1. APPLICABILITY

Construction Specification 94 is applicable to contracts that require the Contractor to provide quality control (QC), material testing and verification of material quality prior to use.

2. MATERIAL SPECIFICATIONS

There are no material specifications complementary to Construction Specification 94. Any material requirements are to be specified in Section 10 (see 3.b. below).

3. ITEMS TO BE INCLUDED IN THE CONTRACT SPECIFICATIONS AND DRAWINGS

a. Develop specific requirements for the quality control testing that the Contractor is to provide. Establish, as appropriate for the method selected, the types of material the Contractor will be required to test, types of representative tests required, frequency of tests and other site specific related details.

b. Provide details on the required intensity of Contractor's quality control inspection efforts with emphasis on the site specific aspects of the work, equipment and materials to be used. Specify, as appropriate for the method selected, the documentation required for: verification of foundations and cutoff trench excavations, subgrade for fills, placement of reinforcement and forming prior to ordering concrete, equipment operational tests and available equipment backups, safety measures specified, etc. Prescribe specific requirements regarding:

(1) Reliance on Contractor for initial or benchmark testing, production testing and testing to adjust to changes in materials or methods.

(2) Standards to be used as reference for quality control testing and field inspections of materials, methods and procedures.

(3) Special testing or inspection procedures that need to be included in the quality control system.

c. Contract specific qualifications or requirements for professional registration or certification of QC personnel if necessary to meet federal, state or local statutes or job requirements.

d. Specify the required approvals by the Contracting Officer, not covered in the basic specification for items such as: personnel qualifications, equipment condition, format of record keeping and documentation, etc.

e. Describe the cooperation and communication aspects for the quality control and quality assurance (QA) activities.

4. DISCUSSION OF METHODS

a. Section 3, Quality Control System and Section 4, Quality Control Personnel

(1) Method 1 is for use with the smaller or less complex work where the Contractor's staff is expected to understand and be qualified to perform routine quality control. The Contractor must develop an effective quality control system. The Contractor and Contracting Officer will meet and reach agreement on the system. Specify in Section 10 if the Contracting Officer will document by correspondence to the Contractor the understanding reached concerning the quality control system. When the project foreman can also function as the Contractor’s quality control manager, so state in Section 10.

(2) Method 2 is for use with large or complex work where the Contractor is required to have qualified quality control testing and inspection personnel on their staff or will subcontract for these services and provide NRCS with a written quality control plan and regularly submit quality control documentation.

Selection of either Method 1 or Method 2 in Sections 3 and 4 must be uniformly made within the specification for each contract.

b. Section 9, Payment

(1) Method 1 is for use for larger more complex projects where uniformity in QC activities may not exist.

(2) Method 2 is for smaller, simpler projects. The use of Method 2 is encouraged when fair and equitable treatment will occur.

When specifications are prepared using electronic procedures and all but one method are deleted for use in the contract specification, delete "All Methods The following provisions apply to all methods of payment." and left justify the remaining text.