Construction Contract Administration

I have had similar experience in forgetting or not thinking about something in particular to look at when on site. I like the idea of a checklist, even though you can't capture everything. Certainly, it changes as the project progresses. It could be about focusing on the higher risk items, or things where you commonly have seen an issue. I am interested to hear what others do.

The checklists are tough because you'll never cover everything you need. The suggested photographs are a great idea both for the current review and historic record.

My view is that with some experience, "you know it when you see it." The way that your office details things tends to be repetitive through standard details, so you get used to seeing and knowing what most things should look like, and as you are looking at the work in progress, you'll soon be able to get the feel that when something isn't installed per the usual details, something looks wrong to you and then you stop and look and figure out what the problem is.

Next, we tend to see the same sort of workmanship problems and errors repeated across jobs and you learn to look for certain things by experience.

Last, there will be special situations- finishes, connections, meeting points, etc.- that you know you have to check. I usually take a screen shot of these "must look at" situations ahead of time, print it out (I'm old fashioned) and mark some notes in red as a reminder to look at and check certain things.

So, more experience doing CA and working for a firm, your checklist becomes a series of mental images- you'll look at something and it will seem right, and you move on, but if something is wrong, your spidey-sense will make you stop, look twice, and you'll soon be spotting the problems easily. 

I have had similar experience in forgetting or not thinking about something in particular to look at when on site. I like the idea of a checklist, even though you can't capture everything. Certainly, it changes as the project progresses. It could be about focusing on the higher risk items, or things where you commonly have seen an issue. I am interested to hear what others do.

The checklists are tough because you'll never cover everything you need. The suggested photographs are a great idea both for the current review and historic record.

My view is that with some experience, "you know it when you see it." The way that your office details things tends to be repetitive through standard details, so you get used to seeing and knowing what most things should look like, and as you are looking at the work in progress, you'll soon be able to get the feel that when something isn't installed per the usual details, something looks wrong to you and then you stop and look and figure out what the problem is.

Next, we tend to see the same sort of workmanship problems and errors repeated across jobs and you learn to look for certain things by experience.

Last, there will be special situations- finishes, connections, meeting points, etc.- that you know you have to check. I usually take a screen shot of these "must look at" situations ahead of time, print it out (I'm old fashioned) and mark some notes in red as a reminder to look at and check certain things.

So, more experience doing CA and working for a firm, your checklist becomes a series of mental images- you'll look at something and it will seem right, and you move on, but if something is wrong, your spidey-sense will make you stop, look twice, and you'll soon be spotting the problems easily. 

The checklists are tough because you'll never cover everything you need. The suggested photographs are a great idea both for the current review and historic record.

My view is that with some experience, "you know it when you see it." The way that your office details things tends to be repetitive through standard details, so you get used to seeing and knowing what most things should look like, and as you are looking at the work in progress, you'll soon be able to get the feel that when something isn't installed per the usual details, something looks wrong to you and then you stop and look and figure out what the problem is.

Next, we tend to see the same sort of workmanship problems and errors repeated across jobs and you learn to look for certain things by experience.

Last, there will be special situations- finishes, connections, meeting points, etc.- that you know you have to check. I usually take a screen shot of these "must look at" situations ahead of time, print it out (I'm old fashioned) and mark some notes in red as a reminder to look at and check certain things.

So, more experience doing CA and working for a firm, your checklist becomes a series of mental images- you'll look at something and it will seem right, and you move on, but if something is wrong, your spidey-sense will make you stop, look twice, and you'll soon be spotting the problems easily. 

I have had similar experience in forgetting or not thinking about something in particular to look at when on site. I like the idea of a checklist, even though you can't capture everything. Certainly, it changes as the project progresses. It could be about focusing on the higher risk items, or things where you commonly have seen an issue. I am interested to hear what others do.

By methodically photographing everything, I can usually check my shots for "forgot to look ats". A cooperative Contractor can also follow-up with photos. Checklists of what I want to see & verify also help. When travelling, staying overnight allows for a review of my first day in the evening, to see what I need to look at (again) the next day.

Thanks, Robert, 

I agree with photographing and having the time before and after to analyze what was done to ensure additional time is used efficiently. I also have found luck in doing narrated video recordings, however, when the job site does not allow for photography, it's back to the sketchbook. This is where the struggle seems to be, as carrying around a 8 volume set is not practice. 

Your notion of methodically photographing reminded us of this resources: Using Photography to Evaluate Site Work

It's a lovely white paper regarding the use of photography to evaluate site conditions and work. Hope this is useful for others as well. 

By methodically photographing everything, I can usually check my shots for "forgot to look ats". A cooperative Contractor can also follow-up with photos. Checklists of what I want to see & verify also help. When travelling, staying overnight allows for a review of my first day in the evening, to see what I need to look at (again) the next day.

I have attended a few conferences in the past 4 years and one of the consistent themes is there is a newer, greener work force. I have heard stories from medical centers of critical shutdowns that were scheduled months in advance only to find that the team that shows up the day of has never done a shut down like this before and may not even have the tools required to do the job.

So how does that affect us?

It means more is being asked of all of us to help compensate. In some cases, like exterior envelope detailing for example, this can lead to potential add-services where we spend more time on site helping the subcontractors understand not only the detailing, but the sequence of installation.

I have always felt that no matter how many times I walk a site I will always find something new. However, I am reminded that our job is not to catch and document every mistake or defect. Our primary reasons for walking the site are:

1. To get a sense of the level of completion to facilitate application for payment reviews.
2. To document any stored materials, again for application for payment reviews.
3. Review the in-progress construction for conformance with the Contract Documents

I agree with Arlen, that once you get a sense of how your office details things, deviations will start to stand out in the field as "off" or "wrong". And every project is an opportunity to learn. I tell our emerging staff that every time you walk a project you learn something. I recommend they keep their PPE in their car and to walk every project they can.

I don't have a checklist of items to review while on site, but through experience I do have an ever-growing list of things I look for.

Remember that we are not required to perform an exhaustive review of the on-site conditions. If your projects require it, it may be time to talk to the owner about enhanced CA services.

Hope this helps,

Jim

Thanks, Robert, 

I agree with photographing and having the time before and after to analyze what was done to ensure additional time is used efficiently. I also have found luck in doing narrated video recordings, however, when the job site does not allow for photography, it's back to the sketchbook. This is where the struggle seems to be, as carrying around a 8 volume set is not practice. 

Your notion of methodically photographing reminded us of this resources: Using Photography to Evaluate Site Work

It's a lovely white paper regarding the use of photography to evaluate site conditions and work. Hope this is useful for others as well. 

By methodically photographing everything, I can usually check my shots for "forgot to look ats". A cooperative Contractor can also follow-up with photos. Checklists of what I want to see & verify also help. When travelling, staying overnight allows for a review of my first day in the evening, to see what I need to look at (again) the next day.

The green workforce in construction is definitely an issue and you don't know 'until you know' how bad it will be on each project. We have tried to start billing CA hourly for this reason. One of the current projects I'm working on has had multiple submittals submitted in the wrong spec section, lumped with other trades or buried in compiled submittals. And then we got the plumbing fixtures.. one sink per submittal at a time. Even if you take the time to explain your photos and details and walk through site issues with the junior folks in your own office, training the GC can be very time (and cost) consuming. 

But as to the first question.. photos photos photos. Of course I have gotten better at spotting things over time and just from knowing the drawings and being involved in spec writing and detailing, but no matter how much time I spend in the space I try and walk and systematically take a photo every few feet because I always catch things later at my desk that I didn't notice in person. Usually I'm talking to the site super, answering 10 questions, thinking about how to resolve some conflict and trying to remember where that one fire alarm device was in elevation. Once I sit down and go through photos I always see more stuff because I can slow down and zoom in. Its also why I'm partial to photos and not video. I can never stop the videos right where I want them in time and get a clear image. 

I have attended a few conferences in the past 4 years and one of the consistent themes is there is a newer, greener work force. I have heard stories from medical centers of critical shutdowns that were scheduled months in advance only to find that the team that shows up the day of has never done a shut down like this before and may not even have the tools required to do the job.

So how does that affect us?

It means more is being asked of all of us to help compensate. In some cases, like exterior envelope detailing for example, this can lead to potential add-services where we spend more time on site helping the subcontractors understand not only the detailing, but the sequence of installation.

I have always felt that no matter how many times I walk a site I will always find something new. However, I am reminded that our job is not to catch and document every mistake or defect. Our primary reasons for walking the site are:

1. To get a sense of the level of completion to facilitate application for payment reviews.
2. To document any stored materials, again for application for payment reviews.
3. Review the in-progress construction for conformance with the Contract Documents

I agree with Arlen, that once you get a sense of how your office details things, deviations will start to stand out in the field as "off" or "wrong". And every project is an opportunity to learn. I tell our emerging staff that every time you walk a project you learn something. I recommend they keep their PPE in their car and to walk every project they can.

I don't have a checklist of items to review while on site, but through experience I do have an ever-growing list of things I look for.

Remember that we are not required to perform an exhaustive review of the on-site conditions. If your projects require it, it may be time to talk to the owner about enhanced CA services.

Hope this helps,

Jim

Thanks, Robert, 

I agree with photographing and having the time before and after to analyze what was done to ensure additional time is used efficiently. I also have found luck in doing narrated video recordings, however, when the job site does not allow for photography, it's back to the sketchbook. This is where the struggle seems to be, as carrying around a 8 volume set is not practice. 

Your notion of methodically photographing reminded us of this resources: Using Photography to Evaluate Site Work

It's a lovely white paper regarding the use of photography to evaluate site conditions and work. Hope this is useful for others as well.