Quality begins with the preparation of the contract plans and specifications by the design consultants; here the coordination process plays a critical role. A careful review by the design team may uncover inconsistencies, omissions, or items requiring more clarity. Although this review is the responsibility of the architect and engineers, the general contractor and its subcontractors must also perform their own scrutiny of the plans and specifications, as many bid documents and contract specifications require the contractor to perform this review and notify the owner of any errors, omissions, and inconsistencies.
The attention to quality issues will continue through construction and end after the termination of the builder’s warranty period.
Quality Control and the Specifications. Various specification sections contain references to professional and trade organization quality standards. The more common ones are the American Concrete Institute (ACI), American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), and the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC).
A typical cast-in-place concrete specification includes references to the ACI and ASTM, and since most general contractors do not have these extensive and expensive manuals, they must rely on the integrity of their subcontractors and vendors to furnish materials to meet these standards.
There are, however, several trade organizations that offer low-cost or no-cost quality standard information for the products their organization represents:
Steel Door Institute. Provides information on hollow metal doors and frames, including proper installation procedures, tolerances allowed, and some repair and remedial advice.
Southern Pine Inspection Bureau. Provides specifications on various species of southern pine framing lumber.
Western Wood Products Association. Offers specifications and mill tolerances for fir, spruce, hemlock, hem-fir, and various other species of western softwoods.
Building a library of these types of quality standards, over time, will provide both the Project Manager and Project Superintendent with baseline material specifications and enhance the company’s ability to provide quality service to its clients.
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