# Layton innovates project delivery process to provide exceptional outcomes for new client

### “We brought on 78% of the trades at the Conceptual phase, and we had 90% of the job under contract at the end of DDs. With this high level of cost certainty, the Owner got early project funding.”

Michael Blasingim

Director of IPD and Design Build, Layton Construction Company

## Challenge: Meet an aggressive hospital budget while improving **the patient experience**

A hospital in Montana had served its community well for 100+ years, but healthcare facilities (and healthcare itself) had changed radically in that time. It was time to build a new state-of-the-art facility to better meet the needs of the growing community, now and for the next 50+ years. In addition to providing the community with a new state-of-the-art facility, the Owner was committed to delivering the project following the tenets of Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) and [Target Value Design (TVD)](/content/news/target-value-design-for-the-uninitiated/index.html) methodologies. Layton Construction and HDR quickly mobilized with a clear, two-part mission:

**1\. Create a revolutionary and patient-centric hospital design**  
**2\. Meet an aggressive budget**

While the Owner’s most recent hospital project was “very much schedule driven, cost is the main priority on this project,” says Sr. Estimator Brandon Babin. Tasked with reducing costs, the Layton team would need to “evaluate everything to arrive at the best possible cost solution,” Babin explains. But such a rigorous effort could quickly get the project off track, so Layton decided to hyper-streamline the process for evaluating, making, and tracking decisions. To that end, the team deployed Join– proven preconstruction software.

**Layton Construction Company**  
Since 1953, Layton Construction has been perfecting our craft, growing nationwide, and improving the built world by providing predictability in an industry that’s anything but predictable. We also joined the STO Building Group in 2019—expanding our reach, resources, and portfolio. Throughout it all, we’ve constructed with integrity.

**No matter where you are or who you’re working with, you get the same Layton every time.**

## Solution: Maximize TVD methodologies to balance budget and **achieve project outcomes**

### Create a high-performing team built around a clear vision

With the decision made to use Join preconstruction software, the Layton team quickly onboarded and trained the existing project team on the collaborative, cloud-based platform. They opened up the platform to anyone who showed an interest, and adoption happened quickly thereafter; within three months the entire team was onboarded (69 users from 11 different companies in the platform). This included Layton, HDR, the Owner, and multiple trades. “When someone expressed an interest, Brandon and I would show them how to use Join in the Big Room,” says Director of IPD and Design Build Michael Blasingim, “and it was like literally five minutes worth of training. It’s so quick and easy to use.”

### “Our mission was to maximize the project budget without negatively impacting – or, better yet, improving – the patient experience.”

Brandon Babin

Senior Estimator, Layton

“While not contractually an IPD project, our process is very similar,” says Babin. “We are employing IPD principles on the project, including operating with the architect and the TVD Cluster Groups in a Big Room environment to optimize project outcomes.”

To ensure the collaborative team was 100% clear on the project vision and how to get there, Layton leadership and the Owner “really took the time to make sure everyone was on the same page,” Babin adds. “We had 7 guiding principles: 1) patient experience, 2) end-user input, 3) flexibility, 4) fiscal responsibility, 5) efficiency, 6) safety and security, and 7) sustainability. Our mission was to maximize the project budget without negatively impacting – or, better yet, improving – the patient experience. If something reduced cost but potentially compromised another guiding principle, it had to go all the way up the chain for others to weigh in on the decision.”

### Onboard trades at Conceptual Design

Layton fully committed to a key tenet of Integrated Project Delivery: earlier builder participation. IPD benefits can only be fully realized when you bring together the designers and builders early enough to synergistically optimize the building. Some project teams who experiment with IPD only tip-toe into the shallow end of the pool and bring in their MEP subcontractors during mid-to-late Conceptual Design or, worse, in the Design Development phase. By contrast, Layton dove head-first into the deep end of the pool, onboarding over 78% of the trades (by cost volume) during the conceptual phase. This allowed early design assumptions to be quickly vetted with subcontractors, their vendors, and, in some cases, even the manufacturer. In doing so, Layton effectively integrated their entire supply chain to harness the vast knowledge and superior expertise of these individuals and lean into the project’s goals.

### Build trust among project stakeholders

Because of the intensive collaboration on the project, and the transparent and open decision-making process the team enjoyed, there was a heightened level of trust and communication among the project’s stakeholders–including the Layton team, the architect, the major trades, and the Owner.

The Owner, new to Join, is enthusiastic. “They love it” says Babin. “They really enjoyed being able to see the Join dashboard. They could easily see the big picture; how the space above the budget line represents risks; the space below the budget line represents opportunities. We accepted up to 40% of the opportunities.”

## Impact: Achieved target budget and **increased value**

The Layton team met and exceeded its target budget, reducing the overall construction costs on the project by **8 percent**.

### Convinced key client about the benefits of IPD/TVD for future projects

The team has shown the Owner, new to IPD/TVD, that the process actually reduces risk and provides greater predictability. “The Owner’s leadership team was really put at ease when approving the GMP at the DD level,” says Blasingim. “They understood that 90% of the project cost was under contract and our drawings were fully coordinate, which gave them a predictable outcome.

### Developed a successful–and repeatable–TVD onboarding playbook for STOBG teams

Layton is a part of STO Building Group (STOBG), a family of 14 construction companies that share construction resources like bonding, trade relationships, real-time data, and lessons learned. Company leadership, impressed with Layton’s use of TVD + Join on the Montana hospital project, has shared the team’s TVD onboarding playbook and best practices with other companies within the STOBG portfolio.

The use of TVD + Join has enabled the Layton project team to achieve remarkable results on the project. To demonstrate his own team’s hyper-effectiveness as a result of TVD + Join, Blasingim opens the Join platform on his computer and navigates to the project’s cost trendline. He points out the number of items the team has proposed, accepted, rejected, or has pending. “This just speaks for itself,” he says. “Look at that trendline; it doesn’t get any better than that. This Join tool has been great for us on our large projects; just being able to visualize compared to Excel. It’s just been invaluable.”