Circular No. 26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 of the Ministry of Construction on elaboration of a number of aspects of construction quality control and maintenance

THE MINISTRY OF CONSTRUCTION

Circular No. 26/2016/TT-BXD datedOctober 26, 2016 of the Ministry of Constructionon elaboration of a number of aspects of construction quality control and maintenance

Pursuant to the Law on Construction dated June 18, 2014;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP on quality control and maintenance of construction works dated May 12, 2015 (hereinafter referred to as “Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP);

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No.59/2015/ND-CP on construction project management dated June 18, 2015 (hereinafter referred to as “Decree No.59/2015/ND-CP);

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No.37/2015/ND-CP dated April 22, 2015 on elaboration of construction contracts;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No.15/2015/ND-CP dated February 14, 2015 on PPP investment;

Pursuant to Government’s Decree No.62/2013/ND-CP on functions, rights, responsibilities and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction dated June 25, 2013;

Upon request of the director of the State Authority for Construction Quality Inspection;

The Minister of Construction hereby issues this Circular on elaboration of a number of aspects of construction quality control and maintenance.

Article 1. Scope of adjustment and subjects of application

This Circular specifies a number of aspects of maintenance and control of quality of construction works within the territory of Vietnam and applies to domestic and overseas entities.

Article 2. Responsibilities for construction quality control by investors

1. Select qualified entities to carry out construction activities; allow subcontractors recommended by the main contractors or EPC contractors to participate in construction activities according to the construction contract.

2. The language used in relevant construction documents shall be mutually agreed. The applicable language of documents having the presence of foreign elements shall be Vietnamese and a foreign language mutually agreed by both parties. In case it fails to reach the agreement, Vietnamese and English shall be used.

3. For construction surveying:

a) Set construction survey objectives;

b) Approve and supplement (if any) construction survey objectives;

c) Approve construction surveying techniques; adjust and supplement construction surveying techniques (if any);

d) Inspect the implementation of construction surveying contractors according to the contract;

dd) Supervise construction surveying on their own or hire qualified entities to supervise the construction surveying;

e) Accept and approve construction survey reports under regulations of laws;

g) Hired qualified entities to assess construction surveying techniques and submit detailed survey reports, where necessary.

4. For engineering design:

a) Determine engineering objectives as stipulated in Article 18 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP. The engineering objective shall be specified in writing using form I attached hereto;

b) Inspect the implementation of assigned duties by design contractors and design assessors (if any) according to the contract;

c) Hire qualified entities to assess engineering documents where necessary;

d) Examine and request the State competent authorities specified in the Decree No.59/2015/ND-CP to assess the engineering design;

dd) Approve or request the investment decision-maker to approve the engineering documents according to the authority as stipulated in the Decree No.59/2015/ND-CP;

e) Revise to the engineering design (where necessary) as stipulated in Article 84 of 2014 s Law on Construction;

g) Accept engineering documents as stipulated in Article 5 hereof.

5. For construction:

a) Conduct construction supervision as stipulated in Article 26 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP and others according to the contract;

b) Carry out control experiments, quality assessment and testing of bearing capacity of the work structure as stipulated in Article 29 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP;

c) Take charge of and cooperate with relevant parties to cope with difficulties and issues arising during the construction and take remedial measures as stipulated in the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP and relevant regulations of laws;

d) Carry out the partial acceptance, acceptance of work items (if any);

dd) Carry out the acceptance of construction works and construction items (if any);

e) The supervision of construction and acceptance carried out by the investor or construction supervisors neither substitutes nor relieves the construction contractor’s responsibilities for construction quality.

6. Inspect and accelerate the construction maintenance shall be conducted in accordance with Article 35 and Article 36 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

7. Prepare and approve the construction maintenance process as stipulated in point b clause 1 Article 126 of the 2014’s Law on Construction; maintain work items and construction works as stipulated in clause 4 Article 15 hereof.

8. Transfer and operate the construction works as stipulated in Article 34 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP; transfer maintenance –related documents to the works’ owner, managers / users.

9. Retain documents in accordance with Article 12 hereof and other relevant regulations of laws.

10. Fully comply with the State competent authority‘s requirements for construction.

Article 3. Responsibilities for construction quality control by investors and EPC contractors

1. Every investor shall:

a) Take on responsibilities specified in clause 1, clause 2, point a of clause 4, point dd of clause 5, clause 6, 8, 9 and 10 of Article 2 hereof;

b) Negotiate with the EPC contractor to define responsibilities for implementing the remainders specified in Article 2 hereof.

2. Every EPC contractor shall take charge of controlling the quality of work it carries out and those carried out by its sub-contractors, including:

a) Select subcontractors that meet eligibility regulatory requirements;

b) Take on responsibilities specified in Article 2 of this Circular, except for those stipulated in clause 1 of this Article.

Article 4. Responsibilities for control of quality of construction works under PPP projects

1. The State competent authority concluding and executing project contracts shall:

a) Take on responsibilities specified in point a clause 4 Article 2 hereof;

b) Verify contractors’ qualifications and experiences presented in the invitation to bid or request for proposals and bidding result for work packages (if any) before it is approved by the project management enterprises according to the project contracts.

c) Participate in partial acceptance (if any), acceptance of work items and construction works;

d) Supervise and evaluate the compliance with obligations to fulfill requirements for planning, objectives, scale, applicable technical standards and regulations, construction quality, financial mobilization progress, fulfillment of projects and environmental protection and other according to the project contract by project management enterprises;

dd) Carry out quality assessment prior to handover as stipulated in the project contract for BOT, BLT contracts;

e) Assess the value and situation of the construction works; formulate the list of transferred assets, identify injuries and damage and request the project management enterprises to repair injuries (if any). Only take delivery of transferred operation-related equipment and assets if they are repaired according to technical requirements and other provisions in the project contract;

g) Cooperate with project management enterprises to prepare project handover records;

h) Inspect the construction maintenance under regulation of laws and the project contract.

2. Every project management enterprise shall:

a) Take on responsibilities specified in Article 2 of this Circular, except for those stipulated in point a clause a Article 2 hereof.

b) Cooperate with the competent authority that has the power to sign the project contract in construction quality management during the process of the project;

c) Transfer technologies, provide training, maintain and manage the utilization of the construction works according to the project contract;

d) Take on other responsibilities as stipulated in the project contract and relevant regulations of laws.

3. The responsibilities for construction quality management by the project management enterprise and competent authority signing the project contract shall be specified and clarified in the contract project.

Article 5. Acceptance of engineering design

After the engineering design document is assessed and approved, the investor shall check the completed workload, its specifications, and the bomber of copies of engineering documents according to the construction contract and notify the design contractor in writing if the engineering document is accepted.

Article 6.Regime and responsibilities for construction supervision

1. Investors and EPC contractors shall supervise or hire qualified entities to supervise a part or whole construction aspects specified in clause 1 Article 26 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

2. Where an investor or EPC contractor simultaneously carries out the supervision and construction activities itself, that investor or EPC contractor shall set up a supervisory team that is independent from the team directly participating in construction activities.

3. The construction supervision may be conducted by an individual who acquires the practice certificate in construction supervision if:

a) It is a grade IV construction works;

b) The construction works is parts of a renovation project or project having the participation of the community with the total investment of less than 05 billion dong;

c) The construction works’ total investment is less than 02 billion dong invested by the People’s Committee of the commune.

4. As the construction works, work item is certified finished by the investor and comes into operation, the supervisor shall prepare a supervision report and shall take on responsibilities for the accuracy, reliability and objectivity of the report. The supervision report shall contain:

a) The assessment of the construction contractor’s capacity according to the bid and construction contract;

b) The assessment of finished workload and its progress, construction and occupational safety during the construction;

c) The assessment of the inspection of building materials, products, components and equipment installed in the construction works;

d) The assessment of the inspection, monitoring and control experiment (if any) and their results.

dd) The assessment of the process of acceptance of work items and construction works, partial acceptance (if any) and requirements for acceptance of work items and construction works;

e) Revisions of the engineering design, assessment and approval for the revised engineering design (if any);

g) Quality defects, construction incidents (if any), causes of incidents, remedial measures and results;

h) The assessment of conformity of the construction quality management records, operation and maintenance records;

i) The assessment of compliance with regulations on environmental protection, fire safety and relevant regulations of laws;

k) The conclusion of acceptance of work items and construction works. (whether or not it qualifies for being accepted)

Article 7. Construction supervision

1. Construction quality supervision:

The construction quality supervision shall conform to clause 1 Article 26 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

2. Supervision of construction progress:

a) Inspect and verify the overall and detail progress of construction of work items to assure that it is consistent with the approved progress.

b) Carry out on-site inspection and accelerate construction activities implemented by the construction contractor. Petition the investor to request the construction contractor to endeavor to achieve the construction progress, where necessary;

c) Assess and determine causes for the delay and notify the investor in writing for consideration of adjustment to the construction progress in case the overall progress is slow down;

d) Verify the construction contractors ‘actual capacity, its manpower, construction equipment according to the construction contract; and propose construction measures to keep up with the progress.

3. Construction workload supervision:

a) Inspect and verify the accepted workload under regulations of laws;

b) Notify the investor of the increased workload according to the construction contract.

4. Supervision of occupational safety and environmental protection:

Supervise the compliance with regulations on management of occupational safety and environmental protection in the process of construction as stipulated in Article 34, Article 35 of the Decree No.59/2015/ND-CP and regulations on occupational safety and environmental protection.

Article 8. Acceptance of building tasks

1. The acceptance record may be separately made for each specific building task or may aggregate multiple building tasks of a work item according to the construction process. The acceptance record shall specify:

a) Name of the accepted building tasks;

b) Date and location of acceptance;

c) Signatories to the acceptance record;

d) Conclusion (the building task is accepted or rejected, agree to execute the next step; request to complete or repair and other requirements, if any);

dd) Signature, full name, title of the signatory;

e) Appendices (if any).

2. Signatories to the acceptance record are:

a) Investor’s construction supervisor(s);

b) Construction technicians of construction contractor or EPC contractor and prime contractor;

c) Subcontractor’s construction technicians if the project is awarded to an EPC contract or prime contractor.

3. Signatories to the acceptance record in case of EPC contract:

a) The EPC contractor’s construction supervisor(s) or investor’s construction supervisor(s) for the building tasks they supervise.

b) EPC contractor s construction technicians.

If the EPC contractor hires subcontractors, the EPC contractor’s technicians and subcontractors’ technicians shall sign the acceptance record;

c) The investor’s representative as agreed with the EPC contractor (if any).

4. In case of the contractor consortium, the persons directly taking charge of construction of each member of the consortium shall sign the record of acceptance of their building tasks.

Article 9. Acceptance of construction works and construction items prior to operation

1. The record of acceptance of work items and construction works contains:

a) Name of the accepted construction works and construction items;

b) Date and location of acceptance;

c) Signatories to the acceptance record;

d) The assessment of quality of the finished work item and construction works according to the engineering objectives, engineering instructions and other requirements specified in the construction contract;

dd) The assessment of fulfillment of requirements of fire protection authorities, the State management of environment and construction authority and other requirements under regulations of laws;

e) Conclusion (whether the work item and construction works is accepted or refused to be accepted; requirements for completion or remedy and other proposals, if any);

g) Signature, full name, title and seal of the signatory;

h) Appendices (if any).

2. Signatories to the acceptance record are:

a) The investor’s legal representative or authorized person;

b) The design contractor’s legal representative and design manager upon request of the investor;

c) The construction supervision contractor’s legal representative;

d) The legal representative of the construction prime contractor or EPC contractor where the EPC contract is concluded. In case of contractor consortium, the legal representatives of the consortium’s members shall sign the acceptance record, unless otherwise is stipulated in other agreements; The design contractor’s representative upon request of the investor;

dd) The legal representative of the competent authority signing the project contract or the authorized person in case of PPP projects.

Article 10. Construction logbooks

1. The construction contractor shall prepare a construction logbook for each construction package or for the whole project. Where the subcontractor is hired, the EPC contractor or prime contractor shall negotiate with the subcontractor on preparation of logbooks of construction activities that the subcontractor carries out.

2. The investor shall negotiate with the construction contractor on the format and content of the construction logbook prior to construction.

3. The construction logbook shall include the following main information:

a) Natural conditions during the process of construction (temperature, weather and relevant information); the quantity of on-site workers and construction equipment; name of building tasks daily accepted on the construction site.

b) Detail description of incidents, occupational accidents, injuries, other arising issues and remedial measures during the construction (if any);

c) Construction and supervision contractors’ proposals (if any);

d) Relevant parties’ proposals to tackle issues arising from the construction.

4. In case the investor and contractors participating in construction activities issue written proposals to tackle on-site technical incidents; such proposals shall be attached to the construction logbook.

Article 11. As-built drawings

1. The construction contractor shall prepare as-built drawings for work items or construction works it carries out. Obscure parts of the construction works shall be presented in the as-built drawing or their dimensions and actual parameters shall be accurately measured before carrying out the next step.

2. In case of contractor consortium, each member of the consortium shall prepare as-built drawings of work item it carries out and the authorization to other member shall not allow.

3. Preparation and certification of as-built drawings shall be conducted in accordance with the Appendix II attached hereto.

Article 12.Retention of as-built documents and construction maintenance and operation documents

1. The investor shall prepare and retain as-built documents prior to the acceptance of the work item or construction woks according to Appendix III attached hereto. Contractors participating in construction activities shall prepare and retain documents related to the building tasks they carry out. In case of absence of the original documents, the certified copies shall be used.

2. Class-A project documents shall be retained for at least 10 years from the date of operation; class-B and class-C project documents shall be retained for at least 07 years and 05 years from the date of operation, respectively.

3. The investor shall prepare documents for the purpose of management maintenance and operation of the construction works using Appendix IV attached hereto and shall transfer such documents to the operator. The owner or operator shall retain such records during the operation and use of the construction works.

4. In case of piecemeal operation, the investor shall prepare as-built documents, management, maintenance and operation document for the operating work items.

5. Such documents shall be submitted to the Storage Center in accordance with regulations of laws.

Article 13. Inspection of acceptance of construction works as stipulated in Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP

1. The inspection of the acceptance process shall be carried out as follows:

a) Within 15 days from the date of commence, the investor shall submit a written report using form 1 in Appendix V attached hereto to the construction authority as stipulated in clause 2 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP;

b) The construction authority shall conduct no more than 03 inspections within the period from its commence to completion for special grade and grade I construction works and no more than 02 inspection for the remaining construction works; except where the construction works contains quality defects or its investor carries out the acceptance as stipulated in clause 3 Article 31 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP. According to the category and grade of the construction works, the construction authority shall decide the date of inspection when main construction phases end.

E.g.: For civil construction, the main construction phases include the construction of foundation - substructure -superstructure- M&E and completion; the main phases of construction of bridges are construction of foundation-abutment-girder-completion. Main phases of construction of roads are construction of roadbed (substrate layers) - base –pavement; etc.

c) After the inspection is finished, the construction authority shall notify the investor of the inspection result in writing.

2. The inspection of the progress of acceptance of construction works and construction items prior to operation shall be conducted as follows:

a) The investor shall submit form 2 in Appendix V attached hereto to the construction authority as stipulated in point c clause 4 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP;

b) The construction authority shall carry out the inspection of aspects specified in clause 3 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP and notify the inspection results to the investor in writing;

c) After receipt of the notification of the construction authority, the investor shall examine, review and remedy defects (if any); carry out the acceptance of work items and construction works as stipulated in regulations of laws; submit the acceptance records and reports on defect remedy to the construction authority;

d)According to the acceptance records and report on defect remedy as stipulated in point c of this clause, the construction authority shall give its consent to the acceptance result using form 03 in Appendix V attached hereto.

3. In the event that the investor proposes to carry out the acceptance of work item or construction works when it has yet to be finished, that work item or construction works may undergo the acceptance procedure as stipulated in clause 3, point b clause4 Article 31 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

The investor shall conduct the construction and acceptance of the uncompleted building tasks according to the approved engineering design. Safety measure shall be applied in the process of construction and the construction shall not affect the normal operation of the accepted construction works and work items.

4. The construction authority shall not inspect the acceptance process of works that is inspected by the State Council for Acceptance.

5. The inspection by the construction authority shall not replace or relieve the investor’s responsibilities for construction quality management and construction contractor’s responsibilities for the quality of their building tasks.

Article 14. Expenses for inspection of acceptance process

1. The expenses for acceptance inspection during and after the construction process shall be conformable to clause 5 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP, including:

a) The expenses for inspection by the construction authority including business travel expenses and other expenses for the purpose of the inspection;

b) expenses for specialists employed by the construction authority including travel expenses, accommodation expenses and wages/salaries;

c) Expenses for hiring organizations to conduct the acceptance inspection;

2. The expenses for acceptance inspection shall be specified in the "miscellaneous expenses” and shall be included in the total investment estimate.

The cost estimate specified in clause 1 of this Article shall be made according to the characteristics of the project, its location and duration of construction, quantity of officers, specialist and entities participating in the acceptance inspection and the compulsory workload. The expenses for acceptance inspection shall be prepared, assessed and approved under clause 3 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

3. The investor shall pay all expenses stipulated in point a clause 1 of this Article after the inspection is finished. Where the construction authority hires qualified entities to participate in the inspection, the investor shall conclude contracts and settle expenses specified in point b and point c clause 1 of this Article.

Article 15. Responsibilities for construction maintenance

1. For the construction works owned by sole proprietor:

a) The entities designated to manage and operate the State-owned construction works shall be responsible for the maintenance of such construction works.

b) The investors of the construction works other than state-own construction works shall be responsible for the maintenance of their construction works.

The investor shall be responsible for the maintenance of urban infrastructures until it is transferred to the State authority.

c) The project management enterprise s legal representative shall be responsible for the maintenance of the construction works of BOT projects during the operation as stipulated in the project contract.

2. For construction works owned by multiple proprietors:

a) For housing, occupiers shall be responsible for the maintenance of their own apartments and agree to participate in the maintenance of shared areas under regulations of laws on housing;

b) For other construction works, the owner of parts of the construction works shall be responsible for the maintenance of their own parts and shared areas of the construction works. The responsibilities for maintenance of the shared areas of a construction works shall be negotiated and agreed by owners or authorized persons in writing or sale, purchase or leasing contracts.

3. The investor or person taking charge of managing of the construction works shall negotiate with operators about the maintenance of the construction works.

4. Where the construction works comes into operation but has yet to be transferred to its owner or manager, the investor shall be responsible for the maintenance of the construction works.

5. For the construction works whose owner is unidentified, the operator shall take on responsibility for the maintenance of the construction works.

Article 16.Monitoring of construction works and work items during the operation

1. The construction works specified in the Appendix IV attached hereto and any construction works, during its operation, having signs of subsidence, crack, incline and other abnormalities which may threat the construction works must be monitored. The main bearing structure of the construction works (e.g. roof frames, mainframe, chimneys, silos, etc.) shall undergo monitoring.

2. The monitoring of construction works stipulated in Appendix VI attached hereto is specified in the maintenance process including the location and date of monitoring, monitored indicators and limits of such indicators, monitoring frequency and other necessary information.

3. General requirements for monitoring of construction works in operation:

a) Monitoring contractors shall prepare and submit the person in charge of maintenance of the construction works monitoring plans in accordance with clause 2 of this Article, which specifies monitoring measures, equipment, layout and structure of monitoring milestones, implementing organization, monitored data processing methods and other necessary information

b) The monitoring contractor shall carry out monitoring according to the approved monitoring methods, notify the maintenance person of the monitoring results and compare the monitored figures with the limits stipulated by the design constructor or relevant technical standards and regulations.

If the value of a monitored figure stipulated in clause 2 of this Article exceeds its permissible limit or any abnormality occurs, the maintenance person shall assess the bearing capacity and operational safety of the construction works during its operation and take punctual remedial measures.

Article 17. Assessment of structural safety and operational safety

1. The list of construction works within the authority of the Ministry of Construction as stipulated in clause 1 Article 51 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP undergoing the assessment of structural and operational safety is presented in the Appendix VII hereof. The specialized construction authority, Ministry of National Defense and Ministry of Public Security shall stipulate regulations on assessment of structural and operational safety of construction works within their administration.

2. The scope and frequency of assessment shall be stipulated in the technical regulations (if any) or construction maintenance process.

3. The assessment of structural and operational safety shall be carried out by the qualified construction control agency.

Article 18. Construction control

1. The construction control covers:

a) The assessment of the quality and expiration of work components and construction works causes of defects and construction incidents;

b) The assessment of the quality of building materials, structures and construction works.

2. The assessment agencies shall be selected as follows:

a) The assessment agency shall meet qualifications requirements for assessment and publish their construction capacity information on the website as stipulated in regulations of laws. The person taking charge of assessment shall meet regulatory qualifications requirements;

b) In case of assessment upon request of the construction authority and State management authority as stipulated in point d clause 2 Article 29, point dd clause 5 Article 40 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP (hereinafter referred to as “requesting authority”), the construction works’ investor, owner or manager shall select the assessment agency under point a clause 2 of this Article and obtain the requesting authority’s consent.

In this case, the assessment agency shall be independent, in both finance and legal status, from the investor, design contractors, construction surveying contractors, construction contractors, material-equipment suppliers, project management and supervision contractors.

3. The procedure for assessment upon request of authorities specified in point b clause 2 of this Article is as follows:

a) The assessment agency shall submit an assessment draft to the requesting authority for review and approval;

b) The construction works’ investor, owner and manager shall consider approving the draft and assessment cost estimate submitted by the assessment agency and conclude a contract under regulations of laws;

c) The assessment agency shall conduct the assessment according to the approved draft and submit the assessment report to the requesting authority and investor, owner or manager;

d) The construction works’ investor, owner or manager and assessment agency shall carry out the acceptance of assessment results and finalization of the contract under regulations of laws on contracts for construction activities

4. The assessment draft shall include:

a) The purpose, requirements, subjects and scope of assessment;

b) The list of applicable technical regulations and standards;

c) The information on the capacity of the person in-charge and assessors; laboratories and applicable equipment for the purpose of assessment (if any);

d) The procedures and methods of assessment;

dd) The assessment schedule;

e) Other requirements for assessment.

5. The assessment report shall include:

a) The basis of assessment;

b) General information of the construction works and inspected subjects;

c) The procedure and scope of assessment;

d) Results of experiments, calculation, analysis, monitoring and assessment;

dd) Conclusion, according to the approved draft and proposals (if any).

Article 19. Expenses for construction assessment

1. The assessment cost estimate shall be made in accordance with regulations on construction cost management and other relevant regulation of laws according the workload proposed in the assessment draft. Expenses for assessment include:

a) Expenses for survey of inspected subjects;

b) Expenses for preparation and verification of the assessment draft and cost estimates;

c) Expenses for collection and study of assessment-related documents;

d) Expenses for experiments, calculation, analysis, monitoring and assessment;

dd) Travel expenses;

e) Expenses for preparation of assessment reports;

g) Other expenses necessary for the assessment.

2. Responsibilities for paying assessment expenses are as follows:

a) The expenses for assessment in the process of construction shall be paid by entities stipulated in clause 4 Article 29 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP;

b) The construction works’ owner, manager or operator shall pay expenses for assessment conducted within the operation period. In case the entity causing errors is identified by the assessment, such faulting entity shall pay the expense corresponding to the damage.

Article 20. Construction inspection

1. The construction inspection covers:

a) Inspection of the compliance with regulations of laws on construction investment;

b) Inspection of the quality of construction surveying and engineering;

c) Inspection of the quality and expiration of work items and construction works causes of defects and construction incidents;

d) Inspection of the quality of building materials, structures and construction works.

2. The competent authority stipulated in Article 53, 54 and 55 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP or the construction authority that is authorized to conduct the construction inspection (hereinafter referred to as “inspecting authority”) shall take charge of the construction inspection.

3. The process of construction inspection is as follows:

a) The inspecting authority shall send the investor, owner or manager of the construction works a written notification which specifies the basis of inspection, subjects, date and scope of inspection;

b) The construction works’ investors, owners or managers shall gather documents and figures related to inspected subjects upon request of the inspecting authority;

c) The inspecting authority shall conduct the inspection according to theses above-mentioned documents and figures. Where necessary, the inspecting authority shall designate an assessment agency that meets requirements stipulated in point b clause 2 Article 18 hereof to carry out the assessment as prescribed in clause 3 Article 18 hereof or consider using the assessment results for the purpose of inspection;

d) The inspecting authority shall notify relevant parties of the inspection conclusions as stipulated in clause 4 of this Article. Where necessary, the inspecting authority shall collect relevant entities’ opinions of the inspection conclusion.

4. The inspection conclusion shall include:

a) The basis of inspection;

b) The general information on inspected subjects;

c) The scope of inspection;

d) The procedure for inspection;

dd) The inspection conclusion;

e) Responsibilities of relevant entities and remedial measures (if any).

Article 21. Expenses for construction inspection

1. The inspection expenses include:

a) Expenses for the construction inspection conducted by the inspecting authority including the business trip expenses and other necessary expenses.

b) Expenses for specialists to participate in the inspection including travel expenses, accommodation expenses and wages/salaries;

c) Expenses for assessment agencies for the purpose of the inspection as stipulated in clause 1 Article 19 hereof;

d) Other expenses necessary for the inspection.

2. The liabilities for settlement of inspection expenses shall conform to clause 4 Article 49 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

Article 22. Settlement of disputes about construction quality

1. Disputes may arise where opinions on assessment of the quality of the construction works, work items and remedial measures conflict.

Construction quality disputes may arise between entities participating in construction activities or between these entities with the owner or persons managing and operating the adjacent construction works and involved parties.

2. Such disputes shall be settled by:

a) Amicably negotiating between conflicting parties;

b) Selecting, negotiating and hiring qualified entities to assess the quality of the construction works or work items and suggest remedial measures.

Conflicting parties may request the State management authority specialized in construction to give instruction s on dispute settlement;

c) Bring the dispute to a court. The procedure for dispute settlement by arbitration shall conform to relevant regulations of laws.

3. In case of conflicts occurred between involved parties over the results of assessment as required in point a, b and c clause 2 Article 29 and point a, b, c and d clause 5 Article 40 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP, such conflicts shall be settled as stipulated in clause 2 of this Article.

Article 23. Construction incident brief reports

As an incident occurs, the investor, owner or operator shall immediately and briefly report on such accident as stipulated in Article 47 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP. The report shall specify:

1. Name of the project, its location.

2. Name of entities participating in construction activities.

3. Description of the accidents and the construction works’ situation at the time of incident.

4. Preliminary assessment of injuries to human and properties.

Article 24. Reporting on construction quality and construction quality management

1. The Ministry of Construction shall take charge of aggregating and submitting reports on nationwide construction quality and construction quality management to the Prime Minister.

2. The Ministry in charge of management of specialized construction works ( hereinafter referred to as “specialized construction authority”), the Ministry of National Defense and Ministry of Public Security shall aggregate and submit reports on assessment of projects, engineering design and estimates of construction projects within the authority using form 01 in Appendix II to the Circular No.18/2016/TT-BXD, and status reports on inspection of acceptance and construction incidents using form 01 of Appendix VIII attached hereto.

3. The People’s Committees of provinces shall aggregate and submit reports on assessment of projects, engineering design and estimates of construction projects within the authority using form 02 in Appendix II to the Circular No.18/2016/TT-BXD dated June 30, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction on elaboration and guidance on some aspects of assessment and approval for projects, engineering design and project estimates, and status reports on inspection of acceptance and construction incidents using form 02 of Appendix VIII attached hereto.

Article 25. Action against violations against construction quality management

1. When a violation is found, construction entities and construction authorities, according to their rank, shall:

a) Request involved entities to remedy such violation;

b) Submit a violation record to the construction inspectorate to tackle such violation in accordance with laws on actions against administrative violations in the field of construction, where necessary. The construction inspection shall deal with violations in accordance with regulations of laws and notify the result to the construction authority;

c) Publish the name and violation of the faulting entity on the construction authority’s website;

d) Temporarily halt the construction in case of discovery of potential threats or safety incidents that may affect the safety of people, adjacent construction works and the community. The authority to temporarily halt the construction is stipulated in clause 2 of this Article.

2. The authority to temporarily halt the construction is as follows:

a) The heads of the construction authority affiliated to the Ministry of Construction and the specialized construction authority have the power to temporarily halt the construction.

Within 24 hours from the time of calling a temporary halt to construction, the heads of these above mentioned authorities shall notify the Minister of Construction and specialized construction authority of the temporary halt to their construction;

b) The Director of Departments of Construction and Departments managing specialized construction has the power to temporarily halt the construction within their administration.

Within 24 hours from the time of calling a temporary halt to construction, the heads of these above mentioned authorities shall notify the President of the People s Committee of the province of the temporary halt to their construction;

c) The head of the authority calling for a temporary halt to the construction as stipulated in point a and b of this clause shall be responsible to inspect the remedial actions of contractors and decide to resume the construction in writing after the investor and contractors submit a report on shortcoming remedy and meet construction safety requirements.

Article 26. Implementationorganization

1. This Circular takes effect on December 15, 2016 and replaces the Circular No.03/2011/TT-BXD on guidelines for inspection, testing and certification of eligibility for bearing capacity and certification of conformity of construction works dated April 06, 2011 by the Minister of Construction; Circular No.02/2012/TT-BXD on guideline for maintenance of civil construction works, industrial construction works an urban infrastructures dated June 12, 2012; Circular No.10/2013/TT-BXD dated July 25, 2013 by the Minister of Construction on elaboration of a number of aspects of construction quality management; Circular No.09/2014/TT-BXD dated July 09, 2014 by the Minister of Construction on amendment and supplement to a number of articles of the Circular that provides guidance on implementation of the Decree No.15/2013/ND-CP dated February 06, 2013 on construction quality management.

2. Any issues and difficulties arising in the course of implementation should be reported to the Ministry of Construction./.

For the Minister

The Deputy Minister

Le Quang Hung

Appendix I

(Issued together with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

ENGINEERING OBJECTIVES

The engineering objectives are as follows:

1. Basis of engineering objectives;

2. Purposes of the construction works;

3. Location;

4. Requirements for planning, landscape and architecture;

5. Requirements for scale and expiration of the construction works, its functions and other technical requirements.

Legal representative of the investor
(Sign, full name, title and seal)

_______________

Notes:

(1) The person taking charge of setting engineering objectives shall sign this form in case it is prepared by the investor.

The individual preparing the engineering objective shall sign this form in case (s)he is hired to prepare the engineering objectives by the investor.

The person in charge of the preparation of engineering objectives shall sign this form in case the investor hires an organization to prepare the engineering objectives.

Appendix II

(Issued with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

AS-BUILT DRAWING

1. Preparation of as-built drawings:

a) Where deviation of the actual dimensions and indicators of the work item or construction works do not exceed the permissible tolerance of the design dimensions and indicators, the construction drawings shall be photocopied , signed and sealed by relevant entities for the use as as-built drawings. If the actual dimensions and indicators exceed the design dimensions and indicators, the construction contractor shall record the actual dimensions and indicators in writing in brackets beside or next to the existing figures in the construction drawings.

b) Where necessary, the construction contractor may produce a new as-built drawing with the name frame presented as the same as that of the as-built drawing as follows:

2. The name frame of as-built drawing:

Form 1:

Notes: The EPC contract shall not apply. The dimensions of this form depend on the size of letters.

Form 2:

Notes: The EPC contract is allowed. The dimensions of this form depend on the size of letters.

Appendix III

(Issued with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

LIST OF AS-BUILT DOCUMENTS

DOCUMENTS RELATED TO PREPARATION OF THE INVESTMENT AND CONTRACTS

1. The decision on investment and pre-feasibility study report.

2. The Decision on approval for the construction project and feasibility study report or technical-economic report.

3. Engineering objectives, assessment records, opinions of authorities related to the assessment of the construction projects and basic design.

4. Plans for compensation for site clearance and relocation (if any).

5. The written agreement on planning, agreements or approval for use or connection to technical amenities outside the construction site issued by the State competent authority; environmental impact assessment report, safety report (traffic safety and the safety of adjacent construction works) and other relevant documents.

6. The competent authority’s decision on grant or lease of land or land lease agreement where it is not granted.

7. The construction permit, except where it is exempted.

8. The decision on direct contracting, written approval for contractor selection and construction contractors between the investor and contractors.

9. Proofs of contractor s capacity.

10. Other relevant documents on preparation of the construction project.

II. CONSTRUCTION SURVEYING AND ENGINEERING DOCUMENTS

1. Survey objectives, surveying techniques and construction surveying reports.

2. The written notification of acceptance of construction survey results.

3. The conclusions of assessment of the engineering design; decision on approval for engineering design enclosed with approved engineering documents and engineering instructions.

4. The written notification of acceptance of the engineering design.

5. Other relevant documents.

III. CONSTRUCTION QUALITY DOCUMENTS

1. Revisions to the design during the construction and the competent authority’s written assessment or approval.

2. As-built drawings ( enclosed with the list of as-built documents).

3. Construction quality control plans and measures.

4. Certificates of origins, product labels, written announcement of applicable standards; certificates and declaration of conformity and professional authority’s announcement of receipt of declaration of conformity under the Law on Goods quality.

5. Results of monitoring, measurements and experiment in construction process and monitoring results in the process of operation .

6. Records of acceptance of building tasks and partial acceptance (if any) during the construction.

7. Results of control experiments, quality assessment and testing of the bearing capacity of the construction structure (if any).

8. Briefs of installed equipment .

9. Construction works’ operation and maintenance manuals.

10. The State competent authority’s written agreement , approval or confirmation (if any) about:

a) Relocation of residents from reservoirs, survey of cultural and historical remains;

b) Fire safety;

c) Environmental protection;

d) Occupational safety and technology and equipment operation manual;

dd) Construction permit (where it is required);

e) Permission to connect to infrastructures and other relevant construction works;

g) Other documents under regulations of laws.

11. Construction incident records (if any).

12. Records of acceptance of construction works and work items prior to operation.

13. Appendixes on shortcomings (if any) after the construction comes into operation.

14. Other documents related to construction and acceptance of construction works.

15. The construction authority’s written notifications of the results of acceptance inspection in the process of construction and written notification of approval for acceptance result of work item and construction works.

Appendix IV

(Issued with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

LIST OF DOCUMENTS FOR PURPOSES OF MANAGEMENT, OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE OF CONSTRUCTION WORKS

1. The Decision on approval for the construction project and feasibility study report or technical-economic report.

2. Survey objectives and construction surveying reports.

3. Engineering documents approved by the investor (enclosed with a list of drawings) and revisions to the design in the process of construction.

4. As-built drawings ( enclosed with the list of as-built documents).

5. Results of monitoring, measurement and assessment of construction quality, the bearing capacity of construction structure (if any), list of equipment, components and reserved materials and other relevant documents.

6. Briefs of installed equipment.

7. Operation and maintenance manuals.

8. Construction incident records (if any).

9. The investor’s records of acceptance of construction works and work items prior to operation.

10. The construction authority’s written notifications of approval for acceptance of work item and construction works.

Appendix V

(Issued with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

Form 01:General information of construction works and work items

Form 02: As-built report

Form 03: The construction authority’s written notification of conclusion of acceptance inspection of work item and construction works.

Form 01:General information of construction works and work items

GENERAL INFORMATION OF CONSTRUCTION WORKS AND WORK ITEMS

To: .…… (2) ....…..

..... (1)…………specifies the general information of the construction works and work items as follows:

1. Name of the construction works and work item; .........................................................

2. Location: .................................................................... .................................

3. Name and address of the investor : ........................................................................

4. The scale of the construction works and work item (give a brief description of primary technical indicators of the construction works and work item).

5. The list of prime contractor and subcontractors (if any): (the EPC contractor and prime contractors in charge of construction survey, engineering, construction and supervision).

6. Rights and responsibilities of individuals for quality control

7. The expected date of commence and date of completion.

8. The overall construction schedule.

Hereby request …………(2)……….to inspect the construction works and work item within the authority./. 

Notes:

(1) Name of the investor.

(2) Name of the construction authority inspecting the process of acceptance of the construction works as stipulated in clause 2 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

Form 02.As-built report

AS-BUILT REPORT

To: ………………. (2)………………………….

..... (1)…………..hereby reports the results of the acceptance of construction works and work item as follows:

1. Name of the construction works and work item:……………………………………

2. Location:…………………………………………………….....................

3. The scale of the construction works and work item (briefly specify primary technical indicators).4. The list of contractors (EPC contractor and prime contractors in charge of construction surveying, engineering, construction and supervision).

5. The expected date of commence and date of completion.

6. The workload of main building tasks completed.

7. The assessment of the quality of the construction works and work item according to engineering objectives.

8. Report on the eligibility to put the work item and construction works into operation.

9. The list of as-built documents.

We hereby request……….(1) ……to inspect the construction works and work item within the authority./.

Notes:

(1) Name of the investor.

(2) Name of the construction authority inspecting the process of acceptance of the construction works by the investor as stipulated in clause 2 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

Form 03. The construction authority’s written notification of conclusion of acceptance inspection of work items and construction works.

To: .......…(2)...............

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP dated May 12, 2015 on construction quality control and maintenance; Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Minister of Construction detailing a number of Articles on construction quality control and maintenance;

(1)………….has conducted an inspection of acceptance of [the name of the construction works and work item] According to the as-built report No………dated …………..submitted by the investor and relevant entities’ reports; the acceptance record No…………dated…………, ………..(1)…… hereby notifies the inspection results as follows:

1. General information on the construction works and work item

(Specify the name of the inspected construction works and work items; their location, scale and capacity and entities participating in construction actives)

2. Quality of the construction works and work item

(Specify the current construction progress and quality of the inspected construction works and work items)

3. Compliance with regulations of laws

(Assess the construction capacity of entities participating construction, the compliance with regulations on construction quality control and other relevant regulations of laws, preparation and retention of documents).

4. Requirements for investors

( Remedy shortcomings, if any; and other requirements).

5. Conclusion

(Approve, approve with the provisos or refuse to approve the investor s acceptance conclusion).

Notes:

(1) Name of the construction authority inspecting the process of acceptance of the construction works carried out by the investor as stipulated in clause 2 Article 32 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

(2) Name of the investor.

(3) The as-built report shall be made by using Form 02 of this Appendix.

Appendix VI

(Issued with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

CIVIL CONSTRUCTION WORKS, BUIDING MATERIALS, LIGHT INDUSTRY FACILITIES, INFRASTRUCTURES AMD TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURES MANDATORILY UNDERGOING MONITORING IN THE PROCESS OF OPERATION

Notes:

(1) The construction works is ranked by its type and structure as stipulated in Appendix 2 of Circular No.03/2016/TT-BXD dated March 10, 2016 by the Minister of Construction.

Appendix VII

(Issued  with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

CIVIL CONSTRUCTION WORKS, BUIDING MATERIALS, LIGHT INDUSTRY, INFRASTRUCTURES AND URBAN TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURES MANDATORILY UNDERGOING ASSESSENT OF BEARING CAPACITY DURING OPERATION

Notes:

(1) The construction works is ranked by its type and structure as stipulated in Appendix 2 of Circular No.03/2016/TT-BXD dated March 10, 2016 by the Minister of Construction.

Appendix VIII

(Issued with the Circular No.26/2016/TT-BXD dated October 26, 2016 by the Ministry of Construction)

Form 1: Report on inspection of acceptance process and construction incidents within the administration of specialized construction authority.

Form 02: Report on inspection of acceptance process and construction incidents by the People’s Committee of provinces

Form 1: Report on acceptance inspection and construction incidents within the administration of specialized construction authority.

REPORT

On inspection of acceptance process and construction incidents within the administration of…………………(1)…..

[Year (2)]

To: The Ministry of Construction

I. Quantity of construction works

Prepare a statistics of construction works within the administration after the acceptance inspection:

Including:

1. The number of construction works funded by the central budget:……………

2. The number of construction works funded by the other sources of finance:

II. Construction incidents

The statistics on construction incidents occurring in the process of construction and operation:

III. Other information and proposals

Notes:

(1) Name of the specialized construction works as stipulated in clause 2 Article 51 of the Decree No.46/2015/ND-CP.

(2) Reported year.

(3) The quantity of as-built construction works but ineligible to be accepted.

Form 02: Report on inspection of acceptance process and construction incidents by the People’s Committee of provinces

REPORT

ON INSPECTION OF ACCEPTANCE PROCESS AND CONSTRUCTION INCIDENTS IN [ NAME OF THE PROVINCE] (1)......

[Year] (2).....

To: The Ministry of Construction

I. Quantity of construction works

1. Statistics on the quantity of construction works passing the acceptance inspection

Including:

a)The number of construction works funded by the central budget:……………

b)The number of construction works funded by the local budget:……………

c)The number of construction works funded by the other sources of finance:

2. Prepare a statistics on the quantity of construction works granted the construction permit within the administration (except for those specified in clause 1).

II. Construction incidents

The statistics on construction incidents occurring in the process of construction and operation:

III. Other information and proposals

Notes:

(1)Name of the province issuing this Decision.

(2) Reported year.

(3) The quantity of as-built construction works butt ineligible to be accepted.