Illinois Tollway Specification Management and Resource Tool

Abstract

Transportation agencies require special provisions to issue the requirements for various elements of highway and bridge construction, which must frequently adapt to changes in field conditions, innovations, and techniques conducted through research. A major challenge for designers is that these special provisions must be included in the specification book assembled as part of the contract documents. It is a common occurrence that specification books often omit special provisions, related special provisions, or required pay items, owing to human error or unfamiliarity with the requirements. These errors can lead to unbalanced bidding or cause change orders during construction. As a result, this paper is focused on the development and implementation of a tool to assist designers in streamlining the process of selecting special provisions and assembling a specification book for contracts bid by the Illinois Tollway using a web-based tool. The tool, named the Specification Management and Resource Tool (SMART), allows designers to input the itemized list of pay items and obtain a complete list of required special provisions needed to assemble the specification book. SMART also has search capabilities that enable designers to quickly identify special provisions, access the document, and compile a complete list of special provisions and associated pay items derived from the specification requirements. This allows designers to improve their quality control processes and reduce the likelihood of errors that cause cost increases or overruns to the agency. The tool is available at: https://smart.wspis.com/.