 U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration |
MEMORANDUM |
| Subject: | Construction Engineering Costs - Staking Performed as Part of Contract | Date: | September 7, 1977 |
| From: | Associate Administrator for Administration | Reply To: | HFS-21 |
| To: | Regional Federal Highway Administrators Region 1-10 |
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The definition for construction engineering contained in the Federal-aid Highway Program Manual (FHPM) 1-4-5, paragraph 3.b states (in part) relative to the subject costs:
"The work of supervising construction activities ... together with those staking activities necessary for the State to control construction operations..."
There have been some differing interpretations as to whether or not staking functions performed by a contractor either as a separate bid item or absorbed by him as a part of his construction, should be considered separately as construction engineering costs.
Generally, such a determination will be made on the basis of what constitutes the minimum necessary control points. A State is expected to provide sufficient vertical and horizontal control points to enable a contractor to layout and construct the required work. If a State's practices and procedures provide only minimum basic engineering controls which require the contractor to perform additional staking as a part of his contract, such costs may be considered an integral part of normal construction costs. That portion of the staking and layout work which is performed by State forces or by a consulting firm will be considered construction engineering.
This has been coordinated with the Construction and Maintenance Division, Office of Highway Operations, and may be used as guidance in your region as appropriate.
/s/ John R. Provan