foreword - DOT On-Line Publications - Department of Transportation

The Contractor’s responsibilities are to:
1. Design the wall.
2. Comply with material specifications and wall tolerances,
3. Obtain and verify the soil nail load carrying capacity and adhesion values used in design.
4. Install the soil nails and facing in accordance with the finished face requirements and wall
tolerances.
The Inspector’s responsibilities are to:
1. Verify compliance with the specified material properties and requirements.
2. Verify that corrosion protection requirements have been satisfied.
3. Verify that the wall finish face requirements are met.
4. Verify that wall construction tolerance requirements have been satisfied.
5. Observe, verify, and record the results of all soil nail tests.
Procedural (Method) Specifications
A procedural specification specifies &l details of design and construction, including the soil nail
drilling method, soil nail type and dimensions, corrosion protection system, soil nail installation
method, excavation procedures, and finish wall construction methods. Procedural specifications
are also referred to as “prescriptive” or “closed” specifications. The responsibility of the
contractor is to submit material certifications and build the soil nail system in strict accordance
with the plans and specifications.
When a procedural specification is used, the owner (and therefore the inspector), is fully
responsible for the design and performance of the soil nail system, as long as the contractor has
installed the nails in accordance with the specification requirements. Furthermore, the inspector
and other personnel involved in the administration of the contract are responsible for directing
the contractor’s work if changes are required. The owner assumes all the risk. Procedural
specifications do not usually ensure a better job. Rather, they allow bidding by contractors not
experienced with nail shoring wall work. Use of procedural specifications means that the
potential for costly change orders is great.
The procec@-al specification method is not generally recommended for contracting soil nail
svstems.
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