Circular No. 09/2014/TT-BXD amending and supplementing some articles in the Circulars guiding the Government's Decree No. 15/2013/NĐ-CP dated February 6, 2013 on Construction Quality Management.

CIRCULAR

Amending and supplementing certain articles in Circulars guiding Decreenumber

15/2013/NĐ-CP dated February 6, 2013 of the Government

for Management of Construction Quality

___________________

Pursuant to Decree No. 62/2013/NĐ-CP dated June 25, 2013 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction;

Pursuant to Decree No. 15/2013/NĐ-CP dated February 6, 2013 of the Government on Quality Management of Construction Projects;

Pursuant to Decree No. 12/2009/NĐ-CP dated February 12, 2009 of the Government on Project Management for Investment in Construction Works; and Decree No. 83/2009/NĐ-CP dated October 15, 2009 of the Government amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 12/2009/NĐ-CP dated February 12, 2009 of the Government on Project Management for Investment in Construction Works;

Considering the proposal of the Director of the National Construction Quality Supervision Agency and the Director of the Construction Activity Management Agency;

The Minister of Construction issues this Circular amending and supplementing certain articles in Circular No. 10/2013/TT-BXD dated July 25, 2013 detailing certain contents regarding quality management of construction projects, Circular No. 12/2013/TT-BXD dated July 31, 2013 detailing the organization of awards for construction project quality, and Circular No. 13/2013/TT-BXD dated August 15, 2013 detailing the review, examination, and approval of construction design by the Ministry of Construction,

Article 1. Amending and supplementing Circular No.10/2013/TT-BXD dated July 25, 2013

1. Amending Clause 2, Article 2 as follows:

“2. The legal representative of the investor may delegate authority to the project management board in cases where the project is directly managed by the board or to a project management consultant in cases where a project management consultant is hired to perform one or more of the tasks specified in Clause 1 of this Article, except for the task of approving the design assignment for construction works.”

2. Amending and supplementing Clause 7, Article 24 as follows:

“7. Costs for inspecting the acceptance work to put construction works into operation shall be included in the total investment cost of construction works, including costs for inspection by construction-related agencies, costs for hiring individuals (experts), and costs for hiring public institutions or organizations with appropriate expertise to conduct inspections of the acceptance work to put construction works into operation when required by construction-related agencies according to Clause 6 of this Article. Inspection costs for the acceptance work to put construction works into operation shall be defined as follows:

a) Inspection costs of construction-related agencies according to the regulations on travel expenses of the Ministry of Finance, including travel costs, lodging allowances, accommodation costs, and other costs serving the inspection work;

b) Costs for hiring experts by construction-related agencies, including travel costs, accommodation costs, and expert fees;

c) Costs for hiring public institutions or organizations to conduct inspections of the acceptance work to put construction works into operation shall be budgeted based on the volume of work performed according to the requirements of construction-related agencies and the regulations on the preparation and management of investment costs;

d) Construction-related agencies shall prepare estimated inspection costs according to current regulations, including costs specified in Points a and b of this Clause. Estimated inspection costs serve as the basis for investors to settle actual costs incurred by construction-related agencies during the inspection process.”

3. Amending Point a and Point b, Clause 2, Article 25 as follows:

“2. Construction-related agencies under the Ministry of Industry and Trade shall inspect the following works:

a) Class I and above works regardless of funding sources, including power transmission lines and substations, hydropower plants, thermal power plants, metallurgical plants, aluminum production plants, oil refining plants, gas processing plants, warehouses, and pipelines (for gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas);

b) Class II and III works of power transmission lines and substations, hydropower plants, thermal power plants, metallurgical plants, and aluminum production plants within investment projects decided by the Minister of Industry and Trade.”

4. Amending Point b, Clause 6, Article 25 as follows:

“b) Department of Industry and Trade:

- Class III and II works of power transmission lines and substations, hydropower plants, thermal power plants, metallurgical plants, and aluminum production plants, excluding works specified in Point b, Clause 2 of this Article.

- Class IV, III, and II works of oil refining plants, gas processing plants, warehouses, and pipelines (for gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas), chemical product storage plants, and industrial explosives storage plants, excluding works specified in Point c, Clause 2 of this Article.”

5. Supplementing Clause 10, Article 25 as follows:

“10. State management agencies for construction shall not conduct inspections of the acceptance work to put construction works into operation for works that have been inspected and accepted by the State Acceptance Committee for Construction Works.”

6. Amending and supplementing the classification of works in Appendix I

a) Amending Item I.1.1.2. Single-family houses underI.1.1 HousinginTable I.1 Classification of Civil Works as follows:

b) Supplementing Point d, Item I.1.2.3. Sports facilities: stadiums, training halls, and other sports facilities underSection I.1.2 Public works Industry and Table I.1 Classification of Civil Works as follows:

c) Amend Point d Clause I.1.2.5 Commercial and service facilities under SectionI.1.2 Public works Industry and Table I.1 Classification of Civil Works as follows:

d) Amend Point a Clause I.1.2.6 Information and communication facilities under SectionI.1.2 Public works Industry and Table I.1 Classification of Civil Works as follows:

đ) Amend Clause II.1.5.1 Thermal power plant (central) under SectionII.1.5 Energy works Industry and Table II.1 Classification of industrial works belonging to the main production technology chain as follows:

e) Amend Clause II.1.5.11 Transmission lines and substations under SectionII.1.5 Energy works Industry and Table II.1 Classification of industrial works belonging to the main production technology chain as follows:

g) Amend Clause III.1.3.1 Solid waste under Section III.1.3 Waste treatment Table III.1 Classification of technical infrastructure works as follows:

h) Amend Clause III.1.4.3 Cemetery under Section III.1.4 Other works Table III.1 Classification of technical infrastructure works as follows:

i) Add Clause 5 Note Part of Table I.1, I.2 and I.3; Clause 5 Note Part of Table II.1, II.2; Clause 4 Note Part of Table III.1, III.2; Note Part of Table IV with the following content:

"Earth retaining walls or loose materials structures are classified according to earth retaining wall works Section V.1.4 Table V."

k) Amend Section IV.1.3 Roads within urban areas and Section IV.1.4 Rural road works Table IV Classification of transportation works as follows:

Article 2. Amend and supplement Clause 2 Article 2 of the Regulation on Organizing Awards for Construction Quality issued together with Circular No. 12/2013/TT-BXD dated July 31, 2013, as follows:

"2. Works that have been accepted for completion and put into use for at least the warranty period for works participating in the National Award for Construction Quality; works that have been accepted for completion and put into use for the High-Quality Construction Work Award up to the time of registration for award consideration."

Article 3. Amend and supplement Circular No. 13/2013/TT-BXD dated August 15, 2013

1. Amend Point c Clause 2 Article 4 as follows:

“c) The rationality of the design to ensure cost savings in construction projects: check the consistency between the main quantities of the budget estimate and the design quantities; verify the correctness and rationality of the application of policies and regulations, the use of construction unit prices, construction norms, proportion norms, consultancy cost estimates, and other cost items, determine the value of the construction project budget; evaluate the design solutions for cost-saving construction.”

2. Amend Points a and b Clause 4 Article 5 as follows:

“4. The specialized agencies under the Ministry of Industry and Trade shall review:

a) Projects of Class I and above regardless of funding sources: power transmission lines and substations, hydropower plants, thermal power plants, metallurgical plants, aluminum production plants, oil refining plants, gas processing plants, storage facilities and pipeline systems (for gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas), hazardous chemical production and storage plants, industrial explosives production and storage plants;

b) Projects of Class II and III of the following types: power transmission lines and substations, hydropower plants, thermal power plants, metallurgical plants, aluminum production plants within investment projects decided by the Minister of Industry and Trade.”

3. Amend Point d Clause 7 Article 5 as follows:

“d) Department of Industry and Trade:

- Projects of Class III and II of the following types: power transmission lines and substations, hydropower plants, thermal power plants, metallurgical plants, aluminum production plants, except projects specified in Point b Clause 4 of this Article.

- Projects of Class IV, III, and II of the following types: oil refining plants, gas processing plants, storage facilities and pipeline systems (for gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas), hazardous chemical production and storage plants, industrial explosives production and storage plants, except projects specified in Point c Clause 4 of this Article.”

4. Add Clause 9 to Article 5 as follows:

“9. Based on the actual conditions of each locality, the People's Committee of the province may delegate the review of design for some Class III and IV projects, which fall under the responsibility of the Construction Departments and specialized construction management departments, to the People's Committee of the district, Urban Management Boards, Industrial Park Management Boards to carry out.”

5. Add Clause 10 to Article 5 as follows:

“10. When reviewing the design of road projects within urban areas, based on the corresponding authority stipulated in Clauses 1, 2, and 7 of this Article, the specialized agencies under the Ministry of Transport and the Department of Transport shall be responsible for soliciting opinions from the specialized agencies under the Ministry of Construction and the Construction Departments regarding landscaping, lighting, water supply, drainage, tunnels, and other urban infrastructure components (if applicable) to ensure coordination, improve efficiency, save costs, and protect the environment and landscape.”

6. Add Clause 11 to Article 5 as follows:

“11. Within seven working days from the date of receiving complete valid documents for soliciting opinions as stipulated in Clause 10 of this Article, the specialized agencies under the Ministry of Construction and the Construction Departments shall provide their opinions in writing to the specialized agencies under the Ministry of Transport and the Department of Transport.

If beyond the aforementioned period, the specialized agencies under the Ministry of Construction and the Construction Departments do not provide written opinions, the specialized agencies under the Ministry of Transport and the Department of Transport have the right to notify the results of the design review for urban roads to the project sponsors. The specialized agencies under the Ministry of Construction and the Construction Departments shall bear responsibility for failing to provide their opinions.”

Article 4. Transitional Provisions

1. For investment projects to construct works decided on for investment before this Circular takes effect, the level of the work within the project shall be determined according to the Investment Decision;

2. For investment projects to construct works decided on for investment after this Circular takes effect, the level of the work within the project shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of this Circular.

Article 5. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from September 1, 2014.

2. In the course of implementation, if there are difficulties, organizations and individuals shall send their opinions to the Ministry of Construction for consideration and resolution./.