metre c
held the view that checking on the depth of the watermains at the design stage was not necessary as the criterion of one om the future road level had been firmly established with the Water Supplies Department during the preparation of an earlier roadworks and drainage contract. They therefore assumed that this criterion would be adhered to. In the event the roadworks consultants' assumption was wrong. The Director of Water Supplies has commented that as the roadworks consultants had not supplied the road details when the mainlaying works were designed, the roadworks consultants could not assume that the watermains had been laid in position correctly in relation to something which was not known or given to his department.
210. It was also found in July 1982, when ascertaining the full extent of the remedial works necessary, that the levels of the watermains on drawings provided by the mainlaying consultants, were at variance with the trial holes which had been excavated by the roadworks contractor. The Director of Water Supplies is seeking an explanation from the mainlaying consultants for the differences in level between the as-constructed drawing and the findings of the roadworks contractor, but to date has not received a satisfactory explanation.
211. I have invited the attention of the Director of Water Supplies and the Director of New Territories Development to the unfortunate circumstances which culminated in the need to have the watermains re-laid within a year of their being first laid. I have expressed the view to the Director of Water Supplies that had the watermain level been determined by his department during the design stage for laying the watermains, or had the mainlaying consultants sought necessary clarification concerning the watermain level during the construction stage, the need for re-laying the mains and the resultant nugatory expenditure could have been obviated. I have also expressed the view to the Director of New Territories Development that had the roadworks consultants sought confirmation of the level of the newly laid watermains at the design stage for the roadworks, the claims for disruption and delay by the roadworks contractor could have been substantially reduced.
212. To prevent a recurrence of similar cases in future I have recommended to the Director of New Territories Development that information on the vertical profile of utilities should be obtained at the design stage of a new road project and that necessary checks should be carried out to confirm the actual vertical level of watermains (and other utilities) prior to tendering of a roadworks contract. I have recommended to the Director of Water Supplies that the present working procedures regarding mainlaying projects should be reviewed with a view to ensuring adequate and effective co-ordination with the road authority, that changes in the management of a contract after commencement should be avoided, that the vertical level of the watermains should be determined with reference to a specific datum and confirmed with the road authority, that wherever possible all basic design parameters should be determined by the Design Division before handing over a project to the Construction Division, that contract specifications should be worded precisely, and that procedures on the management of the work of consultants should be issued. I have suggested to both the Director of Water Supplies and the Director of New Territories Development that they should critically review the performance of their consultants to see if they have discharged their duties with due care and that if negligence on the part of the consultants is identified, the Government should take appropriate action to apportion the responsibility for the additional expenditure incurred and to recover the additional costs incurred.
213. The Director of New Territories Development has commented that he fully agrees that close co-ordination in highways works and watermain laying is essential. The Director has informed me that he supports my recommendation that the vertical profile of utilities should be obtained at the design stage although vertical profiles are not always available from the utilities companies and the Water Supplies Department. The Director has also informed me that he agrees in principle that the actual level of watermains should be checked prior to tendering of the roadworks contract, but has stated that there are practical and financial limitations on the extent to which such checks can be carried out. The Director has expressed the view that as the Water Supplies Department had been advised in this case of the land use and the requirement of the road level to accord with the adjoining carriageway, it is not unreasonable for the roadworks consultants to assume that the watermains should have been laid with adequate cover and further check was therefore not necessary. The Director of New Territories Development has concluded that failure to obtain confirmation on the actual profile of the watermains is not a sufficient reason to charge the roadworks consultants with negligence.
214. The Director of Water Supplies has informed me that the existing procedures are already adequate for enabling effective co-ordination with the road authority, his view being that even in this unfortunate case it is not so much a question of the procedure being at fault, but that various parties have at different stages failed to recognize some important aspects which were essential to produce an adequate design and to complete an acceptable construction. The Director has agreed that a change in the management of a contract after commencement is not a very desirable practice and is unlikely to be repeated in future. His department had resorted to it in only two other similar cases, and only when there was no alternative. The Director also informed me that in a mainlaying contract it is standard practice to provide longitudinal sections along the pipeline although in this case they were not given because of the lack of details of the future roadworks and the likelihood that existing ground levels were subject to change as a result of illegal dumping in the area. The Director has agreed that it is of paramount importance, and a standard practice, for specifications and drawings to be annotated as precisely as possible and that as far as practicable, all basic design parameters should be determined before handing over a project for construction. The problem in this case arose from the fact that essential details of roadworks were not available at the time the contract documents were prepared. The Director has stated that the mainlaying consultants have not yet provided an explanation about the discrepancies regarding the watermains levels and have contended that levels have been disturbed subsequent to mainlaying but he has expressed the view that, on the face of it, the mainlaying consultants may have failed to appreciate the implications of not providing adequate
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