Construction

Quality Assurance in Materials and Construction

Purpose of Review

The purpose of this review was to independently evaluate the FHWA Division Offices' stewardship and oversight of the QA program. The goals for this review were:

• Reduce risk in the Quality Assurance Program.
• Recommend improvements which allow Division Offices to evaluate, approve, and monitor State quality assurance program with a high degree of confidence.
• Identify successful practices that will add value to this program corporately and nationally.

Quality assurance is a critical component of the States' construction programs. The FHWA Division Office's role in providing proactive QA stewardship is considered essential to the successful delivery of State construction projects. Over the last 10 years, an average of 75 percent of the dollars apportioned for the Federal-aid program have been obligated for projects which are affected by the QA program. Since the amount of money associated with the construction program is so large, it is inherently a high risk area. Quality assurance is the principal means by which the States verify construction, material, and product quality, and is therefore the primary method by which the FHWA and the States can control and reduce risk to the construction program.

The 2005 Financial Integrity Review and Evaluation Program (FIRE) established oversight procedures to ensure that Federal funds are properly managed and effectively used, that financial processes and transactions are reviewed, and that safeguards are in place to minimize fraud, waste, and abuse. Proper quality assurance procedures are one method of safeguard and are essential for providing the fiscal accountability and oversight required by the FIRE program. Quality assurance in the construction phase, and particularly in material quality, is necessary to ensure federal funds are properly managed and effectively used.

The FHWA's stewardship role reflects the Agency's responsibility to ensure that the Federal Highway programs are delivered in an efficient and effective manner. While States may assume certain project approval authorities, the FHWA is ultimately responsible for ensuring that the Federal Highway programs are delivered consistent with established requirements.

Quality construction is fundamental to meeting the mission of the FHWA, and quality assurance is the primary means by which the FHWA ensures that it has confidence in the quality of the highway products delivered. Achievement of the Agency's national objectives is dependent on highway improvements being constructed to a desired level of quality in order to ensure that they perform as intended. Completed construction projects represent tangible products by which the FHWA is measured in the delivery of its programs. The public and Congress ultimately define the success of these construction projects based on their performance.