172. Detailed Specifications.

" As the construction becomes more elaborate and details increase, it

becomes more and more essential that the specifications be complete and in detail, for with the
increase in details comes also greater uncertainty in regard to the character of the material and the
methods of construction which may be used. The specifications are intended to fix these details
beyond question, and to confine the character of the materials, workmanship and design within
necessary limits.
The preparation of such specifications requires an extensive technical knowledge of materials,
processes, designs and construction, including a knowledge and appreciation of commercial
conditions and limitations which may influence the cost and efficiency of the results desired.
In some cases where detailed plans and specifications are supplied, it may also be desirable to ask
manufacturers or expert contractors having special experience, to submit bids not only on the
engineers plans and specifications but also on special plans and specifications, embodying their own
ideas and practice. "

173. Modifications of Requirements. " In the preparation of specifications, especially for public
work, it is important that provisions should be made for such modifications in the methods which are
to be pursued and the materials that are to be used as are likely to be required, as any modification by
the engineer in the strict requirements of the specifications are apt to subject him to severe although
possibly unwarranted criticism. For example: in the specifications for concrete or for placing the
same (see Sec. 220), it is desirable if there is any chance that modifications in the character of the
mixture or process will be desirable, to provide in the specifications for such modifications and for
the less or greater compensation to the contractor for the amount of work in which such
modifications are made. The same rule should, of course, apply to all other materials and work in
which modifications may become necessary.

174. The Use of Standard Materials and Methods. " Specifications not only bind the contractor to
perform his work in a certain manner, and to furnish material of a certain grade, but they also greatly
influence the cost of the work and material so furnished. In ordinary practice it is desirable to specify
only such character of machines, material, suppHes or methods as may be found on the market and in
general use. Unusual characteristics, modifications of standard machines, and the introduction of new
methods, should be speci iied only when such unusual requirements are clearly needed to secure the
best results and after an investigation has clearly shown that the additional expense involved is
commensurate with the better results to be obtained.
Neither the best nor the cheapest is uniformly desirable or applicable, and the ideal quality for the
specific conditions in immediate question should be the aim in each case. Unnecessary requirements
and restrictions as to the quality or character of material and supplies or of unusual methods of
construction will add unnecessarily to the expense involved and are a serious error. Such
specifications are only too common and frequently result in unwarranted expense, serious trouble and
sometimes in legal complications.

175. Influence of Specifications on Material and Methods, " While it is largely true, especially in
small works, that the engineer must use these materials, products and methods which are usual and
available and have the endorsement of common usage, it is also true that all such commercial
products are slowly but surely modified and shaped by the demands of the best practice. The
manufacturer who offers a material or a machine which is not up to standard requirements, must sell
to the ignorant or to others at a considerable disadvantage, for a reduction in price for an inferior
article may sometimes compensate for lack of a higher degree of perfection. If a machine or material
is found more or lessunsuited for the purpose for which it is used, and that purpose is of importance,
its users will soon demand such changes in its qualities as will make it more satisfactory; and the
engineer in charge of the designs, dependent upon its use, or of the plants in which it may be needed
as a necessary supply, should investigate its quality, see in what ways it may be improved and
prepare specifications which will bring about the required improvements. Such improvements can be
brought about only by expert investigation and a full knowledge of the subject; and the specifications
must be made along practicable lines.


176. Responsibility. " The more general the specifications, the greater the degree of responsibility
which the contractor should be required to accept. As the details are defined by the specifications, the
contractor's responsibility must of necessity decrease, for neither morally nor legally can a man be
held responsible for results which are entirely beyond his control.
In fixing responsibility by means of tests and guarantees, the item of the expense involved must be
carefully noted, for, especially in smaller contracts, such requirements sometimes involve a
considerable extra expense.
It is frequently better to purchase a standard article from a manufacturer of known repute, from
whom the engineer is aware he can secure a machine which will give certain well-known results,
than to purchase a similar article under unusual guarantee from unknown parties and then forego the
test on account of the expense involved. Responsible manufacturers frequently refuse guarantees on
small contracts unless the tests are made at their own factories, or unless the expense of such a test is
covered by an additional compensation to meet the cost of making them.
The contractor should ahvays be held responsible for the class of workmanship and material desired,
and his responsibility in these matters should be carefully covered in the specifications.