5.3 Bid Item Quantities
The Bid Item Quantities for each item of work are provided for in the Engineer’s Estimate, the Quantity Summary Sheets, and the Estimate and Quantity (E&Q) Sheets in the plans. (see
for additional information regarding the Quantity Summary and E&Q Sheets).
5.3.1 Bid Item Quantity Tolerances (Degree of Accuracy)
shows the greatest degree of accuracy that should be shown in the estimate for the various items. Quantities should be shown on the Engineer’s Estimate to the accuracy given in this table.
Item | Show to the nearest | |
Earthwork Items (including Structural Excavation & Backfill) | 0.01 0.01 1 1 1 | STA AC CY SY YH |
Watering and Sprinkling | 0.1 | MG |
Blading, Rolling & Traffic Control | 1 | HR |
Base and Base Treatment Items | 0.01 1 1 1 | STA CY SY TON |
Asphalts, Oils and Emulsions | 1 0.01 | GAL TON |
Asphaltic Pavements & Surface Treatment Aggregates/Materials | 1 1 1 | TON CY SY |
Concrete Pavement Items (also to include Riprap & Structure Approach Slabs) | 1 1 | CY SY |
Cleaning, Sealing Joints, Sealed Expansion Joints Preformed Joint Sealers | 1 0.01 1 1 | LF LM LB GAL |
Planning, Texturing, Fabric Underseal & Surface Rehab | 1 | SY |
Trench Excavation | 1 | LF |
Pilings & Drilled Shafts | 1 | LF |
Structural Concrete (including Structural Repairs, Concrete Overlay of Structure Decks, Pre-cast Concrete Pipe, Pipe, Culverts & Drains) | 0.1 0.1 1 1 | CY SY SF LF |
Retaining Wall | 1 | SF |
Reinforced Concrete Slabs & Traffic Signs | 1 | SF |
Pre-stressed Concrete Beams | 0.01 | LF |
Structural Steel (including Armor Joint & Sign Support) (nearest 10 lb or 100 lb if 1% accuracy is maintained) | 1 | LB |
Bridge Railing (including Removal) | 0.1 | LF |
Jacking, Boring or Tunneling | 1 | LF |
Timber Structures | 1 | MFB |
Detours | 0.1 1 | STA SY |
Traffic Barrier & Pavement Markings | 1 | LF |
Curb, Gutter, C&G, Sidewalks, Walkways, Driveways, Medians & Islands | 1 1 | LF SY |
Fencing, Underdrains, Conduit, Conductors, Cable & Detectors | 1 | LF |
MBGF | See Note (1) | |
Mobilization (2) | 0.01 | |
Items measured by the Month, Each or Lump Sum | 1 | |
Notes: 1. MBGF quantities should be reported in increments of 12.5 LF, per the Statewide MBGF Standard Details on TxDOT.gov
. 2. See
for additional guidance on calculating Mobilization amounts for projects with multiple CSJs. | ||
5.3.2 Subsidiary Items of Work
Occasionally, it may be appropriate to specify work that is not to be paid for directly, these are known as subsidiary or incidental items. Work that is not paid for directly should be insignificant in the scope of the overall project and used minimally. When subsidiary or incidental items of work are specified, it is necessary that the work be explained in sufficient detail, possibly even including referencing specifications, and a quantity should be shown in the plans but marked with the following statement:
“This item will not be paid for directly but shall be considered subsidiary to Item ____. The quantity is shown for contractors’ information only.”
This is necessary for contractors to be able to accurately account for this work in their bids.
5.3.3 Requirements for Proprietary/Sole Source Product Procurement and Approval
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) revised its guidance on the use of proprietary products and has deferred this approval process to each state agency. Therefore, TxDOT requirements on approval for use of proprietary/sole source products on all construction and maintenance projects are as follows.
All requests for use of proprietary/sole source products must be submitted to the appropriate Engineering Division for review and approval based on subject matter expertise of the product in question. This request should be submitted during the construction/maintenance project’s design phase to allow for adequate review time of this request.
This request must include product details (model name, number, etc.) and justification on why this specific product is required. Examples of acceptable justifications include:
- A specific project need justifies the use of a proprietary device or product in which no suitable alternate is available; or
- There is a need for compatibility because of:
- Function(operates with an existing facility) e.g., The city’s existing signal control system which contains a significant percentage of intersections is already working with only one brand and model of controller; or
- Aesthetics(match the visual appearance of an existing facility) e.g., A specific light pole in a city historical area or specific light pole designated in the vicinity of previous projects; or
- Logistics(interchangeable with products in an agency’s maintenance inventory) e.g., Due to scarce county financial and labor resources, specifying one type of MASH compliant end treatment already in use and maintained by the county which will be responsible for maintenance of this location; or
- Safety(upgrade to higher safety criteria) e.g., Desire to use latest crash test criteria device (e.g., MASH) when there is only one such proprietary device available for that category of device, and the other devices within that category meet a lesser criteria.
For requests initiated by a local government, it is the District’s responsibility to verify that the request justification is valid and state District concurrence in the request for approval.
A generic template for this request memo can be found on at
.
The final approval will be by the Division Director, or a designee as delegated by the Division Director. The final approved memo will be retained with the District’s project files.
Additional Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) points of contact for the submittals can be contacted:
- DES: Roadway Design Section Director;
- BRG: Bridge Standards Engineer;
- TRF-TM: Engineering Support Branch Manager (ITS & Traffic Signals);
- TRF-TE: Engineering Operations Branch Manager (Signing & Illumination); or
- MNT: Field Engineering Support.
Refer to the
for additional information.
5.3.4 Crash Cushion Attenuators
All attenuators paid for under Item 545, “Crash Cushion Attenuators” require specific competitive bidding for attenuator systems. At least
two (2)
attenuator systems options from different providers must be provided for each location unless the specific location dictates that only one system is available meeting the size and functionality requirements. The decision to specify one attenuator system must be documented in the project files.See
for additional information on selection of crash cushion attenuators for inclusion into the plans.
5.3.5 Participating/Non-participating Items
Bid Items are classified as either Participating or Non-participating on federally funded projects. Participating (Part) refers to Bid Items that the FHWA will participate in the cost of the work and Non-Participating (Non-Part) refers to Bid Items for which the FHWA will not participate in the cost of the work.
On Federal-Aid projects, it is often necessary to distinguish the items that are not eligible for federal funding. Historically, examples of items for which the FHWA will not provide reimbursement are:
- Replacement concrete;
- Traffic barrier hardware; and
- Maintenance activities such as:
- Mowing;
- Litter removal;
- Sweeping; and
- Cleaning existing culverts.
Refer to the
for additional information on how to identify non-participating items in the Engineer’s Estimate.
5.3.6 Special Accounts
5.3.6.1 Description of Special Accounts
Special accounts are accounts that are set up to cover costs of various items of work or the supply of materials or labor that are not provided for in the estimate as ordinary bid items. Other special accounts may cover the participation in the contract by other entities for work not funded by TxDOT. Some examples of special accounts are State Force Account Work, Material Furnished by the State, Railroad Force Account, and Contractor Force Account. The project estimate must include the special account number, a brief description of the item of work, and an estimated cost. The unit of a special account is usually lump sum, and the price should be determined by consulting with maintenance personnel, from past experience, or the best available information and method depending on the item of the account.
A Safety Contingency Contractor Force Account is required on all projects
. See
for applicable Safety Contingency Force Account notes that must be included in all project’s General Notes. Additionally, an Erosion Control Maintenance Force Account is also required
, and a Law Enforcement Force Account is optional.5.3.6.2 Participating/Non-participating Special Accounts
Similar to Participating/Non-participating Items, special accounts which are not direct bid items, but which are used to account for certain project costs (such as railroad flagging, state-furnished traffic signal controllers, off duty patrol officer, etc.) may or may not be federally participating.
Those special accounts that are not federally participating must be distinguished from those that are on the Engineer’s Estimate.
Refer to the
for additional information on how to identify non-participating accounts in the Engineer’s Estimate.
5.3.6.3 Force Account Work
Force Accounts are a type of special account. Force account work in general is either additional work over and above the work described by the standard bid items or work that will be done by work forces other than the contractor. This work may be ordered, performed, accepted, and reimbursed on a Force Account basis. If a portion of the project is state funded, then a non-participating Force Account is required.
- State force account work- State Force Account Work is work that is to be done by state maintenance forces on the project, such as striping and the removal of temporary sediment control fence. The inclusion of these types of accounts allows the District to charge the costs of the work items to the project and not to their maintenance budget. DES will assist the District with developing the unit cost for the force account.
Railroad force account work
- Railroad Force Account Work is work that will be done by a railroad company during the construction of a project. This includes items such as signal relocation, planking work, and flagging at railroad crossings that will be done by railroad personnel. The RRD Division will assist the District with developing the unit cost for the force account based on project-specific information.Contractor force account work
- Contractor Force Account Work is potential work that might be done by the contractor, and which has not been estimated and included as a bid item but might be required on the project. An example is temporary erosion, sediment and water pollution control on a project such as an asphaltic concrete pavement overlay. DES will assist the District with developing the unit cost for the force account.5.3.6.4 State-Furnished Material
Material furnished by the State is another type of special account that covers materials used on the project but furnished by the State. An example of materials furnished by the State are traffic signal controllers and traffic paint. Materials furnished by the State usually include those materials that are difficult to obtain on the open market, small quantities and expensive, or what the State prefers to use and have in stock. If material is provided on low bid construction, it is required to have a Public Interest Finding. This justification needs to be that it is in the public's best interest to furnish that material rather than low-bid it.
5.3.6.5 Special Account Codes
Special accounts should be established in the Engineer’s Estimate so the state maintenance forces, or other agencies can properly account for their work and charge to the project. Special accounts are identified in the Engineer’s Estimate by special account code numbers.
Refer to the
for additional information on how to add special accounts to the Engineer’s Estimate.