The 2015 South Carolina OSE: Small Change in Design-Bid-Build Contract Administration
By Leslie Sullivan On June 20, 2016 | Public Procurement
It’s pretty much business as usual under the newly updated Chapter 7 in the Office of State Engineer’s (“OSE”) Manual for the Planning and Execution of State Permanent Improvements Part II, which sets out the contract administration procedures for traditional design-bid-build projects. With a few exceptions, basic contract administration remains the same as under the previous 2011 edition of the OSE Manual.
There are several new forms that the agency will need to use for inspections. The new forms can be found in Appendix F.1, and include:
- SE-955 – Inspection/Material Testing Order (agency uses this form to procure testing services form, testing firms on state contract)
- SE-955A – Inspection/Material Testing Order Negotiation Worksheet
- SE-965 – Inspection/Material Testing Log (to be used by the selected testing service provider)
- SE-970 – Inspection/Material Testing Report (to be used by the selected testing service provider)
There are also new administrative forms to use at substantial completion and final completion of the project. Previously, OSE utilized the AIA G704 Form – Certificate of Substantial Completion. The AIA G704 is being replaced by OSE’s own form SE-550 Certificate of Substantial Completion.
The new form for use at final completion is SE-560 – Certificate of Final Completion. While there is no comparable AIA form being replaced, the SE-560 has some practical use given the changes that the OSE supplementary conditions make to the AIA A201 General Conditions. Under the standard AIA A201, there is no stipulated time frame between substantial completion and final completion. The OSE supplementary conditions changes section 9.10.1 to require the contractor to achieve final completion no later than 30 days after substantial completion. If the contractor does not achieve final completion within thirty days after substantial completion or the timeframe agreed to by the parties in the SE-550, then the agency can charge the contractor for any additional architectural fees resulting from the delay in final completion.
This post is part of a series by Elmore Goldsmith attorney Leslie Sullivan examining recent changes to the 2015 edition of the South Carolina Manual for Planning and Execution of State Permanent Improvements. The manual can be found in its entirety here. To view other posts in this series, click here.
