Do Design & Construct contracts for infrastructure projects stimulate innovation? The case of the Dutch high speed railway

Abstract

The key question addressed in this paper is: do Design & Construct (D&C) contracts for infrastructure projects stimulate innovation? Following an overview of the goals and background for adopting D&C contracts, a case study is presented: the tendering procedure for the High Speed Railway link between Amsterdam and the Belgian–Dutch border. There was a Design & Build, Finance & Maintain contracting procedure for the superstructure (infraprovider; 25 years), a contracting procedure for the transport services (15 years) and a D&C contracting procedure for five segments of the substructure (mainly civil engineering). In particular the experiences of the D&C contract for the substructure have been documented in a recent report by the Dutch Parliamentary Commission on Infrastructure Projects and in this paper. The conclusion overall is that everything that could go wrong, went wrong. These failures are demonstrated and explained. A number of lessons can be learned, both for the Netherlands and the international community. Conditions for a proper D&C approach are formulated. Only when these conditions are met can D&C improve the price–quality ratio of infrastructure projects and boost dynamics and innovation in the construction industry.