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Lean Design & Delivery · LCI-Aligned Training

Build to Budget.

Not Budget
What’s Been Built.

Target Value Design (TVD) is the Lean methodology that aligns every design decision with your owner’s cost target — from concept through construction documents. Stop value-engineering out quality at the end. Build it right from the start.

Design to Budget
Set-Based Design
Continuous Estimating
Value-Aligned Decisions
Target Value Design Training Course ➞
Learn More 🠋
TVD Cost Performance Active
Client Target Cost €18.5M Established at project inception · Design locked to this
Traditional Approach — Outturn Cost +15% over
Design first → value engineering → budget overrun
TVD Approach — Outturn Cost -3% under target
Design to budget → continuous estimating → cost certainty
TVD Client Value Delivered 100% of brief
All client priorities achieved within budget
🎯
Target first. Cost is a design input, not an output.
🤝
Collaborate early. All stakeholders aligned from day one.
🔄
Continuous estimating. Cost feedback at every design decision.
TVD Certified LCI-Registered EI Funded
97% Budget adherence target
↑ 20% Typical cost improvement
IPD Delivery model aligned
LCI Registered trainer

The Lean Design Methodology That Ends Budget Overruns

Target Value Design (TVD) is a proactive lean design and delivery approach that fundamentally changes the relationship between design and cost in construction. Rather than designing a project and then pricing what has been designed — a process that routinely results in painful late-stage value engineering and scope reduction — TVD begins with the client’s target cost and makes every design decision within that constraint.

In TVD, the target cost is not a budget to be gradually filled. It is a design input — a creative constraint that drives innovation, forces prioritisation of what the client truly values, and eliminates the waste of designing something that can never be built within budget.

“TVD treats the budget as a design constraint — the same way gravity constrains architecture. The cost target isn’t an obstacle; it’s the creative brief.”

TVD works within Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), Design-Build, and Design-Assist models — bringing owners, architects, engineers, and contractors together in collaborative clusters where design decisions are made in real time with continuous cost feedback.

Key TVD Concepts
Allowable Cost — the owner-set cost target that constrains design decisions
Expected Cost — the team's current estimate of the design's cost
Set-Based Design — exploring multiple design alternatives simultaneously before converging
Choosing by Advantages (CBA) — structured decision-making to select the best design option
Cluster Groups — small cross-discipline teams that solve specific system design challenges
Cost-to-Capacity — benchmarking against comparable facilities to validate targets
Works Alongside
Integrated Project Delivery (IPD)
Last Planner® System
BIM & Virtual Design Construction
Design-Build & CM at Risk
Pull Planning & Phase Scheduling

TVD is typically deployed within Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) contracts, though its principles can be applied to any project delivery method. Lean Touch Solutions has successfully facilitated TVD on Design-Build, CM at Risk, and traditional GC-led projects.

Traditional Design Delivery vs. Target Value Design

This isn't just a process difference — it's a fundamentally different philosophy about who owns the budget, when cost decisions are made, and how value is created for the project owner.

✕ Traditional Design–Bid–Build Design first, discover costs later ✓ Target Value Design Cost target drives design from Day 1
⚡ Cost discovered at end of design; redesign is expensive and rushed
✓ Allowable cost established before design begins; budget is the brief
⚡ Siloed design disciplines hand work over in sequence
✓ Cross-discipline cluster groups work concurrently on interdependent systems
⚡ One design alternative is developed, estimated, and found to be over budget
✓ Set-Based Design explores multiple alternatives before committing resources
⚡ Value Engineering strips quality to hit budget at the 11th hour
✓ Value is maximised through innovation within the target, not subtracted at the end
⚡ Trade contractors excluded from design; their expertise is wasted
✓ Key trade partners involved early; constructability and cost intelligence inform design
⚡ Owner informed of overruns late; trust eroded, scope cut under pressure
✓ Owner sees cost performance in real time; decisions are made with full information

5 Steps to Design Within Budget — Every Time

TVD follows a structured five-step process that aligns stakeholders, constrains design to the target cost, and continuously validates cost performance throughout project development.

01
🎯

Define Client Value

Work collaboratively with the client to define what matters most — functionality, aesthetics, sustainability, quality, lifecycle cost — and prioritise these values to guide every design decision.

02
💰

Establish Target Cost

Fix the target cost as a design constraint — not a budget to be filled. This becomes the primary filter for every design option explored. The design team commits to delivering maximum value within this number.

03
🔄

Design to Meet Target

Multi-disciplinary teams use Set-Based Design to develop and evaluate multiple design options simultaneously — selecting the combination that best achieves client value within the target cost.

04
📊

Continuous Estimating

Cost is tracked against the target throughout every design phase — providing real-time feedback that enables the team to make course corrections before costly design decisions are committed to.

05
✅

Deliver & Learn

Execute the project, measure performance against the target cost and value commitments, and capture learning that improves TVD implementation on future projects across the organisation.

Which Projects Benefit Most from Target Value Design?

TVD is not a universal tool — it delivers greatest impact on specific project types. Here's when to deploy it.

🏗️
Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) Models

TVD is the natural planning and cost management framework for IPD projects — where owner, designer, and builder share risk and reward, and collaborate from earliest design through to handover.

📐
Design-Build & Design-Assist Projects

When the contractor is engaged during the design phase, TVD creates the shared language and cost framework that aligns design decisions with buildability and budget from the outset.

💶
Projects with Strict Budget or Performance Constraints

Healthcare facilities, pharmaceutical manufacturing plants, data centres, and government infrastructure all carry hard budget constraints. TVD ensures the design never departs from financial viability.

🌱
Clients Focused on Lifecycle Value

When the client cares about total cost of ownership — energy performance, maintenance cost, operational efficiency, or sustainability ratings — TVD ensures these values are designed in, not bolted on.

Our Target Value Design Process

Our facilitators guide your project team through a structured TVD implementation that spans from early project setup through design completion — embedding Lean thinking at every decision point.

01
Weeks 1–2 Project Setup & Target Validation

We work with the owner to establish a rigorous Allowable Cost based on cost-to-capacity benchmarking, project program analysis, and market conditions. This is not a guess — it is a defensible, research-backed target that the design team can trust and design to.

02
Schematic Design Set-Based Design Sessions

We facilitate intensive cluster group workshops where architecture, engineering, and key trade partners simultaneously develop multiple design alternatives for major building systems. No single path is committed to until enough information exists to choose wisely.

03
Design Development Continuous Cost Modelling

Expected cost is tracked against allowable cost in real time using parametric estimating tools updated after every design session. When the expected cost exceeds the target, the team identifies the delta immediately and innovates to close it — not at the end of DD.

04
Decision Gates Choosing by Advantages (CBA)

Every major design decision uses CBA, a structured Lean decision-making method that compares alternatives based on their advantages — not personal preference or loudest voice. This produces better decisions faster, with buy-in from all stakeholders.

05
Construction Documents GMP Validation & Handoff

By the time the design reaches GMP or tender, the expected cost matches the allowable cost — because cost discipline has been embedded throughout. Our team documents the TVD process and learnings for application on future projects.

06
Post-Design Capability Transfer & Training

We train your internal team — project executives, design managers, and estimators

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What Target Value Design Delivers for Your Project

TVD transforms how complex construction projects are financed, designed, and delivered — creating clarity, collaboration, and cost certainty from the earliest stages.

💰
Eliminates Budget Surprises

Real-time cost feedback during design ensures the project remains financially viable throughout every design phase — eliminating the shock of discovering the design exceeds budget at tender stage.

↑ Cost predictability
🏆
Improves Client Satisfaction

Designs reflect what the client truly values — functionality, aesthetics, quality, or sustainability — within the target budget. The client gets what they asked for, not what was left after value engineering.

↑ Value delivery vs budget
🔄
Reduces Rework & Waste

Early alignment avoids the late-stage redesigns that consume enormous design and coordination resource. Designing right first time eliminates the non-value-adding iteration that plagues traditional projects.

↓ Design rework cycles
🤝
Enhances Collaboration

Multi-disciplinary teams work co-located from day one — sharing data, making aligned decisions rapidly, and building the trust and shared accountability that deliver better outcomes than adversarial contracting.

↑ Cross-team alignment
💡
Encourages Innovation

The cost constraint acts as a creative catalyst — inviting exploration of alternative materials, methods, and structural solutions that achieve the same functional outcomes at lower cost and higher value.

↑ Alternative solutions explored
📅
Supports Predictable Outcomes

Projects delivered using TVD are consistently more likely to be completed on time, within budget, and to the client's full satisfaction — building the reputation and client relationships that drive repeat business.

↑ On-time, on-budget delivery
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Don't Commit Early. Keep Your Options Open.

A core principle of TVD is Set-Based Design (SBD) — the discipline of maintaining multiple design alternatives simultaneously until sufficient information exists to select the best-value solution, rather than committing to a single design path early and iterating it.

Traditional projects use Point-Based Design — one solution is chosen early and iterated, often revealing incompatibilities and cost issues late. Set-Based Design runs multiple viable alternatives in parallel, evaluating them against the target cost continuously, and eliminating inferior options only when data supports the decision.

“Keep sets alive as long as possible. Narrow down by eliminating dominated alternatives — not by arbitrary early commitment.”

The result: design decisions are made with maximum information, the best-value solution is selected, and rework from premature commitment is eliminated — directly supporting the TVD cost target.

Set-Based Design — Option Narrowing Process

Concept
All feasible options open
12 sets
Schematic
Eliminate dominated options
8 sets
Design Dev
Continuous estimating feedback
4 sets
Construction
Narrow to 2 best–value options
2 sets
Decision
1 selected
1 ✓

Why TVD Beats Value Engineering Every Time

Value engineering is reactive. Target Value Design is proactive. Here is exactly how they differ across every dimension that matters.

Dimension Value Engineering Target Value Design
When It Happens After design is complete — too late to make meaningful changes without significant rework Throughout the design process from the very first session — cost discipline is built in
Who Participates A small group reviews completed drawings and identifies cuts Full cross-functional team: owner, architect, engineers, GC, and key trades
What It Produces A list of scope reductions and quality compromises to hit a number Innovative design solutions that meet program requirements within cost targets
Effect On Quality Quality is typically reduced — "value engineered out" is now a common phrase Quality is protected and often enhanced through smarter system design
Owner Experience Owner learns about overruns late, forced to make rushed decisions under pressure Owner has real-time cost transparency and participates in trade-off decisions
Team Dynamics Adversarial — VE often creates friction between design team and contractor Collaborative — shared accountability for delivering within the allowable cost

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Hands-on, data-driven Green Belt training built specifically for construction — delivered by Six Sigma Black Belt certified, LCI-registered practitioners with a track record across €7B+ in construction projects. Available across Ireland and Europe. Enterprise Ireland funding eligible.

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Target Value Design Training

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to understand TVD before deciding if it’s right for your project.

Target Value Design training teaches project teams how to design and build to a client’s target cost rather than designing first and costing afterwards. Originating in Lean construction, TVD aligns the entire project team — client, designer, contractor, and supply chain — around a shared cost target, driving innovation and value without compromising quality or programme.

Target Mapping training teaches teams how to cascade a project’s overall target cost into trade package targets, track actual costs against targets in real time, and use visual management tools to make cost performance visible to the whole team. It integrates with processes like Conditions of Satisfaction, cluster groups, and Choosing By Advantages (CBA) decision-making.

TVD training delivers most value when attended by integrated project teams including clients, architects, structural and MEP engineers, main contractors, and key trade contractors. It is especially powerful on projects using Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), NEC4 Alliance contracts, or other collaborative procurement routes where shared risk and reward are in play.

Research and case studies from projects in the US, UK, and Scandinavia show that TVD projects consistently deliver within budget (versus industry averages of 16%+ overrun), with reduced programme durations and higher client satisfaction. Sutter Health in the US famously used TVD to deliver 11 major hospital projects under budget, setting the global benchmark for collaborative value delivery.

Target Value Design Training Course

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