Under the DBFOM procurement approach, the responsibilities for designing, building, financing, maintaining and operating are bundled together and transferred to private sector partners. Also known as "concessions," DBFOM procurements provide project sponsors with the cost and acceleration benefits of design-build procurements and the added lifecycle benefits of the DBOM approach. In addition, they transfer financial risk to the private sector partner and provide owners with access to new sources of financing, including private sector equity.
There is a great deal of variety in DBFOM arrangements in the United States, especially the degree to which financial responsibilities are actually transferred to the private sector. One commonality that cuts across all DBFOM projects is that they are financed by debt leveraging revenue streams dedicated to the project. The following section provides additional information on the different DBFOM concession models.