104.02 Al terations of Plans or Character of Work.
prescribed forms have been presented to him f or signature (i.e. after date of award). Should extenuating circumstances prevail, the Director may grant an extension in time not exceeding five calendar days for the return of the contract and bonds as provided herein and in Article 103.05.
103.07 Approv al of Contract.
A period of 20 calendar days will be allowed for execution of the contract by the Director and approval of same by the Governor, after its presentation by the successful bidder, unless the successful bidder agrees in writing to a longer period. No contract is binding upon the State until it has been executed by the Director and approved by the Governor of the State. The date of the final execution of the contract shall be the date on which it is signed by the Governor.
103.08 Failure to Exec ute Contract.
If the successful bidder is awarded the contract and fails to execute the contract (including furnishing acceptable contract security) the bidder will be subjected to the following actions. The Director will obtain liquidated damages for the bidder's default. The amount of the damages will be the smaller of two possible amounts. The first possible amount is the total amount of the proposal guaranty. The second possible amount is the difference between the amount of the contract as awarded and the amount of the total bid of the next lowest responsible bidder. The damages will be recovered from the bidder's cashier's check guaranty or from the principal or the sureties if the guaranty is a bid bond. The Director will return the proposal guaranty intact to the estate of the deceased successful bidder in the event of the death of the successful bidder on the date of the opening of the bids or the death of the successful bidder during the following number of days allowed for the execution of the cont ract. The defaulted bidder will be prohibited from participating in any manner in the original contract, and will be prohibited from participating in any manner in any portion of that contract that may be removed and put into other contracts. These prohibi tions shall apply to any other name under which the same person, affiliate, individual, partnership, company, firm, corporation, association, cooperative, or other legal entity may be operating in which the principal owners are involved. The prohibitions s hall be: - Work will not be allowed as a subcontractor or in any other capacity or role on the project. - Bidding will not be allowed on the original contract if it is readvertised for letting. - Bidding will not be allowed on any subsequent contract w hich contains any portion of the original contract. SCOPE OF WORK
104.01 Intent of Contract.
The intent of the contract is to provide for the construction and completion of the work described. The Contractor shall furnish all labor, materials, equipment, tools, transportation and supplies required to complete the work in accordance with the plans, specifications, and terms of the contract. When Item 680 -A, Geometric Controls, is included on the plans and in the proposal, the Contractor shall a lso furnish all geometric controls (see Section 680). Special provisions covering any special conditions, materials, or construction not covered on the plans or in these specifications will be included in the bidders' proposals or in supplemental agreement s.
104.02 Alterations of Plans or Character of Work.
a.General. The Engineer reserves the right to make, in writing, at any time during the work, such changes in quantities and such alterations in the work as necessary to satisfactorily complete the project. Such changes in quantities and alterations shall not invalidate the contract nor release the surety, and the contractor agrees to perform the work as altered. If the alterations or changes in quantities significantly change the character of the wo rk under the contract, whether such alterations or changes are in themselves significant changes to the character of the work or by affecting other work cause such other work to become significantly different in character, an adjustment, excluding anticipa ted profit, will be made to the contract. If the cost of the work does not change, then the adjustment will be zero. The basis for the adjustment shall be agreed
104.03 Extra Work.
upon prior to the performance of the work. If a basis cannot be agreed upon, then an adjustmen t will be made either for or against the contractor in such amount as the Engineer may determine to be fair and equitable. If the alterations or changes in quantities do not significantly change the character of the work to be performed under the contract, the altered work will be paid for as provided elsewhere in the contract. The term "significant change" shall be construed to apply only to the following circumstances:
1.When the character of the work as altered differs materially in kind or nature from that involved or included in the original proposed construction or
2.When a major item of work, as defined elsewhere in the contract, is increased in excess of 125 percent or decreased below 75 percent of the original contract quantity. Any allowance fo r an increase in quantity shall apply only to that portion in excess of 125 percent of original contract item quantity, or in case of a decrease below 75 percent, to the actual amount of work performed. Changes in quantities for the items of Unclassified E xcavation, Muck Excavation, Borrow Excavation, Pipe Underdrain, extra Concrete and Steel Reinforcement (for structure foundations), Piling, Bituminous Plant Mix leveling and widening material, and Bituminous Material used in plant mix bases and pavements, Disposal of Hydrocarbon Contaminated Soil, Underground Storage Tank (UST) Removal, and Removing and Disposing UST Contents shall be excluded in determining increases and decreases under the provisions of this paragraph, since it is understood that these it ems cannot be accurately determined before the work is done. No claims shall be made by the Contractor for any anticipated profits because of any such alteration, or by reason of any variation between the approximate quantities and the quantities of work as done. No allowance will be made on an item for which a fixed price is set in the proposal. Payment for work occasioned by changes or alterations will be made in accordance with the provisions set forth under Article 109.05. If the altered or added work i s of sufficient magnitude as to require additional time in which to complete the project, such time adjustment may be made in accordance with the provisions of Article 108.09. Under no circumstances shall alterations of plans or of the nature of the work i nvolve work beyond the termini of the proposed construction except as may be necessary to satisfactorily complete the project.
b.Changed or Differing Site Conditions. During the progress of th e work, if subsurface or latent physical conditions are encountered at the site differing materially from those indicated in the contract or if unknown physical conditions of an unusual nature, differing materially from those ordinarily encountered and gen erally recognized as inherent in the work provided for in the contract, are encountered at the site, the party discovering such conditions shall promptly notify the other party in writing of the specific differing conditions before they are disturbed and b efore the affected work is performed. Upon written notification, the Engineer will investigate the conditions, and if he determines that the conditions materially differ and cause an increase or decrease in the cost or time required for the performance of any work under the contract, an adjustment, excluding anticipated profits, will be made and the contract modified in writing accordingly. The Engineer will notify the Contractor of his determination whether or not an adjustment of the contract is warranted . No contract adjustment which results in a benefit to the Contractor will be allowed unless the Contractor has provided the required written notice. The Contractor shall carry on the work promptly and diligently pending a decision. Any adjustment in comp ensation because of such change or changes will be made in accordance with the provisions of Article 109.05. Any adjustment in contract time because of such change or changes will be made in accordance with the provisions of Article 108.09.
c.Claims . If the Contractor does not agree with the Department’s decision concerning his request for extra compensation, he may file a claim following the procedures outlined in Section 110, Claims.
104.03 Extra Work.
a.General. The Contractor, when so directed in writing, shall perform extra work for which there is no quantity or unit price in the contract and is deemed necessary or desirable in order to complete fully
104.04 Maintenance of Traffic and Sequence of Construction.
the work as contemplated. Such work shall be performed in accordance with the Specifications and as directed and will be paid for as provided under Subarticle 104.03(b).
b.Supplemental Agreement or Force Account Order Required. Before any such extra work is started, a supplemental agreement shall be executed, describing the kind, location, and estim ated quantities of the extra work to be done and specifying the unit prices or lump sum agreed upon, or a written order shall be issued for the work, stating that compensation will be on a force account basis. However, in an emergency, the Engineer may dir ect the immediate start of the extra work by letter containing this information. Such letter shall be superseded later by a supplemental agreement or force account order. If satisfactory unit prices or lump sum cannot be agreed upon, the Director may requi re that the extra work be performed on a force account basis as outlined in Subarticle 109.04(b) or he may direct that one or more of the items of the proposed extra work be omitted from consideration and performed by other agents.
104.04 Maintenance of Tr affic and Sequence of Construction .
a.General.
1.Provision for Traffic. No highway or section of highway or bridge shall be closed to traffic and no construction operations that will for any reason render the roadway generally unsuitable for use of the traveling public shall be started until adequate provisions have been made to detour or by -pass the traffic in safety and comfort. Special reference is made to Article 107.07, "Publ ic Convenience and Safety" and such is approved in writing by the Engineer.
2.Pipelines and Public Utilities. The Contractor's attention is directed to the possible existence of pipe lines or other public utilities which may be buried within the limits of the work or adjacent thereto and which may or may not be shown on the plans. He shall be responsible for and shall take all necessary precautions to protect and preserve any and all such existing drains, sewers, pipes, conduits, and other underground structures or parts thereof which may be affected by his operations on the work, and which, in the opinion of the Engineer, may be properly continued in use without any changes. He shall assume full responsibility for reimbursing the owners for any damage or i njury to properties or interference with their service which may result from any of his operations or negligence during the period the contract is in force. Also, he shall be responsible for any damage to utilities above ground, regardless of their locatio n, where such damage results from any of his operations or his negligence. Attention is directed to Subarticle 107.12(b). The Contractor shall repair, replace, relocate, extend, reconstruct or make any other change in any subsurface sewer or drain encountered in the prosecution of the work and unless otherwise provided in the contract, the cost of replacing or restoring or connecting any such sewer or drain substantially to its original location, when incidental to the construction shall be included in the contract unit prices for various pay items.
3.Mail Delivery. Where mail delivery service is to be maintained during construction, mailboxes within the limits of operations shall be removed by the Contractor before work is begun and set tem porarily where they will be accessible both to the mail carrier and the patron. As soon as the state of the work permits and the Engineer directs, all mailboxes shall be reset by the Contractor in permanent locations in compliance with U.S. Postal Service Regulations. Mailboxes or supports that have been damaged by the Contractor shall be replaced at his expense. The cost of removing and/or temporarily resetting mailboxes shall be included in the prices bid for the various pay items of work and no direct payment will be made for this work. Unless Item 209 -A, Mailbox Reset, is included on the plans or in the proposal, no direct payment will be made for permanently resetting mailboxes.
4.Lighting for Nightime Operations. When the Contractor performs any operations after daylight hours, he shall provide and maintain, at his expense, sufficient artificial lighting to permit proper construction and inspection.
b.Signs and Warning Lights. All signs , barricades, etc. used along the project shall be in accordance with the provisions of Part 6 of the MUTCD, the plan details and the following: Posts shall be appropriately sized for the sign of either timber (treated or painted) of not less than 4 inch by 4 inch {100 mm x 100 mm} (Nom.) cross section or metal (min. 2 lbs. {1 kg} "U" channel or equivalent) so spaced to rigidly support the sign.
104.04 Maintenance of Traffic and Sequence of Construction.
All signs, barricades, drums or other devices intended for use in controlling traffic shall be in accordance with the requirements of Part 6 of the MUTCD and the detailed plans, with reflectorization as noted therein. Reflectorization shall be accomplished using materials meeting the requirements of
Article 880 — 02.
All barricades, drums, signs and other devices shall be kept clean, legible, and in their proper position at all times. Damaged, defaced or dirty barricades, drums, signs and other devices shall be repaired or replaced immediately. The Engineer will insure compliance by periodic inspections and require repl acements or repair as deemed necessary. In addition to the requirements of Article 107.10 where particular hazardous conditions exist or traffic volumes warrant, or where there is serious interference from extraneous light sources and a reflectorized sign is not likely to be effective, the Engineer may require any or all signs and barricades to be illuminated. Illumination of signs, barricades, etc. shall be accomplished by the use of 100 watt or greater, incandescent or equivalent fluorescent electric light bulbs, shielded to protect the driver from glare and so located that the sign shape and message is clearly visible to the driver. Street or highway lighting by itself is not regarded as meeting illumination requirements.
c.Sequence of Construction. Unless otherwise provided by plan details or special provisions included in the contract, the sequence of construction for the project shall be the Contractor's provided the following requirements are met to the satisfaction of the Engineer.
1.Provides for t he orderly construction of the project within the time limit provided by the Contract.
2.Provides for the preparation of any bridge sites as a first order of work.
3.Provides for handling of traffic through the work in accordance with the details noted in Subarticle (d) of this Article.
4.Provides for the working out of minor drainage problems and details of temporary or permanent access as they are encountered.
5.Provides for the continuous prosecution of all paving work through the final wearing layer once planing (milling) operations, surface treatment operations, or paving operations have begun.
d.Handling of Traffic . Unless otherwise provided, the Contractor shall keep the road open to all traffic while performing the required improvements. The Co ntractor shall keep the portion of the project being used by public traffic, whether it be through or local traffic, in such condition that traffic will be adequately accommodated. He shall provide and maintain in a safe condition temporary approaches or c rossings and intersections with trails, roads, streets, businesses, parking lots, residences, garages, and farms. Where so provided on the plans or approved by the Engineer, the Contractor may bypass traffic over an approved detour route. The Traffic Contr ol Plan (TCP) has been developed by the Engineer in accordance with Part VI of the "Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices" (MUTCD). The Contractor shall furnish, erect, and maintain barricades, warning signs, delineators, flagmen, and pilot cars in acc ordance with the TCP. The TCP will be revised as directed by the Engineer if there is a need for traffic control that is not shown on the TCP. The need for maintaining the flow of traffic may cause the restriction of the movement and operation of the Cont ractor's construction equipment. Flagmen shall be furnished without additional compensation to direct traffic and protect the work as noted in Section 740. Construction adjacent to existing pavement will require the use of portable barricades, drums, signs, vertical sign panels, delineators, or other approved traffic control devices. Posts used for traffic control device supports shall be appropriately sized for the intended purpose and uniform in shape and color throughout the project. The above traffic control devices shall be supplemented as necessary with warning lights of the kind and type indicated by plan details, the proposal, or as directed by the Engineer. In addition, when deemed necessary by the Engineer, special warning lights shall be used on equipment working adjacent to traffic lanes to warn traffic. These special warning lights shall be either all purpose, 360° -2 sealed beams, revolving types of at least 8 inches {200 mm} in height, or electronic strobe beacons. These lights shall b e amber or orange colored and mounted so as to be readily seen by traffic at a safe distance.
104.08 Value Engineering.
104.05 Blank.
104.06 Final Cleaning Up.
Upon completion and before work will be finally accepted and final payment made, the Contractor shall perform the followin g work: (1) He shall clear and remove from the right of way and adjacent areas not owned by him, all falsework, equipment, surplus and discarded materials, temporary structures, rubbish, debris, and all other objectionable litter, and dispose of them in a satisfactory manner. (2) He shall not remove barricades, warning and direction signs, until directed by the Engineer. (3) He shall remove from the site of other operations such as pits, quarries, stream channels, structures sites, and storage yards, all we eds, portions of trees, discarded materials, machinery, temporary structures, and equipment and dispose of them in a satisfactory manner. Depositing such material on abutting property or adjacent to the right of way with or without the consent of the prope rty owner, will not be accepted as satisfactory disposal. However, he may be allowed temporarily to store equipment, surplus material, usable forms, etc., in a neat manner on a well -kept site near the right of way. (4) He shall restore in an acceptable man ner all property, public and private, damaged incident to the prosecution of the work, and shall leave the right of way and sites of structures in a neat and presentable condition satisfactory to the Engineer.
104.07 Maintenance of Roads and Detours.
a.General. The Contractor shall maintain at his expense, except as explicitly outlined in this Article, all detours and haul roads, and all roads, streets, bridges, and intersections within the project limits. This includes, but is not limited to, haul roads and detours constructed by the Contractor for his convenience. It also includes damage to the road, street, or structure caused by the Contractor's equipment. The Contractor shall regulate his loads as required by Article 105.12 and he and his surety shall be responsible for any specific damage that may result to the road, street, or structures from failure to observe regulations governing traffic thereon, or for negligence on his part. The Contractor shall perform required repairs without delay; otherwise, the State or County will perform the repairs and the cost thereof will be deducted from amounts due on the contract. The Contractor and his surety shall indemnify and hold harmless the State, the Director, and the Engineer for damages arising from the use of roads and streets in the performance of the contract.
b.Detours. Detours designed by the Engineer and constructed in an acceptable manner shall be maintained by the Contractor with payment made under the appropriate Pay Items or as Extra Work unless the State elects to perform the maintenance instead. Roads designated as detours by the plans or the Engineer shall be maintained as outlined in this paragraph.
c.Haul Roads. Unless the plans designate otherwise, the Contractor may use any State road as a haul road with the maintenance performed as specified in Subarticle 104.07(b) above as long as his loads are regulated as specified in Subarticle 104.07(a) above. Should the Contractor wish to use a county road or city street as a haul road, he shall mee t with the local governing body, review the condition of the facility, and reach an agreement as to the maintenance thereof. No payment will be made for such maintenance or restoration thereof.
d.Roads and Bridges. Existing roads and bridges which have n ot been constructed or overlaid by the Contractor shall be maintained by the State unless the Contractor is directed to make repairs with payment to be made as specified in Subarticle 104.07(b).
104.08 Value Engineering .
a.Purpose and Scope. Value Engineering (VE) applies to cost reduction proposals that are initiated, developed, and submitted in writing by the Contractor to the Department for modifying the plans, the specifications, or other contract requirements. This appl ies only to a proposed change which is identified as a Value Engineering proposal at the time it is submitted to the Department. VE proposals are those which would require a change in the contract and would result in a net savings over the contract cost wi thout impairing essential functions and characteristics of the project,
104.08 Value Engineering.
including but not limited to, service life, reliability, economy of operation, ease of maintenance, desired aesthetics, and safety. The intent of this provision is for the Department t o share with the Contractor any cost savings generated on a project as a result of a proposal or proposals offered by the Contractor and approved by the Department. The purpose is to encourage the use of the Contractor's ingenuity and experience in arrivin g at alternate, lower cost construction methods than those reflected in the contract documents by the sharing of savings resulting therefrom. VE proposals based solely on deleted pay items will not be considered. Nothing herein shall be construed as requiring the Department to consider or approve a VE proposal submitted hereunder; however, if a VE proposal is approved by the Department, the net savings resulting from the proposal will be shared by the Department and Contractor on a 50 -50 basis.
b.Submitta l of Proposal. As a minimum, the following materials and information shall be submitted with each VE proposal, plus any additional information requested by the Department:
1.A Statement that the proposal is being submitted as a Value Engineering proposal.
2.A description of the difference between the existing contract requirements and the proposed change, and the comparative advantages and disadvantages of each, including considerations such as service life, economy of operations, ease of maintenance, des ired appearance, and safety.
3.A complete detailed cost analysis indicating the final estimate costs and quantities to be replaced by the proposal, the new costs and quantities generated by the proposal, and the cost effects of the proposed changes on operational, maintenance, and other considerations.
4.Plans, specifications, and recommendations as to how the VE proposed changes are to be accomplished.
5.A statement of the deadline for issuing a change order adopting the proposed change to obtain the maximum cost reduction during the remainder of the contract, noting any effect on the contract completion time or delivery schedule.
6.A description of any previous use or testing of the proposal on another Department project, or elsewhere, and the condi tions and results therewith. If the proposal was previously submitted on another Department project, indicate the date, project number, and the action taken by the Department.
7.VE proposals may be submitted only by the prime Contractor. Subcontractors ma y not submit a proposal except through the prime Contractor.
8.Six complete copies of all submittal data included in a VE proposal shall be submitted to the Department's Project Manager. All copies of the proposal will be forwarded through the Area Office to the Construction Engineer for further handling.
c.Conditions for Consideration of Proposal.
1.The Contractor is cautioned not to base any bid prices on the anticipated approval of a VE proposal and to recognize that a proposal may be considered but not approved. In the event of rejection of the proposal, the Contractor shall complete the contract in accordance with the plans and specifications at the contract prices bid.
2.The Department will not be liable to the Contractor for failure to accept or act upon any VE proposal submitted nor for any delays to the work attributable to any such proposal.
3.The Contractor shall absorb all costs incurred in preparing a VE proposal for submission to the Department including the cost of final plan revisions . The Department will bear the cost of reviewing and administering the VE proposal.
4.Until a proposal is approved by supplemental agreement, the Contractor shall remain obligated to the terms and conditions of the existing contract.
5.All VE proposals, whe ther approved or not approved by the Department for use on a referenced project, become the property of the Department, and shall contain no restrictions imposed by the Contractor on their use or disclosure. The Department shall have the right to use, dupl icate, and disclose in whole or in part any data necessary for the utilization of the proposal. The Department retains the right to utilize any accepted proposal or part thereof on any other or subsequent projects without any obligation to the Contractor. This provision is not intended to deny rights provided by law with respect to patented materials or processes.
6.The proposal shall not be experimental in nature but shall have been proven to the Department's satisfaction under similar or acceptable condi tions on another project or location.
105.01 Authority of the Engine er.
7.Proposed changes in the basic design of a bridge or pavement type, or which require different right-of-way limits, will not normally be considered as an acceptable VE proposal. Items of work which are specifically e xcluded from Value Engineering by the plans will not be considered as a VE proposal.
8.If a supplemental agreement has not been executed by the date upon which the Contractor's proposal specifies that a decision should be made, or such other date as the C ontractor may subsequently have specified in writing, such proposal shall be deemed rejected.
9.If additional information is needed to evaluate proposals, such information shall be provided in a timely manner. Failure to do so will result in rejection of the proposal.
10.If a VE proposal is accepted in whole or in part, such acceptance will be by a contract supplemental agreement. The supplemental agreement will incorporate the necessary changes in the plans and specifications to permit the proposal, or a ny part of it accepted, to be put into effect. If there is to be an extension or reduction in contract time, the supplemental agreement will so note. If the approval of the Department is conditional, the supplemental agreement will specify the conditions.
11.The Department will be the sole judge as to whether a proposal qualifies for consideration and evaluation. It may reject any proposal that requires excessive time or costs for review, evaluation, and/or investigations, or which is not consistent with t he Department's design policies and basic design criteria for the project.
d.Value Engineering Payment. If a VE proposal is approved by the Department, the changes and payment therefore will be authorized by a supplemental agreement. Reimbursement to the Contractor will be made as follows:
1.The changes shown on the VE proposal will be incorporated into the contract through plan revisions, changes in the quantities of unit bid items, newly agreed price items or by force account, as appropriate, in accord ance with the specifications.
2.The cost of the revised work will be paid for directly as determined from the above mentioned changes. In addition to such payment, the Department will pay to the Contractor, by a separate Lump Sum Item, an amount equal to one -half of the savings as reflected by the difference between the cost of the original contract work and the cost of the work performed under the approved VE proposal. Payments will be made on monthly estimates based on the estimated savings generated by the approved VE proposal. The amount to be paid on these estimates will be a percentage of the total estimated savings in proportion to the amount of the VE proposal work performed during that month. Upon completion of all work included in the VE proposal, the final total savings will be determined by comparing the cost of the work based on the original contract quantities and the cost of the actual VE work performed. The final payment for work performed under the VE proposal will make any necessary correct ions in previous payments to reflect a total payment of 50% of the generated savings to the Contractor.
3.The Contractor's costs for development, design, and implementation of the VE proposal are not eligible for reimbursement.
4.The Contractor may submi t VE proposals for an approved subcontractor but, if the proposal is approved, the reimbursement will be made by the Department to the Contractor.
5.Payment will be made under item number: 104-A Value Engineering Proposal No. ______ - per lump sum SECTI ON 105 CONTROL OF WORK
105.01 Authority of the Engineer .
The Engineer will decide all questions which may arise as to the quality and acceptability of materials furnished and work performed and as to the rate of progress of the work; all questions which may arise as to the interpretation of the plans and specifications; all questions as to the acceptable fulfillment of the contract on the part of the Contractor. The Engineer shall have the authority to withhold further payment or to suspend the work wholly or in part due to failure of the Contractor to correct conditions unsafe for the workmen or the general public; failure to carry out provisions of the contract; failure to carry out orders; for such periods as he
Source: Alabama Standard Specifications for Highway Construction, 2022 Edition. Pages 30–35 of 934.