General Construction Contract Provisions (September 1997) - Section 100

Section 10 - Definition of Terms
Section 20 - Proposal Requirements and Conditions
Section 30 - Award and Execution of Contract
Section 40 - Scope of Work
Section 50 - Control of Work
Section 60 - Control of Materials
Section 70 - Legal Regulations and Responsibility to Public
Section 80 - Prosecution and Progress
Section 90 - Measurement and Payment
Section 100 - Contractor Quality Control Program
Section 110 - Methods of Estimating Percentage of Material within Specifications (PWL) [pdf, 5 pages, 21kb]

Section 100 - Contractor Quality Control Program

100-01 GENERAL. When the specifications require a Contractor Quality Control Program, the Contractor shall * establish, provide and maintain an effective Quality Control Program that details the methods and procedures that will be taken to assure that all materials and completed construction conform to contract plans, technical specifications and other requirements, whether manufactured by the Contractor, or procured from subcontractors or vendors. Although guidelines are established and certain minimum requirements are specified herein and elsewhere in the contract technical specifications, the Contractor shall assume full responsibility for accomplishing the stated purpose.

The intent of this section is to enable the Contractor to establish a necessary level of control that will:

1. Adequately provide for the production of acceptable quality materials.
2. Provide sufficient information to assure both the Contractor and the Engineer that the specification requirements can be met.
3. Allow the Contractor as much latitude as possible to develop his or her own standard of control.

The Contractor shall be prepared to discuss and present, at the preconstruction conference, his/her understanding of the quality control requirements. The Contractor shall not begin any construction or production of materials to be incorporated into the completed work until the Quality Control Program has been reviewed by the Engineer. No partial payment will be made for materials subject to specific quality control requirements until the Quality Control Program has been reviewed.

The quality control requirements contained in this section and elsewhere in the contract technical specifications are in addition to and separate from the acceptance testing requirements. Acceptance testing requirements are the responsibility of the Engineer.

100-02 DESCRIPTION OF PROGRAM.

1. General Description. The Contractor shall establish a Quality Control Program to perform inspection and testing of all items of work required by the technical specifications, including those performed by subcontractors. This Quality Control Program shall ensure conformance to applicable specifications, including those performed by subcon-tractors. This quality Control Program shall ensure conformance to applicable specifications and plans with respect to materials, workmanship, construction, finish, and functional performance. The Quality Control Program shall be effective for control of all construction work performed under this Contract and shall specifically include surveillance and tests required by the technical specifications, in addition to other requirements of this section and any other activities deemed necessary by the Contractor to establish an effective level of quality control.
2. Quality Control Program. The Contractor shall describe the Quality Control Program in written document which shall be reviewed by the Engineer prior to the start of any production, construction, or off-site fabrication. The written Quality Control Program shall be submitted to the Engineer for review at least [ ] calendar days before the [ ].

The Quality Control Program shall be organized to address, as a minimum, the following items:

1. Quality Control organization;
2. Project progress schedule;
3. Submittals schedule;
4. Inspection requirements
5. Quality control testing plan;
6. Documentation of quality control activities; and
7. Requirements for corrective action when quality control and/or acceptance criteria are not met.

The Contractor is encouraged to add any additional elements to the Quality Control Program that he/she deems necessary to adequately control all production and/or construction processes required by this contract.

100-03 QUALITY CONTROL ORGANIZATION. The Contractor's Quality Control Program shall be implemented by the establishment of a separate quality control organization. An organizational chart shall be developed to show all quality control personnel and how these personnel integrate with other management/production and construction functions and personnel.

The organizational chart shall identify all quality control staff by name and function, and shall indicate the total staff required to implement all elements of the Quality Control Program, including inspection and testing for each item of work. If necessary, different technicians can be utilized for specific inspection and testing functions for different items of work. If an outside organization or independent testing laboratory is used for implementation of all or part of the Quality Control Program, the personnel assigned shall be subject to the qualification requirements of paragraph 100-03a and 100-03b. The organizational chart shall indicate which personnel are Contractor employees and which are provided by an outside organization.

The quality control organization shall consist of the following minimum personnel:

1. Program Administrator. The Program Administrator shall be a full-time employee of the Contractor, or a consultant engaged by the Contractor. The Program Administrator shall have a minimum of 5 years of experience in airport and/or highway construction and shall have had prior quality control experience on a project of comparable size and scope as the contract.

Additional qualifications for the Program Administrator shall include at least 1 of the following requirements:

1. Professional engineer with 1 year of airport paving experience acceptable to the Engineer.
2. Engineer-in-training with 2 years of airport paving experience acceptable to the Engineer.
3. An individual with 3 years of highway and/or airport paving experience acceptable to the Engineer, with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering, Civil Engineering Technology or Construction.
4. Construction materials technician certified at Level III by the national Institute for Certification in Engineering Technologies (NICET).
5. Highway materials technician certified at Level III by NICET.
6. Highway construction technician certified at Level III by NICET.
7. A NICET certified engineering technician in Civil Engineering Technology with 5 years of highway and/or airport paving experience acceptable to the Engineer.

The Program Administrator shall have full authority to institute any and all necessary for the successful implementation of the Quality Control Program to ensure compliance with the contract plans and technical specifications. The Program Administrator shall report directly to a responsible officer of the construction firm. The Program Administrator may supervise the Quality Control Program on more than one project provided that person can be at the job site within 2 hours after being notified of a problem.

2. Quality Control Technicians. A sufficient number of quality control technicians necessary to adequately implement the Quality Control Program shall be provided. These personnel shall be either engineers, engineering technicians, or experienced craftsmen with qualifications in the appropriate field equivalent to NICET Level II or higher construction materials technician or highway construction technician and shall have a minimum of 2 years of experience in their area of experience.

The quality control technicians shall report directly to the Program Administrator and shall perform the following functions:

1. Inspection of all materials, construction, plant, and equipment for conformance to the technical specifications, and as required by Section 100-06.
2. Performance of all quality control tests as required by the technical specifications and Certification at an equivalent level, by a state or nationally recognized organization will be acceptable in lieu of NICET certification.

3. Staffing Levels. The Contractor shall provide sufficient qualified quality control personnel to monitor each work activity at all times. Where material is being produced in a plant for incorporation into the work, separate plant and field technicians shall be provided at each plant and field placement location. The scheduling and coordinating of all inspection and testing must match the type and pace of work activity. The Quality Control Program shall state where different technicians will be required for different work elements.

100-04 PROJECT PROGRESS SCHEDULE. The Contractor shall submit a coordinated construction schedule for all work activities. The schedule shall be prepared as a network diagram in Critical Path Method (CPM), PERT, or other format, or as otherwise specified in the contract. As a minimum, it shall provide information on the sequence of work activities, milestone dates, and activity duration.

The Contractor shall maintain the work schedule and provide an update and analysis of the progress schedule on a twice monthly basis, or as otherwise specified in the contract. Submission of the work schedule shall not relieve the Contractor of overall responsibility for scheduling, sequencing, and coordinating all work to comply with the requirements of the contract. .

100-05 SUBMITTALS SCHEDULE. The Contractor shall submit a detailed listing of all submittals (e.g., mix designs, material certifications) and shop drawings required by the technical specifications. The listing can be developed in a spreadsheet format and shall include:

1. Specification item number;
2. Item description;
3. Description of submittal;
4. Specification paragraph requiring submittal; and
5. Scheduled date of submittal.

100-06 INSPECTION REQUIREMENTS. Quality control inspection functions shall be organized to provide inspections for all definable features of work, as detailed below. All inspections shall be documented by the Contractor as specified by Section 100-07.

Inspections shall be performed daily to ensure continuing compliance with contract requirements until completion of the particular feature of work. These shall include the following minimum requirements.

1. During plant operation for material production, quality control test results and periodic inspections shall be utilized to ensure the quality of aggregates and other mix components, and to adjust and control mix proportioning to meet the approved mix design and other requirements of the technical specifications. All equipment utilized in proportioning and mixing shall be inspected to ensure its proper operating condition. The Quality Control Program shall detail how these and other quality control functions will be accomplished and utilized.
2. During field operations, quality control test results and periodic inspections shall be utilized to ensure the quality of all materials and workmanship. All equipment utilized in placing, finishing, and compacting shall be inspected to ensure its proper operating condition and to ensure that all such operations are in conformance to the technical specifications and are within the plan dimensions, lines, grades, and tolerances specified. The Program shall document how these and other quality control functions will be accomplished and utilized.

100-07 QUALITY CONTROL TESTING PLAN. As a part of the overall Quality Control Program, the Contractor shall implement a quality control testing plan, as required by the technical specifications. The testing plan shall include the minimum tests and test frequencies required by each technical specification Item, as well as any additional quality control tests that the Contractor deems necessary to adequately control production and/or construction processes.

The testing plan can be developed in a spreadsheet fashion and shall, as a minimum, include the following:

1. Specification item number (e.g., P-401);
2. Item description (e.g., Plant Mix Bituminous Pavements);
3. Test type (e.g.; gradation, grade, asphalt content);
4. Test standard (e.g.; ASTM or AASHTO test number, as applicable);
5. Test frequency (e.g.; as required by technical specifications or minimum frequency when requirements are not stated);
6. Responsibility (e.g.; plant technician); and
7. Control requirements (e.g.; target, permissible deviations).

The testing plan shall contain a statistically-based procedure of random sampling for acquiring test samples in accordance with ASTM D 3665. The Engineer shall be provided the opportunity to witness quality control sampling and testing.

All quality control test results shall be documented by the Contractor as required by Section 100-08.

100-08 DOCUMENTATION. The Contractor shall maintain current quality control records of all inspections and tests performed. These records shall include factual evidence that the required inspections or tests have been performed, including type and number of inspections or tests involved; results of inspections or tests; nature of defects, deviations, causes for rejection, etc.; proposed remedial action; and corrective actions taken.

These records must cover both conforming and defective or deficient features, and must include a statement that all supplies and materials incorporated in the work are in full compliance with the terms of the contract. Legible copies of these records shall be furnished to the Engineer daily. The records shall cover all work placed subsequent to the previously furnished records and shall be verified and signed by the Contractor's Program Administrator.

Specific Contractor quality control records required for the contract shall include, but are not necessarily limited to the following records:

1. Daily Inspection Reports. Each Contractor quality control technician shall maintain a daily log of all inspections performed for both Contractor and subcontractor operations on a form acceptable to the Engineer. These technician's daily reports shall provide factual evidence that continuous quality control inspections have been performed and shall, as a minimum, include the following:
   1. Technical specification item number and description;
   2. Compliance with approved submittals;
   3. Proper storage of materials and equipment;
   4. Proper operation of all equipment;
   5. Adherence to plans and technical specifications;
   6. Review of quality control tests; and
   7. Safety inspection.

The daily inspection reports shall identify inspections conducted, results of inspections, location and nature of defects found, causes for rejection, and remedial or corrective actions taken or proposed.

The daily inspection reports shall be signed by the responsible quality control technician and the Program Administrator. The Engineer shall be provided at least one copy of each daily inspection report on the work day following the day of record.

1. Daily Test Reports. The Contractor shall be responsible for establishing a system which will record all quality control test results. Daily test reports shall document the following information:
   1. Technical specification item number and description;
   2. Test designation;
   3. Location;
   4. Date of test;
   5. Control requirements;
   6. Test results;
   7. Causes for rejection;
   8. Recommended remedial actions; and
   9. Retests.

Test results from each day's work period shall be submitted to the Engineer prior to the start of the next day's work period. When required by the technical specifications, the Contractor shall maintain statistical quality control charts. The daily test reports shall be signed by the responsible quality control technician and the Program Administrator.

100-09 CORRECTIVE ACTION REQUIREMENTS. The Quality Control Program shall indicate the appropriate action to be taken when a process is deemed, or believed, to be out of control (out of tolerance) and detail what action will be taken to bring the process into control. The requirements for corrective action shall include both general requirements for operation of the Quality Control Program as a whole, and for individual items of work contained in the technical specifications.

The Quality Control Program shall detail how the results of quality control inspections and tests will be used for determining the need for corrective action and shall contain clear sets of rules to gauge when a process is out of control and the type of correction to be taken to regain process control.

When applicable or required by the technical specifications, the Contractor shall establish and utilize statistical quality control charts for individual quality control tests. The requirements for corrective action shall be linked to the control charts.

100-10 SURVEILLANCE BY THE ENGINEER. All items of material and equipment shall be subject to surveillance by the Engineer at the point of production, manufacture or shipment to determine if the Contractor, producer, manufacturer or shipper maintains an adequate quality control system in conformance with the requirements detailed herein and the applicable technical specifications and plans. In addition, all items of materials, equipment and work in place shall be subject to surveillance by the Engineer at the site for the same purpose.

Surveillance by the Engineer does not relieve the Contractor of performing quality control inspections of either on-site or off-site Contractor's or subcontractor's work.

100-11 NONCOMPLIANCE.

1. The Engineer will notify the Contractor of any noncompliance with any of the foregoing requirements. The Contractor shall, after receipt of such notice, immediately take corrective action. Any notice, when delivered by the Engineer or his/her authorized representative to the Contractor or his/her authorized representative at the site of the work, shall be considered sufficient notice.
2. In cases where quality control activities do not comply with either the Contractor's Quality Control Program or the contract provisions, or where the Contractor fails to properly operate and maintain an effective Quality Control Program, as determined by the Engineer, the Engineer may:
   1. Order the Contractor to replace ineffective or unqualified quality control personnel or subcontractors.
   2. Order the Contractor to stop operations until appropriate corrective actions is taken.