Project Scoping, Bidding

and
Preconstruction Planning

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Project scope
1. Identify the project needs
• When you are clearly able to identify the needs of a project, you are
more likely to set a sound benchmark from the beginning.

• Understanding the ‘what and why’ of a project will enable you to set
specific goals and objectives. It also sets the groundwork for what
tasks are to follow and how they are to be performed.

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Project scope
2. Confirm the objectives and goals of the Project
The basis of the project scope should entail your goals and objectives to
be one that follows a SMART guideline. That is, to be Specific,
Measurable and Achievable. It should also be Realistic and completed
within a specific Timeframe.

• Specific–This involves stating accurately what the project wants to

achieve. That is, what, why and how these will be done. Clarity will
reduce the chances of ambiguities and misunderstandings.

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Project scope
• Measurable –Are your goals and objectives able to provide feedback and be accountable
for?

• Achievable –Can your project’s goals and objectives be achieved, given the resources on
hand?

• Realistic –Are the goals and objectives easy to deliver, especially if you face problems or
complications. Will these reduce the overall quality of the project’s outcome and cause
running over budget and not meeting the set deadlines.

• Time Frame –Can your project goals and objectives be met within the allocated time
frame? Is it a key criterion to meet these deadlines?

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Project scope
• 3. Project Scope description
• You as a leader, need to be clear about the features and functioning
required for your product or service.

• For example, you are building a website. You need a list that provides
how you will build your website, the type of branding required and so
on. In other words, what certain qualities will increase achieving your
project’s success

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Project scope
• 4. Expectations and acceptance
• Successful projects are ones that take into account the satisfaction of the
end-user. Whether they meet the end-users expectations and accept the
product, service or process. The end-users could be your customers or your
internal team.

• For customers, this includes pricing, value, and quality of products/services

as well as availability, delivery and return policies. For employees, this
includes the effectiveness and efficiency of new operational processes.
Ultimately, your project scope is one that should be attuned to giving better
outcomes to whoever your end users may be.
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Project scope
• 5. Identify constraints
• There are always roadblocks to achieving what you were set out to do. When
being aware of possible limitations along the way, it can help you minimize
problems that may delay or constrain your ability to achieve your project’s
outcome.

• These can be caused by dynamic environmental conditions (internal and external),

technological glitches and/or lack of resources. Communicating such problems
with your team early on and taking steps to overcome these hurdles will reduce
delays in project completion and keep spending within budget. Whether these are
based on assumptions or uncertainty, analyzing their impact throughout the
projects timeline further reduces the risk of failure.
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Project scope
• 6. Identify necessary changes
• It is always best to avoid reworking the scope of your project, as it
means investing in more time, money and resources.

• However, at times these changes are inevitable and necessary.Limit

changes by taking on the perspectives of customers, stakeholders,
and employees involved in the project. This minimizes disagreements
later o

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PRE-QUALIFICATION
PRE-QUALIFICATION

Screening of potential contractors, suppliers, or vendors (on the basis

of factors such as experience, financial ability, managerial ability,
reputation, work history, etc.) to develop a list of qualified bidders who
will receive the invitation-to-bid (ITB) documents.
Prequalification Criteria

• Because this shift will continue, making prequalification management

programs more of a priority is going to be critical to job success. As
the construction industry evolves, general contractors are no longer
just builders, they’ve become risk managers with most of the actual
labor subcontracted out. So what information do general contractors
require from subcontractors to determine if they’re qualified for a
project? It’s not uncommon to see the following documents required
in a prequalification program:
Prequalification Criteria
• Financials
• Bond information
• Insurance coverage, including providers and limits for various exposures
• Certifications and licenses
• Equipment
• Project history
• Leadership/ownership
• Safety and other compliance reports
• References
• Legal/pending litigation information
BIDDING PROCESS
Specifications

• The first step in the bidding process deals with coming up with the
specifications for the job. The company or customer looking for bids
has to develop specifications for the bidding process. For example, if
the customer needs a building constructed, a schematic or blueprints
must be developed first. All of the details for the entire project must
be outlined in the documentation.
Request for Bids

• After the details of the project have been developed, the customer
must request that bids be made. This can involve sending out
invitations to bid on projects and posting the opportunity online. In
some cases, the client will only request bids from a pre-selected list of
contractors. In other situations, the bid opportunity may be open to
anyone who qualifies to bid on it.
Bidding

• After the information about the project has been distributed to

contractors, the bidding process begins. The bidding process can
differ, depending on the rules set by the client. In some cases, sealed
bids will be submitted and the customer will evaluate them. In other
cases, a more informal bidding process will be involved in which
contractors simply give a total amount that they can do the job for.
Reviewing the Bids

• The customer will typically set a deadline on when the last bids will be
accepted. Once that deadline is reached, the customer will begin
reviewing the bids. The length of time that it takes to review the bids
could vary, depending on the number of bids received.
Awarding the Contract

• After the bids have been thoroughly reviewed, the customer will
award the contract to one bidder. In most cases, the bidder with the
lowest bid wins. In some situations, the bidder will award the contract
not only on price but other factors as well. For instance, the customer
may be inclined to go with a more reputable provider or with those
where a prior relationship exists.
PREPARATION
OF
CONTRACTS
PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

A construction contract is an agreement between

an employer (sometimes referred to as the client)
and a contractor to construct, repair, modify,
renovate or even demolish something in an
agreed time frame, for an agreed price and to
agreed standards.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

The contract should describe the following:

• What will be done;
• How long it will take to complete;
• How much it will cost and the payment terms;
• What will be done if either party defaults; and
• The extent to which the common law, which would usually apply, is
adhered to.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

• Pure construction contract – This is a form of contract where the

contractor is responsible for the construction of the works as per the
specifications and design provided by (or by a third party on behalf of)
the employer. With this type of contract, the contractor bears the
lowest risk. The price is often remeasurable, based on a bill of
quantities (a document detailing specific prices for goods and services
the contractor will provide) since the design is not usually complete and
fully available at the point that construction work is to commence

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

1. RIGHTS
• Timeous payments – the main contractor is entitled to be paid within the
time stated in the contract, failing which he or she should usually be able to
claim interest on late payment.
• Extensions of time – the main contractor can claim for an extension of time
for completion in accordance with the instances catered for in the contract.
The usual test is whether or not the particular act/ incident that will delay
time for completion is within his or her control or not.
• Access to site – the main contractor has a right to access to the site at which
the works are to be completed at the time stated and agreed in the contract
agreement.
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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

• Upon termination of the contract – the main contractor usually has

the right to terminate the contract should a material breach or a force
majeure event occur.
• Appointment of subcontractors – the main contractor usually has
the right to appoint subcontractors if not otherwise provided for in the
contract whom he or she will be held responsible and accountable for

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

1. Rights – these are entitlements that one party has against another,
entitling the party who has the right to compel the other party to do or not
to do something.
2. Responsibilities – these are obligations to do, or not to do something,
for the party who has the right.
3. Risks – these are the possibilities of something happening or not
happening, which can result in additional liability arising for either or both
parties. Risks can be absorbed, avoided, shared, transferred or mitigated
under the terms of the contract. In this way, they can be dealt with in a way
that both parties are comfortable with and not caught offguard, as long as
they are not ignored or not considered at all.
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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

2. RESPONSIBILITIES
• Completing works – the main contractor has the responsibility to
complete the works within the time allocated in the contract agreement.
• Guarantees – in some instances, especially where the contract is a
design-build or EPC (Engineer, Procure and Construct), the main
contractor will be required to provide performance guarantees. This is a
mitigation of risk strategy on the part of the employer to ensure that if
the works are not performed to the correct standard or specifications, he
or she will be covered accordingly. This will usually be priced in by the
contractor.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

• Insurances – the main contractor will in some instances be required

to acquire insurance for the works, site, its employees, materials, etc.
This is to ensure that risk remains mitigated at all times.
• Administrative procedures/ compliance with all applicable laws –
the main contractor has to ensure that the required licences, permits
and the like are obtained before, during and after the construction
works proceed. It is imperative for the contractor to obtain all licences
within the time periods allocated in order to avoid situations where
these issues lead to a delay in the construction process and therefore a
delay in the works.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

• Response to communications – the main contractor has an obligation

to respond to all communications from the employer or his or her
representative at all times during the subsistence of the works. These
might be variations, progress updates, suspension of works, access to
site issues, delayed payment notices, etc.
• Substantiation of claims – in the instance where the contract
agreement makes provision for a claim mechanism unless otherwise
stated in the contract agreement, the contractor must substantiate
such a claim in order to ensure swift settlement of such a payment.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS

• Subcontracts – main contractors should ensure that written

agreements are entered into between themselves and the
subcontractors. This is to ensure that they are able to properly hold
such subcontractors liable should any issue arise.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS
3. RISKS
Financial loss:
• Errors in calculations – the main contractor should ensure that
measurements regarding the works price are done completely and accurately.
The contractor must also include a contingency amount within the price for
loss that could be suffered for risks for which no additional compensation is
allowed under the contract.
• Poor management – the main contractor should ensure that he or she
manages the project accordingly, especially when subcontractors are involved
as this might lead to dire financial consequences.
• Delays – the main contractor should also ensure that materials are delivered
on time, licences obtained and that his or her employees perform the works
timeously. Failure to do so will lead to a situation where delays occur and
depending on the wording of the contract the main contractor might be
subject to delay damages. 33
PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS
• Penalties – the main contractor should be aware of the fact
that depending on the wording of the contract, he or she
might be liable for penalties should he or she fail to meet
certain set dates or fail to meet certain performance
guarantees. It is important to note though, that if a penalty
applies, the employer does not have to prove that his or her
loss stemming from the breach is equal to the penalty but
may not claim further amounts from the contractor in respect
of the breach to which the penalty applies. In other words, the
contractor’s liability to pay damages for the breach is limited
to the amount of the penalty.

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PREPARATION OF CONTRACTS
• Insolvency of employer – the main contractor is at
risk of this occurring especially when the employer is
a private individual or small company. The main
contractor can mitigate this risk by acquiring bank
guarantees from the employer guaranteeing
performance (payment) of the amounts owed. The
main contractor must remember that he or she has a
builder’s lien over the constructed property which
would stand against a claim for insolvency, provided
that such a contractor maintains possession of the
works.
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PRE-CONSTRUCTION PLANNING
• This pre-construction planning stage involves the
definition of the project, the identification of potential
issues, planning and scheduling, the scope, cost
estimation, and analysis of needs for the job. Good
pre-construction will help a client decide if they can
follow through with the construction project.

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PRE-CONSTRUCTION PLANNING
• Detailed Plan & Specification Review
• Phased Budget Estimates & Value-Engineering Recommendations
• Structural & Systems Construction Means & Methods Analysis
• Pre-Construction Scheduling, Logistics, & Sequencing
• Quality Control & Quality Assurance Set-Up
• Risk Assessment & Safety Planning
• Development of Inclusion Strategies
• Bid Package & Work Scope Development
• Sub-Contractor Prequalification & Bid Advertisement/Promotion
• LEED Analysis & Point Evaluation (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)

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Site Investigation
• A site investigation simply is the process of the
collection of information, the appraisal of data,
assessment, and reporting without which the
hazards in the ground beneath the site cannot
be known.

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Site Investigation
Site Investigation is grouped into the following stages:

• Soil Investigation
• Geologic survey maps.
• Preliminary investigation
• Detailed Site Investigation
• Supplementary investigation and construction control.

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Site Investigation
• Site Investigation Purpose
The purpose of site investigation is to establish
parameters for foundation and substructure design;
and to assess the potential contamination risks to
humans, property and the environment.

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Site Investigation
Site Investigation Objectives
Suitability: Are the site and surroundings suitable for the project?
Design: Obtain all the design parameters necessary for the works.
Construction: Are there any potential ground or ground water conditions that
would affect the construction?
Contamination: Any possibilities of the site being contaminated?
Materials: Are there any materials available on site, what quantity and
quality?
Effect of changes: How will the design affect adjacent properties and the
ground water?
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Site Investigation

• Stages of Site Investigation

• Preliminary investigation;
• Detailed investigation;
• Supplementary investigation and construction control.

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Mobilization plan
• Identify, Assign and Schedule Personnel
• When you break down the work of your project into individual
tasks, the ones without prerequisites can be started right away.
Identify the people you need and find out when they are
available. If you don't have enough staff, prioritize tasks and
calculate the effect on the schedule and project completion.
• The project mobilization plan lets you identify staffing
bottlenecks and, as a result of your plan, your company
management may have to decide between delaying the project
or proceeding on schedule and delaying another company
initiative.

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Mobilization plan

• Ensure Financing, Equipment and Facilities Are Available

• You can use the project mobilization plan to make sure the required
resources are approved and available, and to inform the responsible
employees that particular resources will be needed. For example,
your project has a budget and a cash flow requirement. Your financial
personnel have to know how much money you plan to spend each
month in addition to how much the total expenditure will be.
• Similarly, plant managers and employees responsible for the use of
equipment have to know what you need. If your project mobilization
shows that needed resources are not available, you may have to
change your project plans.
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Mobilization plan
• Determine Specifications, Quality Levels and Standards 
• As your team starts work, its members need project
documentation to proceed with detailed planning and the
execution of the work. Review the project specifications for
errors or omissions. If not specified in the project
documentation, determine what level of quality control applies
to the project work.
• Specific standards may be specified, or internal company
standards for work and for equipment may apply. Assemble a
complete package of project documentation and distribute the
relevant sections to each project team member. Implement
document controls for updates and revisions.
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Mobilization plan

• Identify Regulatory Requirements and Constraints

• You may not be able to proceed with your project as you wish
because of applicable regulations. Municipal, state and federal
bodies may have requirements for permits, licenses or
documentation that you must fulfill before starting work. Other
parts of the project, such as buildings, may not be able to
proceed before permits and inspections are completed.
Identifying these constraints during project mobilization avoids
delays later due to unexpected regulatory requests and allows
you to assign responsibility for meeting the relevant
requirements.

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Tender documents and their evaluation
• Tender documents

1. Drawings
2. Bill of quantities
3. Conditions of Contract
4. Specifications

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Tender documents and their evaluation
Evaluation Stages
Stage 1 – Verification All responses will be checked to ensure that the
expected documents have been submitted and are complete and the
Form of Tender duly signed.
Stage 2 – Selection Criteria The Standard Selection Questionnaire will
be checked to ensure that there are no responses that are deemed to
be a fail and lead to rejection of the Tender.
Stage 3 – Quality and Price Evaluation.

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Scheduling in construction
• Scheduling in construction projects is the
process of listing of tasks, activities, milestones
with a planned start and finish date. ...
Proper scheduling would ensure the completion
of the project on time and within budget. Not only
does it outline the pace of the work but also how
the tasks are executed.

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Scheduling in construction
Steps to a Construction Schedule
1. Get Info and Tools
2. Collect and Prioritize Tasks
3. Add Duration
4. Allocate and Execute
5. Review, Review, Review

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 Scheduling in construction

Importance of Scheduling in Construction Projects

The importance of scheduling can be outlined through the following points

• It assigns dates to project activities.

• Construction companies would be able to see whether the duration
stipulated by the client is obtainable or not. In this case, penalizing due
to late completion of project can be avoided.
• Based on construction project scheduling, the preliminary costs can be
estimated.
• The schedule is useful for formulating tender or bid estimates.
• Project scheduling is intended to match the resources of equipment,
materials and labor with project work-tasks over time.
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Scheduling in construction
• It provides a sequence of tasks. So, the project manager
knows what activities they need to be working on, and what
are the next activities they need to be prepared for.
• Improving safety performance by sequencing the activities to
ensure maximum protection for workers.
• It enables construction team to see their goals and when
they need to be achieved.
• It is possible to change the sequencing of activities and
extend or shorten the durations in such a manner that the
use of resources is smoothed and optimized.
• It eliminates problems due to production bottlenecks.
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Scheduling in construction
• It ensures the completion of a project as soon as possible.
• It helps avoid delays in the completion of an entire project,
hence avoid creation of havoc for owners who are eager to start
using the constructed facilities.
• Detailed construction schedules can be used by the owner as a
means of monitoring the work progress.
• It can help compare actual work performed with the schedule to
determine if construction is proceeding satisfactorily.
• Planned schedule and the actual accomplishments can be
compared to allocate the liability for project delays due to
changes requested by the owner, worker strikes or other
unforeseen circumstances. 53
Scheduling in construction
• Construction Scheduling Techniques
• Gantt Charts
Using Gantt charts are the simplest and straightforward way to make
construction schedules. It is widely accepted in construction sites due
to its simplicity and flexibility. It consists of all the list of activities,
specifying the date of initiation of the project, duration, and completion
date of each activity. Gantt charts are not only implicated for time
tracking, but it also helps to trail the other aspects of the project. It is
useful to detect the number of resources needed in a particular project.
To estimate the work production and required man-hour as well as
equipment, the term ‘resource aggregation’ is used in the schedule.
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Scheduling in construction
• Critical Path Scheduling Method
• Critical Path Method (CPM) is more complicated and detailed
than a Gantt chart. It arranges all activities specifically that
everyone gets a clue which activity will start first. It includes
the start date and end date with time. It divides the whole
activities into segments and keeps a little gap between two
activities for rectifying any error or confronting any
unavoidable situation. CPM also helps to calculate the fastest
possible time to finish a particular activity related to the
project. Different algorithms and computer programs are
applied for generating those calculations.
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Scheduling in construction
Scheduling Concerned with Resources
• Scheduling in favor of resources revolves around the
required resources for the project. It is executed with
the least number of resources. So sometimes project
delay may occur which leads to higher cost and lower
productivity. Resource oriented scheduling is useful in
projects where the specific nature of resources are
applied.

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Scheduling in construction

• Line of Balance Scheduling Technique

• The Line of Balance Scheduling technique is appropriate for
repetitive work. This construction scheduling technique
assigns required resources for steps of operation, so the
subsequent works are not delayed, and the fruitful results
can be achieved. The principles of this scheduling process are
derived from the planning and execution of the
manufacturing process. Manufacturing processes are mostly
applied in road construction and other construction work in
general. If the conditions are congenial for this type of work,
then this technique is very simple and effective.
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Scheduling in construction

• Q Scheduling Technique
• Q Scheduling technique is derived from the Line of balance scheduling
technique with little modification. It can be stated as a closer to reality
technique, though this new technique has got popularity in the construction
firm. It is the only technique that indicates the relationship between the
categorizations of doing a job and the cost to be sustained.
• In Q scheduling, the letter Q has different meanings. In terms of quantitative
context, Q is considered as quantitative scheduling. Quantitative refers to the
quantities of various elements of the project. Other hands, Q scheduling is
considered as queue scheduling where trade passes through the different
segments of the project with no linking between two events in the schedule.
• Scheduling is very crucial for smooth mobility and the timely success of the
project. It gives a flawless understanding of the status of operations. It
produces all the details of workdays to make it effective and productive.
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