Project Documentation: A Comprehensive Guide
1. Project Documents and Descriptions
- Report: Describes and justifies the project.
- Plans: Graphical representation of the project, defining the maximum level of detail. Used extensively on-site for execution.
- Specifications: Establishes the technical and economic conditions for project implementation.
- Budget: Reflects the projected cost.
2. Binding Documents
Plans and specifications are binding documents with a contractual basis, making them mandatory like a contract. The report and budget are not binding.
3. Customer Specifications
Customer specifications detail the client’s requirements and needs for the project. These, along with the diagnostic report, inform the development of a document specifying application and service requirements.
4. Diagnostic Report
A diagnostic report evaluates the initial state of the installation, providing foundational information for subsequent work and specification development.
5. Project, Preliminary Draft, and Technical Report
Project: A detailed, coordinated set of activities forming a plan.
Preliminary Draft: A preliminary version of a project submitted for review and authorization. Upon authorization, it becomes the project.
Technical Report: A written statement detailing the circumstances observed during the matter’s consideration, with explanations to certify the findings.
6. Feasibility Study
A feasibility study assesses project viability from various perspectives (ecological, social, economic, technical, etc.).
7. Report Elements
Background, objectives, analysis, and conclusions.
8. Budget Structure
- Table of measurements
- Pricing
- General budget
9. Title Block Information
Project title, plan title (e.g., Plan 0), sheet number, scale.
10. Plan vs. Outline
A plan is a graphic representation at the level of reality, while an outline doesn’t need to be to scale.
11. Literature in Project Documents
Literature is included in the report.
12. Standard Drawing Formats
Standard formats range from DIN A4 to DIN A0 and beyond, including elongated formats based on DIN A proportions.
13. Levels in a Generic Structured Cabling System Draft
- Location map: Shows the site and adjacent streets.
- General level: Access points, pathways, cabinet locations.
- Plan per floor: Pathways, cabinet locations, outlet locations.
14. Schedules in the Draft
Schedules provide additional information to the report, such as calculations, catalogs, or specific tools used.
15. Project Scheduling Techniques
Planning techniques structure project tasks, defining duration and execution order. Programming techniques sequence activities to identify temporal relationships, determining the timing of each activity. The program must align with objectives and constraints (resources, costs, workloads, etc.). It sets approximate start and completion times for each activity, with some having free play and others being critical (fixed in time).
16. Construction Unit and Work Unit
Construction Unit: A distinct part of the work based on specific features like materials or intended use.
Work Unit: The basis for budget calculations (e.g., m³, m², m, kg, units installed).
17. Material Implementation Budget
The material implementation budget reports the cost of implementation excluding taxes and benefits. It’s the sum of all partial budgets, indicated by a total number and letter, and signed with an original signature.
18. Specifications Structure
The specification document details technical characteristics, from equipment and material reception to execution methods. It sets conditions governing relationships between involved parties (owner, contractor, technical director) to meet legal and economic standards.
Structure:
- Description of schedule
- General rules (laws, regulations, etc.)
- Material, machinery, and equipment conditions
- Execution and assembly conditions, safety
- Reception tests
- Measurement and payment criteria
- Contractor conditions (labor regulations, safety, qualified personnel, legal obligations)
- Priority order for discrepancies or omissions
19. Order of Priority
The order of priority, defined in the specification, clarifies precedence in case of discrepancies or omissions between legally binding project documents.
20. Raised and Hidden Items
Raised Items: Items with impossible-to-determine measurements at the project level but known to appear during implementation (e.g., demolitions). Measurement and evaluation methods are specified.
Hidden Defects: Undetected existing defects. If suspected, the technical director can require demolition of the defective part, specifying responsibility for costs.
21. Contractor, Subcontractor, Technical Director, Designer
Contractor: The installation company.
Subcontractor: Company hired by the contractor for part or all of the installation.
Technical Director: Customer’s representative responsible for ensuring installation adheres to the project.
Designer: Creates the project and may also be the technical director.
22. Optional and Economic Conditions
Optional conditions define who is qualified to perform different project actions. Economic conditions outline the financial aspects. These are found in the specification document.
23. Contractor Penalties
Penalties can be incurred for: safety/hygiene breaches, project failure, missed deadlines, hidden defects, and quality standard breaches.
24. Overhead in a Budget
Overhead includes expenses from common elements like water, electricity, and materials.
25. Project Manager Responsibilities
The project manager directs the work, ensures adherence to the project, can make justified changes, and can challenge the contractor’s work.
26. Contractor Rights and Duties
Duties: Fulfill the project requirements.
Rights: Receive advice from the technical director, access all project documentation, and require specified materials not their obligation.
27. Media and Installation Aids
Temporary materials or installations necessary for completing the installation.