Fiber Optic and Premises Cabling Project
Paperwork
The key to any successful project is an understanding of
the project,
the requirements of the customer and the expectations of
the
contractor. These are spelled out in a number of
documents that are
created by and often negotiated amont the parties
involved. The
paperwork begins before the project starts so the scope
of work is
known to everyone and end only when the final copies of
the
documentation are presented to the customer. Here are
descriptions of
the most common documents, the Scope of Work (SOW),
Request for
Proposal (RFP), Request for Quote (RFQ) and contract,
that are used to
define a project.
Note: There is a whole category of
paperwork we have not addressed here, the actual
technical design
documentation which includes drawings of the project,
lists of
components, installation instructions, etc. which will
be covered in
separate web pages.
Scope of Work (SOW)
A "Scope of Work" document is created by the initiator
of a project to
describe the work to be performed or the services to be
provided by a
contractor. It describes tasks to be performed, directs
methods to be
used, and defines the period of performance. It should
contain design
and performance requirements. A scope of work for
communications cabling or fiber optics may be part of a
larger building project document that is based on a
standardized format called "MasterFormat"
in the US and Canada.
A well written
scope of work can do more for the success of a contract
than any other
part of the contracting process. A good scope of work is
clear,
complete, and logical enough to be understood by the
respondent and the
university personnel who will administer it. Because it
describes the
details of performance, it is the yardstick against
which the
respondent's performance is measured. That is why the
user's requester,
contract administrator and/orsubject matter expert
should be the focal
point for developing the scope of work.
A SOW
should be clear, precise and complete. It should
describe the project
in an unambiguous fashion, covering what needs to be
done, who will do
it, what is the time scale of the project, where the
work is to be
performed and how successful completion of the project
will be
determined. A scope of work can be detailed and specific
if the work
can be completely defined or more open when the project
has options and
latitiude in reaching the goal of the customer.
The scope of work is only part of the procurement
process. It will
generally not include provisions dealing with legal,
financial, or
contract administration related issues (cost estimates,
designation of
key personnel, methods of payment, degree of
confidentiality, types of
contracts). These will be covered in other contractual
documents.
Outlining the Scope of Work Process
The following may be considered for
inclusion in a comprehensive working outline:
1. Objectives - Precisely identify desired end
objectives of the project and associated technical
requirements.
2.
Context of Project - List background information that
will aid a
contractor in understanding the nature and origin of the
requirements.
Include a brief summary of appropriate objectives,
statutory program
authority, major programs, and goals set by policy
and/or procedure if
relevant. Describe the relationship of the effort to
major programs and
goals.
3. Scope - Clearly describe the scope of required
contractor efforts in support of project objectives.
a.
Technical considerations - Set forth technical
considerations that may
influence a contractor's approach or efforts. Any known
specific
phenomena, techniques, methodologies, or results of
previous related
work that may influence a contractor's efforts or
direction of approach
should be specified.
b. Tasks - List specific tasks and subtasks to
be accomplished by a contractor to satisfy the
objectives, together
with the required sequence of tasks in mi express order
of
accomplishment.
4. Acceptance - Establish milestones or management
control points in the sequence of tasks where the
customer requires
review, approval, acceptance, or rejection.
Establish relevant and
well-defined baselines for contractor performance
measurement. These
baselines will serve at least four purposes. They will:
(a) prevent a
contractor from drifting into areas not pertinent to the
effort; (b)
measure the results of completed work; (c) assist in
defining whether
or not subsequent changes or redirection of effort falls
within the
original scope of work; and (d) assist the project
manager and the
contracting officer in monitoring the progress of work.
This monitoring
is particularly important for phase-type contracts where
it is
necessary to detect unsatisfactory performance at an
early stage. It
will allow a project manager to inform procurement
personnel of
unpromising contractor actions that should be dealt with
promptly
before their effect compromises the entire contract
effort.
5.
Responsibilities - Identify all combined customer and
contractor
participation needed for the project, as well as the
nature and extent
of all task responsibilities. All tasks requiring
customer support
(customer-furnished equipment, facilities, materials,
ect.) should be
stated specifically. The nature and requirements of
customer support to
be provided should also be stated specifically.
6. Schedule -
Generate a schedule for the sequence of tasks to be
performed by a
contractor and a similar schedule for related
responsibilities of the
customer.
7. Deliverables identify contractor delivery
requirements
precisely and schedule a delivery date for each. Include
details about
the type and quantity of all deliverables. For instance,
such details
must be provided for theoretical models, computer
software, drawings,
documentation, reports, or other data. State precisely
what a
contractor is to deliver at specified times as the work
progresses and
on completion of contract performance. Delivery
schedules may be stated
in calendar or work days of elapsed time (e.g., X
calendar days after
award of contract) or in terms of a specific calendar
date.
8.
Data/Documentation Requirements - Identify all technical
data/documentation requirements, including the intended
use for these
data by the project manager.
9. Information Requirements - Identify management
information requirements that a contractor must satisfy.
10.
Time - Estimate professional and technical person-hours,
-weeks,
-months, or -years required of a contractor to perform
the contract
effort as appropriate. Developing the outline will: (a)
allow full
attention to be directed to technical content; (b) help
guard against
significant omissions; (c) aid in achieving smoothness
and continuity;
and (d) help eliminate unnecessary and redundant
material.
Scope of Work Format
Although the elements of a scope of work can vary with
the objective,
complexity, size and nature of the work to be performed,
a flexible,
seven-part format provides a practical approach to
document drafting.
The suggested seven parts are:
I. Background-general description of the project and any
relevant comments of the development of the project
II. Scope - a summary of the SOWdescribing the purpose
of the project and the end result desired
III. References - all applicable documents or other
types of records/standards, etc.
IV. Requirements including schedules - the exact project
description
V.
Progress/Compliance - how the customer will judge the
progress/completion of the project and the compliance to
requirements
of the SOW
VI. Transmittal/Delivery/Accessibility - defines the
requirements for documenting project completion
including work
completion, data from work/testing and final
documentation
VII. Notes - elaboration of other sections or topics not
appropriate for the sections above
The seven-part format is recommended as a guide. This
does not mean
that the SOW must be broken down into paragraphs with
headings and
subheadings. The SOW can simply reflect an orderly
progression of ideas
based on the seven- part structure.
An
excellent example of directions on writing a SOW from
the standpoint of
a university is at
http://purchasing.ucsc.edu/howto/SOWGuide.pdf.
Requrest for Proposal (RFP)
A request for proposal (RFP) is an early stage in a
procurement
process, issuing an invitation for suppliers, often
through a bidding
process, to submit a proposal on a specific commodity or
service. The
RFP process brings structure to the procurement decision
and allows the
risks and benefits to be identified clearly upfront.
A RFP typically involves more than a request for the
price and in fact
may not request pricing at all, waiting for a final
Request for Quote
(RFQ) to follow. Other requested information may include
basic
corporate information and history, financial
information, technical
capability (used on major procurements of services,
where the item has
not previously been made or where the requirement could
be met by
varying technical means), product information such as
stock
availability and estimated completion period, and
customer references
that can be checked to determine a company's
suitability.
In the military, an RFP is often raised to fulfill an
Operational
Requirement (OR), after which the military procurement
authority will
normally issue a detailed Technical Specification
against which tenders
(i.e., RFQs or bids) will be made by potential
contractors. In the
civilian use, an RFP can be part of a complex sales
process which
includes subsequent negotiation.
RFPs often
include specifications of the item, project or service
for which a
proposal is requested. The more detailed the
specifications, the better
the chances that the proposal provided will be accurate.
Generally RFPs
are sent to an approved supplier or vendor list.
The bidders return a proposal by a set date and time.
Late proposals
may or may not be considered, depending on the terms of
the initial
RFP. The proposals are used to evaluate the suitability
as a supplier,
vendor, or institutional partner. Discussions may be
held on the
proposals (often to clarify technical capabilities or to
note errors in
a proposal). In some instances, all or only selected
bidders may be
invited to participate in subsequent bids, or may be
asked to submit
their best technical and financial proposal, commonly
referred to as a
Best and Final Offer (BAFO).
Request for Quote (RFQ)
A request for quotation (RFQ) is a standard business
process whose
purpose is to invite suppliers into a bidding process to
bid on
specific products or services. RFQ generally means the
same thing as
IFB (Invitation For Bid). An RFQ typically involves more
than the price
per item. Information like payment terms, quality level
per item or
contract length are possible to be requested during the
bidding process.
To receive correct quotes, RFQs often include the
specifications of the
items/services to make sure all the suppliers are
bidding on the same
item/service. Logically, the more detailed the
specifications, the more
accurate the quote will be and comparable to the other
suppliers.
Another reason for being detailed in sending out an RFQ
is that the
specifications could be used as legal binding
documentation for the
suppliers.
The suppliers have to return the
bidding by a set date and time to be considered for an
award.
Discussions may be held on the bids (often to clarify
technical
capabilities or to note errors in a proposal). The bid
does not have to
mean the end of the bidding. Multiple rounds can follow
or even a
Reverse auction can follow to generate the best market
price.
RFQ's are best suited to products and services that are
as standardised
and as commoditised as possible, as this makes each
suppliers’ quotes
comparable. In practice, many businesses use a RFQ where
an RFT or RFI
would be more appropriate.
An RFQ allows
different contractors to provide a quotation, among
which the best will
be selected. It also makes the potential for competitive
bidding a lot
higher, since the suppliers could be quite certain that
they are not
the only ones bidding for the products.
Contract
The contract for a project must include detailed
requirements for the
project, spelling out exactly what is to be installed,
acceptable test
results, and documentation to be provided. All this
should be discussed
and negotiated between the customer and the contractor
and agreed to in
writing. They are not irrelevant details, as they are
important to
ensure the customer gets what they expect and the
contractor knows what
is expected of them when designing the network,
estimating costs, doing
the actual installation and providing proof of
performance in order to
show the work is completed and payment should be made.
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