CONSTRUCTION MANUAL OF INSTRUCTION Buy America documentation for state-furnished material is maintained by Traffic and Safety and does not need to be maintained by the RE in the project office. Documentation for steel girders is compiled by the Department’s Pre-Fabrication Testing Assurance group. A copy of the documentation is available upon request; however, it is not necessary for the RE to maintain a copy of this documentation in the project office. For all pre-cast concrete items including girders, barrier, noise walls, drainage structures, etc., the UDOT Central Materials Laboratory will collect, maintain, and furnish all Buy America documentation. These items must be accompanied by the Department’s R256 Inspection/Test Report when delivered to projects. This report will indicate the material has been verified to comply with Buy America by the Central Materials Laboratory and should be kept in the project record. If the report does not indicate compliance, the RE must verify compliance by contacting the Central Materials Laboratory. Buy America applies to donated materials if they are permanently incorporated into the project and the RE is responsible for obtaining the Buy America documentation. Buy America also applies to all third party utility work if the work uses Federal-aid funds. The RE must contact the PM to identify which utility contracts use Federal-aid funding. For those that do, it is the RE’s responsibility to collect and maintain Buy America documentation for steel and iron materials. As with all other work, materials should not be incorporated or paid for until the required documentation has been received. Utility company compliance with Buy America can potentially be difficult to document or verify. It is imperative the RE discuss the requirements with the utility company and work proactively with the PM on funding options if there are potential issues. Although waivers to Buy America provisions are possible pursuant to Federal regulation, they are rarely granted and must be obtained before advertising. No waivers are allowed during construction and Buy America provisions cannot be removed from a contract through a change order. During the preconstruction phase, the RE should review the plans and specifications and identify all bid items which may include steel or iron products. When performing this review, the RE must consider the bid item and its components. FHWA considers a manufactured product subject to Buy America requirements if the product consists of at least 90% steel or iron content when it is delivered to the job site for installation. Miscellaneous steel or iron components, subcomponents, and hardware necessary to encase, assemble and construct many products (or manufactured components not predominantly steel or iron) are not subject to Buy America. Examples include, but are not limited to, cabinets, covers, shelves, clamps, fittings, sleeves, washers, bolts, nuts, screws, tie wire, spacers, chairs, lifting hooks, faucets, door hinges, etc. (Reference Buy America Memorandum December 21, 2012, Clarification of Manufactured Products)
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Construction
Utah Department of Transportation