Construction Supervision Manual

Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

CHAPTER FOUR : INCEPTION PROCEDURES.

CONTENTS tle is expected of them. That is an erroneous and

dangerous notion. Although there may be little
4.01 The Urgency and Importance of work to supervise on site, there are many activi-
Inception Activity ties which demand attention and most of them
4.02 Staff Deployment need to be dealt with as matters of urgency and
importance.
4.03 Checklist
First, there are essential contractual procedures
4.04 a) Notice to Proceed. to be followed. Additionally, it is necessary to
b) Right of Way (R.O.W). establish supervision and administrative sys-
c) Insurances. tems, arrange for accommodation and trans-
d) Bonds. portation, attend to the planning and detailing of
e) Plant Mobilisation. constructional operations jointly with the con-
f) Plant Advances : Cash tractor and to assign staff to their long term
Advances. duties. If these matters are not dealt with before
g) RE's Office and Equipment. construction starts in earnest, the day to day
h) RE's Laboratory and pressure of work later on may make it impossi-
Equipment. ble to complete the preliminaries in an orderly
i) Approval of Materials., way, or catch up with all the work involved in
Products and Sources. them. As a result, the initiative for the control
j) Contractor's Programme. that should be exercised by the supervision team
k) Progress Chart and 'S' Curve. may pass to the contractor and never be recov-
1) Correspondence and Filing ered.
System; Drawing Register.
m)Supp1lies of Standard Forms. 4.02 Staff Deployment.
n) Agree Site Procedures with
It often happens that the supervision team is only
Contractor.
partially mobilised at the beginning of the con-
o) Staff Assignments.
tract and those individuals that have arrived on
p) Contractor's Staffing
site may therefore have to accept that they are
Organisation.
pressed into service for jobs they are not intend-
q) Initial Survey Checks. r)
ed to undertake in the long team.
Utilities.
The inception period, then, is a period for care-
s) Public Relations.
fully marshalling staffing resources and tackling
t) Site Safety.
a number of important duties in an energetic,
u) Assimilate Contract
resolute and systematic way. There follows a
Documents.
check list of items to be attended to during the
v) Design Check & Redesign.
inception period. it is intended primarily for
4.05 Conclusion Resident Engineers or other officers directly
responsible for on-site organisations.
------------------------------------------------------
4.03 Checklist.
4.01 The Urgency and Importance
a) Notice to Proceed
of Inception Activity.
b) Right of Way
It is easy to get the idea during the first few c) Insurances d) Bonds
weeks of a contract period that because few con- e) Plant Mobilisation
structional. operations are underway the period f) Plant and Cash Advances
is a slack time for the supervision team when lit- g) RE's Office and Equipment

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Chapter Four

h) RE's Laboratory and Equipment Members of the supervision team may find that
i) Approval of Materials, Products and Sources the Right-of-Way has been demarcated prior to
j) Contractor's Programme their engagement for the project. In this case
k) Progress Charts and 'S' Curve standard pattern concrete markers as indicated in
l) Correspondence and filing system; Figure 4A are likely to have been used*. If no
drawing register boundary markers have already been established
m) Supplies of standard forms, etc. the Resident Engineer must obtain the land plans
n) Agree site procedures with contractor and supply the contractor with the necessary
o) Staff Assignments data for setting out the R.O.W. limits. For all
p) Contractor's staffing organisation projects implemented after the date of this
q) Initial survey checks Manual land acquisition plans prepared by the
r) Utilities Department will carry co-ordinates for the
s) Public Relations R.O.W boundary [Link] establishing
t) Site Safety the R.O.W on the ground (like all setting out
u) Assimilate contract documents activity) is a contractor responsibility it must be
v) Design checks and redesign carefully checked by the supervision team's sur-
The following sections offer guidance on how to veyor (see Chapter 5.04). The important danger
act under each of the individual headings or pro- to guard against at this stage is that the contrac-
vide reference to other relevant parts of the tor may clear or carry out earthworks on land
Manual. outside the highway reserve, resulting in com-
pensation claims from the owners. For some
4.04 projects the R.O.W limits are indicated on the
a) Notice to Proceed road layout plans. If copies of the land plans are
not immediately available, these can provide a
Most Conditions of Contract* require the
useful coarse check (by simple scaling) on areas
Engineer to order the commencement of work in
being cleared.
writing. Where there is such a requirement this
(See also notes under Site Clearance in Chapter
is an essential contractual preliminary since the
13, Section A)
whole contract time schedule has its origin on
the date of the Notice. The Notice is normally
* More often, the concrete boundary markers
issued by the Engineer or JKR HQ. The RE
are not established until the contract works have
should check that the Notice has been issued and
been completed
determine from it the date by which works must
start and be completed.
c) Insurances
The giving of site possession is an important
corollary and the R.E. should keep in close The contractor is required under the Conditions
touch with the land office and make urgent rep- of Contract to provide insurances for the follow-
resentations to it if there appears to be a danger ing:
that the possession dates prescribed in the con- i) Contractors All Risks (CAR)
tract may not be met. He should inform the con- ii) The Works, if not included in (i) ii)
tractor in writing of the dates on which individ- Public liabilities
ual parcels of land will be available and careful- iii) Workers Compensation, Socso, etc.
ly record dates of actual first occupation by the No work should be permitted to commence on
contractor. site until these insurances have been effected.
The RE should ensure that the originals of the
* In the case of form 203A contracts a "Date of policies, cover notes and premium receipts are
Possession" on which work is required to start is submitted by the contractor to the office which
quoted in the Letter of Acceptance. issued the Letter of Acceptance. Work should
not be permitted to start until the insurance doc-
b) Right of Way (R.O.W.) uments have been vetted in this way.

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

e) Plant Mobilisation
d) Bonds Most contracts require the contractor to submit a
The provision of a Performance Bond, Deposit list of plant he proposes to employ on the works
or Banker's Guarantee is also a contractual and the list (or any subsequent revision required
requirement. The original Bond or Guarantee or by the Employer) becomes part of the contrac-
the Deposit should be lodged with the State JKR tor's accepted bid. Under the terms of the con-
or JKR HQ who will obtain confirmation of the tract the scheduled plant is vested in the
validity of the bonds etc. from the issuing bank Employer. The RE should ensure that the con-
or insurance company. The RE should ensure tractor mobilises the plant that has been sched-
that all these requirements have been met before uled and inspect individual items to ensure that
allowing work to proceed on site. they are in reasonable working condition and

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

capable of providing the output required of them calculated values in order to arrive at realistic
throughout the works period. Although a few values in connection with the Advance.
items such as pavers, etc. may not need to be Additionally, the Engineer or Resident Engineer
mobilised immediately most plant involved in should collect from the contractor the following
roadworks contracts is required at an early stage. documents.
1. Original of the plant registration cards
In particular, the RE should urge the contractor
where applicable
to make early preparations for the installation of
2. Purchase Receipts
any heavy fixed plant he proposes to use such as
crushing/ screening plant, batching and concrete These documents, together with the authenticat-
plant and asphalt manufacturing plant. ed schedule of data and a report on the condition
Alternatively, the contractor must arrange for of individual items prepared after the inspection
supplies of bought-in products until such time as on site and the assessed current value are to be
his own equipment is operational. forwarded to the State QS or JKR HQ QS, as
If Variation of Price features in the contract, the appropriate. A Bank Guarantee is required for
RE should take note of plant capacities for the the Advance and the original of the bond must
V.O.P computations. be obtained from the contractor and similarly
forwarded before payment of the Advance is
f) Plant Advances ; Cash Advances certified.
When the Engineer is informed by JKR HQ of
If Plant Advances are provided for under the
the amount of the Advance to be made against
terms of the contract, further checking in con-
the committed plant, he or the RE will prepare
nection with the mobilised plant is necessary.
an interim certificate solely for the Advance
The contractor should be required to submit a
amount, separate from any other works pay-
comprehensive schedule including the follow-
ment. The RE will note the amount for reference
ing data on each item of plant against which the
in connection with repayments under future
Advance is to be made.
interim certificates.
i) Plant type, make, model and serial number Plant items included in the schedule must be
ii) Date of manufacture held in the contractor's own unencumbered
iii) Date of purchase by the contractor ownership - items under mortgage or forming
iv) Original cost price the subject of a hire purchase agreement must
v) Purchase price to contractor if not tiv) not be included.
vi) Claimed current value Cash Advances not secured by the plant are also
The details in the schedule should be carefully made under some contracts. They usually
checked against the items on site and the plant amount to 15% of the Contract Sum (excluding
should be seen to be in good, operable condition. Provisional Sums etc.)with a limit of $5.(l mil-
It is then necessary to assess the current value of lion and are made at the start of the contract peri-
each item in order to check the contractor's od. Payment for them should not be certified
claimed figure. One method is to take the new until the following have been provided by the
purchase price quoted by the contractor (and contractor:-
verified with local agents or distributors) and Contract Insurances (see c above)
apply accepted annual depreciations. The fol- Performance Bond (see d above)
lowing factors and residual values for different Bank Guarantee for Cash Advance.
plant categories may be useful in this connec- Details of the required Guarantee for either type
tion. of Advance are usually set out in the Conditions
Although this method enables a depreciated of Contract together with arrangements for
value to be determined, the over-riding criterion repayment of the Advance from monies due to
should be the current market value. State JKR the contractor under interim payment certifica-
Mechanical Engineers and dealers in second tion.
hand plant should therefore be consulted and the
prices they quote should be weighed against the g) R.E.'s Office and Equipment

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

RE to arrange for assistance with preliminary

If the-supervision team is to establish firm con- testing from JKR regional or other local JKR
trol from the outset it needs to have its office and laboratories. Alternatively arrangements can be
equipment provided at an early stage. made with commercial laboratories for tests to

ANNUAL
PLANT TYPE RESIDUAL %
DEPRECIATION %

Bulldozers 25 15
Tracktor Shovels 25 15
Wheeled Loaders 25 15
Graders 20 15
Hydraulic Excavators 25 15
Mechanical Excavator 25 15
Rollers 15 20
Pavers 15 15
Compressors 15 20
Pumps 15 20
Concrete Mixers 15 20
Trucks 25 15
Mobile Cranes 25 20
Static Plant - Crushers, Concrete and
25 20
Asphalt Plant

Almost invariably, the office is provided under be carried out at the contractor's expense.
the terms of the contract and the contractor As equipment for the laboratory is received from
should be urged and prodded to act quickly. In the contractor it should be checked against the
particular, telephone connection (or shortwave Specification schedule to ensure that it complies
radio if it is to be provided), electrical supply, with the requirements and is in suitable. working
water and sanitation should be pressed for. As a order. It should be carefully inventoried, quoting
government officer the RE may be able to give make, model and serial number and the data
the contractor some assistance that he needs in should be passed to the contractor for verifica-
these connections and in obtaining local govern- tion and confirmation.
ment planning consents, etc.
Detailed requirements for the site office are nor- i) Approval of Materials, Products
mally given in the General Section of the and Sources
Specification and shown on the Drawings. The
The contractor will require approval for materi-
RE should ensure that the specifications are met
als and manufactured products which he propos-
and that construction is sound enough to ensure
es to use in the early stages. Sub-base, crushed
that the offices are secure against weather and
stone for road base and concrete drainage pipes
unauthorised intrusion and will remain so
are examples. He will probably also ask for gen-
throughout the contract period.
eral approval of the sources from which items
come, that is, the quarries, factories and yards,
h) R.E.'s Laboratory and Equipment
etc. On receiving the requests the RE should
Again, provision of these facilities is usually a arrange as follows.
contractor responsibility, and is a matter of
1. Receipt of samples. A member of the
urgency because no work can be permitted to
supervision team should be present at the
start on site until testing facilities are available.
selection in order to ensure that the material
In the event of delay it may be possible for the
submitted is representative of the nominated

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

source and that material is available in suf programme within a specified period of the
ficient quantities from it. Quarries should be Notice to Proceed. The programme should be
inspected to ensure that material can be, and appraised for approval as soon as possible so
is being, recovered without contamination that the contractor can proceed with his planning
from overburden or other unsuitable materi- and allow for any amendments that may be
al and that equipment and methods will required by the Engineer.
result in the supply of consistent and accept See Chapter 8.06 for notes on programme
able material. appraisal, etc
2. Visit factories and yards from which manu-
factured products are to be supplied to k) Progress Chart and 'S' Curve
check that production and quality control The progress chart and 'S' curve are required to
methods will result in consistent and be prepared by the contractor but they must be
acceptable supplies. carefully checked by the RE or his staff. See
3. Undertake such tests* as are specified and Chapter 8.07 for further notes.
necessary for acceptance. If site testing
facilities are not available at this stage the l) Correspondence and Filing
alternative arrangements noted in (h) may System; Drawing Register
be adopted. As soon as any proposed secretarial or other
When the RE has satisfied himself on all these staff assigned to these duties are available and
points he should confirm the results of tests to appropriate office furniture is provided, the fil-
the contractor and issue written approval of the ing system for correspondence and records
material and source subject to subsequent regu- should be established.
lar site testing and the continuance of satisfacto- Arrangements for receiving and despatching
ry conditions at the particular quarry or factory, correspondence between the RE's and contrac-
etc. It should be noted that there is no contractu- tor's offices should be agreed. The system adopt-
al obligation on the contractor to have sources ed for dealing with correspondence will depend
approved, or for the Engineer to give approval, very much on the size of the project but should
but the arrangement is a sensible and practical provide suitable filing and, if necessary, distribu-
one which can be the subject of mutual agree- tion and circulation arrangements.
ment. The most important point is to ensure that corre-
With regard to products manufactured off - site spondence from the contractor is dealt with
the Department gives general certified approval promptly. If it is not it may result in delay to his
to some factories for periods of 2 -3 years at a site operations and to claims for extra cost.
time, subject to spot checks by the Central The Drawing Register should also be prepared
Laboratory. In such cases it is, of course, unnec- to record drawings made, issued and received.
essary for the RE to arrange for his own inde- Copies of'contract drawing prints in suitable
pendent testing. numbers should be obtained for site and office
The Resident Engineer may also be asked to use. See Chapter Ten for further details.
arrange at an early stage for approval of trial
mixes for cement concrete and job mix formulae m) Supplies of Standard Forms, etc
for asphaltic mixes. A number of standard forms are identified in this
Manual. Copies of those required for the partic-
* See "Guidelines for-Inspection and Testing of ular contract should be obtained at the outset
Roadworks" and the relevant sections of the from the State JKR office or JKR HQ in suitable
standard Specification for Road Works. number.
A list of standard forms likely to be required is
j) Contractor's Programme as follows:-
The contractor is obliged under all Conditions of i)Duplicate Memo Book}
Contract forms except 203A to submit a works ii) Site Instruction Form

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

(Triplicate Book } See Chapter Six: Instructions

iii) A.P.P. } Chapt. Chapter Seven: Measurement and Financial
iv) Certificate of Variation of Works/ Control
PPJHK Forms } Six Chapter Nine : Reports
v) Buku Harian Chapter Ten: Drawings (As Builts etc)
vi) Inspector's Daily Report Form
vii) Culvert Form o) Staff Assignments
viii) Interim Certificate (JKR Form 66) Although all site staff may not be mobilised at
ix) Standard Test Result Forms (as available) the start of the contract the Resident Engineer
x) Staff Leave Application Form will probably be given details of staff to be
In addition to standard forms it is necessary to engaged eventually on the supervision team.
design forms unique to each contract site. These The RE can therefore make staffing assignments
may include the following:- and prepare Duty Lists at an early stage. See
(a) Works Approval Forms Chapter Two for guidance on these points
(b) Weather Record
(c) Non Standard Test Result Forms p) Contractor's Staffing
(d) Measurement Forms (various) Organisation
Non standard forms can be locally typed and The contractor should be asked to provide
photocopied but if large numbers are anticipated details of individual staff to be employed in his
(say over 500) arrangements can be made with site organisation, the duties they will undertake
the JKR Printer. and the construction operations for which they
will be responsible. The Resident Engineer
n) Agree Site Procedures with should review the credentials of the Site Agent
Contractor and his deputy and assess the adequacy of the
As was seen in chapter Three the Conditions of whole contractor's site organisation, bearing in
Contract confer wide powers on the Engineer mind that the Engineer can ask for changes he
and his delegated staff for the administration and considers necessary, or demand the replacement
control of the contract. However, they do not go of contractor's employees considered unsuitable.
into detail, generally speaking, on procedures to
be adopted and these are very much a matter for q) Initial Survey Checks
discussion and agreement between the contrac- Basic survey information and setting out data for
tor and the, Resident Engineer. At the earliest road alignment, etc is usually given on the draw-
opportunity, the RE should meet with the con- ings but the RE should obtain any additional sur-
tractor's staff and reach agreement on practical vey data that may be available from the design
arrangements to be adopted. In particular, the team,or other officers engaged in pre-contract
provision of contractor's daily/weekly advance activity for the project. Armed with the data, the
programme and monthly progress report, and Resident Engineer should, jointly with the con-
procedures for site inspection, the use of an tractor's staff, locate and identify on the ground
approval chit system, site instructions, testing all survey marks and reference points estab-
and measurement (including the scheduling of lished earlier, including IP's, curve points and
payment of the "preliminary" items) should be bench marks.
agreed. The meetings should be minuted to
As soon as the supervision team's survey staff*
record the details of arrangements agreed or the
are posted to the site they should be engaged in
points should be recorded and confirmed in let-
checking by instrument the co-ordinated values
ter form.
and elevations of the marks to ensure that those
The Chapters of this Manual noted below are scheduled on the drawings (or elsewhere in the
relevant and may be consulted for guidance in contract) are correct. The values should then be
connection with these matters. agreed with the contractor after correction of any
Chapter Five: Site Inspection, Testing & errors that come to light. Any missing survey
Approval

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

stations or setting out marks should be re-estab- On the practical side, Resident Engineers have a
lished from such agreed data as then exists. All clear responsibility to watch the interests of local
checking work of this nature should be under- and travelling members of the public and ensure
taken by the Engineer's surveyors working inde- at all times that they are not put to unnecessary
pendently from the contractor, using separate risk or inconvenience. Particular points to note
instruments. are that the contractor should not intrude into
A further important early survey activity is the private land outside the Right of Way, create
recording of original ground levels. Again, the unreasonable noise, dust or other nuisance or
work should be done independently and the interfere with, or damage, access to public or
results agreed with the contractor and carefully private property. The matter of responsibility for
recorded. The importance of the exercise war- traffic and the effect of obstructions and diver-
rants close supervision by the RE himself. A dis- sions is also important (See Chapter 11.08 -
crepancy of only a few centimeters applied, 11.11).
either by genuine mistake or deliberate fraud, All of these responsibilities remain throughout
throughout the whole length of even a relatively the contract period of course, not only during the
short route can result in the incorrect payment of early stages.
many thousands of ringgit. Once the earthworks
are complete, verification of original ground lev- t) Site Safety
els is difficult. Although site safety is largely the concern of the
contractor, the Resident Engineer's total man-
* Seer Chapter 5.04 for alternative arrange- agement responsibility for the project make it a
ments if no survey staff are appointed to the site matter in which he must also take a hand. He
team. should ensure that agreed safety precautions are
observed so that both the contractor's workmen
r) Utilities and his own staff are not put at personal risk.
Contact should be made with utilities' authorities The inception period is the time to discuss with
at the earliest opportunity to work out arrange- the contractor's Site Agent what safety rules are
ments for dealing with their services, locate the to be applied and what arrangements should be
position of installations and detail diversions etc. established for obtaining urgent professional
(See Chapter :Eleven) medical assistance and transport to hospital in
the event of an accident. Additionally, at least
s) Public Relations one member of either the contractor's or the
It is natural that local residents, land owners and supervision team with suitable training should
others with local interests should be concerned be nominated as the person to render First Aid,
about the effect that any major civil engineering and a First Aid Kit should be maintained in a
project will have on their lives and livelihood designated place to which access can be
both during and after construction. obtained at all times.
If approached by members of the public, In drawing up further safety rules, the following
Resident Engineers should deal with enquiries points should be included.
in a helpful and courteous way, providing factu- (i) All staff engaged in, or supervising, site
al information about the project. Junior staff, operations should be required to wear
however, should not discuss project matters with protective boots and "hard hats".
the public but refer enquiries to their Resident (ii) Contractor's superintendents and
Engineer or regional chief officer. As a further supervision team inspectors should
word of warning no member of the site staff is carefully inspect scaffolding and
permitted to give interviews to the press or walkways for elevated sections of
media, or divulge any project information to structures to see that they are secure and
them without reference to the Project also that ladders are securely fixed at top
Coordinator or other senior officer in the region- and bottom.
al office or JKR HQ.

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 Construction Supervision Manual
Chapter Four For Contract Roadworks

(iii) All lifting equipment, slings, hooks and Examples of design changes which are most
splices should be checked regularly for likely to arise include the following.
wear or damage and staff should be made i) Changes in vertical or horizontal
aware of the need to ensure that alignment to economise earthworks
attachment systems are suitable for the quantities, avoid rock etc. or to avoid
particular lifting job in hand_. underground services.
(iv) Staff should ensure that all machinery ii) Relocate and re-size drainage culverts to
guards and guardrails for static plant are ensure that they are appropriate to hydro
maintained in place at all times. logical conditions on site.
(v) All excavations and trenches in which iii) The additional provision or deepening of
men have to work must be suitably strut- side ditches or provision of sub - soil
ted against possible collapse. drains to deal with underground water;
general drainage re-arrangement to suit
u) Assimilate Contract local drainage topography etc.
Documents iv) Special provisions to deal with earth
This is a fairly obvious requirement and one works settlement or stability - removal of
which becomes easier to meet as the Department soft material below embankments, pre
increasingly adopts standard Specifications, loading, construction of stabilising
Drawings and Conditions of Contract. However, berms, benches etc.; provision of revet
Resident Engineers should search the docu- ments, changes in length and cross sec
ments for special provisions or unusual details tion dimension of designed retaining
and see that these are noted by the appropriate structures and drainage of cut slopes.
site staff. v) Subgrade improvement or replacement
It may not be possible to provide each member or strengthening of pavement construc
of the supervision team with a full set of docu- tion to deal with weak subgrades in
ments, in which case- relevant sections should localised areas.
be copied and presented to each individual - an vi) The utilization of materials found in exca
activity which can be undertaken in conjunction vations on site which may be suitable and
with the preparation of Duty Lists mentioned in more economical than designed materials
Chapter 2.06. for pavement construction e.g. sands,
gravels or laterite for subbase, shoulders
v) Design Check & Redesign
etc.
It is necessary at the beginning of. the contract
for the Resident Engineer to review the details of vii) Changes in foundation arrangements for
the design as presented on the Drawings and to structures in accord with soil conditions
keep them under review as construction pro- different from those predicted at the
ceeds, giving better access to the site and reveal- design stage.
ing physical conditions which may not have viii) Changes in the layout or wording of
been apparent to the designers. If changes are direction or warning signs or road mark
found to be necessary or desirable the RE and ings to accommodate traffic patterns or
his staff can undertake redesign work or, if this conditions which are different from those
is beyond the competence or resource of the designed for.
supervision team, the JKR regional office or It is re - emphasized that careful consideration
JKR HQ should be contacted to arrange for must be given to the financial and contractual
redesign. In any case, no major new design effects of any proposed design changes. Where
should be introduced without reference to, and the changes constitute variations to the contract
approval of, the original design team and consid- the requirement of Departmental Circular
eration of the financial and contractual implica- KPKR BIL : 6/1988 for approval procedures
tions by the JKR regional office or JKR HQ. must be observed.

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