Talk:Main Page
Why do we have 2 people on the front page that no longer work for MoDOT? Melissa left MoDOT for the City of Olathe and should not be featured on the front page. I can't remember the other guys name, but he has been retired for a couple of years. Can we get a picture with some current employees?
Keith L. Smith: Good question. Actually, as time passes, there will probably be several people pictured in the EPG that will have been part of our history. We are interested in portraying aspects of MoDOT (especially people at their work) in interesting, higher quality photos. Thus, the work portrayed is usually of much more importance than the people involved. It will probably not be necessary or desirable to erase photos from past employees. Thank you for your input!
Main Purpose of "Logging In" to EPG
I can use the EPG without logging in to the application. I just logged in for the first time and I see that I can participate in a Discussion Thread. Is this where we would point out spelling errors in the EPG, if we should find them? What is the "vision" for this Discussion Thread?
Dan Tschirgi: The discussion capabilities of the EPG are available for users to give comments and suggestions on the content of the guidance. We are also appreciative for anyone pointing out errors and omissions. Members of the Engineering Policy Group watch the articles for specific comments made. The discussions can also take place between any users of the EPG.
Change Order Approval Rules
I do have a suggestion. We could use clarification of the Construction Manual/EPG for the change order approval rules in Section 137.2. Here is the excerpt from the EPG Section 137.2 for a Major Change Order: "5. Any change in a major item greater than 25%. 6. Any change of a contract amount greater than 25%."
It would be clearer if it said percentage of what number. For example, is #5 saying "any change in a major item greater than 25% of the line item or is it 25% of the original contract's Total Dollar Amount for the entire project. It would be helpful to many, I think because this reads as being a little vague in my view.
Keith L. Smith: This very item had recently been discussed, but your input helped get the article updated a little more quickly. Thank you for your input. The EPG 137.2 portion of the article now states: 5. Any change in a major line item greater than 25% from the original contract amount for that line item (in dollars). 6. Any change of the contract amount greater than 25% of the original contract bid amount (also in dollars).
Blue Book for Rental Rates
I was wondering why the Blue Book isn't linked to the EPG. There is discussion about the rental rates in section 137.3.2 Form C-FA2. Is it possible to link it? We have a shortcut on our desktops for it, but it could be helpful as part of EPG, perhaps.
Keith L. Smith: Thank you for an interesting suggestion - one that has not been presented to us until now. Please forward the link you use and we will discuss if and where to place it in the EPG. This sounds potentially useful!
Sam Masters: Currently there is no web address for the The Rental Rate Blue Book for Construction Equipment (referred to as the "Blue Book") so we cannot link it to the EPG at this time. However, we understand there may be a web address for this information in a few months. We will stay on top of this effort and will make the link once it is available.
We are also working with Construction and Materials to add additional clarifying information to the EPG concerning specification 109.5.4 Equipment and how it is to be applied to MoDOT operations.
External Civil Rights Resource Manual Link - Section 135.6
I think I posted this subject in the wrong place. I noticed an older version of the Resource Manual was linked in the External Civil Right Section 135.6 instead of the January 2007 version that is linked above. There has been significant changes to it. I hope the link above works.
Sam Masters: I have made the suggested revision. The 2007 version of the Resource Manual is now available in 135.6.
Force Account Forms
C-FA3 is linked to the EPG as a blank form, but I haven't found a link to a blank C-FA1 form or C-FA2 form in section 137 or the Forms section. There are examples of them, but not a blank form unless I have overlooked it. Can they be linked in the EPG like C-FA3 is?
Sam Masters: I can provide a link to "blank" versions of C-FA1 and C-FA2, after I receive a Word file copy of each one. These "versions" were not provided with the material we used to add the orginal article to the EPG.
Sam Masters: After contacting the Construction and Materials Division, I received the "Force Account Worksheet". This worksheet has replaced Forms C-FA1, C-FA2 and C-FA3. Article 137 has been revised to reflect this change.
test
test
Change Orders
When you search for Change Orders in the search box the section of the construction guidance on change orders does not appear as a result.
Keith L. Smith: You appear to have a point. I had trouble finding the info on change orders in both the old Construction Manual (using "search") and in the EPG (using Google). The EPG change order is in article 137.2 Change Order. Unfortunately, the Google provides many leads to change order information, but most of the leads placed near the top of the list are links to change order forms. We will try to get some technical assistance to see if this can be improved upon. Thanks for your input.
C-220 Request to Subcontract Work
In the EPG, there is a C-220 form that pops up when I searched C-220. It allows saving, but it does not have the calculation feature that the form on the MoDOT Internet Business-Contractor Resources page has. A contractor has complained that the form on the internet does not allow saving, so if any changes are needed, they have to start over. I explained that the EPG has a form, but they said they like the calculation feature of the one on the internet. Can the form in the EPG have a calculation feature for each line?
Keith L. Smith: Thanks for pointing this out. Apparently, the very latest file for C-220 was not available at EPG 105.3 or EPG 137 (although it was in our new EPG 101 Standard Forms article). I have updated the links in the 105.3 and 137 articles to match the link in 101 Standard Forms. When the contractor uses the files in any of these articles, he or she should have access to whatever is available on MoDOT's Contractor Resources site since the forms should now be identical. (Note to self and divisions: this is what happens when updated forms are added to the EPG without properly researching all the places within the EPG that the old forms have been already placed.)
C-220 Request to Subcontract Work - not able to save it
Thank you for making the forms match compared to the internet forms, but the main issue for contractor use form is not being able to save the C-220 form for their records. Their only option is to print it. This makes it a problem if they need to make a correction to a C-220 they've submitted. There seems to be no way for the contractor to "detach" the form, so they can edit it when needed. Their only option is to print, not save. This may not be an EPG issue since it is like that on Internet.
Section 702 Load Bearing Piles
In lotus notes, there is a database called Construction applications. Shouldn't the EPG provide instant access to programs such as Pile.exe. I don't see this in section 702. In fact, I don't see any reference in 702 that would let me know there is a program out there to help compare pile driving equipment or calculate minimum penetrations using a variety of hammers.