Job Book 9th Edition - Book - Page 222
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Stage 4 > Technical Design: Supplementary Material: 4/SM3
4/SM3: Specification and schedules of work
CPI procedures
The introduction of Coordinated Project Information (CPI) procedures has created
an efficient way of achieving integrated architectural and engineering drawings,
specifications and bills of quantities. The Common Arrangement of Work Sections
for building works (CAWS) has been adopted throughout the documents. CAWS
is the result of detailed analysis of UK subcontracting practice and is compiled at
the level of ‘minimum subcontract package’, termed ‘work sections’. There should
never be a need for further granulation, but it is normal to aggregate a number of
work sections when letting actual subcontract packages. The National Building
Specification (NBS), National Engineering Specification (NES) and the Standard
Method of Measurement (SMM) all use this arrangement. The architect and the
cost consultant will find it easier to prepare and interpret a specification where
it shares a common arrangement with the method of measurement used in
preparing the bills, which also facilitates better understanding of the documents
by contractors and specialists.
In 2012, RICS published volume 2 of its New Rules of Measurement (NRM) suite. It
advises that NRM2 has ‘guidance note’ status for RICS members, with an effective
commencement date of 1 January 2013. RICS advises that while it is for each
surveyor to decide on the appropriate procedure to follow in any professional
task, where members do not comply with the practice recommended in a
guidance note, they should do so only for a good reason. References have been
included for NRM2 as its use is likely to be favoured by quantity surveyors, for
example, although it is not mandatory for non-RICS members, nor is it aligned
with CAWS.
The need for change of CPI procedures has been steadily growing and a
working group was established to deal with this. In 2011, the Construction
Project Information Committee endorsed NBS proposals for a new work section
classification − Uniclass Table J – which will replace CAWS. The classification
system provides the framework for NBS Create, a new version of the standard
specification library.
The specification
It is vital to understand that long before a specification evolves into a written
document it is a process completely integrated with design. It eventually
becomes a written document which may describe the materials or products to
be used, standards of workmanship required, performance requirements and
the conditions under which the work will be carried out. It should be clearly
