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INSTRUCTORS:
Wendy Thomas Wendrowski, Esq. Aff.M.ASCE
Lance P. VanDemark, P.E., Ph.D, F.ASCE, MSCE
Course Length: 1 hour
Purpose and Background
This presentation was recorded at the 2026 CI & CRC Joint Conference.
This presentation examines project documentation practices essential for contract compliance, claims avoidance, and defensible record keeping on construction projects. It explains how engineers and contractors must align documentation with specifications, contract provisions, drawings, and code requirements, emphasizing timely written records created at or near the time field conditions occur. The session details how differing site condition notices, RFIs, daily reports, and change documentation should be structured to meet contractual obligations and support later evaluation under hearsay and business records rules, which determine whether project documents are admissible as evidence.
Technical examples illustrate how documentation influences cost, schedule, and dispute outcomes, including the role of field data, photographs, and specification references. Participants gain practical guidance for producing clear, factual, contract anchored documentation that withstands scrutiny in claims, arbitration, or litigation.
Benefits and Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of this course, you will be able to:
- Analyze how project documentation must align with specifications, contract provisions, drawings, and code requirements to ensure compliance and reduce exposure to construction claims.
- Differentiate between routine project records and documentation that must meet business-records standards, and evaluate how admissibility rules affect the use of field reports, notices, and correspondence in disputes.
- Apply best-practice documentation techniques—including timely issue identification, factual reporting, and clear contract anchoring—to create defensible records that support cost, schedule, and technical decision-making throughout a project lifecycle.
Assessment of Learning Outcomes
Students' achievement of the learning outcomes will be assessed via a short post-test assessment (true-false, multiple choice, and/or fill in the blank questions).
Who Should Attend?
- Structural Engineer
- Construction Engineer
- Project Controls Engineer
- Design-Build Project Engineer
- Construction Project Manager
How to Earn your CEUs/PDHs and Receive Your Certificate of Completion
To receive your certificate of completion, you will need to complete a short on-line post-test and receive a passing score of 70% or higher within 365 days of the course purchase.
How do I convert CEUs to PDHs?
1.0 CEU = 10 PDHs [Example: 0.1 CEU = 1 PDH]