Requirements for modifying or adding to the University's standard construction documents are set forth in this chapter. Use the information in this chapter along with the Cover Sheets and Instructions preceding each document in Construction Contract templates to modify the individual documents. Only proposed changes to the core documents (General Conditions and Instructions to Bidders) should be sent for review to the UCL and Capital Programs at UCOP. Modifications of the approved construction documents might occur for the following reasons, each of which is described in this chapter:
- Construction documents are updated
- A contracting mode other than complete plans and specifications is used
- Special project applications exist
- Special project circumstances apply
The construction documents have been written to address the current requirements of typical University construction projects, both new construction and alterations. However, the University is committed to ongoing updates of its construction documents to meet changing needs resulting from matters such as government regulations, legislation, insurance, and user experience. UCOP receives and considers proposed document changes from Facilities; all changes for improvement will be made annually, unless changes are deemed urgent.
During the interim period between the publication of updates to the existing FM and the newly revised FM, Volumes 1-6, notifications of updates to the University's construction documents will be issued from UCOP to the Facilities via email.
Choosing a contracting mode other than complete plans and specifications will require modification of the University's standard construction documents.
Since the standard construction documents have been written for single-contract projects using the complete plans and specifications contracting mode and a stipulated sum basis for payment, no changes are required for this mode of contracting.
The design-and-build contracting mode requires changes to the core and non-core documents listed below. For each document, the degree of changes required is also indicated. Samples of these documents are available from UCOP. UCOP is available to assist the Facility in developing the final documents.
Two types of contracts can be used with the construction manager contracting mode; both require changes to some core and non-core documents. Among the conditions that determine the type of contract are the following:
- Multiple contracts
- Phased construction
- Cost-plus-fee contract sum
- Guaranteed maximum price
The changes required when construction management is provided by a consultant and when it is provided by a contractor are listed below. For each document listed, the degree of changes required is also indicated. Samples of these documents are available from UCOP. UCOP is available to assist the Facility in developing the final documents.
The cost-plus-fee contracting mode requires changes to the core and non-core documents listed below. For each document, the degree of changes required is also indicated. Samples of these documents are available from UCOP. UCOP is available to assist the Facility in developing the final documents.
Contracting modes—other than the complete plans and specifications, design-build, progressive design-build, construction management, and cost-plus-fee modes—have been used by the University. Construction documents for these other contracting modes are usually developed for a special project on a one-time-use basis. UCOP keeps a list of projects that have been accomplished using these customized contracting modes, along with a set of documents used for each. UCOP is available to assist the Facilities in developing customized construction documents when needed. Approval by the Regents is required before other contracting modes are used because permission for their use has not been delegated to the Facilities.
Special project applications, including special funding, may require changes to both core and non-core documents. Core documents are modified by adding articles to the Supplementary Instructions to Bidders or the Supplementary Conditions. UCOP must approve such modifications. UCOP is available to provide the assistance necessary to develop the construction documents. Special project applications should be determined early in the development of the project.
Recipients of federal agency grant funds must follow specific requirements if such funds are to be used to procure goods and services, including construction services, valued at $500,000 or more. Public Law 101-136, Section 623, also known as the Warner Amendment, enacts these requirements and reads as follows:
Section 623. (a) No amount of any grant made by a federal agency shall be used to finance the acquisition of goods or services (including construction services) unless the recipient of the grant agrees, as a condition for the receipt of such a grant, to:
(1) announce in any solicitation for offers to procure such goods or services (including construction services) the amount of federal funds that will be used to finance the acquisition for which such offers are being solicited; and
(2) express the amount announced pursuant to paragraph (1) as being a percentage of the total costs of the planned acquisition.
(b) The requirements of subsection (a) shall not apply to a procurement for goods or services (including construction services) that has an aggregate value of less than $500,000. Public Law 101-136, Section 623.
For projects using federal grant funds, items (1) and (2) above must be satisfied by adding appropriate language to the Advertisement for Bids.
Special project circumstances (presented in this article alphabetically) may require modifications of both core documents and non-core documents. Detailed completion and modification instructions for the circumstances that follow are given on the Cover Sheet and Instructions that immediately precede each construction document model in Construction Contract templates.
An allowance is an amount established in the contract documents for inclusion in the contract sum to cover the cost of prescribed items not specified in detail, with the provision that any variation between this amount and the final cost, if higher or lower, of the prescribed items, will be made by change order to appropriately adjust the contract sum. Limit the use of allowances to designs, services, or construction elements—such as creative design, modeling, or sculptural work related to a project—that are not specifiable enough to allow competitive bidding or for a part of the work to be competitively bid after the award of the contract. If an allowance is to be made for parts of the work that will be competitively bid after the award of the contract, contact UCOP for the required text to be added to the construction documents. When allowances are used, the Bid Form and Specifications documents require modification.
Ideally, the total bid price should cover the scope of a complete project without the need for alternate bids. However, if alternates are requested, they should be used with discretion, held to a minimum, carefully prepared to minimize bidder confusion, and coordinated with the Specifications and the Drawings. Two reasons for requesting alternate bid prices are:
- To adjust the scope of the work so the contract sum will be within the budget.
- To allow a decision to be made between two materials or methods of different values.
Alternates should be all deductive or all additive, as follows:
- Additive used to obtain the maximum work for the available budget. This method assumes that the total bid price received could be below the budget, and that the contract sum could be increased to match the budget figure through the execution of the alternates. However, this method may raise questions from the funding agencies about whether these additions increase the approved scope of work or embellish the project.
- Deductive used as a means to bring the total bid price within the budget.
In addition, the presence of alternates may affect the selection of the lowest responsible bidder. When alternates are used, the Bid Form, Agreement, Specifications, and Drawings documents must be modified (the Mini Form does not utilize alternates).
Post-Award Alternates. A post-award alternate is an alternate that is exercisable for a stipulated period from the bid deadline or from the date of contract award. This type of alternate is used when the possibility of attaining additional funds at a date after the bid deadline or contract award is known or highly probable. Since the alternate is not exercised until after award of the contract, it is not a basis for the award. The Bid Form and Agreement include the appropriate text to allow for post-award alternates. When post-award alternates are used, the Specifications must be modified (the Brief Form does not utilize alternates).
When a project involves asbestos abatement, the Specifications document must be modified.
In addition to assignments of responsibility to other parties that are developed during construction, assignments are occasionally made part of the bidding documents. This situation occurs when the University awards a separate contract for portions of the work, materials, or equipment before the complete project is bid, and later assigns that separate contract to the general contractor for the project. This procedure is a version of the "fast-track" project delivery method. The separate contract is awarded before the design is complete. This allows for early planning and the procurement of materials.
When assignments are used as described above, the bidding documents for both the separate contract and the general contract must be extensively revised. Modifications to documents for the separate contract inform the bidders that their contract will be assigned to a not-yet-selected general contractor. Modifications to documents for the general contract inform the general contract bidders of the complete, separate contract data.
When assignments are used, the Advertisement for Bids, Supplementary, Agreement, Instructions to Bidders, Specifications documents require modification. Based on the type of Assignment Agreement used, one of the following new documents must be added:
- RD - Assignment of Work Agreement (Separate Contract and Completed Example) - Long Form
- RD - Assignment of Materials or Equipment Agreement (Separate Contract) - Long Form
When bidder prequalification is used, the Long Form Advertisement for Bids is replaced by the Advertisement for Contractor Prequalification which generally explains the prequalification process. The Advertisement for Contractor Prequalification informs bidders that prequalification documents (the Prequalification Questionnaire) will be issued to interested bidders, and that bidding documents will be issued only to prequalified bidders. A Prequalification Evaluation form is used by the Facility to evaluate the bidders. Additionally, when prequalification is used, the Supplementary Instructions to Bidders document must be modified (all documents mentioned above can be found on the Construction Contracts Templates page).
When bidder qualification is used, the Advertisement for Bids and Supplementary Instructions to Bidders documents must be modified.
In addition to the codes listed in Specifications, Division 1, Section 01060, Regulatory Requirements, the contractor may be required to comply with additional applicable codes or standards. In these cases, modify Section 01060 to include the additional codes or standards.
The California Education Code, Section 92050 allows The Regents to provide for the payment of a bonus to the contractor for early completion of a project. The most practical use of a bonus is to reward the contractor for completing a project before a specified date rather than within the contract time. The specified date might be that required for dormitory occupancy or for opening another revenue-producing facility. When an early completion bonus is offered, the Supplementary Instructions to Bidders and Agreement documents must be modified.
The construction sequence is usually the responsibility of the contractor and shown in the construction schedule, with approval by the University's Representative. When the Facility or the design professional requires a special construction sequence, the Specifications must be modified.
Use of the Contractor's Statement of Experience and Financial Condition is optional with Long Form contracts, is not anticipated to be used with the Brief Form, and should not be used with the Mini Form. When the Contractor's Statement is used, it is submitted with the signed Agreement and other documents as required by the Notice of Selection as the Lowest Responsible Bidder, and the Supplementary Instruction to Bidders must be modified.
Hospital projects, including new construction and renovations, follow specific procedures established by hospital administration and the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI). HCAI is required by state law to enforce building standards related to hospital development. When the work involves new construction or remodeling for hospitals, the Supplementary Conditions and Specifications be modified.
Incremental funding allows the University to enter a contract to have a facility built over a period of years for a fixed total price but limits the University's financial obligation at any one time to the amount of funds currently available and allotted to the contractor. Project funds that are not available when the project is bid become available during subsequent fiscal years or at some other intervals. With incremental funding, a project does not need to be separated into multiple contracts awarded in consecutive fiscal years. This approach may result in cost reductions during design, management, and construction, and it can often lead to shorter completion schedules. Incremental funding requires Regents' approval, as the authority to award projects exceeding appropriated funds has not been delegated by The Regents. When a Facility believes that the use of incremental funding may be advantageous, the procedures below should be followed:
- Determine the feasibility of incremental funding is. UCOP will help the Facility make this determination.
- Determine if incremental funding provides advantages.
- Obtain Regents' approval to use incremental funding.
- Obtain a sample Regents' agenda item from UCOP.
- Draft and submit a Regents' agenda item to UCOP.
- Revise construction documents for incremental funding. UCOP will supply sample documents.
The Facility may increase or decrease the irrevocable period from the initial 60 days. The minimum period would be determined as the time required to process the bidding documents and secure the required approvals. If a period other than 60 calendar days is used, the Supplementary Instruction to Bidders and Bid Form documents must be modified.
General Conditions, Article 7, provides compensation to the contractor for compensable delays. To be entitled to an adjustment in the contract sum for a compensable delay, the contractor must follow the claims procedures in General Conditions, Articles 4 and 7. The amount of the daily rate of compensation provided on the Bid Form by the bidder is multiplied by an estimated number of days of compensable delay provided on the Bid Form by the University. That amount is then added to the total bid price to determine the lowest bidder. During performance of the contract, however, the actual number of days of compensable delay determined in accordance with the contract documents is multiplied by the amount of the daily rate of compensation listed in the Agreement to determine the total amount owed to contractor by the University for compensable delay.
Phased Construction. Phased construction may be used with a single-contract project where portions of the contract are completed as the construction proceeds. This type of construction is referred to at the University as "multiple completion times" and is used in situations where certain portions of the work must be completed before the whole project is completed because of special requirements. When phased construction is used, the following Advertisement for Bids, Supplementary Instructions to Bidders, Bid Form, Agreement, and Specifications documents must be modified. Appropriate milestones and work activities should be included in the Specifications to suit the project. Assistance in drafting document modifications may be obtained from UCL.
Multiple Liquidated Damages. If portions of the work must be completed at different times (phased construction), multiple liquidated damages may be used to encourage the contractor to complete the work at the required times. When multiple liquidated damages are used, the Advertisement for Bids, Supplementary Instructions to Bidders, Bid Form, Agreement, Specifications documents must be modified.
Occasionally a bidder may be asked to submit separate bids on two or more phases or parts of one project. The Facility may then award a contract to the lowest responsible bidder based on each separate bid or on the combined bid. This bidding method may be used when the budget for the total project combines separate fund sources, for example, federal funds for an addition to a building and non-federal funds for alterations to the same building. On federally assisted projects, award of the contract may be made to the lowest responsible bidder on the entire work even though this bidder may not be the lowest responsible bidder for the federally assisted portion of the project. However, federal funding will be limited to the lowest responsible bid received on the federally funded portion of the project. If separate bids and combined bids are used, the Advertisement for Bids, Supplementary Instructions to Bidders, Bid Form, Specifications, Drawings documents must be modified.
Separate contracts may be used as multiple prime contracts to the University without assignment to a general contractor. When separate contracts are used, the Advertisement for Bids, Supplementary Instructions to Bidders, Agreement, and Specifications must be modified. See Long Form, General Conditions (see Part II).
Whenever site work requires the use of soil or subsurface investigation reports, logs of test borings, or all such geotechnical data as references for the contractor, must be provided in the Information Available to Bidders. The Information Available to Bidders disclaims all such geotechnical data; however, General Conditions, Concealed or Unknown Conditions, requires the University to assume responsibility for conditions that vary from the represented data.
When the Specifications and the Drawings use the term "soils engineer," or a synonymous term such as "geotechnical engineer" or "soil and foundation engineer," the Drawings should contain language that informs the contractor of the soils engineer's duties but does not describe the soils engineer's duties as being owed to the contractor.
When the Specifications and the Drawings use the term "soils engineer" or a synonymous term, the Specifications Quality Control document must be modified.
Previously, a special clause in the Information Available to Bidders specified when specialty contractors could bid on a project. This clause is now obsolete, as license classifications and codes in the Advertisement for Bids, per the PCC 3300, serve the same purpose.
When the work is anticipated to involve trenching or excavating five feet or more in depth, the Specifications document must be modified (see Labor Code, State of California, Sections 6705 and 6707).
When unit prices are used, the Supplementary Instructions to Bidders and Specifications documents must be modified. Unit prices are not provided for in the Mini Form. If unit prices are to be used in the Mini Form, use appropriate text from the Brief Form.
UCIP coverage applies to construction projects valued at $25 million or more (see Insurance and UCIP), and the following documents must be included in the solicitation package:
- General Conditions for UCIP Projects
- Supplementary Conditions for UCIP Projects
- Instructions to Bidders for UCIP Projects
- RFP Document for Design-Build UCIP Projects
- Table of Contents
- UCIP Bid Document
- UCIP Exhibits
- Exhibits for UCIP Projects:
- 1a UCIP Coverage Summary
- 1b UCIP Safety & Health Qualification Form
- 1c UCIP Insurance Manual
- 1d UCIP Safety Standards Manual
Contractors are sometimes required to share the same site because the contract limits are either adjacent to or near each other. The contractors may have to use the same access or even the same work area. General Conditions, Article 6, sets forth the University's rights and the contractor's responsibilities when a project involves multiple contractors working together on the same project site. When this situation occurs, the Specifications should describe the work of the separate contractors and how that work relates to the project. With this description, the contractor for each project in question can plan the work and better anticipate problems before they become major obstructions to the project's progress. When use of common site provisions must be made, the Specifications document must be modified.
If any labor for all or a portion of a construction project will be provided by volunteers, all such volunteers must execute a form of RD - Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk, and Indemnity Agreement. If the volunteer is a minor, the volunteer’s adult parent or guardian must also execute the form. An individual performing work qualifies as a volunteer only under the following circumstances:
- The work is performed for civic, charitable or humanitarian reasons, without promise, expectation or receipt of any compensation for work performed.
- The work is offered freely and without pressure or coercion, direct or implied, from an employer.
- The individual performing services is not otherwise employed for compensation on the same project and is not employed by a contractor that is receiving payment for construction work performed on the same project.
If volunteer labor is contemplated on a project, contact construction counsel in UCL to discuss the unique facts of the situation before asking any volunteers to execute a Waiver of Liability and Assumption of Risk form.