GUEST EDITORIAL T Identifying and Communicating Potential Risks in Highway Works Our outreach efforts have here are interesting articles in this issue of Deep Foundations that discuss a topic at the forefront of attention for the geotechnical community. Risk is a broad topic with application throughout the discipline because of the need to maintain and address an aging geotechnical asset collection and to implement risk man- agement processes to focus resources more efficiently. While most of the discussions in the literature typically focus on high level, big picture needs for addressing risk, I want to talk about risk specifically as it relates to communication and decision making in routine project development. When geotechnical engineers discuss risk, we typically do so within the scope of geotechnical projects or within the geotechnical aspects of projects. Often, the geotechnical aspects are a small portion of any transportation project, and risk registers for most projects — especially major and complex ones — rarely list geotechnical issues as posing a significant technical risk to project development. Therefore, it is important to consider the influence of geotechnical solutions for mitigating risk throughout all phases of project delivery. One thing that is clear with respect to project development is that a significant number of construction claims in highway works are directly related to geotechnical issues. To address this problem, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) National Geotechnical Team (NGT) has been working to highlight the importance of improved communication between geotechnical engineers and other roles in project delivery. The target audience of the outreach and education effort is personnel with responsibility in project development that are not subject matter experts in geotechnical engineering. The objective of the effort is to demonstrate the value of geotechnical engineering throughout all phases of project development and delivery. investigated ways of com- municating value and better informed decision making at different stages of project development, where it may not be obvious that geotechnical issues or solutions should be considered as potential strategies for risk mitigation. Moreover, we talk about this not in terms of risk identification and risk management, but in terms of how we place constraints on projects in very early phases of project development. We define constraints as limitations or restrictions on activities that can affect both project delivery and performance, where the constraints are typically project specific and can pose risks to the suc- cessful completion and performance of a project. Engineers are familiar AUTHOR: Silas C Nichols, P.E. Federal Highway Administration as right-of-way limits, geometry, utilities and maintenance of traffic issues; environmental restrictions; and contracting mechanisms. Constraints may result in risks to project with typical geotechnical constraints that may be realized very early in development, and that could pose a risk to the schedule or budget on any given project. Possible constraints include difficult or misunderstood subsurface conditions, including archaeological remains, contaminated groundwater, obstructions and buried utilities; use of proprietary products; allowable deforma- tions; and noise and vibrations due to construction equipment. What is often overlooked by personnel involved in the early phases of project development are general constraints that may not be explicitly connected to geotechnical aspects, but certainly can be addressed with geotechnical solutions. Key general constraints might include project schedule; budget and cost; project conditions, such One thing that is clear with respect to project development is that a significant number of construction claims in highway works are directly related to geotechnical issues. delivery, since the constraints, generally, are realized very early in project development and pr ior to s igni f icant involvement from geo- technical engineering expertise. If the potential impact of these constraints is not addressed during the very early stages of development, then geo- technical engineers are forced to develop sol- utions for unforeseen problems wi thin the confines of a set budget and schedule. This pro- cess introduces risk into project development that may lead to inap- propriate solutions, cost overruns and schedule delays. On complex or major projects, or as part of innovative contracting mech- anisms, many typical geotechnical constraints may be realized, and many of the potential risks associated with them may be identified and mitigated before they adversely impact the project. In these cases, the complexity of the project’s geotechnical aspects or the costs associated with potential geotechnical risks can be easily recognized by all involved. However, within the general project constraints and with regard to potential risks to project delivery, geotechnical solutions are oftentimes not considered, which could result in better informed decision making. DEEP FOUNDATIONS • JAN/FEB 2018 • 95
