Construction Quality

 Bechtel Corporation 1997. All rights reserved.

Contains confidential information proprietary to Bechtel
not to be disclosed to third parties without Bechtel’s
prior written permission.
 Table of Contents
Preface

I. What is Construction Quality?

II. What is a Quality Program?

III. The Bechtel Quality Program

IV. How Does Construction Quality

Apply to My Job?

V. Why Follow the Bechtel Quality

Program?

1
 Preface
This booklet is an introduction to the Bechtel
Construction Quality Program. It is not a reference
manual.
Bechtel Construction Quality Program requirements are
established in the Construction Quality Manual (CQM).
Send questions or requests for copies of the CQM to
Raleigh Amos, Chief Quality Control Engineer at:
Email: CRAMOS@Bechtel.com
Telephone: 301-417-3330
The CQM is also available on the On-Line Reference
Library and the BecWeb at:
http://147.1.55.203/Construction/Quality/
Manual.htm#CQM

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I. What is Construction
Quality?
Construction Quality means doing work correctly!
To perform quality work
you must:
• Build to the latest design
requirements
• Use the correct tools
• Use the correct materials
• Have adequate
supervision
• Use qualified workers

You must use these to complete the work correctly

the first time!
Doing the job correctly means:
• meeting all requirements
• for every job
• every time

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You must read and understand all quality
requirements!
The quality requirements are defined in:
•

• Bechtel Construction
Manuals:
− Site Managers’
Manual
− Field Engineering
Manual •

− Construction Quality
Manual
• Project Technical Requirements:
− Drawings
− Specifications
− Codes
• Project Specific Requirements
− Project procedures and instructions
− Other Project requirements (memos, letters, etc.)
• Contracts Documents

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The supervisor is responsible for Construction
Quality!
The supervisor is responsible to ensure that workers:
• Are trained to do the work
• Have the correct tools
• Have the required
drawings, specifications,
and procedures to do the
work
• Have the correct materials to be able to perform their
work correctly!

The worker must perform the work correctly the first

time!
If there is a problem
and work cannot be
performed to project
requirements, the
worker must report
the problem to the
supervisor.
The supervisor must
resolve the problem
before allowing the
work to continue.

5
Never ignore project requirements!

Always work with your supervisor to understand how to

meet project requirements.
If project requirements
seem to be unnecessary,
not important, too difficult
to perform, or incorrect,
check with your supervisor
to obtain clarification.
To ensure good
construction quality, all
requirements must be
satisfied.

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II. What is a Quality Program?
Project Quality programs prevent errors!
A quality program defines the controls that a project puts
in place to be sure that work is done correctly the first
time, every time.
Controls are defined as those
activities that must be done to be
sure that the work is done
correctly every time.
The Quality Program protects the
project from potential damage or
rework caused by construction
work errors. These controls
either prevent or reduce the
severity of problems.

Examples of some commonly used construction project

controls are:
• Site procedures
• Manufacturer instructions
• Inspection and testing
• Skilled and trained workers
• Supervision
A common control is a site procedure or manufacturer

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instruction which explains how to perform the work.
Following the site procedure or manufacturer instruction
ensures that the work is done the same way every time.
Another common control is inspection and testing.
The project performs inspections and tests of the work
to ensure it is done correctly. Site inspection and
testing follows project requirements on how often each
phase of the work must be checked.
Some inspections occur during installation. These are
called surveillance inspections. Other inspections
occur after the work is complete and these are called
final inspections.
By conducting both surveillance and final inspections,
the project maintains control of the work and ensures
that problems are identified and corrected as soon as
possible.
Skilled and trained workers
use their knowledge to
perform the work correctly and
reduce the need for additional
inspections of their work. The
worker’s understanding of how
to do work is an important
control that ensures that the
work is performed correctly.

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Supervisors provide control over the construction work
by:
• Assigning workers to perform work they are capable
of performing
• Periodically checking the work to be sure it is done
correctly
• Making sure workers have the necessary tools,
drawings, materials, etc.
• Planning the work

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III. The Bechtel Quality Program
The Quality Program for all Bechtel construction projects
is defined in the Construction Quality Manual (CQM).
This manual describes the minimum activities all
projects must perform to ensure construction quality
requirements are satisfied.

10
The Construction Quality Manual (CQM) identifies
certain areas of construction work where controls are
important to ensure that construction work is performed
correctly and problems are identified and quickly
resolved.

11
The areas where controls are important include:
Document Control
• Use the latest drawings, specifications, and technical
requirements
Material Control
• Use the correct material
Control of Deficient Items
• Prevent the use of defective items

Control of Measuring and Testing Equipment

• Properly control equipment used to make
measurements on the project
Work Inspections
• Properly perform inspections of construction work

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Retaining Completed Documents
• Properly retain records of the work performed
Surveillance of (Sub)Contractors
• Perform adequate surveillance of contractors and
sub-contractors
Training
• Perform the necessary training of site personnel

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IV. How Does Construction
Quality Apply to My Job?

“But all this talk of quality

programs and controls,
that is the worry of my
boss and the Quality
Control people, not me.
Right?”

WRONG! While the quality program is established by

project management and monitored by the Field
Engineering and the Quality group, construction quality
is everyone’s responsibility.
A project with a good quality program requires everyone
on the construction team to perform his or her work
correctly the first time - every time.
Doing the job correctly includes:
• Knowing the requirements
• Using the correct tools
• Using the correct materials
• Understanding the work
If you do not understand project requirements or do not

14
have what you need to do the job correctly, contact your
supervisor and explain the problem.
Supervisors are responsible to resolve questions and
problems during construction. A supervisor should
never tell the worker that it is OK to perform work that is
not correct.

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V. Why Follow the Bechtel
Quality Program?
“Ok, you’ve told me about
Bechtel’s Quality
Program, and why it’s my
job. However, I’ve built
good jobs for years
without the Bechtel
Quality Program. Why
should I use Bechtel’s
Quality Program now?”

Constructing a good quality job requires the work to be

done correctly the first time. This includes complying
with project requirements - all the requirements -
especially the project quality program.
When construction quality problems occur on a project,
other problems are often also present. Some of these
problems include:
• Work may need to be reworked, repaired, or redone
• The project experiences higher worker accident rates
• Project budget overruns may occur
• Project schedule goals are not met
• The completed facility has poor plant performance

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When a project is constructed using a good quality
program, the project benefits in many ways. Some of
the benefits include:
• Reduced cost
• Project schedule goals are met
• Lower accident rates
• Better plant performance
• Fewer warrantee claims

The final reason to follow the Bechtel Quality Program is

that it is the correct thing to do.
When you complete a good quality project, you can take
pride in the work and in your contribution to completing
the project.

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NOTES

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NOTES

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