Construction Materials and Workmanship All workmanship materials equipment

Construction Materials and Workmanship

• All workmanship, materials, equipment, and articles incorporated into the work are to be of the best available grade in the local trade area • Materials must be free of defects or imperfections • Workmanship is hard to quantify but should be best available.

• Request for substitution of materials – Contractor must give adequate notice of substitution intention – A/E needs time to look at substituted material to see if it is ok – Only allow requests during design phase and construction phase, not during bid phase – RPR must reject any material that isn’t in the specifications or has not been approved by A/E

• Inspection of Materials delivered to site • RPR must inspect all materials before they are used – For some items RPR may do inspection at fabrication plant – precast concrete, steel eams • Precast concrete may sit for months in yard before delivery to site • Not inspecting could hold up job for months

• Rejection of faulty material • RPR must reject faulty materials – Mark materials with an indelible marker and tag them for removal – Want to make sure marks are visible to inspector if used in work and thatthey cannot be rubbed off – All faulty material should be placed in a separate area and removed the same day – Written notice to contractor of rejection

• Equipment – Contractor responsible to have right equipment on site. – RPR can request changes IF it can be established that item can not do job • Tells contractor that equipment is unsatisfactory – RPR can also halt work for safety issues (overloaded crane)

• Quality Assurance – Testing – Installation according to Manufacturer’s instructions – Gillette House used roofing instructions on shingles – Experience Qualification • Prevents “fly by night” firms to get bid • Used for work that requires specialization

• Factory Inspection • Matching Samples on Display during Bidding – Sample shows bidders what is expected – Used for concrete finishes, stone, cabinetry – Samples go with RPR to job site for comparison during inspections

• Proven Successful Use – Contractor must prove that items have been in use in a similar project for a specified time period. • Elevators, pumps, electrical equip – things that need to have a long reliable life – Qualified Products List • Procurement of certain items must be from a list of preapproved items – Possibility of less competition – Need up to date list – Contractor may try to issue a disclaimer for those products

• Certified Lab Reports – Contractor pays for tests and gets a certified report. Report gives method of testing, min level of performance, id of product • • Concrete reinforced steel Steel Fire spread ratings on material Masonry units – Certificate of Compliance or Conformance • Product complies with a specified reference standard • Glass, Paint, Wood

• Ownership of Materials – Contractor owns all materials until final acceptance of the work • Delivery and Storage of materials – Contractor needs to find space – Owner may or may not have space – If contractor rents space RPR must see agreement

• Handling materials – RPR must oversee delivery, storage, and installation of materials – How is material off loaded – How is it stored – How does it get to its final placement

Changes and Extra Work • Change order is a written agreement to modify, add to, or otherwise alter the work from the project in the contract – Alterations must be within scope of contract – Standard practice for owners to make changes in project after contract signed – May have a change order to correct error in the plans

• Changes in the Work • Impact Costs – Indirect costs, increased costs after order signed – Owner should add an addenda to change order saying that price includes all charges for direct and indirect costs arising from the work

• Oral Change orders – Risky – Are legally binding – No written backup to fight claims – Should be followed by a letter which formalizes the change order

• Bilateral Change Orders – Contract addendum – Contractor and owner agree to work • Unilateral Change Order – Intended to expedite issuance of change order to perform emergency or protested work – Must be followed by a written bilateral change order before payment

Basic Principles • 1. No work beyond scope of base contracts – especially on public works • 2. Who is authorized to request and approve change orders • 3. Meet during preconstruction to discuss how to handle change orders • 4. All changes must be authorized in writing before execution of a change

• 5. Scope of change order must be clear – request must be clear enough for contractor to give a good estimate • 6. Contractor’s proposal for change order must be ASAP as should owners approval or rejection • 7. Proposal should be fair to both parties – Contractor should include overhead and profit

• Creates extra work for everybody • Emergency work – RPR can do an Initiator Change Order Request if authorized by owner – Must follow up with a written change order – Protects owner and contractor