Maintenance crews should be actively discussing the construction projects that are scheduled within their respective areas having been involved with the project delivery phase of the project(s). 

Transportation technicians will have the opportunity to work with a construction crew where they will be asked to serve as an inspector or perform materials testing in the field lab. Maintenance personnel should take every opportunity to get familiar with the project plans and specifications as they will need to understand these critical construction documents when overseeing the work that a contractor is performing. The role of transportation technicians performing construction inspection is not to direct the work that is being performed but inspect the work according to the project plans and specifications.

The maintenance station supervisor should take an active and early role in understanding what construction projects are happening within their area. The station supervisor is encouraged to begin working with the resident engineer to determine staffing needs before the onset of the construction season or before the project is set to begin. Maintenance and construction crews face heavy workloads throughout the year, scheduling and setting expectations of employees should be discussed well in advance of the project to ensure that all transportation technicians understand their roles and responsibilities. It may be necessary for transportation technicians to work on construction projects outside of their home maintenance station boundaries. In this case, transportation technicians are encouraged to meet with the maintenance station in which the project resides to get insights into the project.

The district engineers in coordination with the resident engineers need to evaluate the opportunity to use UDOT inspectors on federally funded projects in order to meet the Federal Earned Revenue targets as discussed in Chapter 15 Budget Development Process.

The station supervisor and the resident engineer (or their designee) are encouraged to meet regularly to discuss project timing, transportation technician performance, staffing, and roles as project timelines can and do change.

On some construction projects, it may become necessary for the contractor to use the maintenance station to stage and or store materials or equipment for the project. If this becomes necessary, the maintenance station supervisor, the project manager, and the resident engineer should discuss specific details, such as:

• Where materials will be stored

• When the maintenance station will be made available (not to interfere with maintenance operations)

• Who will be allowed to have access to the maintenance station

• What hours of operations will be provided to the contractor for accessing their stored materials

It is very important that all the details are addressed and included in the project documents before the contractor is on board. 

If during the construction project the contractor requests the opportunity to use the maintenance station as a location for staging and storing materials and equipment, and it was not detailed in the project plans, then before approval is given a discussion needs to be held with the UDOT project manager, RE, area supervisor, station supervisor, and the DE to ensure that providing this opportunity to the contractor does not a present an unfair advantage to the contractor who assumed to have the maintenance station available for their construction operations.

Once it has been determined what projects will be supplemented by transportationT]technicians and what roles these individuals will have on the construction project, it is important to start preparing as soon as possible. This means the individuals should start reviewing the project plans and specifications with the construction crew(s), as construction crews may have specific ways they want particular activities inspected, documented, and reported on. It is an opportunity for transportation technicians to expand their knowledge of their area as construction projects can have a large impact on future operations within the maintenance station.

The Construction Manual of Instruction provides important information that should be reviewed by all maintenance forces (transportation technicians) who are expected to work in construction.

Substantial completion is a term used in construction that identifies the timing of when all major items of work on a construction project have been completed and accepted. When a project is nearing substantial completion a project walk through will be scheduled once the contractor requests that substantial completion be given. It is imperative that the maintenance crews attend the final walk through to identify items that if left unaddressed will become their responsibility once the project is closed. Typical items to be aware of include but are not limited to: 

• Debris left in catch basins / approach slab catch basins or drainage pipe systems.   

• Catch basins that have the lid tack welded down due to lane shifts and the tack welds are not removed

• Construction debris left behind barriers

• Areas that were disturbed by construction crews that are not returned to the pre-existing conditions

• Sign bases that are installed at the incorrect height or need to have the proper material graded around the sign base

• Concrete barriers not being sealed that have been installed by the contractor

After the substantial completion meeting and walk through has been held, a punch list of items will be generated that the contractor will need to address before the project can be completed. It is important that the maintenance stations not only get a copy of the punch list, but also verify that all the items identified are included in the punch list and have been completed to the satisfaction of the department. If the maintenance station identifies items that have not been completed or completed to the requirements of the project plans and specs, then maintenance personnel should notify the RE immediately to discuss.

Project completion is granted to a contractor when all the items of work have been completed, all documentation has been gathered, and the project as a whole has been accepted by the department. At this point, the maintenance station should be requesting copies of any warranties provided by the contractor for the project (warranty provisions will be identified within the construction contract documents, plans and specs). The time frames for the warranties should be identified and noted by the maintenance stations along with items that are covered by the warranties. This will help the maintenance station to ensure that they are not spending their maintenance budget on items that should be addressed by the contractor.