MI & MHCA collaborate on proposed specification changes
Senior executive representatives from Manitoba Infrastructure (MI) met on December 11 with MHCA member representatives, including three each from the contracting and aggregate producer sectors and one from engineering, to review MI proposed specification changes to be piloted in yet to be selected projects in 2020.
The four specifications reviewed were: No 701 Construction Specification for Granular Course; No 801 Quality Based Specifications for Bituminous Pavement; No 901 Material Specification for Aggregate – Granular Course; and MEB-P046 Requirements for Contractor’s Quality Control Plan (Bituminous).
The net outcome generated by a consultative and collaborative Mi/MHCA/ACEC-MB process is a proposed shift from method to end product specification pursuant to which the construction industry assumes full control for construction Quality Control (QC) and payment for work is adjusted based on the quality of the product constructed/received.
MHCA had submitted extensive suggestions to the named specifications which were the subject matter of the meeting discussion. It was agreed that the next steps include a 45 day period for MI to further edit the specs influenced by MHCA/ACEC-MB input before the next to final specs are circulated for one final review. In addition, it was agreed that a joint MI/MHCA/ACEC-MB training session follow to ensure the sharing and understanding of perspectives in support of rolling out the new specs in pilot projects for 2020. The impacts of the changes will be considered following project completion well in time before any further changes are implemented for 2021.
