Harrisburg Housing Authority and Lobar Associates Receive Award of Excellence in Job Order Contracting

Gordian, the leading provider of unrivaled insights, robust technology and comprehensive expertise for all phases of the building lifecycle, announces Harrisburg Housing Authority (HHA) as the 2022 Harry H. Mellon Award of Excellence in Job Order Contracting (JOC) recipient. The honor for exemplary use of JOC includes recognition of both HHA and local contractor Lobar Associates due to time savings, collaboration and community impact throughout the successful, complex $1.2M improvement project.

“It’s an honor to present the Award of Excellence in Job Order Contracting to Harrisburg Housing Authority and Lobar Associates for their exceptional work,” said Kris Gorriarán, President of Gordian. “This project impacted hundreds of residents over multiple community complexes in the Harrisburg area. The collaboration between Harrisburg Housing Authority, Lobar Associates and Gordian truly exemplified Job Order Contracting excellence.”

JOC is an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) construction delivery method that allows many projects to be completed through a single, competitively awarded contract. After almost two years of pandemic restrictions and lockdowns, HHA needed to complete a sizable exterior improvement checklist quickly with limited staff. HHA opted to access a Gordian Job Order Contract through the Keystone Purchasing Network (KPN), a Pennsylvania co-op. Work began in less than two months because the KPN JOC program provides local contractors, like Lobar, who are available to start work immediately and have met all Pennsylvania competitive bidding requirements.

Work was completed over several phases and focused on three communities’ public spaces and building exteriors, as well as a few other scattered sites. This project impacted hundreds of residents over multiple community complexes in the Harrisburg area. Serious improvements were made across three communities comprised of 1,100+ apartments and 80 houses around the city. General upgrades included tree removal, fence and railing repairs, concrete walkway replacements and the renovation of eight playgrounds. The buildings themselves needed attention as well. Lobar used Gordian’s JOC to repair and replace porches, restore siding and soffit and fix up 20-30 entrances per campus.

Their residents now have better maintained homes, nurturing environments where they can raise their children, make memories and thrive. Housing residents beamed over the improvements to the playgrounds, which provide a more welcoming and modern environment where their kids can be kids. Photos of the upgrades and additional details can be found on Gordian’s website here.

Click here to see photos of the upgrades and read additional details about the project.

In addition to awarding HHA and Lobar Associates the Award of Excellence, a panel of experts named the following two Award of Merit Winners for demonstration of JOC best practices, innovation, complexity, special circumstances, overall time and cost savings and community impact:

Award of Merit — Bay of Pigs Memorial Park Renovation

Agency: City of Miami

Contractor: Unitech Builders Corp

During 1960 and early 1961, America’s Central Intelligence Agency recruited, trained and equipped more than 1,500 Cuban exiles, who would become known as the 2506 Brigade, to lead a mission to free Cuba from the repressive communist dictatorship of Fidel Castro in an invasion at the Bay of Pigs. Despite the invasion’s unsuccessful outcome, the 2506 Brigade’s unwavering dedication and valor deserve our utmost respect and admiration.

To commemorate their bravery, the City of Miami created a dynamic space nestled in the Flagami neighborhood called the Bay of Pigs Memorial Park. The park offers a playground for families to enjoy alongside a monument commemorating the Bay of Pigs Invasion. This $1.2 million renovation project was completed successfully and efficiently thanks to the City of Miami’s Gordian JOC program, which is known for its time-saving abilities and collaborative approach. The project, which required a long process of acquiring land and funding, was able to begin construction immediately thanks to the JOC program.

The new park features a stunning monument honoring the brave Cubans who participated in the Bay of Pigs Invasion, as well as new outdoor fitness equipment, a children’s playground, a walking path, a drinking fountain, lighting, on-street parking, drainage and sidewalk improvements and new landscaping. These improvements have transformed the park into a green, enjoyable outdoor space for the community and have had a significant positive impact on the local area.

Award of Merit — Atlanta Farmers Market – Building J Structural Design and Repair

Agency: Georgia Department of Agriculture

Contractor: Place Services

During a roof replacement inspection at the Atlanta State Farmers Market, a failure in the CMU block supporting building J’s roof was pointed out by a project manager from Place Services. An investigation was initiated to assess the extent of the damage to the structure. It was discovered that the entire south wall, which was built in 1958, was past its life and deteriorating. JOC was utilized to safely and efficiently complete this $402k emergency renovation project due to the high level of collaboration necessary to ensure safety and swift action. The project scope involved laboratory testing, structural engineering, restoration of cracked columns and beams, installation of new roof supporting shoring in the primary work area, reinforcing the CMU and securing brick veneer.

With nearly 100 people frequenting the building daily, the swift action of Georgia’s Department of Agriculture and Place Services through the use of Gordian’s JOC program not only saved money but mitigated the great risk to building occupants.

About the Awards

Gordian’s Job Order Contracting Awards is an annual award program recognizing innovative uses of Job Order Contracting (JOC). Judging is conducted by a panel of JOC experts. Submissions are judged on their adherence to JOC best practices, innovation, complexity, special circumstances and overall time and cost savings. In order to be eligible, projects had to be completed during 2022, and nominations are submitted by agency owners, contractors or Gordian Account Managers.​ The program’s highest honor, The Harry H. Mellon Award of Excellence in Job Order Contracting, is named for Harry H. Mellon, the creator of JOC and founder of Gordian.

About Gordian

Gordian (www.gordian.com) is the leading provider of Building Intelligence™ Solutions, delivering unrivaled insights, robust technology and comprehensive expertise that fuel customers’ success during every phase of the building lifecycle. Gordian created Job Order Contracting (JOC) and the industry standard RSMeans Data. Gordian empowers organizations to optimize capital investments, improve project performance and minimize long-term operating expenses.