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Specification conflicts and design resolution · Lesson 3 of 4

Specification conflicts and design resolution: methods and worked application

A seven-step method for turning a spotted conflict into a documented decision, with worked examples on joint spacing, thermal movement, piece length, gauge against thickness and one specification line read against AFS.

You will be able to: Run a seven-step conflict packet on a realistic edge-metal job, recording assumptions, units and the document behind every number.

11 min · 10 slides · 7 questions

All lessons in this module
Slide 1 of 10

The seven-step packet

The method taught here has seven steps, and each leaves a record:

  • collect every document, with edition and date
  • extract each requirement into one row
  • classify each row: agrees, conflicts or gap
  • find the contract's own precedence clause
  • test against what the shop can make
  • write the query or the variation
  • record the decision and its evidence
From a spotted conflict to a documented decisionFlow chart. Spot a difference or gap, classify it, collect every document with edition and date, ask whether the contract clause ranks the two (yes: follow it), check code editions and standards, check what AFS can make, ask whether it is ours to decide (yes: decide and record), otherwise write a query to the party the contract names, mark any variation with a side-by-side comparison, wait for the reviewer, ask whether the answer is approved or approved as noted (no: revise and resubmit, or not reviewed, so go back to the query), then record the decision and fabricate.From a spotted conflict to a decisionSpot a difference or a gapClassify it: one of sixkinds, or a gapCollect every document,with its edition and dateDoes the contract's ownclause rank these two?Yes:followtheclauseNoCheck the code edition andthe standards citedCheck what AFS can make:length, girth, thicknessIs it ours to decide?Yes:decideandrecorditNoWrite the query to the partythe contract namesIf it changes thecontract: mark a variationwith a side-by-sidecomparisonReviewer answers:approved, approved asnoted, revise andresubmit, or not reviewedApproved, or approvedas noted?No:back tothe queryYesRecord the decision in thejob packetFabricate

Flow chart: spot a difference or a gap, classify it, collect every document with edition and date, ask whether the contract clause ranks the two (yes: follow it), check code editions and standards, check what AFS can make, ask whether it is ours to decide (yes: decide and record), otherwise write a query to the party the contract names, mark any variation with a side-by-side comparison, take the reviewer's answer, and ask whether it is approved or approved as noted (no: back to the query), then record it and fabricate.

The three amber outlines are the decisions: does the contract rank these documents, is the answer ours to give, and did the reviewer approve. Revise and resubmit, or not reviewed, goes back to the query. Fabricate only after a recorded, approved decision.

Sources

Glossary

Conflict packet
The record of one conflict: the quoted lines with their editions, the classification, the precedence clause found, the check against what the shop can make, the query or variation, and the answer.
Query
A written question to the party the contract names, quoting both conflicting lines. It is the method taught in this module for a difference the fabricator may not decide alone.
Side-by-side comparison
VA 01 33 23 requires a deviation from the contract to be clearly identified with a side by side comparison of the item proposed against the item specified.
Thermal movement
Change in length with temperature, dL = alpha x L x dT. It is a worked-example calculation here; the design temperature swing comes from the project, because McElroy notes there is no national standard.
Mill certificate
The mill's record of the actual metal supplied. AFS Spec Match advises confirming a specified minimum thickness against it.
Piece count
How many pieces a run needs. Without a splice lap it is the run divided by the longest piece, rounded up: a 144 in run at AFS's 126 in maximum needs two pieces.