Nearly 700 federal Owners and industry professionals gathered in Reston, Virginia, this week for DBIA’s largest Federal Design-Build Symposium yet. The record attendance reflected mounting pressure on federal agencies to deliver increasingly complex projects with constrained resources.
The Symposium also arrived at a pivotal moment for design-build in the federal sector. The Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act authorized Progressive Design-Build (PDB) for military construction projects, expanding the federal project delivery toolkit and creating an immediate need for practical implementation guidance. Across the federal landscape, Owners and industry partners are seeking earlier, more effective ways to guide projects from planning through delivery.
The Federal Design-Build Symposium brought them together to examine those opportunities, learn from federal project experience and work through the challenges ahead.
Building Federal Design-Build Readiness
Successful federal design-build begins with prepared Owners and acquisition strategies that align teams around clear project goals. Symposium sessions explored how agencies can strengthen those foundations across design-build projects while preparing military Owners to use their new PDB authority.
The general session “Design-Build: The Next Frontier” considered how military agencies can implement PDB and how civilian agencies can strengthen design-build delivery through Qualifications-Based Selection within the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Both approaches benefit from early collaboration and disciplined decision-making.
One session focused specifically on off-ramps, the contractual process for ending the relationship between an Owner and design-builder before the project advances to its next phase. Presenters shared lessons from projects that had exercised an off-ramp and explored how careful contract planning and shared expectations can make an off-ramp less likely and the transition more manageable when one becomes necessary.
The discussion offered candid, experience-based guidance on one of PDB’s most complicated and compelling questions.
Other discussions addressed Owner readiness, phased funding, early budget transparency and the distinct role of validation in PDB.
Lessons From Federal Projects and Teams
Federal agencies and project teams brought these principles to life through active and completed projects.
Design-Build Done Right® supported rapid delivery of a facility developed in response to the threat of New World screwworm, a parasite with potentially devastating consequences for the nation’s cattle industry. Other sessions examined the delivery of a major Department of Veterans Affairs project and the FBI’s High-Performance Training Center in Quantico, Virginia. Together, the projects demonstrated how early alignment and consistent application of best practices support federal missions.
Industry Day Agency Sessions looked ahead to upcoming capital programs and design-build opportunities. Federal Owners spoke directly with industry about procurement requirements and project expectations, helping both sides develop a clearer understanding of agency goals and market capacity before solicitations are released.
Change and resilience expert and New York Times bestselling author Kim Becking focused on the people responsible for leading that work. Her keynote explored how leaders can sustain momentum as their organizations navigate uncertainty and change, a timely message for federal Owners and project teams adapting to an evolving delivery landscape.
The closing session returned to questions raised throughout the tracks and general sessions. Federal design-build leaders worked through attendee questions and shared practical guidance participants could bring back to their agencies and organizations.
A Growing Federal Design-Build Community
This year’s attendance included representatives from across the federal market, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force Civil Engineer Center. Civilian perspectives included the General Services Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation and Department of Veterans Affairs, among others.
The breadth of participation showed how widely the need for better federal project delivery is being felt. It also demonstrated the value of bringing Owners and industry together to build the shared understanding successful design-build projects require.
DBIA thanks every attendee, presenter and sponsor who made the 2026 Federal Design-Build Symposium its largest yet. Details about the 2027 event will be announced soon.
You can explore projects from the 2026 Federal Design-Build Symposium sponsors.
Find more photos from the event in the DBIA photo album.
