because in addition to the drinking water transmission line, the necessary distribution lines are also being adjusted and water meter wells relocated."

All risks are controlled and allocated in the construction team agreement, except force majeure. As a result, the project will be realized without VTWs. "The stakeholders were extensively involved in the design process, the four municipalities were on board, the water board and participation group from residents. There were discussions that you don't have with each other in a traditional contract form. That is paying off. The first omens are very positive. The product is good and the environment is involved. You can also see that with the expropriation, all the land has been acquired amicably. Working together and daring to ask each other critical questions is definitely the strength of this project. In all areas and at all levels."