NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

NBS Educator Specifications: an introduction

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

0.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Content
Introduction Definition Consider users Resourcing Planning the process Once and in the right place Structure Management Specification methods Editing Summary References and further reading

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

1.
1.1

Introduction
This document

NBS is the producer of the national building specification, and part of RIBA Enterprises Ltd. This presentation is part of the NBS Educator suite. Related presentations in the suite include: Contract documentation: an introduction. Briefs: an introduction. Specifications: problems in practice. Specifications: product selection process Schedules of work: an introduction. NBS The Old Post Office St Nicholas Street Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 1RH T: 0191 244 5500 F: 0191 244 5623 E: info@thenbs.com URL: www.thenbs.com 1.2 Topics Definition: What is a specification? Specification is both a product and a process, and both are explored in this document. How does a specification differ from other descriptive documents? Consider users: If the specification is to be used, then the users needs must be served. What do they want? Resourcing: What resources are needed to prepare a specification? Planning the process: What activities are involved in specifying, and when should they occur? Once and in the right place: What goes where? For example, what properly belongs in the specification? Structure: How is the specification best structured? Management: What management issues need to be specified?

The content was developed by John Gelder BArch (Hons) RIBA RAIA CSI.

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

Specification methods: What are the methods of specifying, and how does one choose between them? Editing: If the specification is to be used, then it must be readable. This means it must be edited. 1.3 Key points

Specification is both a product and a process.

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

2.
2.1

Definition
Process

The specification process nests into the contract documentation process. Contract documentation nests, in turn, inside the design process, which nests inside the building process, which nests inside the facility realisation process. All these processes can be project managed, and they can be quality assured, e.g. to BS EN ISO 9001. 2.2 Product Specifications are written descriptions of the quality of the built product and its component products. Published definitions often miss the points made here. For example, non-written descriptions are not specifications. Likewise, written descriptions of cost and quantity are not specifications, and assembly is best described using drawings or other types of description. The specification is about deliverables systems and products but not processes so it is not about workmanship or tiling or curing, but it is about executed work, laid tiles, cured concrete. Recipes, not specifications, describe processes. The specification is not about facilities (e.g. the hospital, the school), built entities as a whole (the building, the site), activities or spaces. The written description of these high level entities is often called the brief. However, briefs and specifications overlap in practice, the former describing products to some extent, and systems in outline (especially for M&E services). As a product, the specification can be quality controlled (e.g. certified by first, second or third party as conforming to stated requirements viz. the brief). 2.3 Context Specifications are one of several potential contract documents. Specifications are used for all projects, but not necessarily in the form of a separate document. Contract document Instructions to tenderers Conditions of contract Production drawings Specification incl. Preliminaries Quantities Schedules of work Description of work Definition Rules of play Clarification for tender phase for construction phase graphical written numerical list

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The description of work is modular, each module being a particular type of description. The modules can stand alone as documents, or be combined in various ways to create a range of composite documents, e.g. annotated (i.e. specified) drawings. Other descriptive modules include photographs, prototypes, and reference projects. Each of the contract documents should complement the others. That is, the project documents should all be read together, and should not repeat each other say it once and in the right place. The specification may be located on the drawings, in the bills or in the schedules of work, in instructions, and in the specification-proper. This fragmentation is characteristic of specifications, and is a common cause of problems, e.g. inconsistency, repetition, omission. Wherever these written descriptions occur, the same principles apply to their preparation and use. A tiger in a zoo is still a tiger, after all. Both the tiger and the specification must have teeth, wherever they are! 2.4 Key points Specification is one of a nest of projects. Specifications are written descriptions of the quality of the built product and its component products. Specifications describe products, not processes. Fragmentation of the specification across various documents leads to problems.

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

3. Consider users

All users are interested in different aspects of the specification. Each takes a turn as the priority audience. 3.1 Designers During preparation, consider aligning the specification to design disciplines, e.g. acoustics, fire, lighting. To some extent this would be an attribute-based structure, roughly parallel to the E&W Building Regulations Approved Documents (BR ADs). 3.2 Building control officers Structure the compliance specification to parallel the BR ADs rather than Common Arrangement of Work Sections (CAWS see Crawford, 1997; Delany, 2008). Structuring the specification to match the BR ADs would facilitate crosschecking by the building control officer (BCO) between the specification and the regulations, as well as similar cross-checking by the designers, and regulations consultant if any. Provide just enough content to demonstrate statutory compliance. The Building Regulations are not concerned with aesthetic issues or (usually) maintenance regimes, for example. 3.3 Estimators and tenderers Two-part structure: Tendering is done against a very tight program, so anything which helps tenderers will help with equitability, accuracy, and comparing apples with apples. They particularly need to know about the project variables (funnies) as this is where the cost of this job will differ from the cost of another, similar, job. Estimators have a similar need. However, conventional specifications roll the standard and variable stuff together, so it is hard to spot project variables in the time available. NBS Scheduler isolates the project variables using a two-part structure, facilitating disassembly, as does the NBS Domestic Specification (Wilson, 2006). Elemental structure: SMM7 is aligned to CAWS, but estimators and tenderers also make use of elements (aka systems), e.g. BCIS (Building Cost Information Service), so an elemental structure might help them. NBS Scheduler uses an elemental structure, too, as does NBS Engineering Services. 3.4 Contractors Contractors need to disassemble the specification, e.g. for compliance and for subcontracting. They also need room for marking up the spec, e.g. wide margins. Compliance: Tests, inspections, samples and the like are often described alongside product and execution requirements, rather than being separated. Subcontracting: Subcontractors are rarely given all the specification sections (and drawings) they need. The head contractor often splits the specification pretty crudely, with the result that relevant Preliminaries material and relevant NBS 7 November 2008

NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

reference sections are not included. Also, irrelevant material will often be included if work described in a single section is to be split among more than one subbie. This compromises pricing and programming. The specification could be designed to facilitate such splits, hence the trade-based structure, for example (i.e. CAWS, the norm), and use of small sections. 3.5 Subcontractors Subbies on-site must be able to read the spec, necessitating, e.g. a big font, and clear English. Convoluted legalese, cryptic or ambiguous phrasing, and unhelpful section structures are all too common in specifications. Keep it simple! Keep all relevant material together, not scattered. Describe products and execution separately. Ordering of manufactured products is often done by head office, fabrication by another organisation, execution onsite by other operatives, and commissioning by an independent company perhaps. It makes sense if the specification reflects this in each section, using subsections. Provide a separable General technical requirements section, rather than whole of Preliminaries/ General. This is provided in NBS Scheduler, so that trades dont need to be given the whole of Preliminaries/ General, most of which is of no interest to them. The section (A90) deals with technical issues of general application, e.g. rules for substitution. 3.6 3.7 Contract administrators Courts CAs need to search the specification for compliance (see 3.4). Their priority is defining obligations of parties to the contract. But specifications sometimes blur obligations, e.g. by specifying processes, or requiring inappropriate contractor design, or being unclear about the extent of this, and sometimes seek to impose obligations on parties outside the contract, e.g. subcontractors, authorities, tenderers. Pricing documents take precedence so contracts often state that (specified) bills override the specification. 3.8 Facility managers FMs need a record spec, but this is almost never provided. Generic specification content in the contract specification will be replaced with suppliers or manufacturers and their products in the record specification. The contract specification is as designed. As built is more of a concern for drawings, where workers have taken them literally, sometimes with dire consequences, e.g. by drilling through a slab in the firm belief they were not going to hit live electrical cables. The US court case that resulted led to the suggestion that the documents be styled record documents instead. For maintaining the building, it would be handy if the record specification was structured by location, e.g. where a given problem has occurred.

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Operation and maintenance manuals and health and safety files are usually dealt with in specifications. H&S files are a statutory obligation. Spares, tools, training, manuals, records of commissioning, and other such matters of interest to facility managers, are also routinely covered in specifications. 3.9 Project managers Their priority is defining quality no other document but the specification will enable them to do this. For quality management, the specification is the key document. It is also a critical part of communications management, especially in its role as a nexus between a range of documents, e.g. contract, drawings, bills, standards, regulations (Gelder, 2007). 3.10 Key points At least 9 different types of user have an interest in the specification: Designers. Building control officers. Estimators and tenderers. Contractors. Subcontractors. Contract administrators. Courts. Facility managers. Project managers.

Each is interested in different aspects of the specification, and may require different content and/or different structures.

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

4.
4.1

Resourcing
Time and fees

Specifications are not funded as a separate task. Specification production is usually just rolled into contract documentation (which most people equate with production drawings), and isnt billed separately. There are no suggested fee scales for specification production, and many offices (even larger ones) do not have specification specialists in house. The result is that production drawings are prioritised. Designers generally prefer drawn communication, and are well aware of the time taken to produce drawings. Time taken to produce specifications is not so well understood. Accordingly no one actually wants to produce the spec, no one sets aside time for its production, and it gets left to the last minute. most specifications are pretty poor including ours. You never have enough time and we are increasingly obliged to use the NBS which means we have to clear out a whole lot of guff. (Simpson, 2001). Simpsons practice deals with heritage work, so a lot of NBS material doesnt apply in his case, an office master based on NBS would be worth setting up. This would certainly save time. Chart: Specifications cannot be done over a weekend. Appropriate time and fees must be allocated to their preparation. This chart gives some idea of what might be required. Time is in person-weeks, for all disciplines, and includes the whole process of specifying, from information gathering to production. Use of software such as that built into NBS Building will speed up the process.

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Specification fees 20,000 Specification time (weeks) 13.5

16,000

10.8

12,000

8.1

8,000

5.4

4,000

2.7

0.4

20

40

Project value ( million) (based on fee scales for specifying from the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors [AIQS]). An Australian survey found that both designers and contractors blame declining fees for the perceived decline in documentation quality between 1985 and 2000. The lower fees mean, of course, that less time is available to do the work and, in particular, to check it (Tilley & McFallan, 2000). 4.2 Appropriate staff Balance experience and charge-out. Is the project time- or cost-critical? Fresh young graduates will have to re-do their specification several times, taking up supervisor time. Though they might take a lot of time to get it right, the cost is fairly low. Conversely, a senior partner might take less time to get the specification right, but the cost will be excessive. The ideal specifier will lie between these two extremes. But, the ideal specifier may not be available. The Australian survey mentioned found that the difficulty of finding good staff, explicitly including specification writers, ranked 13 out of 23 issues affecting documentation quality. Candidate specifiers include:

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Project architect or engineer: Good for continuity, but may not be up to speed on specifications. Office specialist specifier: May act as resource for project specifiers, or may write project specs, or both. Quantity surveyor: In the past the (fabric) specification has often been left to the QS to pull together, though that is changing (but QSs still routinely handle the Preliminaries and contracts and tendering material). Specifying is a design process, and should be done by designers. Consultant specifier: Liability and decisions are still yours. Even so, there are specifications consultants in the UK offering their services, reflecting the ongoing unpopularity of the task with architects and others.

A lead specifier is needed to co-ordinate process and content typically, the architect. Training: Little training is available for specifiers and users (one example is Daniels, 2007). Schools of architecture know nothing about specification writing and arent interested. Somebody should set up a working party. Theres no training in specification writing. [Simpson, 2001]. The NVQ in Architectural Technology (Edexcel, 2000) has specifications built into it, for example, and specifications are taught at some architecture schools, e.g. in the University of Newcastles Certificate in Architectural Practice. Nevertheless, the subject is definitely under-taught. The NBS Educator material is intended to address this need (Gelder, 2006a). 4.3 Software needed This includes word-processing and databases, such as NBS Specifier and NBS Scheduler. Some specifiers create their own databases of clauses, managed using conventional software. Some even use styles (e.g. in MS Word) to manage their material. Such systems are unique to the particular office, so training or retraining is needed for newcomers. 4.4 Sources of information Sources must be current, which means maintenance. New contracts, regulations, standards and amendments are published all the time. Subscription services are available to simplify keeping track of them all. Sources must be reliable, preferably with consensus across industry. Good examples are JCT contracts and British Standards. Needless to say, the fact that there is consensus does not mean that they are perfect. The IHS/NBS Construction Information Service (CIS) links to many of them, and is available online or via CD. Warts and all, get the sources and read them! Specifiers are effectively surrounded by standard documents of various kinds they cannot be ignored: NBS 12 November 2008

NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

Regulations. Standard specifications. Tendering procedures. Contracts. Conformance. Quality and environmental management systems. Technical guidance. Master specification systems. Manufacturers literature.

Documentary sources are something the specifier must master. All sources for project specifications have their advantages and disadvantages. Production of a professional quality specification, however, presupposes adequate fees and time, and so should exclude short-hand approaches. Many of these sources rely on standard published documents, e.g. from BSI or JCT. Some of these documents are honoured more in the breach. Master specifications help to make this source material more manageable, by functioning as a filter, interface and link. Standards: These are expensive and wordy, and are continually being amended. British Standards, from BSI, are written by committees with a broad representation from manufacturing, contracting, academia and so on. Negotiations tend to result in the standards defaulting to lowest common denominator requirements (e.g. limited by the capacity of the less-able manufacturers). Nevertheless, manufacturers work to them and regulations rely on them, so specifiers must work with them too. EuroNorms, from CEN, are limited by the capacity of less-developed economies. Harmonised EuroNorms and the CE Mark are intended to address this issue, at least as far as legal requirements (e.g. Building Regulations) are concerned. 4.5 Specification sources Proprietary specifications: These are biased, poorly written (e.g. not to BS 4940, unless in Manufacturer Network Keyfiles), and hard to generalise from beware. Relevant standards may not be mentioned in proprietary specifications, and construction processes are often included. However, they are quick to use and free. Project specifications: These are not all relevant, not all there and not current. Even for similar projects, one project specification will include items not needed and exclude items needed in another. New specifications based on them inherit any faults use with care. If used, old project specifications should first be amended to reflect instructions and variations issued, to minimise transfer of faults. NBS 13 November 2008

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However, reuse of old project specifications (rolling specification) is tempting (quick, at hand, free, and includes office knowledge). Office masters: These are not often properly maintained. Even large practices find it hard to properly resource the maintenance of the office master, with the result that it may be 10 years or so since they were last overhauled. Basing them on the national master reduces this problem, but doesnt solve it altogether. They are inconsistent across offices and because designers work with different co-consultants on every job, each of whom might have their own office master, inconsistencies in style, content and even structure are inevitable. In addition, they draw on limited experience (i.e. within the office only), and accrete bad experience clauses. National masters: These include NBS and Amtech's NES, and are not used enough. By no means all fabric designers subscribe to NBS specs, and NES is used much less than NBS (about 1/20th the number of subscribers). NBS is not always used properly, and this would also apply to NES. The most appropriate level (minor, intermediate, standard) is not always used. For example, small-system subscribers, faced with a big project, may not upgrade to the appropriate bigger system, preferring to stretch their small system instead (it's just for one job, after all). For the competent specifier, national master specifications are the best bet (Delany & King, 2003). 4.6 National master specifications More current than office masters. Lower cost than office masters. Cost of subscription and maintenance (just filing, apart from ploughing in office-specific material) is a fraction of the cost of doing your own thing to the same level of quality. Free up office expertise for project stuff. Draw on national experience. Deal with faults and errors. Closer to best practice. Consistent. Used by co-consultants. No need to retrain new staff. Familiar to builders, project managers. Software may be available. Help service and training available. Advantages:

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Disadvantages: Relevant material may not be included. Must be subscribed to. Must be learnt (by beginners). Office knowledge must be added. Relatively slow, though software can speed it up.

Master specifications appeal to some because they seem to suggest that the work has all been done the specifier doesnt need to think. This is not the case at all master specifications can only ever provide a framework, a set of prompts, for the project specifier to work to. They must be used critically. Some blame the master specification for deficiencies in the project specification. This is misplaced. Master specifications are just tools. Skilled users are bound to create a better product than unskilled users. National master specifications can be pre-edited by practices to deal with some of the disadvantages listed here, e.g. to include relevant material and office knowledge. An Australian survey found that standardisation in documentation (including use of standard specifications) was given the lowest priority by designers out of 22 quality attributes, yet had seen the biggest increase over a 15-year period (Tilley & McFallan, 2000). However, mechanical subcontractors thought that standardisation had declined. 4.7 Key points Specification requires adequate time and fees. Specification requires appropriate staffing, with appropriate training. Specification can be facilitated with appropriate software. Sources of information used by specifiers must be current and reliable. Specifiers must be familiar with them. Specifications can be based on proprietary specifications, project specifications, office master specifications and/or national master specifications. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. It is recommended that national master specification systems are used their advantages easily outweigh any disadvantages.

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5.
5.1

Planning the process

Programme

Started at last minute: Every now and again an NBS subscriber requests material on the Friday and access codes on the Saturday, for a specification due on the Monday to go to tender. This example is extreme (and is generally limited to small works), but gives a flavour of how late designers often leave the specification. This is really nothing more than bad management. An Australian survey rated late production of colour and finishes schedules 11th out of 18 issues in terms of impact of documentation on contractors (Tilley & McFallan, 2000). Co-consultant specs: These are not often checked. Specifications produced by M&E consultants, for example, are rarely checked by the lead specifier (commonly the architect). One reason is that, though the architect is commonly expected to co-ordinate the drawings, no-one has actually been tasked with coordinating the specification. Another reason is that these specifications are usually submitted late there is no time to wade through them, mark them up, send them back, revise them and resubmit them. The bulk of these specifications, and lack of confidence in technical ability to check them, are other factors. Specification preparation and use begins with the brief. The specification begins life well before the tail end of the documentation phase (when it is often started officially); runs through planning and building approval, estimating, documentation, tendering, contracting, facility management; and ends with demolition. The specification ends its life after (practical) completion, even after demolition. For example, it may be of use in determining the disposition of demolished materials, e.g. by answering the question: which are hazardous?

So dont start at the last minute! Run the specification parallel to the production drawings. Systematise the process: Specifications should be project managed at the minimum this means they should be programmed (i.e. time management). There are 3 key stages: Preparation: This entails gathering information, updating the source specification, resolving format, deciding working pattern and medium (on screen, on paper, or a combination of the two?), and allocating tasks among co-consultants. This phase can be lengthy. Execution: Reiterate as often as necessary, flagging unresolved issues as you go. If in doubt, leave it out. Execution comprises:

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Deletion, from sections down to clauses. Delete the largest units of unwanted information first, then the smaller units. Print (if at all) only after the source specification is down to a manageable size. Completion of inserts (blanks) in master source specifications. Addition of new material not in the source specification.

Finish: Edit the whole specification for consistency and the like, and check, e.g. cross-references and numbering. Once all has been resolved, move to the wrapup and production phase, and distribute. Update source specification: If this is done continually, there will be less to do when one is about to start a project (when time is tight). Then pre-edit the source if appropriate, e.g. converting NBS to a hospital-specific version (but not projectspecific). Working pattern: Across all sections equally, or focussing on some at the expense of others, depending on availability of information, requirements of users such as estimators, packaging of contracts, etc. For example, estimators prefer 50% sections 100% complete rather than 100% sections 50% complete. 5.2 Content Practically complete: Work to the 80:20 rule (aka the law of diminishing returns or the Pareto principle). The effort:output ratio follows a law of diminishing returns. Roughly, the last 20% of output could take 4 times the effort of the first 80% of output. So there is rarely any such thing as complete documentation it isnt worthwhile. Thats why documentation often seems to sit at 90% complete for such a long time. Cut your losses! Thoroughness: Consider, for example, trust, innovation, risk, drawings, control on site and quality levels required. Decisions on thoroughness should be made rationally, rather than by default. Thoroughness of the specification depends on a number of other factors, including the general project quality level required, time available, project cost or size, and fussiness of employer. It is possible for a specification to be thorough yet set a low standard of quality, and vice versa. Thorough specifications will be longer than those that are less thorough. Quality level (QL): Lock the builder in to client-agreed QLs. These can be set for the whole project and right down to individual items. A consistent approach is needed. The employer, architect and contractor will all have different quality levels in mind. One purpose of the specification is to define them so that there is no chance of misunderstanding, by any of the parties. Products (manufactured, fabricated, built): The specification describes the quality, and the management of the quality, of the component products the deliverables (which will include some services). Processes en route are not described. These are down to the contractors, fabricators and manufacturers. 5.3 Key points 17 November 2008

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Specifications are often started late, e.g. after the production drawings are complete. Co-consultant specifications are often not checked. Specification should begin early, e.g. at briefing, and should be systematic. If in doubt, leave it out. There is no such thing as a complete specification. The specifier should make general decisions about thoroughness. The specification locks in agreed quality levels.

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6. Once and in the right place

Before writing the specification one needs an understanding of what information should be in it, and what should be covered elsewhere, or even what should not be included at all. 6.1 Regulations Do not schedule regulations, or stipulate compliance with them, in the specification. The danger with a schedule is that it may be incomplete, inappropriate or inaccurate. The contractor must comply with relevant regulations, according to the contract, e.g. JCTSBC/XQ05 clause 2.1. Even without such a clause, it must comply. So there is no need to mention regulations at all. Building Regulations Approved Documents: Deemed-to-satisfy, but not mandatory, prescriptive solutions are given in BR ADs. Because they are not mandatory, if required they must be specified. But BR ADs are designed for guidance only (should), and cannot simply be referenced they would have little contractual force. Instead, they must be paraphrased and hardened (e.g. shall) in the specification if they are to apply contractually. 6.2 Contracts and annexures Do not specify or include contractual matters in the specification these are rules of play, not descriptions of deliverables. Conversely, contracts invariably cover materials and workmanship, e.g. JCTSBC/XQ05 clauses 2.1, 2.3. This is the job of the specification and, in general terms, the regulations (e.g. E&W Building Regulations 7). Often, as in JCTSBC/XQ05, these requirements are repetitive and/or inconsistent. For example, silence in the documents is dealt with for workmanship (execution), in two places. There is a good chance that these contract-based requirements will undermine, or conflict with, the specification a major problem (Gelder, 2003b). Subcontracts matters likewise have no place in the spec, especially because the specification is part of contract, not subcontract, documentation. 6.3 Tendering This does not belong in the specification. Contractual material, and only contractual material, should be in the contract documents. Tendering-specific material has served its purpose once the contract is underway, and should not be proliferated. 6.4 Reports, e.g. site investigation report These are provided for information, not as a requirement, and so are not a part of the specification. 6.5 Standards Cite relevant standards in the specification, dont paraphrase them.

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Check currency, including key cross refs. Citation of standards in most specs, e.g. NBS, is quite simple only the number is given no dates, no titles, no amendments. The question of currency is dealt with in General technical requirements (or Preliminaries section A31). To do otherwise is to make a lot of work for the specifier, and is probably unwarranted. Select options (may, either or). Standards usually offer choices, to be made by the specifier (though sometimes they are self-selecting), e.g. grades of stainless steel, classes of bitumen roofing sheet, types of high pressure laminate. Check defaults. Defaults set by standards may not suit the project they may be too tight (unusual) or too loose (quite common, standards being consensus documents). Harden guidance [should]. Standards come in two flavours. Codes of practice (like BR ADs) use should throughout. They are guidance and must be paraphrased and hardened in the specification to have contractual force. They should not be cited. Standard specifications are enforceable (using shall), and can be cited. 6.6 Drawings Dont repeat annotation or describe assembly in the specification complement the drawings. Conversely, some things commonly given on the drawings should be in the specification (e.g. margin notes about complying with relevant standards). A common point of conflict is finishes, shown on the drawing as annotation, and in the specification in the finishes schedule. 6.7 Preliminaries These belong in the spec, but just the clients preliminaries, not the builders. For example: Facilities for clerk of works, architect. Use of clients services and roads. Security on an occupied site. Publicity. Sequence of work on an occupied site. Client-supplied items. Protection of property adjacent and on-site.

Preliminaries are often confused with general requirements (contracts), tendering and technical material in the UK sometimes known collectively as Preambles (Doran, 2007; Finch, undated). 6.8 Work sections These are the core of the specification. Apart from ordinary work sections, there may be umbrella sections and reference sections, discussed in the next section.

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6.9 Schedules

Though sometimes located on drawings, it is suggested that schedules (other than the graphical component) be viewed as part of the specification. 6.10 Cross-referencing This should be precise or not used at all. Imprecise is unhelpful at best, untrue at worst. For example, as specified and as detailed are of no help to anyone, even if they are true. It is much more helpful to give a precise cross-reference, e.g. to details A25-7, or to specification clause G20/102 (as recommended in Coordinated Project Information literature) (Waterhouse, 2004). Of course, it may not be true anyway (the relevant detail may not have been drawn), in which case such a cross-reference is less than helpful once the builder calls the CA in frustration only to be told it isnt in the specification or drawings after all, the credibility of the documents and their authors takes a nose dive. Some argue that cross-references should be from drawings to specification only, and not at all from specification to drawings. Where it occurs, cross-referencing must be complete and unambiguous, e.g. refer to is not a requirement for compliance. To the relevant standard is another useless general cross-reference which ones are relevant? Who decides? Has the specifier or CA read them? Will the builder? 6.11 Parties outside the contract Subcontractors: Dont mention them. They are not a party to the contract with the client, but are in contract with the contractor. One does not issue instructions to subcontractors, nor does one issue specifications (or drawings) to them. Indirect reference to subcontractors includes phrases like co-ordinate with main contractor and work by others, and should also be avoided. Tenderers: Dont mention them. They dont exist. Tenderers are ephemeral entities any instructions or forms just for their use must be in separate, discardable material. Use of allow for generally indicates tendering indirectly. Avoid it. Authorities: The contract does not bind them. They will have their own contracts with the employer. So the best you can say is that they may do something. Other contractors: Deal with interfacing, but dont mention them. As far as a particular contractor is concerned, work not done by it is done by the client. 6.12 Parties in the contract The client: The specification is from the client, and is addressed to and binds only the contractor. The Preliminaries may need to describe some work being undertaken by the employer, e.g. employer-supplied items such as art works. Work sections will not do this at all. So by and large the client is not mentioned. Contract administrator: The CA need not be mentioned, except in General technical requirements or Preliminaries, e.g. on the subject of communications.

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The CA must have a free hand to administer the contract and should not be constrained by the dead hand of the specifier. Decisions which should be taken by the CA should be left out of the specification. For example, the specification, like the drawings, assumes and expects full compliance, so requirements to retest, or to take other action in the event of non-conformance, should not be given. Contractor: The entire description is addressed to the contractor no-one else. That is, there is no need for the contractor shall. Just use imperative, direct language. So there is no need to mention the contractor at all. Also, like the CA, the contractor should not be unnecessarily constrained, e.g. by specifying processes (for storage, protection, execution, etc). 6.13 Key points Say it once, and (therefore) in the right place. Therefore don't repeat content covered in regulations, contracts, standards, drawings, preliminaries, other work sections, and schedules. Tendering material and reports are not part of the specification. Cross-referencing between documents must be precise and accurate, or not used at all. The specification only addresses, and binds, the contractor. It cannot bind subcontractors, tenderers, authorities and other contractors these are outside the contract. Nor does it bind the client and contract administrator.

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7. Structure

Specification

Preliminaries

Work sections

Schedules

Employers preliminaries

General technical requirements

Doors schedule

Finishes schedule Prompts from contract Demolition Windows schedule Ironmongery schedule Lintels schedule Gas service Reinforcement schedule

Commercial clauses

Structural steel Timber windows

7.1

Components

There are three main components to a specification preliminaries, work sections and schedules. Preliminaries: This general material is important for the contractor, but is not needed by trade subcontractors, so it is best isolated. Work sections: Specifications are books, and like books are routinely broken up into chapters or sections (called work sections, as they describe blocks of work). The work sections can be fairly readily distributed to others, e.g. subcontractors, though some disassembly and merging will probably be needed by various users. Because merging is easier than disassembly, small separate work sections are preferred to large merged sections. General technical requirements: This is an NBS Scheduler innovation, planned also for the NBS. An umbrella section, it contains general information relevant to

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trade subcontractors. Otherwise, this information is held in various Preliminaries sections, which subcontractors may not see. Schedules: Assembly schedules could go on the drawings or, like the NBS system outline clauses (which are also about assembly), they could go in the specification. If located in the specification, most assembly schedules would happily sit within an appropriate work section, but some are multi-trade (e.g. finishes schedule) and would have to be located elsewhere, perhaps at the end of the specification. Definition schedules (e.g. for lock types) are located in the relevant work section. 7.2 Structure A specification has many users. One could produce a new structure for each user but, assuming this is not viable, a generic structure easily navigated, easily disassembled is best. Accordingly, the structure is as generally accessible as possible, rather than favouring any particular user. Text sequence generally, both section to section, and within sections, is by work sequence. This is the rule internationally, yet there are some big differences, e.g. between the US CSI MasterFormat (2004), and the UK CAWS. Landscape works in the first are up-front, with preparatory earthworks, and at the end of the building sections in the second, in a group by themselves (Q). Likewise, plumbing is with mechanical in the first, and in a separate block in the second (S). As well as this sequence, text also runs from the general to the particular, e.g. preliminaries then individual work sections. Common Arrangement of Work Sections (CAWS): This is the standard UK classification system for work sections. NBS and NES use it in the structuring of their material, as do most project specifiers in the UK. It generally follows sequence on site, from site establishment (e.g. preliminaries), to excavation (D) to loose furniture (N). Services and external works are separated from building fabric. The system includes a three-level alpha-numeric hierarchy, shown here for two masonry sections: F10 Brick/ Block walling. F11 Glass block walling.

The A sections are for Preliminaries/ General conditions. Sections B to Q are for fabric. Sections R to Y are for building services, with Y sections being the Services reference specifications. Some services items are described in other blocks, too. Z sections are the Building fabric reference specifications (Gelder, 2006a). 7.3 Substructure

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Work sections are broken up into subsections, and then paragraphs (known as clauses, reflecting the legal function of the document, as does the naming and numbering tradition). Just as overall structure traditionally follows work sequence, so does the internal work section structure from design, to ordering the products, execution, and then to completion. Content of a typical NBS Engineering Services work section: System outline: System outline clauses, for assembly. System performance: For contractor design of system. Products: Manufactured products. Fabrication: Fabricated products. Execution: Built products. Completion: Final tests, spares, etc. Facility management: Hard FM for the system, e.g. under PFI procurement (this subsection is not yet implemented).

It is possible to develop a standard structure across all work sections. For example, the North American CSI SectionFormat (1997) uses just 3 subsections: General. Products. Execution.

It standardises subsection structure too. NBS Building and Landscape, on the other hand, are not yet formally standardised, though each section has a similar structure. NBS Engineering Services has a standard section structure, as does NES (Gelder, 2006c). 7.4 Key points There are three main components to a specification preliminaries, work sections and schedules. Because of the many users, the structure of the specification is generic, and is based on CAWS in the UK. Individual work sections can have a standard structure: System outline. System performance. Products. Fabrication. Execution. Completion.

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Facility management.

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8. Management

These matters should be addressed in the specification regardless of the method of specification. Typically, covered in General technical requirements, or Preliminaries, e.g. sections A31, A32. 8.1 Conformance The builder needs to be told about the regime for checking that the specification has been complied with (Gelder, 2006b; 2007; 2008b). This must be priced, and must be understood. The appropriate regime depends on the method of specifying and, for some (e.g. proprietary), can be covered up front, e.g. in General technical requirements, though supplementary requirements may need to be given for some instances. For others, especially tests, details should be given for every instance. Tests: May be type or project or custom tests. Identify agent, test method, pass/fail points. Inspections: State whether hold or witness points. Samples: To be provided by client or by contractor? Documentary evidence: Specify, e.g. receipts, British Board of Agrment (BBA) certificates, BSI Kitemarks (BRE Certification, 2007). 8.2 Substitution Anything can be substituted, not just brands. Most specifications cover substitution of proprietary specifications, but in principle anything can be substituted, including details, standards, test methods and the like. Fair, clear rules are required, which should cover all eventualities, e.g. all entities that can be substituted. Do not bar substitution. This is not in the employers best interests, though manufacturers may push for it (having worked hard to get their product specified in the first place). On the other hand, if not specified, they will often work just as hard to have their products used instead. Manufacturers want to have their cake and eat it. Do not invite substitution, e.g. by use of or equal (Gelder, 2004). 8.3 Key points Requirements for verifying conformance should be specified. Procedures for substitution should be specified.

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9.
9.1

Specification methods
Terminology and choice

In the literature, the terminology used to describe specification methods is varied and confused. Items in a specification are either performance-based (open), or prescriptive (closed). A specification is likely to contain a mix of such items. Proprietary specifications are the most closed (i.e. least room for manoeuvre by contractor, most responsibility taken by specifier). Silence is the most open form of specification. Specification text can be either bespoke (custom-written) by the specifier, or it can pre-exist and be cited (referenced) by the specifier. Bespoke and reference are sub-methods of specifying. Method Prescriptive methods Proprietary Sub-methods Bespoke Reference e.g. XYZ Manufacturers Brand, Model recommendations 33/A15 e.g. 150 mm thick, green finish BSs Generic methods

Descriptive

Process

e.g. 4 passes BS Codes of of a 5 tonne Practice roller BSs, BBA Certificates -

Performance methods

Performance e.g. 2 hr firerated Price Silence e.g. PC sum -

Choice of method: Most of the time no explicit decision is taken on which specification method to use. Specifiers simply revert to their customary approach. These approaches may be appropriate most of the time, but they will not be appropriate all of the time. For example, some clients may forbid the use of outright proprietary specification, to encourage competition. Some contracts may not permit contractor design, in which case performance specifying cannot be used (at least for bespoke items). Fitness-for-purpose: Where the work is specified in descriptive or proprietary terms, probably no one is liable for fitness for purpose, because design and construction are well separated. Where process specifications are used, probably NBS 28 November 2008

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the specifier is liable for fitness for purpose design and construction are merged. For performance methods the builder is generally liable for fitness for purpose, though this may depend on the extent of design. For example, handover to the builder can be at any stage through the design process, so design to be done by the builder can be unconstrained, to very constrained, by decisions taken by consultants. Builders can also become liable for FFP if substituting unilaterally, i.e. designing as well as building. 9.2 Principles Be proactive not reactive solve problems now. The whole point of designing and documenting before construction is to reduce risk for all parties. Good documentation helps the builder, too. Bad documentation doesnt help anyone. Making decisions reactively increases risk and makes tendering and project management difficult. It is not usually in the employers best interests. Provisional sums in particular can be used as a means of procrastination. Ensure specification is best value enabled. Make sure that somebody will do the shopping around (Emmitt & Yeomans, 2001). This can be done by the client, in which case the brand can be specified outright government departments often negotiate supply agreements for products or services, e.g. locks; the architect or engineer, in which case the brand can be specified outright nominated suppliers are one consequence; or the builder give the builder room to move, e.g. a choice of brands, or a performance specification, or silence.

Ensure specification is integration-enabled, particularly between services and fabric. This is best managed if the one entity is responsible for all design. This is not the case in conventional procurement, for example, where M&E usually requires design by contractor, but the fabric does not. Be positive. As far as possible, state what you want rather than what you dont want. In particular, avoid bans (Gelder, 2005b). Assume full conformance, e.g. dont specify retests. Documents must describe what is required. They should not touch on what will happen if this is not provided or not possible. Specifying for non-conformance risks generating a culture of failure, inferring that meeting the requirement is neither expected nor essential. It also constrains the contract administrator whose job it is to deal with nonconformances. Specify products, not processes. Processes are not the designers or employers business, though designers should be cognisant of likely processes in considering buildability (incl. H&S considerations), cost/ time/ quality impacts and so on. NBS 29 November 2008

NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

Use one method of specifying per product per attribute, thereby avoiding conflict. Mixed methods are problematic. Complementarity across mixed methods is possible, but ... mixed messages are sent (e.g. who is responsible for design?); conflict is likely; and bulk and effort are increased.

Reference to mixed standards can also produce these problems. Some have both performance and deemed-to-satisfy prescriptive solutions, but not always flagged as alternatives. Ideally such standards should be split so the specifier can call up the appropriate part. Be fair. Do not use to approval or catch-alls. The tenderer cannot price work described as to approval, or neatly for example. What will be approved will depend on circumstances and personalities. Quantify requirements. 9.3 Performance Specifying performance generally requires contractor design, because the design process is incomplete at tender the builder is expected to complete it. This may be a simple matter of selecting a brand with matching performance from a catalogue of type-tested products, or it may involve the much more complex process of designing a bespoke solution with matching performance. But is the contractor allowed to design? See the contract and the employerarchitect agreement etc. The contract should cover the risk by, in effect, combining ordinary build-only contract provisions with a client-architect agreement professional indemnity insurance, intellectual property, design approval process and other issues. Is the contractor competent to design? Or, more to the point, are you competent to design? Consider formal sub-consultancy if you are not. Who is being paid to design? The employer-architect agreement, and parallel agreements for engineers, must mesh with and complement the requirements for contractor-design in the construction contract, so the employer knows who is being paid for design and, therefore, how it needs to be managed. Complete: Specify relevant properties, criteria, test methods and testing agents. Be objective. Terms such as waterproof or secure are, by themselves, meaningless and not enforceable. Properties: Even for something as simple as high-pressure laminate, some 20 properties are listed in BS EN 438-1. Criteria: Pass/fail points must be specified, otherwise how will you be able to agree that what is provided is acceptable, or not? Test methods: Since different methods for assessing a given property will give different results, methods must be specified.

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Testing agents: Should be both competent and independent, ideally (hence UKAS). Type testing may be acceptable, e.g. KiteMark. Consider supplementing performance with deemed-to-comply, such as descriptive or proprietary solutions (a bit like BR ADs). Items to be designed: The JCT series of contracts (including Intermediate and Minor Works) allows for three levels of contractor design. The less contractor design permitted, the more prescriptive the specification must be. Minor inferred items (silence): By definition, not mentioned explicitly in the documents. There is no such thing as 100% complete documentation. The contractors response to silence must be to identify the deliverable, determine required properties, design against them, and build. See JCT SBC/XQ 05 clause 2.3.3, for example. JCT CDP (Contractors Designed Portion): This is an optional extra for complex items requiring contractor design, for which proposals should be submitted at tender pretty common in large projects (e.g. for curtain walls, air conditioning). Identifying this work unambiguously is critical. See JCT SBC/XQ 05 Recitals 7 to 10, for example. JCT D&B: Where the entire contract is to be designed and built, a special form of contract must be used. The contract may not be for the whole building, of course. 9.4 Description Generally, description means bespoke, though selection of a brand might be a response by the builder to a descriptive specification. Consider instead: 9.5 Drawings. Lengthy descriptions can often be replaced by drawings, especially to the extent that they attempt to describe geometry and assembly. Photos, e.g. steel finishes. Samples, e.g. Constructs concrete sample panels around UK. Prototypes. Reference projects. Proprietary

This method is traditional for visually important manufactured items, e.g. door furniture, taps, facing bricks. But is it permitted, e.g. for projects with European funding (Gelder, 2006d)? Consider offering 3 or more proprietary choices. Consider its use for critical but non-visual items. To complete a proprietary spec, a descriptive supplement may be needed. Often a manufacturer and product reference is not enough to tie down the product choices are offered and must be selected, e.g. colour, texture, grades, even materials used. Likewise, defaults may be able to be varied on request, for a fee. Some of this will use proprietary terms (e.g. the manufacturers own name for a colour or texture), some will be descriptive.

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Dont retain generic stuff as well, such as references to standards this is likely to result in conflict. Or equal: Do not use this phrase. Or equal, or or equivalent (actually required in some contracts or in European funded projects), is the cause of much avoidable disputation: Including or equal at all is an invitation to the builder to make a substitution. If we simply specified the brand (or whatever) and left it at that, substitution is still possible (unless disallowed in the preliminaries), the item is treated no differently to any other, and no invitation has been made. By telling the contractor that equal products may be used, the contractor can substitute without notice he or she is not attempting to vary the contract by doing so. Indeed, it is not actually a substitution at all. A simple full stop wouldve meant that notice was required. Following on from this, it is left to the builder to decide what is equal. But because the builder does not know which criteria are important, the builder may well end up substituting something that is not equal or equivalent in the eyes of the CA/ specifier/ employer. The criterion (equal) has been given if it hadnt, the builder would have had to ask for it or them. General technical requirements or Preliminaries section A31, has rules for substitution which this phrase circumvents or contradicts (Gelder, 2004). NBS Plus: NBS Plus, and RIBA Product Selector, can assist with proprietary specifications (Madeley, 2005; Hamil, 2005; Hamil, 2006; Chapman, 2006; Hamil, 2007). 9.6 Reference Common examples of reference specifications are British standards and manufacturers recommendations. Reference documents may be prescriptive, performance or (usually) both. Standards: Is the standard used by industry? Is it current (amendments, superseding ENs) (Teale, 2005)? Is it appropriate (scope)? Does it cover all properties? Is it readily enforced, e.g. is third-party certification available?

Current: Use a precise reference, defining edition and amendments. Appropriate: Assuming the standard is appropriate and a more closed specification is not required, then reference to the standard is preferred to: paraphrasing it; writing your own material in lieu; or 32 November 2008

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ignoring it and saying little or nothing. cited in codes or regulations; used by manufacturers; and/or followed by fabricators and installers.

This is because the standard will be:

Other options are not. Indeed the courts may take the standards as the starting point, whether specified or not. Manufacturers literature: Much more difficult than standards to use properly. 9.7 Process This method is rarely, if ever, appropriate. Do not specify process (Gelder, 2002; 2003a): Expertise in processes lies with builder. Responsibilities blurred between employer and builder, e.g. for H&S. Liability for failure with specifier. Competitiveness of builder restricted. Contractor fettered. Supervision required for conformance. No guarantee that desired result will follow. Desired result often not stated (sometimes not even known). Specifier may be held responsible for fitness for purpose.

Specify end result (product or service) instead. This is what is paid for, and is the deliverable which can be checked before handover. Specifying process is traditional for conservation work, but if concerned about the builders ability to carry out a piece of work (e.g. thatching, stone repointing), ask for a method statement at tender. If a tenderer appears not to understand what is involved, dont use it. Or provide suggested methods for information only (should not shall, and separate from the contractual documents) though this is likely to be seen as crossing the boundary. 9.8 Key points Within a specification a variety of specification methods will be used. The two classes of specification method are prescription and performance. Specifiers should choose the appropriate method, rather than reverting to habit. Methods should be proactive, best-value enabled, integration-enabled, positive and fair. NBS 33 November 2008

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Performance specification, if done properly, is not going to save the specifier time. On the contrary. Proprietary specification may not be permitted. Where used, do not encourage substitution, e.g. by adding 'or equal'. Reference specification requires familiarity with the work referenced. Do not specify process.

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10.
10.1

Editing
The seven Cs

These rules apply also to contracts, regulations, drawings, and bills. But they are not always followed. An Australian survey found that designers rate accuracy of documentation top priority, followed closely by clarity, final checking, coordination and completeness (Tilley & McFallan, 2000). The survey also found that these objectives were not always achieved, completeness suffering the biggest decline over a 15 year period, followed by final checking, certainty, accuracy, coordination and clarity. Clear: Use plain English. The trend in legal drafting is to avoid Dickensian legalese and aim instead for ease of understanding by all intended audiences (not just the lawyers). But sophisticated content still requires sophisticated expression. In particular, avoid ambiguity. An independent internal devils advocate review is a useful safeguard. Trimming waffle exposes ambiguity (and redundancy) and makes the whole thing easier to edit. But too much concision can lead to ambiguity. Concise: Avoid repetition. Use streamlining, which involves the use of keywords and colons, and has been around since 1939 it is not new. It is normal practice in master specification systems the world over (Gelder, 2005a). Correct: Develop some quality control procedures. Cross-references must be correct check BS numbers, check currency, check scope. Requirements covered elsewhere do not need to be stated again the builder must comply with the contract documents as a whole, including referenced documents. Avoid redundancy. Complete: Ensure appropriate breadth. But, note Pareto. External crossreferences are often required to complete a specification, e.g. asking for a fire rating of 30/30/30 makes no sense unless the relevant standard (where the 30s are given meaning) is cited as well. It cannot be left as understood. Comprehensive: Ensure appropriate depth. For example, ensure that all relevant characteristics are covered in performance specifications, and that all relevant items are described in the specification and drawings taken together. Consistent: Watch terminology and style. Referenced documents are inevitably inconsistent (with each other, and occasionally within themselves) so, rather than trying to fit in with them where they are inconsistent, the specification should provide independent overall consistency. Co-ordinated: Across all work sections, and between all contract documents. 10.2 Other rules Be logical. For example, do not specify for non-conformance. Some clauses, such as contractor shall, or equal or unless otherwise specified should, if they

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are to be used at all, be added to every clause so they are best added to none. It is a useful discipline to take ideas to their logical conclusion in this way and see if they still make sense. Be fair and objective. The specification must be objective. Subjective descriptions such as to approval, adequate, neat should be avoided as far as practicable, as they cannot be priced and may lead to dispute. Likewise, avoid everything necessary and other catch-alls. Be specific. Here is an example of what to avoid: The subcontractor should, unless otherwise specified, ensure that all brickwork is constructed to any relevant standards and to approved manufacturers recommendations, or equivalent, using tradesmanlike workmanship, and as detailed. Materials and goods shall be the best of their respective kinds. Leave no gaps and no overlaps. No gaps should be understood in terms of Pareto, where a certain amount of silence in the documents might be desirable. No overlaps should be applied absolutely, to avoid the risk of conflict and double pricing. Dead clauses are a related issue, and are best avoided. If in doubt, leave it out. Too often, specifiers with not much confidence in their own technical ability insert, or leave in, material that they dont understand, assuming that it might be important. But if they dont understand it, they wont be able to enforce it anyway. Besides, it might not be important, or relevant. Do not retain material just in case it will be useful later on, e.g. in the event of a substitution or non-conformance. The requisite material will be added in the authorising instruction. Editing is the role of the lead specifier. Lead specifiers rarely edit, but it is as important as, and similar to, the business of co-ordinating the drawings. It does not require the lead specifier to have technical mastery of electrical, mechanical, landscape etc. It does require a check on style and format, on quasi-contractual content, on reference to tenderers, on paraphrasing of standards and codes, on scope and coverage of sections, e.g. trenching, plinths; and so on. Consider document control, particularly maintenance, tracking and archiving. 10.3 Navigation Numbering and internal cross-references: Use of names and numbers for sections and clauses is usual, along with page numbers. Cross-references in the CPI schema (Co-ordinating Committee for Project Information, 1987) use section and clause numbers, but mistyped numbers can be difficult for readers to correct. Accordingly, some specification systems use section and clause names for cross-referencing, as errors are more easily spotted and corrected, and the names are unlikely to change through the drafting process (unlike clause numbering). Although bulky, the number of such cross-references is likely to be small. Section names or numbers should be given on every page, on the outside top right, as an aid to navigation. Page numbers are also essential for navigation. NBS 36 November 2008

NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

Contents: Contents lists for specifications and for each work section are easily prepared. Contents lists for sections are preferred to scope of work clauses, which tend to presuppose a certain contractual situation which may not apply, e.g. pattern of subcontracting, and which may also be incomplete etc. 10.4 Format Readability: Better readability enhances comprehension. Line length should be optimised for readability, as should font size, fonts (e.g. headings vs body text), leading, line spacing and so on. Left justification assists readability. Consider users: Consider the choice of media viz. paper for post and fax; electronic for email; CD; project extranet. Not all users will have computers, CD drives, colour printers, internet access or even fax machines: Client and contractor: Double column, double sided (fewer pages to initial). Streamlining lends itself to this. Tenderers and contractors: Small sections help both. The needs of contractors vary, depending on the use of the specification. On site, they might prefer loose leaf single-sided A4 for photocopying, a good size font for reading in poor lighting, and a wide margin for notes. Co-consultants and contractor: Electronic. Specifiers: Disassembly by national master specification systems should be multi-level (e.g. domestic, small commercial, large commercial, huge) so specifiers can choose the best starting point, to minimise their work.

Binding in other documents: Binding other documents in with the specification, e.g. for convenience in handling, does not mean that they are part of the specification. The US term for the whole bound document is project manual. In particular, tendering material and contract annexures may be included, but are not part of the specification (though NBS Preliminaries section A20 deals with contract annexures and NBS Preliminaries section A30 deals with tendering). 10.5 Key points Specifications should follow the seven Cs: clear, concise, correct, complete, comprehensive, consistent, co-ordinated. Specifications should be logical, fair, with no gaps or overlaps. They should be edited. Consider navigation, e.g. clause numbers, page numbers. Consider format, e.g. font, colour.

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11. Summary

Specification is both a product and a process. Specification is one of a nest of projects. Specifications are written descriptions of the quality of the built product and its component products. Specifications describe products, not processes. Fragmentation of the specification across verious documents leads to problems. At least 9 different types of user have an interest in the specification: Designers. Building control officers. Estimators and tenderers. Contractors. Subcontractors. Contract administrators. Courts. Facility managers. Project managers.

Each is interested in different aspects of the specification, and may require different content and/or different structures. Specification requires adequate time and fees. Specification requires appropriate staffing, with appropriate training. Specification can be facilitated with appropriate software. Sources of information used by specifiers must be current and reliable. Specifiers must be familiar with them. Specifications can be based on proprietary specifications, project specifications, office master specifications and/or national master specifications. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. It is recommended that national master specification systems are used their advantages easily outweigh any disadvantages. Specifications are often started late, e.g. after the production drawings are complete. Co-consultant specifications are often not checked. Specification should begin early, e.g. at briefing, and should be systematic.

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If in doubt, leave it out. There is no such thing as a complete specification. The specifier should make general decisions about thoroughness. The specification locks in agreed quality levels. Say it once, and (therefore) in the right place. Therefore don't repeat content covered in regulations, contracts, standards, drawings, preliminaries, other work sections, and schedules. Tendering material and reports are not part of the specification. Cross-referencing between documents must be precise and accurate, or not used at all. The specification only addresses, and binds, the contractor. It cannot bind subcontractors, tenderers, authorities and other contractors these are outside the contract. Nor does it bind the client and contract administrator. There are three main components to a specification preliminaries, work sections and schedules. Because of the many users, the structure of the specification is generic, and is based on CAWS in the UK. Individual work sections can have a standard structure: System outline. System performance. Products. Fabrication. Execution. Completion. Facility management.

Requirements for verifying conformance should be specified. Procedures for substitution should be specified. Within a specification a variety of specification methods will be used. The two classes of specification method are prescription and performance. Specifiers should choose the appropriate method, rather than reverting to habit. Methods should be proactive, best-value enabled, integration-enabled, positive and fair. Performance specification, if done properly, is not going to save the specifier time. On the contrary. Proprietary specification may not be permitted. Where used, do not encourage substitution, e.g. by adding 'or equal'. NBS 39 November 2008

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Reference specification requires familiarity with the work referenced. Do not specify process. Specifications should follow the seven Cs: clear, concise, correct, complete, comprehensive, consistent, co-ordinated. Specifications should be logical, fair, with no gaps or overlaps. They should be edited. Consider navigation, e.g. clause numbers, page numbers. Consider format, e.g. font, colour.

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12. References and further reading

There are plenty of books on the subject of specifying, and to a large extent they make the same recommendations. But not always there are some differences of opinion. Some result from the differing backgrounds of the authors, e.g. QSs, engineers, architects. Some are cultural, e.g. US, UK, Australia all have slightly different practices. Some are date-based older works and/or authors tend to describe older practices. 12.1 Standards BS 4940:1994 Technical information on construction products and services. BS EN 438-1:2005 Decorative high-pressure laminates (HPL). Sheets based on thermosetting resins (usually called laminates). Introduction and general information. BS 7373:2001 Product specifications. Guide to identifying criteria for a product specification and to declaring product conformity. Addresses specifying in very general terms, not specifically for construction. BS EN ISO 9001:2000 Quality management systems Requirements. 12.2 Other BRE Certification (2007) 'Third party certification', NBS Journal 10. Central Unit on Purchasing (1991) Specification writing, CUP HM Treasury. Addresses specifying in very general terms, not specifically for construction. Chapman, I. (2006) Next generation NBS Plus, NBS Journal 09. Construction Specifications Institute (2004) The project resource manual: CSI Manual of practice, CSI. The bible for North American specifications practice. Co-ordinating Committee for Project Information (1987) CPI Project specification: A code of procedure for building works, BPIC. Cox, P.J. (1993) Writing specifications for construction, McGraw-Hill. This book compares US and UK practice. Crawford, M. et al (1997) Uniclass: Unified classification for the construction industry, RIBA Publications. Daniels, S. (2007) Specification writing: Course manual, Thomas Telford Training. Delany, S. & M. King (2003) 'The benefits of master specifications', www.theNBS.com

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Delany, S. (2008) 'CPIC and Uniclass - who, what and why?', NBS Journal 12. Doran, S. (2007) 'Preliminaries and contemporary procurement', NBS Journal 10. Edexcel Foundation (2000) NVQ Architectural Technology Level 4, Edexcel. Emmitt, S. & D. Yeomans (2001) Specifying buildings: A design management perspective, Butterworth Heinemann. Largely about product selection, the precursor to specification. Finch, R. 'Preliminaries and General Conditions', www.theNBS.com Gelder, J. (2001) Specifying architecture, CISA. Has an Australian focus but looks briefly at US and UK practice, uses sources from all three countries, and has a chapter on the history of specifications. Gelder, J. (2002) Specifying construction processes, NBS Journal 01. Gelder, J. (2003a) Process clarification, NBS Journal 02. Gelder, J. (2003b) Quality in contracts, NBS Journal 03. Gelder, J. (2004) Or equivalent, NBS Journal 05. Gelder, J. (2005a) Project specification: Concise, NBS Journal 07. Gelder, J. (2005b) Ban the ban!, NBS Journal 07. Gelder, J. (2006a) Hearts and minds, NBS Journal 07. Gelder, J. (2006a) Reclassification, NBS Journal 08. Gelder, J. (2006b) The enforcer, NBS Journal 08. Gelder, J. (2006c) Standard section structure, NBS Journal 09. Gelder, J. (2006d) The propriety of public procurement, NBS Journal 09. Gelder, J. (2007) 'Yes! We have no specifications', NBS Journal 11. Gelder, J. (2008a) 'Analogies', NBS Journal 12. Gelder, J. (2008b) 'An inspector calls', NBS Journal 12. Gelder, J. (2008c) 'Time for a Eurospec?', NBS Journal 13. Gelder, J. (2008) 'How to specify: A century of works on building specification practice', www.theNBS.com Hamil, S. (2005) Manufacturers information within NBS specification products, NBS Journal 07. Hamil, S. (2006) Automatically discovering construction-related literature on the web, NBS Journal 08. Hamil, S. (2007) NBS Plus information on manufacturers' websites, NBS Journal 11.

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NBS Educator: Specifications: an introduction

Joint Contracts Tribunal (2007) SBC/Q: Standard building contract with quantities, Sweet & Maxwell. Joint Contracts Tribunal (2007) DB: Design and build contract, Sweet & Maxwell. Madeley, P. (2005) NBS Plus the story so far, NBS Journal 06. RICS & Construction Federation (1998) SMM7: Standard method of measurement of building works, RICS. Rosen, H. & J. Regener (2004) Construction specifications writing - Principles and procedures, Wiley-Blackwell. Now in its 5th edition, this usefully tackles US forms of contract as well as more conventional issues. Simpson, J. (2001) quoted in Slavid, R. Maintaining a sense of history, the architects journal, 5 July. Teale, R. (2005) Residual standards content, NBS Journal 07. Tilley, P.A. & S.L. McFallan (2000) Design and documentation quality survey, CSIRO. Waterhouse, R. (2004) A code of procedure for production information, NBS Journal 04. Willis, C. & Willis, A. (1997) Specification writing for architects and surveyors, Blackwell Science. Both authors are quantity surveyors (QSs). The bulk of the book is about the technical content of work sections, e.g. relevant BSs. Wilson, A. (2006) 'NBS Domestic', NBS Journal 09. Wilson, A. (2007) 'NBS for small works', NBS Journal 11.

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November 2008