How to Write a Scope of Work
- chatengineer
- Mar 28, 2019
- 10 min read
There are tons of different formats and layouts to aid in writing a scope of work. The idea is to make this document as clear, precise and simple as possible. You want enough information in the SOW so the contractor can bid on this RFP with no doubt on what the objective is for this job. You don’t always have to provide a full design, but the more information the better if you are stringent on quality of work and product selections.
COVER SHEET
Should have all project information needed in the field, and classifications (secret, classified, non-classified, etc) if needed. Here’s a list of what we put on ours:
Title
Department
Company (who is doing the work and also who designed it)
Project name
Location
PIC (Person in charge)
Project Manager
Prepared by
Date
Keep this brief, to the point and add in your company logo if you want to make it look official.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
This section is sometimes left out of official contractor documents, but serves a great purpose in overall organization of the paper, as well as a quick reference guide as you’re out in the field searching for a specific topic or item.
Here’s what our TOC looked like:
Simple, to the point, organized with section headers and bold font. Section numbering is easy, and automatic if done properly. Sub numbering is encouraged too:
Section 1 PROJECT BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION1.1 BACKGROUND1.1.1 DESCRIPTION
Moving on!
SECTION 1 – PROJECT BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION STATEMENT
You should provide a brief overview of the intention of this SOW, what the main objective is, and where and how (at a high level), the contractor is going to perform the work. Here’s some generic verbiage from our SOW for an LED retrofit project:
The Contractor shall provide all labor, supervision, materials and equipment necessary to procure, install, and test building LED lighting retrofit fixtures and lighting controls upgrades. All work shall ensure a complete and fully functional lighting system.
This task order is to install new LED lights and lighting controls in place of existing lighting fixtures in multiple locations (state your location here). The bid to retrofit all lighting fixtures with new LED retrofit fixtures shall be broken out per building as specified in Section 4.
The Contractor shall provide fully functional and complete working systems to include all disconnects, mounting hardware, enclosures, wiring and conduit, and safety equipment as required to connect the new LED fixtures with the building’s existing wiring and controls. It is not anticipated to install completely new fixtures that require new seismic bracing.
Contractor shall provide a firm fixed price proposal for the provision of all items required for a complete system as outlined in this Performance Work Statement. Provide discrete, detailed pricing for each Task as outlined in section 2. This action is subject to availability of funds and, as such, the Government reserves the right to award a subset of the requested pricing. Except where stated otherwise, this Performance Work Statement shall be performance-based and the Contractor shall provide technical solutions.
The Government’s intention is to utilize the PG&E On Bill Financing (OBF) program for funding this project. The contractor shall be familiar with and qualified to use the OBF program, shall handle all paperwork and communication with PG&E associated with the OBF program, and shall be willing to postpone payments until the project has been completed IAW PG&E OBF instructions.
You want to make sure that if you’re using a different financing method than usual, like the last bullet about OBF above, then state that intension here. We don’t want any surprises during bid, or god for sake after the project has been awarded, funded and built. That’s where contracts can save you a ton of money and headache.
SECTION 2 – TASK LIST
The task list section should give a thorough explanation of what tasks need to be done, and anything specific that needs to be noted, should be said in the Equipment & Services Needed column.Task No.TaskEquipment & Services Needed1SurveyPerform an existing site conditions survey to validate the quantities of system equipment and verify existing site conditions pertaining to lighting fixtures and ballasts. The survey shall include a list of fixtures to be retrofitted in place, using existing building wiring, with LED retrofit kits and “door kits”. Survey will be in Microsoft Excel and include all columns as indicated in attachment __. Spreadsheet shall show anticipated energy, demand, cost savings, and fully burdened construction cost for each room surveyed.
Contractor shall identify and document all inoperable/damaged equipment that must function properly for a complete and useable system. Provide a written report noting all identified discrepancies to include a cost estimate for repair/replacement.2SecurityThe Contractor shall submit a list of employees to the COR for security access processing and approval. The list shall contain the employee’s full name, state driver’s license number or date of birth. Contractor personnel shall be prepared to be searched by the installation security guard force.
The contractor shall coordinate with the Post Fire Marshal (put contact info here) to obtain a fire permit prior any welding of metals or related efforts (if required). No person should be subjected to work in an unsafe or dangerous environment. Contractor safety will be governed by (put down spec or reference document here)3Installation DocumentationPrepare and provide Electrical Equipment installation documentation and assembly engineering plans. This shall include an updated to the survey spreadsheet that outlines exactly what the new fixtures and controls will include.4InstallationProvide Electrical LED Lighting Equipment. Install hardware equipment IAW original manufacturer’s published procedures and documentation and as required by this Scope of Work.
Resolve compatibility issues and establish an interface between existing and new. Provide all LED lighting fixtures with occupation sensors, tune all lights to the specified percentage as noted in attachment 1, and provide the client with hand-held remote control LED tuning devices.5TestingProvide LED system testing, tuning and commissioning. Contractor shall confirm circuits to be affected and provide close-out packet identifying which building circuits were used. Circuits in the panel shall be labeled appropriately. Lighting levels will be verified with a 10% randomly selected (by customer) sample.6O&M ManualsProvide O&M Manuals….O&M Manuals shall be delivered within 30 days after the written acceptance of the system by the Government.7WarrantyProvide a 1-year construction warranty (starting from the date of acceptance) and a 5-year material warranty (starting from the date of acceptance). The systems, all ancillary components, electrical equipment and subsystems shall be covered by warranty. The Contractor shall warrant all products and services provided under this task order (material and labor) for a period of one year from the date of customer’s acceptance or the offeror’s standard commercial warranty period, whichever is greater.
Upon any product/service failure during the warranty period, Contractor’s response time to restore system service shall be within the timeframes indicated herein. All outages will require a maximum of three working days response time and seven working days to restore system operation. The warranty period shall not start until the contractor successfully passes the performance verification test (PVT), all punch list items are resolved, and the contractor receives a letter of acceptance from the Contracting Officer.8TrainingContractor shall provide customer with system training at the final acceptance of the project.9Rebate/
Incentive FundsContractor shall perform any necessary rebate/incentive site walks and ensure rebate/incentive check is received by the customer.
Task numbers come in handy when referring to a specific paragraph, phrase or verbiage even within a table.
SECTION 3 – PROJECT BUILDING LIST
This portion of the SOW is simply to lay out an inventory of the building/components/systems/facilities that are expected to have work done on them. It’s always a huge help to have one master list that the contractor can use to track progress along the way. Here’s a generic list of buildings, it doesn’t need to be fancy:ItemBuilding #161126073613483058346645-652 (x8)7829, 831-833, 835-836, 841 (x7)8Emergency Battery Backup systems*921110212112731227413275
Note: * = Special project as specified in later sections of this Scope of Work.
SECTION 4 – LED RETROFIT KITS
Feel free to put in photos, equipment specs used for basis of design, thoughts or comments in this section pertaining to the equipment you want installed. We ended up deleting this section from the SOW, but it can add value in some cases.
SECTION 5 – EXECUTION AND COMPLETION OF WORK
The Contractor shall execute the work under the direction of a responsible representative approved by the customer. The company officer or representative shall be designated as the Contractor’s Project Manager and shall be responsible for complete coordination of all work under this task order. All work shall be accomplished with adequate internal controls, quality assurance processes, and review procedures established by the Contractor to ensure technical accuracy and eliminate conflicts, errors, and omissions. The customer may elect to provide third party technical inspection.
The Contractor’s Project Manager shall have a minimum of five years’ experience and must have successfully managed at least one project comparable in complexity and magnitude to the project described in this task order. Other key positions must be staffed with qualified personnel who have at least five years’ experience in the functional areas for which they are proposed.
SECTION 6 – SCHEDULE
Any type of scheduling/reporting you’d like to see as a customer, should be stated in this portion. Be very exact, stating reporting durations, time of day work must start and end, hard stops on any specific days (holidays, etc):
The Contractor shall develop, maintain, and submit for customer approval, an integral master project schedule identifying critical path events for all requirements to be performed by the Contractor IAW this PWS. Updates shall be provided every two weeks. Due to work in class-room buildings, changes must be approved a minimum of 7 days in advance.
The schedule shall include an event-driven schedule/network that includes all tasks (from project award through testing, training and close-out) and logic necessary for the management of work, task flows, task interdependencies, major milestones, key events and all deliverables required under the base contract and this PWS.
Identify tasks (i.e. submittal reviews, testing, etc) performed by the customer (unless otherwise stated, 21 calendar day customer review cycle) and delivery of products provided by the customer.
You can even request that the contractor provides scheduling and updates via an online application or project management software.
SECTION 7 – PERFORMANCE VERIFICATION TEST (PVT)
A PVT is highly recommended as it serves as a QA/QC step in the final commissioning process, post construction. It gives the contractor time t dial in, tune and adjust building mechanical/electrical systems. Some contractors will try and skip/breeze over this portion of the installation process, but essentially you want them to be documenting how the system runs once installed and verified by either the customer or a hired third-party company.
Here’s an example:
The Contractor shall submit Performance Verification Test (PVT) documentation and obtain customer approval prior to petitioning to schedule PVT. The Contractor shall provide draft close-out documentation such as O&M Manuals and As-Built Drawings onsite at the PVT.
The Contractor shall provide all required calibrated test instruments, equipment, supplies, ladders, flashlights, etc. to facilitate all PVT activities, including calibration stickers still within 1 year of last calibration date.
Prior to PVT execution, the Contractor shall coordinate all required building access/escorts, keys and any other logistical requirements.
SECTION 8 – SAFETY COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS
Any safety requirements that pertain to operating, installing, maneuvering or even just appearing in your space, should be stated here.
If you feel you should warm someone about a risk, it should be noted in this section:
The Contractor shall execute all work IAW the latest version of Safety Manual (if applicable). Draft Abbreviated Accident Prevention Plans (AAPP) and draft Accident Prevention Plans (APP) shall be submitted electronically for acceptance. Upon acceptance, the Contractor shall submit final safety plans by (select a reporting method: CD only, flash drive electronic copy, etc).
The Contractor shall employ a minimum of one Competent Person at each project site to function as the Site Safety and Health Officer (SSHO). The number of SSHO’s assigned will be dependent on job complexity, size, and any other pertinent factors. The SSHO shall be a full-time responsibility during all project related activities categorized as a “High” residual risk (or greater) in accordance with the Activity Hazard Analysis (AHA) as prepared per the accepted Accident Prevention Plan (APP). Contractor must demonstrate that this individual’s other duties are transferred to another responsible party when full-time SSHO activities are warranted per the risk activities.
The Contractor shall follow all accident reporting requirements per customer contract (if applicable).
The Contractor shall follow all monthly man-hour reporting per customer contract (if applicable).
The Contractor shall follow all Exposure Hours and Lost Workday Reporting as per customer contract (if applicable).
SECTION 9 – QUALITY CONTROL PROGRAM
Again, a quality control plan is vital to ensuring a proper building commissioning is accomplished, and overall project success:
The contractor shall develop and maintain an effective quality control (QC) program to ensure services are performed in accordance with the base contract and this PWS. The contractor shall develop and implement procedures to identify, prevent, and ensure non-recurrence of defective services. The contractor’s quality control program is the means by which he assures himself that his work complies with the requirements of the contract.
Site Specific Quality Control Plan and Surveillance Plan. A task/site specific quality control plan shall be developed/adapted to the services specified in this task order, and submitted as required per this task order. After acceptance of the quality control plan, the contractor shall receive the contracting officer’s written acceptance of any proposed change to his QC program.
SECTION 10 – POINTS OF CONTACT
Put down the Project Manager (PM), Onsite Organizer or Point of Contact (POC) – (if different than PM), and anyone else you feel should have personal contact information readily available to the contractor. It can be presented in a simple table with name, phone number, email and possible hours normally worked if they’re special hours.
SECTION 11 – BUILDING 842 LIGHTING CONTROLS RETROFIT
Since this is a fairly large LED retrofit project, we wanted to have some specific smaller projects added in, which some different controls sequences involved, that differ from the major project as a whole. So we reserved the space to explain these smaller projects in the back of the SOW. Since they’re in the table of contents, the contractor is less likely to skip over these as they’ve read about them already in the beginning of this document.
Feel free to be as specific as you can in these smaller sections. Since they differ from the project as a whole, you need to make sure you explain everything in detail as to how it’s different and what equipment is to be replaced, so the contractor can properly bid on the RFP.
SECTION 12 – EMERGENCY BATTERY BACKUP SYSTEMS RETROFIT
Same as Section 11
SECTION 13 – BUILDING 617 LIGHTING CONTROLS RETROFIT
Same as Section 11
APPENDIX A – MASTER BUILDING LIST
Any appendices or attachments should be placed at the back of the document, with references to it throughout the paper if needed. This could be anything from photos, official engineering drawings, to as-builts and cutsheets, etc.
SEND IT OUT FOR BID!
That’s pretty much all the info you need for a successful, basic SOW.
Again, each project can be significantly different, with different topics to focus on, and different equipment and procedures, but these are primarily all the topics that should be put in a SOW. ALWAYS.
We hoped this helped, cheers!
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