Ethics ?

PipeGuy

I VERY rarely see anyone screen and stockpile a large (+400 cy) quantity of topsoil. It's typically screened and hauled / placed.

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Fortunately I keep my feathers numbered for...for just such an emergency. -Foghorn Leghorn

jmacd

Pipe guy, that's what I thought, I think the pile would just collect to much moisture so renting a screen and making stockpile doesn't sound like the best idea. That leaves only the purchase option, so back to where I am now.

Lubs

Sounds like he has already given them a discount for screening the rock onsite since he was a lower bidder. He was creative to get the lower bid and accomplish the task at hand. The owner should pay he did the job to specs unless the contract stated otherwise.

earthmover

I agree.....They need to pay up!

Upchuck

No doubt that he should get paid contract price. On subdivisions, we always screen sand to cover utilities or gravel for the road when possible. Screening is a great rainy day job.

MichaelWCI

In my mind they should pay the price quoted.

But if you want to get technical, it depends on what the contract states and this may be a value engineering problem where the cost savings of NOT having to haul the material, gets credited back to owner. It should state this in the General or Supplemental Conditions.

csv

The customer should get kicked in the nuts

spydeere

Hi, new to site and would like to offer my perspective on this subject of screening existing material. Ethics is a large part of my daily routine, looking out for the owner and the contractor interests. A few have mentioned the owner should pay as per the contract. A material was supplied as per spec., but was it? In my little part of the world not only does material have to meet gradation specification, it also has to meet, what we call "physical requirements" and of course compaction requirements, which requires a contractor to perform lab tests and field compaction test strips before the materail can be used on a project. When backfilling with this recycled material how do you know that it meets compaction specs. or do we do the ole heel test? Can someone say liability.

I have often watched a contractor excavate and dispose of what looks like perfectly good material that should be utilized somewhere else on a project. What we find is the material may contain 'frost suspectible materials' that can cause other issues and cannot be used.

I am all for a Contractor coming up with new ways and methods and in fact encourage it, I expect him to act professionally and take the lead on saving money and conserving materials. Again, im my little part of the world we actually have a reimbursement program built into our contracts where the Contractor gets 50% of the cost savings.

Sorry for the long post, my humble 2 cents worth.

Spydeere

izzy

We to have cost savings reimbursement built into our contracts. I have ran across this situation a couple of times. Most always the contractor will offer a credit. This in turns gives the owner a little of the savings and is all most always approved. Then payment isn't an issue.
But most always our bedding and cover material is included in the Ln Ft price of the pipe, no extra rock or sand is paid.