EP 1110-3-6
14 Aug 92
(2) In essence, where the safety, quality of construction,
or other required performance features of the project will not be
compromised by the use of a construction material or method not
reflected as being acceptable within the terms of a specific
contract, the contractor has the opportunity to propose that a
less costly, alternative material or method be substituted for
that specified. Such proposals are evaluated by the appropriate
USACE elements, and, where approved for use in a specific
project, the cost savings resulting from the substitution, less
the contractor's costs to implement the proposal, are divided
equally between the Government and the contractor. As a result,
there is an economic incentive for both the contractor and the
Government to achieve such savings. Coincidentally, where the use
of a less costly material or method can be applied to other
projects on a broader geographic basis, the use of ENG FORM 3078,
cited above, is an excellent vehicle for advising HQUSACE of the
desirability to incorporate such a new or different material or
method into the USACE criteria system, such as in guide
specifications.
f.
Design and Construction Evaluation Reporting. ER 415-1-
13, Design and Construction Evaluation (DCE), describes the DCE
management and reporting system in place within USACE.
(1) One basic purpose of the DCE management and reporting
system is to acquire feedback from construction projects that can
result in improvements to USACE technical guidance and
construction management systems. This system uses the evaluation
team approach, where team members normally consist of HQUSACE
engineering and construction discipline staff members, often
supplemented by MSC and DC staff members. The team evaluates the
design, construction, and criteria associated with
a number of ongoing construction projects at various sites within
an MSC's geographic boundaries. The results of each DEC team
efforts are reviewed by, among others, subject matter technical
proponents at HQUSACE.
(2) In the case of the technology used in the design and
construction processes for any given project, the team reports
are analyzed to determine whether or not improvements to
technical guidance documents, such as CEGS, are needed as a
result of the data obtained from the team. Since the technical
proponent has the team report at hand along with access to the
reporting team member for additional details, it is possible to
issue page changes to such documents without undue delay. As a
result, the benefits from the DCE reporting system can be high,
since the team visits are made periodically throughout each
fiscal year, without relying on individual initiatives, as do
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