nd.gov - The Official Portal for North Dakota State Government
North Dakota: Legendary. Follow the trail of legends
Department of Transportation
North Dakota
 

Specification Committee Agenda Item Details


Agenda Number: AGC 08-030
Topic: Section 108.04G
Type of Action: Decision Required
Background Information: There is no time frame provided in this contract section on when the Engineer will respond to a time extension request. It is important that contractors receive a response as soon as possible after the delay event occurs. This is true for a number of reasons, including: First, under Section 108.05B, the NDDOT may terminate the contract if the contractor "[f]ails to perform the work with sufficient resources to assure the prompt completion of the work." Without knowing whether a time extension will be granted, the contractor is at risk of having to either accelerate its work (and incur the related cost or attempt to back-charge the NDDOT) or risk being in default of its contract. Second, attempting to accelerate the work needlessly (i.e. where the NDDOT grants a time extension after acceleration efforts) can adversely affect the quality of the construction. Third, it can adversely affect the scheduling of labor, equipment and materials and therefore the entire job) by creating uncertainty of what is the project completion date (i.e. will it be extended or not), and therefore when work should/must be performed. ISSUE #2 This contract clause also provides that additional time will not be granted for delays due to "inclement weather." While additional time should not be granted for 'normal' inclement weather (which both can and should be anticipated), the same is not true for 'abnormal' inclement weather.
Suggested Solution: The Department should outline a specific number of days for the contract time extension review process.
Decision: The Department checked AASHTO and the 50 states. The research found that 37 states do not specify a time. The Department recognizes the importance of replying promptly and questioned if this change was needed.
Action Taken: Actions taken to this specification, if any, will be done in conjunction with a comprehensive section 100 rewrite.