Inspection of Construction of

Concrete Dams & Spillways

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Day 2 - Session 4
Construction Inspection Best
Practices

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Construction Inspection Best

Practices

Initial Inspection
Daily Reports
Inspection Checklists
Worksheets
Construction Closeout
Open Discussion
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Initial Inspection
Prior to beginning work:
Contractor must receive signed NTP
Approved safety officer and safety plan
Safety meeting must be conducted prior to
beginning work
At least one person from each foremans crew
must hold a current first-aid card
Hard hat sign must be prominently displayed
at all construction site entrances
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Initial Inspection
Prior to beginning work: (continued)
A National Pollution Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) permit notice poster must
typically be prominently displayed at all
construction site entrances
Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan
(SWPPP) must be implemented and other
NPDES requirements addressed

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Initial Inspection
Prior to beginning work: (continued)
Emergency contact information must be
posted on the contractors bulletin board
Sanitation facilities must be operational
Utilities and existing works must be identified
and protected
Utility owners must be notified whenever there
are utilities in the area that may be affected by
the construction activity
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Daily Reports
One of the most overlooked parts of
construction inspection
Inspectors primary responsibility is to
verify work is being completed according
to the specifications
Primary importance of inspectors daily
report is to advise supervisors of the days
work and to report pay quantities
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Daily Reports
Daily reports should be:
Clear
Effective
Factual
Readable
Usable by others

Will be reviewed by people who are not

there, not on the job
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Daily Reports
Properly Document:
Construction Activities
Procedures
Schedules
Materials
Quantities
Test Results
Problems
Other
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

Daily Reports
Purpose:
Inform supervisor
Inform other inspectors
Calculating payments
Settling claims
Closing out contract
Review of structural failures
Design process of future projects
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Report
Use concrete terms and lowest rung on
the ladder
Abstraction ladder example
pipe
metal pipe
corrugated metal pipe
600-mm diameter corrugated metal pipe
600-mm diameter corrugated metal pipe, No. 16-gage
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
General Terms
Poor weather conditions could mean rain, or it could
mean snow, or even intense heat. It could mean any
variations between these extremes. So in describing the
weather, you should say specifically what kind of weather
was experienced; such as rain started to fall at 11 a.m. and
continued steadily for two hours. The sun broke through at
1:30 p.m. The temperature was about 28 degrees for the
rest of the day.

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
General Terms
The workforce started the day late and didnt really
get much done. For some reason the pump broke
and that caused us some problems. The foreman
added more men to the already large crew to help
with the pump problem. The weather didnt help
either; it was bad.

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
General Terms
The workforce started the day late and didnt really
get much done. For some reason the pump broke
and that caused us some problems. The foreman
added more men to the already large crew to help
with the pump problem. The weather didnt help
either; it was bad.

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
Organize your thoughts
Daily reports must be clear and simple
Writing must be simple, direct and easy to
understand
Avoid being indirect and wordy
First step systematic organization of
your thinking
Fix your ideas in your own mind
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
WHO WHAT WHERE WHEN HOW
EQUIPMENT WEATHER - SAFETY

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Daily Reports

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
Communications with the Contractor
What did the contractor complain about?
What questions did the contractor ask me?
What did I tell the contractor?

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
Manpower &
Equipment
Report

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
Drilling Report

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Daily Reports
Water Pressure Test Report

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Daily Reports
Grouting Report

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Daily Reports
Grouting Record Plot

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Daily Reports
Photographs
Unusual conditions or situations
Completed projects
Dated & location noted (photographer name)
Include person or object for scale
Changed conditions, damaged equipment or
materials
General work progress periodically
Captions required in reports
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Inspection Checklists
Assist inspectors in performing
inspections
May not include all items
Provide guidance only
Not a comprehensive list
Customize for each project and specs
Document in daily report when checklist is
completed
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Inspection Checklists
Examples checklists included in workbook

Quality Assurance Inspection

Construction Safety
Construction Surveying
Quantity Computations
Construction Erosion and Pollution Control
Foundation Preparation
Removal of Water
Excavation
RCC Construction
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Inspection
Checklists
Concrete Forms

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Inspection
Checklists
Reinforcement

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Inspection
Checklists
Finishing Concrete
Surfaces

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Inspection
Checklists
Joints & Waterstops

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Inspection
Checklists
Curing Concrete

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Inspection
Checklist
RCC Construction

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Inspection Checklist
Spillway Gates

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Inspection Checklist
Spillway Gates

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Concrete Construction
Records and Reports
Documents to place in contract files:
Mix Computations
Trial mix computations and adjustments
Selection of job mixture

Batching and mixing records

Records of daily batching operations
Summary of batching and mixing records
Summary of volume of each class placed

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Concrete Construction
Records and Reports
Documents to place in contract files:
Placing and Curing Records
Amount of concrete placed in individual parts of
the structures each day
Time curing medium was applied, forms were
removed, defective surfaces were repaired and
curing was applied

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Concrete Construction
Records and Reports
Documents to place in contract files:
Strength Tests
Reference test results report in job diary
Report numbers assigned to all test specimens
shipped to the laboratory
Report location and amount of concrete
represented by each strength test

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Concrete Construction
Records and Reports
Documents to place in contract files:
Inplace concrete
Further tests may be needed If tests indicate
inadequate concrete compressive strength
Core samples from structure
Swiss Hammer can help determine extent of
questionable concrete
Do not use to determine strength for acceptance or
earliest time forms can be stripped
Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Worksheets
Designed to assist inspectors
Document in daily report when worksheet
is completed
Include worksheet with daily report
Examples:
NRCS NEH Part 645 App A
USACE Quality Assurance Representatives
Guide EP 415-1-261
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Worksheets

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Worksheets

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Site Cleanup
Worksite and surrounding areas used by
contractor kept in orderly condition at all
times during work
All areas properly restored before the
completed work is accepted
Cleanup requirements are stated in the
contract

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP)

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Site Cleanup
Plant, buildings, unused materials, cleared
material and other debris removed from
site
Access and haul roads appropriately
restored
Fences, utilities and other facilities
temporarily removed - restored

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Construction Closeout
Records and materials
Name, make, and model number of each piece of
equipment
All equipment test records
Approved shop drawings
Operating and maintenance instructions
Spare parts and tools
Keys
Guarantees with required contact and expiration date
Record Drawings
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Open Discussion

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Acknowledgements
Natural Resource Conservation Service
National Engineering Handbook Part 645
Construction Inspection
National Engineering Handbook Section 19
Construction Inspection

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Acknowledgements
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Construction Inspector Training Program

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Quality Assurance Representative's Guide
EP 415-1-261 (Vol 1-5)

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