Template revised January 10, 2019.
COMMISSION
AGENDA MEMORANDUM
Item No.
8l
ACTION ITEM
Date of Meeting
November 14, 2023
DATE : October 26, 2023
TO: Stephen P. Metruck, Executive Director
FROM: Karen Goon, Deputy Executive Director
Krista Sadler, Technology Delivery Director
SUBJECT: Specification Document Management System (C801343)
Amount of this project request:
$600,000
Total estimated project cost:
$600,000
Ten-year license and maintenance agreement:
$2,300,000
ACTION REQUESTED
Request Commission authorization for the Executive Director to 1) proceed with the Specification
Document Management System project; 2) execute contract(s) for software and implementation
services; 3) use Port staff for implementation and 4) execute a contract for up to ten years for
software license, service and maintenance fees estimated at $2,300,000. The amount requested
for project implementation under this authorization is $600,000.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this authorization request is to competitively procure and implement a
Specification Document Management (SDM) software system to support the management of
construction specification document templates and project-specific specifications. Central
Procurement Office (CPO) and Engineering manage the Construction Guide Specification
templates (templates), which include contracting and procurement documents, general
requirements for construction, and technical specifications. These templates are then used by
CPO, Engineering, Port Construction Services (PCS), Consultants, and other departments to
develop construction project-specific specifications (project manuals) that are used to bid out
and ultimately are integrated into the contracts, for roughly 50 construction projects annually.
These projects range in price from $300,000 to $1,000,000,000. A software solution will improve
the management of the templates and development and management of project manuals,
providing a much more efficient and higher quality process.
CPO, Engineering, PCS, and Information & Communications Technology (ICT) will be involved in
this project estimated at $600,000. Software-as-a-service subscription fees and maintenance
costs are estimated at $175,000 annually. Future recurring license costs will be budgeted and by
CPO, Engineering and PCS.
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. 8l Page 2 of 4
Meeting Date: November 14, 2023
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
JUSTIFICATION
The Port of Seattle issues around 50 highly complex construction contracts each year. The current
labor-intensive process involves editing hundreds of Word documents in order to develop the
Project Manual which is made up of contract documents, the construction general requirements,
and design specifications. There are approximately 600 unique templates that are updated often
via a manual time-consuming process. For example, one recent change from the FAA resulted in
multiple templates being updated and took one staff member 8 hours. The Port staff is looking
to improve the process for management and updates of the specification templates as well as
management and development of project manuals. Some specific benefits of the SDM software
include:
(1) Efficiency with automated process to better accommodate increase in projects associated
with the upcoming $5.5B Capital Improvement Program.
(2) Improve accuracy of the design and reduce possibility of change orders or inaccurate bid
prices due to conflicting, outdated, or inaccurate information.
(3) Improve efficiencies and speed in the development of the Project Manual/bid documents.
(4) Improve communications between Port and Contractors by having Port information
updated in one place.
An estimate of the Port efficiency gains in time saved managing the Port’s global specifications
and project manual development ranges from $53,000 to $300,000 annually. This doesn’t include
reductions in the number of addenda issued due to errors or the number of change orders issued
due to errors.
Diversity in Contracting
Project staff will work with the Diversity in Contracting Department to determine if a direct
women-and-minority-owned business enterprise (WMBE) aspirational goal should be assigned.
DETAILS
Scope of Work
(1) Competitively procure and implement new SDM software system to support the
management of construction specification document templates and project
specifications.
(2) Form an SDM system governance team to manage configuration changes, additions and
improvements to the software.
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. 8l Page 3 of 4
Meeting Date: November 14, 2023
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
Schedule
Activity
Commission authorization
Procurement complete
In-use date
Cost Breakdown
This Request
Total Project
Software and vendor services
$400,000
$400,000
Port labor
$200,000
$200,000
Total
$600,000
$600,000
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED
Alternative 1 – Postpone procurement and implementation of SDM software.
Cost Implications: $0
Pros:
(1) Capital and operating dollars are available for other projects.
(2) Port staff don’t need to tackle the business process changes.
Cons:
(1) Port staff continue with inefficient and error-prone time-consuming manual contracting
processes, which fail to meet business demands and increasing contracting
requirements.
(2) Does not support the Port’s Century Agenda goal to “be a highly effective public
agency.”
This is not the recommended alternative.
Alternative 2 – Procure SDM software and vendor implementation services.
Cost Implications: $600,000
Pros:
(1) Provides software to eliminate manual tasks, automate workflows and improve
efficiencies in the bid and contracting process for construction projects.
(2) Improves collaboration with design and construction contractors.
(3) Provides improved mechanism to enforce use of correct specifications and consistency
across Port contracts.
Cons:
(1) Capital and operating dollars aren’t available for other projects.
(2) Business departments will need to tackle several change management challenges and
collaborate closely across multiple departments.
COMMISSION AGENDA – Action Item No. 8l Page 4 of 4
Meeting Date: November 14, 2023
Template revised June 27, 2019 (Diversity in Contracting).
(3) Requires upfront staff time to properly configure the software, which will encourage
timely user adoption.
This is the recommended alternative.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Cost Estimate/Authorization Summary
Capital
Expense
Total
COST ESTIMATE
Original estimate
$600,000
$0
$600,000
AUTHORIZATION
Previous authorizations
$0
$0
$0
Current request for authorization
$600,000
$0
$600,000
Total authorizations, including this request
$600,000
$0
$600,000
Remaining amount to be authorized
$0
$0
$0
Annual Budget Status and Source of Funds
This project was included in the 2023 – 2027 capital budget and plan of finance for $600,000. The
project will be funded 81.3% Airport Development Fund and 18.7% General Fund.
Financial Analysis and Summary
Project cost for analysis
$600,000
Business Unit (BU)
Technology
Effect on business performance
(NOI after depreciation)
NOI after depreciation will increase due to inclusion of capital
(and operating) costs in airline rate base.
IRR/NPV (if relevant)
N/A
CPE Impact
Less than $0.01 in 2026
Future Revenues and Expenses (Total cost of ownership)
Annual license and maintenance costs estimated at $175,000 will be budgeted in the CPO,
Engineering and PCS operating budgets.
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST
None
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS
None