To have specialized technical assistance from the pre-project phase onwards allows more reliable decisions to be made before the layout, construction method or budget are finalized. In projects NO trench, This early intervention helps to validate the actual feasibility of the crossing, select the most appropriate technology, anticipate geotechnical and construction risks, and reduce costly changes in later design, bidding and construction phases.
When technical support comes in late, many decisions are already conditioned by hypotheses on layout, access, civil works or method that are not always sufficiently proven. On the other hand, early assistance makes it possible to align the terrain, geometry, pipeline, environment and execution strategy from the outset.
What improves when technical assistance enters the pre-project phase?
The choice of the method is no longer based on generic hypotheses.
One of the main advantages is that the selection between pipe ramming, microtunneling, horizontal directional drilling o Direct Pipe can be based on real criteria of terrain, layout, diameter, precision and environment. This avoids that the preliminary project advances with a solution apparently valid on plan, but not very robust from the execution point of view.
The feasibility of the layout is checked before it generates design inertias
In many projects, the preliminary layout is consolidated too early. Specialized technical assistance allows review of coverage, depth, radii, attack and reception points, interferences, environmental constraints and compatibility with the planned method before these decisions are taken to more advanced stages. This reduces the risk of later redesigns and improves the overall constructability of the project.
What risks it helps to reduce from the outset
Less geotechnical uncertainty and fewer blind decisions
The preliminary design phase is the right time to detect if there is a lack of geotechnics, if the route crosses sensitive areas or if there are hydrogeological constraints that may alter the method and the real cost. Good technical assistance does not replace the geotechnical campaign, but it does help to better define what information is needed to make sound decisions and not to bid on overly optimistic assumptions.
Less risk of incompatibility between civil works and excavation system
Another relevant advantage is that it allows coordinating from the beginning the relationship between layout, execution method, attack points, auxiliary works, accesses and work sequence. This is especially important when the project may require elements such as vertical wells, The project may be based on a number of factors, such as land treatment, or complex installations. If these conditioning factors are not studied in time, the preliminary project may move forward with a solution that later turns out to be more expensive, slower or more difficult to implement.
How it improves bidding and bid comparison
Allows to prepare a clearer technical basis for price requesting
When the pre-project incorporates specialized technical assistance, the bidding documentation usually arrives more defined. This improves the quality of the RFQ, reduces ambiguities in scope, and makes bids more technically and economically comparable. Instead of receiving proposals built on different assumptions, the client can compare solutions on a more homogeneous basis.
Reduces the risk of awarding an insufficiently robust solution
Early assistance also helps to better structure the award criteria, because it makes it possible to identify which aspects are really critical: method, performance, thrust, auxiliary civil works, access, risk treatment or control needs. This is especially valuable in infrastructure crossings, where poorly tuned bidding can lead to misleading comparisons or overly price-focused decisions.
What impact does it have on time, cost and project control?
Pre-project technical assistance does not always reduce the initial cost of the design, but it usually improves the overall cost of the decision. It helps to avoid late changes, re-staging, oversized solutions, poorly comparable bids and deviations resulting from insufficient definition. It also improves schedule forecasting because it helps to estimate more realistically the sequence of work, logistics and environmental constraints.
In addition, it provides an important advantage for purchasing, engineering or project management teams: it turns the preliminary project into a useful tool for decision making, not just a preliminary document to advance to the next phase.
When does this specialized support provide the most value?
Its value is particularly high when the crossing crosses urban environments, railroads, roads, waterways, in-service facilities, coastal areas or complex terrain; when the project requires demanding tolerances; when there are several possible technologies; or when the associated civil works may condition the final solution. In all these cases, incorporating technical assistance from the preliminary design stage helps to distinguish earlier between a solution that is simply possible and a solution that can actually be built.
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