Prefabricated Concrete

What is Prefabricated Concrete?: Prefabricated or Precast concrete is a construction product produced by casting concrete in a reusable mold or "form" which is then cured in a controlled environment, transported to the construction site and lifted into place. In contrast, standard concrete is poured into site-specific forms and cured on site. Precast stone is distinguished from precast concrete by using a fine aggregate in the mixture, so the final product approaches the appearance of naturally occurring rock or stone.

Advantages of Prefabricated Concrete: By producing precast concrete in a controlled environment, typically referred to as a precast plant, the precast concrete is afforded the opportunity to properly cure and be closely monitored by plant employees. Utilizing a Precast Concrete system offers many potential advantages over site casting of concrete. The production process for Precast Concrete is performed on ground level, which helps with safety throughout a project. There is a greater control of the quality of materials and workmanship in a precast plant rather than on a construction site. Financially, the forms used in a precast plant may be reused hundreds to thousands of times before they have to be replaced. This generally allows cost of formwork per unit to be lower than for site-cast production.

Types of Prefabricated Concrete:  There are many different types of precast concrete, forming systems for architectural applications, differing in size, function, and cost. Precast architectural panels are also used to clad all or part of a building facade free-standing walls used for landscaping, soundproofing, and security walls, and some can be Prestressed concrete structural elements. Stormwater drainage, water and sewage pipes, and tunnels make use of precast concrete units.

Commercial Construction Building Sequence

Sequencing of trades and tasks on a commercial construction project is vitally important to the smooth operation and completion of a project.  The Commercial Construction Project Schedule template is organized into 17 phases, depicted in the following Gantt Chart:

General conditions: The time required to finalize the plans, develop an estimate, bring the project under contract, obtain permits, begin the procurement process and the process of submitting monthly pay requests.

Long-lead procurement:      The submittal of shop drawings, approval and ultimate fabrication and delivery of the major components of a commercial building are time critical. These activities must be addressed and expedited very early in the project.

Mobilize on site: Setup of temporary utility services, field offices, lay-down areas, site parking, temporary fencing, and benchmarks.

Site grading and utilities: Clearing and grubbing the lot, installing underground utilities and site drainage systems, fire water lines, and constructing building batter boards.

Foundations: Excavation, forming, and placement of the concrete foundations, footings, piers, grade beams, elevator pits and walls, installation of anchor bolts, elevator tubes and other required activities except the forming and placement of the first floor slab, which is completed later to ensure that it isn't damaged by construction activities.

Steel erection: The erection of the steel building frame, including main and secondary members, bracing, temporary steel for construction hoists and other uses and the painting or coating of that steel.

Form and pour concrete floors and roof: Installing rebar mats and in-floor utilities and conduits, forming, placing and finishing the concrete floors and roof of the structure.

Carpentry: The rough carpentry required for installation of the building sheathing and metal lath and the construction of the basic frame of the building interior.

Masonry: The interior and exterior masonry of the building, including the elevator and utility cores, any exterior masonry, hard tile on the floors of common areas and restrooms and restroom wall tiles.

Roofing: Placement of lightweight concrete fill, installation of roof drains, flashing, polymeric or roll roofing material and coatings and the stone ballast.

Window wall and storefront closures: Installation of the metal framing and glazing components of the window walls and storefront.

Building finishes: The detailed work of completing the interior of the building. insulation, drywall, paint and paper, cabinets, millwork, carpet and tile, hardware, interior and exterior plantings, seeding and sodding, and paving / striping the parking areas. Includes all signage requirements under the building code.

Elevators: Installation of the elevator cars and controls, calibration, testing and certification of the system.

Plumbing: Rough in and final installation of service areas, restrooms, fire and irrigation systems, including piping, fixtures and controls and the effort required to obtain in-process and final inspections and acceptance.

Electrical: Rough in and final installation of service, including all non-embedded conduit, cable and fixtures, controls and services and the effort required to obtain in-process and final inspections and acceptance.

HVAC: Rough setting and final installation of environmental control systems—including equipment in mechanical spaces, roof-top units, ductwork, controls and the effort required to balance air flows and obtain in-process and final inspections and acceptance.

Final cleanup and occupancy including inspections: The effort required to achieve final inspection and certification for occupancy by the city or county building inspector, the builder's final cleanup and walkthrough with the owner, and the owner's final acceptance.

These areas are general demarcations.  Some tasks in different areas may be complimentary and, therefore, it may be appropriate for different tasks in different categories to be executed at the same time. 

Footnotes:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/project-help/about-the-commercial-construction-template-for-project-HA001122602.aspx

Modular Construction

Modular construction consists of buildings that are prefabricated in multiple sections called modules. The modules are constructed in a remote facility, then delivered to their intended site of use. Using a crane, the modules are set onto the building's foundation and joined together to make a single residential, or commercial, building. The modules can be placed side-by-side, end-to-end, or stacked up to 4 stories in height, allowing a wide variety of configurations and styles in the building layout.

Must Meet Code:  Modular buildings must conform to all local building codes for their proposed use. This differs from mobile homes, with which moduar construction is sometimes confused, because mobile homes are required to conform to federal codes governed by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Uses of Modular Buildings:  Modular buildings may be used for long-term, temporary or permanent facilities, such as construction camps, schools and classrooms, civilian and military housing, and industrial facilities. Modular buildings are used in remote and rural areas where conventional construction may not be reasonable or possible. Other uses have included churches, health care facilities, sales and retail offices, fast food restaurants and cruise ship construction.

Advantages of Modular Construction: Modular buildings are often priced lower than their site-built counterparts, for a variety of reasons. Manufacturers cite the following advantages for using modular construction: 1) Speed of construction/faster return on investment. Modular construction allows for the building and the site work to be completed simultaneously, reducing the overall completion schedule by as much as 50%; 2) Indoor construction. Assembly is independent of weather, which increases work efficiency and avoids damaged building material; 3) Favorable pricing from suppliers. Large-scale manufacturers can effectively bargain with suppliers for discounts on materials; 4) Low waste.

Project Safety

Construction is a dangerous undertaking.  Recent studies indicate that there are 400,000 reportable injuries to construction workers and more than 1.000 deaths each year in construction in the United States.  The financial impact of these construction accidents has been estimated at $2 billion.  As a result, several pieces of legislation have been implemented to address construction site safety.  Probably the most significant piece of safety legislation is the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

OSHA: The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is an agency of the United States Department of Labor. Congress established the agency under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which President Nixon signed into law on December 29, 1970. OSHA's mission is to "assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance".

The Occupational Safety and Health Act allows OSHA to issue workplace health and safety regulations. These regulations include limits on chemical exposure, employee access to information, requirements for the use of personal protective equipment, and requirements for safety procedures. Job safety posters are required to present on job sites where employees can read them.  Additionally, regular, usually weekly, safety meetings are required to occur.

Labor Law and Labor Relations

The employment of construction workers is governed by federal and state labor laws.  The requirements vary by state, but tend to be more onerous in the rust-belt and in "pro-union states" than in the South an West.  The following surveys key points of labor laws and relations.

History: Employment law in the U.S. has traditionally been governed by the common law rule of "at-will employment," meaning that an employment relationship could be terminated by either party at any time without a reason. This is still true today in most states. However, starting in 1941, a series of laws prohibited certain discriminatory firings. That is, in most states, absent an express contractual provision to the contrary, an employer can still fire an employee for no or any reason, as long as it isn't an illegal reason (which includes a violation of public policy).

Fair Employment Act: In 1941, the Fair Employment Act became the first law to prohibit racial discrimination, although it only applied to the national defense industry. 

Fair Labor Standards Act: Regulates minimum wages and overtime pay for certain employees who work more than 40 hours in a work week. While working an employee must work a minimum of two hours in a day.

National Labor Relations Act: The "Wagner Act" gives private sector workers the right to choose whether they wish to be represented by a union and establishes the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to hold elections for that purpose. As originally enacted in 1935, the NLRA makes it illegal for employers to discriminate against workers because of their union membership or retaliate against them for engaging in organizing campaigns or other "concerted activities", to form "company unions", or to refuse to engage in collective bargaining with the union that represents their employees.

Taft-Hartley Act: The "Labor-Management Relations Act"), passed in 1947, loosened some of the restrictions on employers, changed NLRB election procedures, and added a number of new limitations on unions. The Act, among other things, prohibits jurisdictional strikes and secondary boycotts by unions, and authorizes individual states to pass "right-to-work laws", regulates pension and other benefit plans established by unions and provides that federal courts have jurisdiction to enforce collective bargaining agreements.

Norris-LaGuardia Act: Passed in 1932 this law outlawed the issuance of injunctions in labor disputes by federal courts. While the Act does not prevent state courts from issuing injunctions, it ended what some observers called "government by injunction," in which the federal courts used injunctions to prevent unions from striking, organizing and, in some cases, even talking to workers or entering certain parts of a state. Roughly half the states have enacted their own version of the Norris-LaGuardia Act.

Project Cost Management

Project cost and its control are important managment duties.  During construction, the project cost management system retrieves costs, labor and equipment hours, and production quantities from the job site as work progresses.  The information is used  as the basis for projections for future project work and to ensure ongoing project costs remain within the project's established budget.

Construction Cost Control: Many types of construction cost controls exist.  Some of the more common techniques include: 1) Performing an adequate constructability review to minimize unexpected costs; 2) Establishing a construction cost cash flow plan; 3) Monitoring cost performance to detect and understand variances from plan; and, 4) Ensuring that all appropriate changes are recorded accurately in the cost baseline.  Cost control methods are most successful when executed at regular intervals, whether daily, weekly, monthly, etc.  The snap-shot data obtained at these regular intervals can be compared to pre-construction budget estimates and adjustments can be made, as needed, to keep the project on budget.



Value Engineering to Reduce Costs: Reducing costs without compromising value is a regular goal of owners.  Value Engineering is an organized approach to providing the necessary functions at the lowest cost -- without sacrificing quality or value. Value engineering requirements and guidelines may originate in the project contracts or may be suggested by the contractor.  Regardless of the genesis on any given project, value engineering is a great cost management/reduction tool.  

Project Time Management

Time is a crucial component of construction project managment.  In certan instances the early completion of a project can financially benefit the contractor.  Conversely, late project completion can lead to financial penalties.  Timeliness is also an important component of a contractor's reputation in the industry and may affect the contractor's ability to obtain work on future projects.  A typical construction project involves many mutually dependent and interrelated operations that, in total combination, constitute a web of individual time and sequential relationships.  When task requirements for materials, equipment, and labor are considered, the complexity of the process of planning and scheduling that is necessary for successful project time managment becomes clear.

Critical Path Method (CPM): CPM is a project management system that offers a basis for informed decision making on construction projects of any size.  It provides information necessary for the time scheduling of a project, guides the contractor in selecting the best way to shorten the project duration, and predicts manpower and equipment requirements.

     Critical path scheduling assumes that a project has been divided into activities of fixed duration and well defined predecessor relationships. A predecessor relationship implies that one activity must come before another in the schedule. No resource constraints other than those implied by precedence relationships are recognized in the simplest form of critical path scheduling. To use critical path scheduling in practice, construction planners often represent a resource constraint by a precedence relation. A resource constraint is a constraint deriving from the limited availability of some resource of equipment, material, space or labor. For example, one of two activities requiring the same piece of equipment might be arbitrarily assumed to precede the other activity. This artificial precedence constraint insures that the two activities requiring the same resource will not be scheduled at the same time. These restrictions imply that the construction plan can be represented by a network plan in which activities appear in a network, and no two activities can have the same number or designation. 



Project Management and Administration

     Quality project manangement and administration are essential to the completion of a project, on budget and in a timely manner.  Management and administration are complimentary tasks that can involve overlapping personnel and processes.  Key players in project management and administration include the project manager, superintendent, engineer and the owner's representative. 

    Project Management: The judicious allocation and efficient use of resources to achieve the timely completion of a project within the established construction budget.

    Project Administration: Consists of the actions that are necessary to achieve the established project goals.  This may involve duties that are imposed by contract or that are required by good construction and business practices. 

     Project Manager: The person responsible for accomplishing the stated project objectives. Key project management responsibilities include creating clear and attainable project objectives, building the project requirements, and managing the constraints of the project management triangle, which are cost, time, scope, and quality.  The project manager must be flexible and have the ability to adapt to the various internal procedures of the contracting party, and to form close links with the nominated representatives, is essential in ensuring that the key issues of cost, time, quality and above all, client satisfaction, can be realized.

     Project Superintendent: Handles the day to day direction of the project operations.  The role of the superintendent also includes important quality control and subcontractor coordination responsibilities. On anything other than small projects, he/she is often assisted by a project engineer also employed by the construction company. The project manager and superintendent cooperate and share control effectively. Superintendents are almost universally stationed on the jobsite, while project managers are usually based in the contractor's office instead with part time on site responsibilities.

    Project Engineer:  The role of the project engineer can often be described as that of a liaison between the project manager and the technical disciplines involved in a project. The project engineer is also often the primary technical point of contact for the customer.

A project engineer's responsibilities include schedule preparation and resource forecasting for engineering and other technical activities relating to the project. They may also be in charge of performance management of vendors. They assure the accuracy of financial forecasts, which tie-in to project schedules, and ensure projects are completed according to project plans.

     Owner's Representative:  The duties of an owners' representative can vary greatly depending on the form of the contract, type of construction, and wishes of the owner.  Typical duties include such things as inspection and quality control, checking shop drawings, keeping job records, checking pay requests, attending project meetings, making location surveys, materials testing, processing change orders, preparing "As-Built" drawings and similar type functions.

Ridgemont Commercial Construction

To observe the construction management process first hand we were afforded the opportunity to visit the headquarters of Ridgemont Commercial Construction in Las Colinas, Texas and tour the construction site of one of Ridgemont's ongoing Projects.

Ridgemont Commercial Construction:  The Ridgemont Company was incorporated in Dallas, Texas, in 1976 to provide construction services for medical related clients in the North Texas area. From our modest beginning, we’ve grown substantially and diversified considerably. Over the years, Ridgemont's workload has grown to include office, retail, industrial, and distribution in addition to a healthy amount of medical projects. Ridgemont maintains three distinct divisions: ground-up construction, interiors and pre-engineered metal building systems.

 

Project Site: Near Lovefield Airport, Ridgemont is in the process of constructing a Dodge-Jeep Chrysler dealership.  The project began April 17, 2012 and is scheduled to be turnedover to the owner on September 14, 2012. This is a two-phase project involving a building for the dealership showroom and sales offices and a service center on the back part of the property.  Being immediately next to the airport, the owner's desired Ridgemont construct the facilities to limit the noise from aircraft that were landing and taking off -- usually directly above the dealership location. To this end, R-19 insulation was used in the ceiling and 6-inches of insulation was used in the walls.  One inch insulated glass windows were also utilized to limit noises from penetrating inside the structure.  The superintendent of the project informed us that the construction is more or less on schedule and that the project should be turned over as expected.

Engineered Lumber

     Lumber is incredibly valuable in the construction industry.  It is used to frame residential construction, many apartment complexes and some light office / industrial projects.  There are several steps in the process of creating useable lumber from cutting down trees through processing in the lumber yard.  The following surveys types of "engineered lumber" that are ultimately incorporated into construction projects. 

     Engineered Lumber: Engineered lumber is lumber created by a manufacturer and designed for a certain structural purpose. Categories of engineered lumber include:

     Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL): LVL comes in 1 ³⁄₄ inch thicknesses with depths such as 9 ¹⁄₂, 11 ⁷⁄₈, 14, 16, 18, or 24 inches, and are often doubled or tripled up. They function as beams to provide support over large spans, such as removed support walls and garage door openings, places where dimensional lumber isn't sufficient, and also in areas where a heavy load is bearing from a floor, wall or roof above on a somewhat short span where dimensional lumber isn't practical. This type of lumber cannot be altered by holes or notches anywhere within the span or at the ends, as it compromises the integrity of the beam, but nails can be driven into it wherever necessary to anchor the beam or to add hangers for I-joists or dimensional lumber joists that terminate at an LVL beam.

     Wood I-Joists: Sometimes called "TJI","Trus Joists" or "BCI," all of which are brands of wood I-joists, they are used for floor joists on upper floors and also in first floor conventional foundation construction on piers as opposed to slab floor construction. They are engineered for long spans and are doubled up in places where a wall will be aligned over them, and sometimes tripled where heavy roof-loaded support walls are placed above them. They consist of a top and bottom chord/flange made from dimensional lumber with a webbing in-between made from oriented strand board (OSB). The webbing can be removed up to certain sizes/shapes according to the manufacturer's or engineer's specifications, but for small holes, wood I-joists come with "knockouts," which are perforated, pre-cut areas where holes can be made easily, typically without engineering approval. When large holes are needed, they can typically be made in the webbing only and only in the center third of the span; the top and bottom chords cannot be cut. Sizes and shapes of the hole, and typically the placing of a hole itself, must be approved by an engineer prior to the cutting of the hole and in many areas, a sheet showing the calculations made by the engineer must be provided to the building inspection authorities before the hole will be approved.

 

     Finger-Jointed Lumber: Dimensional lumber lengths typically are limited to lengths of 22 to 24 feet, but can be made longer by the technique of "finger-jointing" lumber by using small solid pieces, usually 18 to 24 inches long, and joining them together using finger joints and glue to produce lengths that can be up to 36 feet long in 2×6 size. Finger-jointing also is predominant in precut wall studs. It is also an affordable alternative for non-structural hardwood that will be painted (staining would leave the finger-joints visible). Care must be taken during construction to avoid nailing directly into a glued joint as stud breakage can occur.

     Glu-lam Beams: Created from 2×4 or 2×6 stock by gluing the faces together to create beams such as 4×12 or 6×16. By gluing multiple, common sized pieces of lumber together, they act as one larger piece of lumber - thus eliminating the need to harvest larger, older trees for the same size beam.

     Manufactured Trusses: Trusses are used in home construction as a pre-fabricated replacement for roof rafters and ceiling joists (stick-framing). It is seen as an easier installation and a better solution for supporting roofs as opposed to the use of dimensional lumber's struts and purlins as bracing. In the southern US and other parts, stick-framing with dimensional lumber roof support is still predominant.

Construction Insurance

Insurance is the keystone for managing financial risk in the construction process.  Insurance will not eliminate risk, rather it shifts most of the risk to a professional risk bearer, such as an insurance company.  Insurance coverages can be very complicated and each construction project and contract presents its own unique circumstances and challenges.  Some insurance coverages are required by statute.  Others are called for by the Owner in the contract.  Even when not required, contractors will often purchase coverage for certain risks to obtain an indicia of security and peace of mind.  While not exhaustive, the following lists types of construction insurance.

All-risk builder's risk insurance: Protects against all risks of direct physical loss or damage to the project or to associated materials caused by any external effect, with noted exclusions.

Named-Peril builder's risk insurance: Protection for the project, including stored materials, against direct loss by fire or lightning.  A number of separate endorsementsto this policy are available that add coverage for specific losses.

Bridge Insurance: This insurance is of the inland marine type and is often termed the "bridge builder's risk policy." It affords protection during construction against damage that may be caused by fire, lightning, flood, ice, collision, explosion, riot, vandalism, wind, tornado and earthquake.

Property Insurance on Contractor's Buildings: Affords protection for offices, sheds, warehouses, and contained personal property.

Contractor's public liability and property damage insurance: Protects the contractor from legal liability for injury to persons not in its employ and for damage to property of others, if the property is not in the contractor's care, custody, or control when such injuries or damage arise out of the operations of the contractor.

Surety Bonds

Bonding is routinely required on public projects.  The Miller Act prescibes the requirements for payment and performance bonds on federal projects.  Many states have statutes that enforce requirements similar to the federal Miller Act.  Whether or not private projects require funding is up to the parties involved in the project.  However, it is typical that Owners will require bonding projects greater than $15 million in value.

Surety bond: A contract among at least three parties: 1) The obligee - the party who is the recipient of an obligation; 2) The principal - the primary party who will be performing the contractual obligation; and, 3) The surety - who assures the obligee that the principal can perform the task.

How it Works:  Through a surety bond, the surety agrees to uphold — for the benefit of the obligee — the contractual promises (obligations) made by the principal if the principal fails to uphold its promises to the obligee. The contract is formed so as to induce the obligee to contract with the principal, i.e., to demonstrate the credibility of the principal and guarantee performance and completion per the terms of the agreement. The principal will pay a premium (usually annually) in exchange for the bonding company's financial strength to extend surety credit. In the event of a claim, the surety will investigate it. If it turns out to be a valid claim, the surety will pay it and then turn to the principal for reimbursement of the amount paid on the claim and any legal fees incurred. If the principal defaults and the surety turns out to be insolvent, the purpose of the bond is rendered nugatory. Thus, the surety on a bond is usually an insurance company whose solvency is verified by private audit, governmental regulation, or both.

Types of Surety Bonds: Several types of surety bonds are used heavily in the construction industry.  Types of bonds include:

    Bid bonds: Guarantee that a contractor will enter into a contract if awarded the bid.

     Performance bonds: Guarantee that a contractor will perform the work as specified by the contract.

    Payment bonds: Guarantee that a contractor will pay for services and materials.

     Maintenance bonds: Guarantee that a contractor will provide facility repair and upkeep for a specified period of time.

Miller Act:  Codified as amended at 40 U.S.C. §§ 3131–3134 the Miller Act requires prime contractors on some government construction contracts to post bonds guarantying both the performance of their contractual duties and the payment of their subcontractors and material suppliers.

Types of Construction Contracts

There are multiple types of construction contracts.  The type of contract to be used on a specific project depends on the preferences of the parties involved and the specific circumstances of the project. 

Lump Sum Contract: A lump sum contract, sometimes called stipulated sum, is the most basic form of agreement between a supplier of services and a customer. The supplier agrees to provide specified services for a specific price. The receiver agrees to pay the price upon completion of the work or according to a negotiated payment schedule. In developing a lump sum bid, the builder will estimate the costs of labor and materials and add to it a standard amount for overhead and the desired amount of profit. Advantages of this method include: 1) Low financial risk to Owner; 2) Known cost at outset; and 3) Minimum Owner supervision related to quality and schedule.  Disadvantages include: 1) Changes difficult and costly; 2) Early project start not possible due to need to complete design prior to bidding;  and, 3) Bidding expensive and lengthy.

Unit Price Contract: In a unit price contract, the work to be performed is broken into various parts, usually by construction trade, and a fixed price is established for each unit of work. For example, painting is typically done on a square foot basis. Unit price contracts are seldom used for an entire major construction project, but they are frequently used for agreements with sub-contractors. They are used for maintenance and repair work. In a unit price contract, like a lump sum contract, the contractor is paid the agreed upon price, regardless of the actual cost to do the work.

Construction Bidding

What is Construction Bidding?: Construction bidding is the process of submitting a proposal (tender) to undertake, or manage the undertaking of a construction project. The process starts with a cost estimate from blueprints and take off.

Bid Tender:  The tender is treated as an offer to do the work for a certain amount of money, or a certain amount of profit. The tender which is submitted by the competing firms is generally based on a bill of quantities, a bill of approximate quantities or other specifications which enable the tenders attain higher levels of accuracy, the statement of work.

For instance, a bill of quantities is a list of all the materials, and other work such as amount of excavation, of a project which have sufficient detail to obtain a realistic cost, or rate per described item of work/material. The tenders should not only show the unit cost per material/work, but should also if possible, break it down to labor, material and other costs. This provides credibility that the tender is feasible. Two types of bids are balanced bids and unbalanced bids.

Balanced Bid: On a unit-price project, a balanced bid is one in which the unit price for each bid item includes its own direct cost, plus its pro-rata share of the project overhead, markup, bond, and tax.

Unbalanced Bid:   An unbalanced construction bid refers to a situation where the bidder puts a high price on certain items and a low price on other items during contract bidding. This sometimes happens when bidders want to conceal pricing strategies from their competition or to gain more money at the start of a project.

Construction Cost Estimating

Overview: Construction estimating is the compilation and analysis of the many items that influence and contribute to the project. Estimating is done before work begins and requires evaluation of bidding documents and site conditions.  Estimating is a fluid process and there are as many different estimating procedures as their are contractors.  As with anything else in today's world, technology is vital to construction cost estimating.  The following discusses some basic aspects of construction estimating.

Lump Sum Estimates: Through this process, a fixed price is compiled, for which the contractor agrees to perform a prescribed package of work in full accordance with the drawings and specifications.  The contractor agrees to carry out its responsibilities even though the cost may prove greater than the stipulated amount.  This type of estimate is is applicable only when the nature of the work and the quantities involved are well defined by the bidding documents.  Lump sum estimating requires that "quantity surveys" or "quantity takeoffs" be made.  This would be a complete listing of all the materials and items of work that will be required.  Using these quantities as a basis, the contractor computes the costs of the materials, labor, equipment, subcontracts, overhead, contract bond and tax.  The sum total of these individual estimates constitutes the anticipated overallcost of construction.  A mark-upwill be added onto this number to derive the lump-sum estimate the contractor will bid as its price for doing the work.

Unit Price Estimates:  Unit price estimates can be compiled when quantities of work items may not be precisely determinable, but the nature of the work is well defined.  Price estimates are derived for each bid item for a particular job.  Quantity surveys, similar to those in the lump sum process, for each bid item.  The total project cost is arrived at by adding the totals of each of these amounts, but all estimated costs will be kept segregated by bid item to which they apply.

What is RS Means?:  RS Means is a division of Reed Business Information that provides cost information to the construction industry so contractors in the industry can provide accurate estimates and projections for their project costs. RS Means has become a data standard for government work in terms of pricing, and is widely used by the industry as a whole. RS Means is accessible online and it also integrated in a variety of cost estimating software packages to allow for fast and reliable estimating. Cost information is updated annually and is available online, via CD-Rom, or in book form.

Sustainable & Green Building Codes

Genesis of Green Codes:  The advent of green building codes and standards is a direct result of the wide-sweeping impacts of green building rating systems like LEED demonstrating that buildings really can be designed and built to lower operating costs, increase value, and reduce their overall impacts.

What is LEED?:  LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a Green Building Rating System that assess the environmental performance of built projects across a spectrum of key criteria. From water and energy use efficiency to location, the impact of materials used, and more, LEED is intentionally designed to recognize buildings that go beyond minimum code compliance. While these minimums will vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, they should at the very least include the most current version of the model energy code as a mandatory minimum for all buildings.

LEED Certification:  LEED points are awarded on a 100-point scale, and credits are weighted to reflect their potential environmental impacts. Additionally, 10 bonus credits are available, four of which address regionally specific environmental issues. A project must satisfy all prerequisites and earn a minimum number of points to be certified.

 

The Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI) administers LEED certification for all commercial and institutional projects registered under any LEED Rating System. The United States Green Building Council (USGBC) administers the development and ongoing improvement of the LEED rating systems. USGBC is also the primary source for LEED and green building education and resources for project teams, such as reference guides, rating system addenda, workshops, online trainings and other tools to help you achieve success on your LEED project.

International Green Construction Code (IgCC): The IgCC is the first model code that includes sustainability measures for the entire construction project and its site — from design through construction, certificate of occupancy and beyond. The new code is expected to make buildings more efficient, reduce waste, and have a positive impact on health, safety and community welfare.  The IgCC creates a regulatory framework for new and existing buildings, establishing minimum green requirements for buildings and complementing voluntary rating systems which may extend beyond the customizable baseline of the IgCC. The code acts as an overlay to the existing set of International Codes, including provisions of the International Energy Conservation Code and ICC-700, the National Green Building Standard, and incorporates ASHRAE Standard 189.1 as an alternate path to compliance.

One Bryant Park

One Bryant Park:  The Bank of America Tower is a 1,200 foot tall skyscraper in the Midtown district of Manhattan in New York City. It is located on Sixth Avenue, between 42nd and 43rd Street, opposite Bryant Park.  The one billion dollar project was designed by Cook+Fox Architects to be one of the most efficient and ecologically friendly buildings in the world. In June 2010, the Bank of America Tower was the recipient of the 2010 Best Tall Building Americas award by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

Energy Efficient Windows: The design of the building makes it environmentally friendly, using technologies such as floor-to-ceiling insulating glass to contain heat and maximize natural light, and an automatic daylight dimming system.

Greywater Site: The tower also features a greywater system, which captures rainwater for reuse. Bank of America states that the building is made largely of recycled and recyclable materials.

Recycled Air:  Air entering the building is filtered, as is common, but the air exhausted is cleaned as well.  Bank of America Tower is the first skyscraper designed to attain a Platinum LEED Certification.

Green Materials:  The Bank of America tower is constructed using a concrete manufactured with slag, a byproduct of blast furnaces. The mixture used in the tower concrete is 55% cement and 45% slag. The use of slag cement reduces damage to the environment by decreasing the amount of cement needed for the building, which in turn lowers the amount of carbon dioxide greenhouse gas produced through the normal cement manufacturing process. Each ton of regular cement produced creates about one ton of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Climate Control:  Temperature control and the production of some of its energy are accomplished in an environmentally friendly manner for the tower. Insulating glass reduces thermal loss, lowering energy consumption and increasing transparency. Carbon dioxide sensors signal increased fresh air ventilation when elevated levels of carbon dioxide are detected in the building.

Conditioned air for the occupants is provided by multiple air column units located in the tenant space that deliver 62 degree air into a raised access floor plenum. The underfloor air system provides users with the ability to control their own space temperature as well as improving the ventilation effectiveness. When building churn occurs, workstation moves can be performed easier with lower cost and less product waste.

Water Conservation: Conservation features in the tower include waterless urinals, which are estimated to save 8,000,000 gallons of water per year and reduce CO₂ emissions by 144,000 pounds per year.

ICC Code Development Process

What are the I-Codes?:  The I-Codes are the first and only set of coordinated, consistent, and comprehensive construction, fire prevention, plumbing, zoning, and energy and sustainability codes. As a result, fire and building code enforcement officials, architects, engineers, designers, and contractors can work with a consistent set of requirements from coast to coast.

 
Consensus Process:  The consensus process through which ICC develops and maintains comprehensive and balanced codes is designed to protect the public’s health, safety, and welfare as well as protect our planet by encouraging water and energy conservation and other sustainability methods. The ICC process allows all jurisdictions, regardless of size, to benefit from the expertise of thousands of professionals who participate in the development of the model codes, available for adoption at the state and local level. The cost to include this expertise and manage this process would be prohibitive for any single jurisdiction.

The Foundation -- Governmental Consensus: The ICC code development system ensures fairness in the process, controls against conflicts of interest, and prevents vested economic interests from determining the outcome of a code change proposal. The ICC governmental consensus process meets the principles defined by the U.S. Standards Strategy of 2005; and the OMB Circular A-119, Federal Participation in the Development and Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards and in Conformity Assessment Activities (1998), codified by Public Law 104-113, National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995. The key mechanisms that govern the ICC governmental consensus process include:

Open Public Forums

• All forums are open to the public at no cost.
• Anyone can submit a code change proposal and testify at the hearings.
• All views are considered by a code committee prior to a vote.

Decision Transparency

• All testimony and committee recommendations are made in open public hearings.
• All final code change proposal decisions are made by public safety officials in an open hearing.

Representation of Interests

• Wide-ranging representation.
• Full disclosure of conflicts of interest.
• One-third of the committee’s members must be governmental members with no financial vested interests.
• Membership on a committee is not conditional on membership in ICC.

Due Process

• Equal opportunities for rebuttal.
• Committees consider all views, objections, and the cost impact of all code change proposals.
• All who attend can testify.

Appeals Process

• Appeals considered per due process. 

Majority Consensus

• A simple majority from the committee decides the recommended action on the proposed code change.
• An assembly action allows an audience vote on the committee’s action.

The ICC Code Development Process

The ICC code development process is the framework to develop and provide a comprehensive regulatory system for the built environment that is effective, efficient, and meets the needs of government, industry, public health, and safety. The objectives of the ICC code development process are to:

• Recognize and evaluate in a timely manner technological developments that affect construction techniques/regulations
• Host an open debate and democratic discussion of proposals
• Present the final determination of code text modifications
• Create an opportunity for building, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, fire, energy, and sustainability professionals to react and share lessons learned

The Eight-Step I-Code Development Cycle

The eight-step ICC code development process demonstrates a continuous improvement cycle, incorporates the latest lessons learned in the construction industry, and keeps up with technological changes to protect communities and build a safer world. ICC publishes new editions of the code every three years.

Step 1: Code Changes Submitted: Any interested person may submit a code change proposal. Before code changes are due for the current cycle, an announcement is posted on the ICC web site and in other media, including a notice in the Federal Register. In year one of the code cycle, Group A codes begin this revision process. In year two, Group B codes begin the process.

Step 2: Proposed Code Changes Posted: Code change proposals are posted at least 30 days prior to the public hearing.

Step 3: Code Development Hearing (Public Hearing): The Code Development Hearing is a public meeting open to all parties. Anyone can attend, testify, and take part in debates. There is no cost to attend or participate in the hearing, which can also be viewed via webcast. During the code development hearing, interested parties can present their views including the cost, benefits, and impact of the code change proposals. The hearing includes the following steps:

• Floor Discussion – The code change proposals are considered at the floor discussion.
• Committee Action – The code development committee makes a recommendation on the code change proposal disposition.
• Assembly Action – ICC Members in attendance can challenge committee actions.

Step 4: Public Hearing Results Posted: The results of the public hearing are posted not less than 60 days prior to the Final Action Hearing.

Step 5: Public Comments Sought on Public Hearing Results: Any interested person can submit comments on the results of the public hearing to challenge a committee action or assembly action. This public comment process provides an opportunity to consider specific support for or objections to the results of the public hearings.

Step 6: Public Comments Posted:  Code changes that received a public comment as well as code changes that had a successful assembly action are posted in the Final Action Agenda at least 30 days prior to the Final Action consideration. The proposed changes receiving neither an assembly action nor a public comment will be block voted on by simple majority at the Final Action Hearing.

Step 7: Final Action Hearing: Eligible voters consisting of designated Governmental Members and Honorary Members cast votes on the final determination of all code change proposals presented in a code development cycle. The Final Action Hearings are open, fair, objective, and allow no proprietary interests to influence their outcomes. The Final Action Hearings are open to the public and also webcast with streaming video and audio.

Eligible voters: The eligible ICC Governmental Member Representatives and Honorary Members in attendance at the Final Action Hearing will each have one vote per code change considered. ICC Governmental Members are those who, in their positions of public trust, enforce the code and are charged with the public’s safety. Any change to a representative’s voting status must be received by the Code Council no later than 10 days prior to the commencement of the first day of the Final Action Hearing to ensure the voter’s eligibility.

Step 8: New Edition is Published: The final actions on all proposed code changes are incorporated in the next edition of the applicable I-Codes.

New Editions: The ICC Board has determined that new editions of the codes are to be published every three years. Each new edition will incorporate the results of the code development activity since the last edition.

FOOTNOTES:

1.  The ICC Code Development Proces, Published Date: 01.23.2012By Bruce Johnson, Director of Fire Service Activities, International Code Council – Government Relations

2. http://www.nvfc.org/media/news/the-icc-code-development-process/

ICC Family of Model Codes

Genesis of ICC:  Since the early 1900s, the system of building regulations in the United States was based on model building codes developed by three regional model code groups. The codes developed by the Building Officials Code Administrators International (BOCA) were used on the East Coast and throughout the Midwest of the United States, while the codes from the Southern Building Code Congress International (SBCCI) were used in the Southeast and the codes published by the International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO) covered the West Coast and across to most of the Midwest. Although regional code development has been effective and responsive to the regulatory needs of the local jurisdictions, by early 1990s it became obvious that the country needed a single coordinated set of national model building codes. The nation’s three model code groups decided to combine their efforts and in 1994 formed the International Code Council (ICC) to develop codes that would have no regional limitations. After three years of extensive research and development, the first edition of the International Building Code was published in 1997. The code was patterned on three legacy codes previously developed by the organizations that constitute ICC. By the year 2000, ICC had completed the International Codes series and ceased development of the legacy codes in favor of their national successor.

Broad Application of ICC Codes:  Most states or municipalities in the United States of America adopt the ICC family of codes and other reference standards and codes in whole or with local amendments. This has the effect of designating a copyrighted work as actual law, and, once enacted, that law enters the public domain. The model codes themselves, prior to their adoption as law, are not in the public domain and the ICC retains copyright on the model code itself.  

ICC Family of Building Codes:

• International Building Code
• International Residential Code
• International Fire Code
• International Plumbing Code
• International Mechanical Code
• International Fuel Gas Code
• International Energy Conservation Code
• ICC Performance Code

• International Wildland Urban Interface Code
• International Existing Building Code
• International Property Maintenance Code
• International Private Sewage Disposal Code
• International Zoning Code
• International Green Construction Code

Building Codes

What is a Building Code?: A building code is a set of rules that specify the minimum acceptable level of safety for buildings and nonbuilding structures. The building code becomes law of a particular jurisdiction when formally enacted by the appropriate authority.

The Purpose of Building Codes: The main purpose of building codes are to protect public health, safety and general welfare as they relate to the construction and occupancy of buildings and structures.

Who Uses Building Codes?: Building codes are generally intended to be applied by architects and engineers.  Building codes are also used for various purposes by safety inspectors, environmental scientists, real estate developers, contractors and subcontractors, manufacturers of building products and materials, insurance companies, facility managers, tenants, and others.

Creation & Adoption of Building Codes: The practice of developing, approving, and enforcing building codes varies considerably among localities. In some places building codes are developed by the government agencies or quasi-governmental standards organizations and then enforced by the government. In other locations a system of model building codes is used. Model building codes have no legal status unless adopted or adapted by an authority having jurisdiction. The developers of model codes urge public authorities to reference model codes in their laws, ordinances, regulations, and administrative orders. When referenced in any of these legal instruments, a particular model code becomes law. This practice is known as adoption by reference. When an adopting authority decides to delete, add, or revise any portions of the model code adopted, it is usually required by the model code developer to follow a formal adoption procedure in which those modifications can be documented for legal purposes.

Verification of Compliance With Building Codes:  To ensure applicable codes are adhered to, political subdivisions normally require various kinds of permits, field inspections at certain stages of construction, and test reports.  A general building permit is a universal requisite, requiring the filing of complete drawings and specifications prepared by a registered architect-engineer with a designated public office.  These documents are reviewed for design conformance with the applicable codes by the responsible building authority. Permits for plumbing, electrical work, heating equipment, signs, air conditioning, elevators and escalators, and refrigeration systems are also normally required.  Occupancy permits are often required after the completion of a building, necessitating an inspection to ensure compliance with building code standards.