Engineering Contracts – CE 5087 July 1, 2015

This assignment is an individual assignment and all work done must be your own work.
PART A:
Review the information below. In 150-300 words for Part A, determine who is liable for the flood and why. Be sure to show all your reasoning and describe how and why the specification may determine which party is liable. See chapters 31 and 32 in your book.
GBS sued to recover the balance due under a contract with the federal government to build a dry dock at the Brooklyn Navy Yard according to plans and specifications the government prepared. The work required GBS to relocate a sewer main. The specification of work was created by the federal government and specifically prescribed the dimensions, material and location of the section to be substituted. In addition, the federal government provided all drawings to GBS. GBS completed the relocation by exactly following the specification that was specified by the federal government.
About a year a later, a heavy rain and high tide caused the sewer relocated by GBS to overflow before the dry dock was completed, causing the excavation of the dry dock to be flooded. An investigation revealed that an existing internal dam had diverted the water into a portion of the sewer that overflowed into the dry dock. The internal dam was an existing feature but was not shown on the plan and specifications the government gave to GBS. GBS and the federal government each claimed the other was responsible for the flood. Eventually, the government canceled GBS’s contract and completed the work with a replacement contractor. At the time the contract was canceled, GBS was not fully paid.
PART B:
In a total of 150-300 words for Part B, describe under what circumstances an engineer would want to specify a performance specification. Also, under what circumstances would an engineer want to specify a design specification? In your own words, provide 3 examples of a portion of work that is specified using the performance specification criteria (see chapter 32.12 in your book for examples. DO NOT MERELY COPY THESE EXAMPLES).
Performance specifications set forth an objective or general standard that is supposed to be achieved, and the contractor is expected to exercise his ingenuity in achieving that objective or standard of performance, selecting the means and assuming a corresponding responsibility for the selection. Performance specifications specify the results to be obtained and leave it to the contractor to determine the best way to achieve the desired results. Therefore, the contractor not only warrants that the system will be constructed as planned but also that it will perform as intended.
Design specifications, on the other hand, precisely state how the work is to be performed. Design specifications describe in detail the materials to be used and the manner in which the work is to be executed. There is no flexibility allowed to a contractor’s approach, and the contractor is required to follow design specifications as one would a road map. Here, the contractor does not warrant that the system will perform in any certain way

The instructions are provided in the uploaded file. The book name is Contracts and the Legal Environment for Engineers and Architects(7th edition). This class is a law class for Civil Engineers students. If you cant do please inform me ASAP.