Quality Assurance

Collage Image for Highway Design's Quality Assurance Branch Header

QUALITY ASSURANCE RESPONSIBILITIES

Charged with looking for opportunities to improve the design of projects and the project development process
QAB administers the following programs: Value Engineering, Constructability Review, and Post Construction Review
Value engineering studies and constructability reviews charged with looking for opportunities to improve the design of projects and the project development process

VALUE ENGINEERING

Started in 1995, the Value Engineering program allowed a way to look at projects with a fresh set of eyes to see if there are potential ways to improve the project or reduce unnecessary costs while still meeting desired design objectives.

Value Engineering Change Proposals image link

CONSTRUCTABILITY REVIEW

Recognizing that constructability challenges with highway construction projects are obstacles to the Cabinet's goals, this program works in coordination with the Project Managers to intercept and resolve constructability issues prior to letting. As appropriate, constructability reviewers are involved througout the design phase of each project.

Past Project Constructability Comments image link

Tools for Applying Constructability Concepts to Project Development image link

If you have ideas on how to improve the resources provided here, would like additional information, or have a constructability concern you would like us to include in our reviews, please email us at quality.matters@ky.gov. We are better because of you.

POST CONSTRUCTION REVIEW

The Post Construction Review (PCR) Program is a way for designers and construction staff to learn from actual project experiences. Following the completion of a highway or bridge project, the Quality Assurance Branch (QAB) hosts a meeting to discuss these experiences. Participants include the professionals involved in the design and construction: KYTC staff, design consultant, and construction contractor.

PROJECT SELECTION
The PCR Coordinator works closely with each district to select projects that merit a review. Generally, the PCR Program targets projects that have been open to traffic for a year and have construction costs greater than $1 million. QAB’s goal is to review between two and four projects per year for every district.

INFORMATION GATHERING
QAB facilitates the discussion about issues that arose, solutions that were implemented, and recommendations that could lead to improvements on future projects. This information is compiled and shared back with participants in a document called a Fact Sheet. In addition, the collection of data from all reviews is available in a spreadsheet to use for trend analysis and overall learning.

ELEVATED ISSUES
During a PCR, sometimes an issue is identified as needing additional attention. QAB flags them with a title of an Elevated Issue (EI.) An EI may warrant further consideration for potential policy or standard changes. It may also be a lesson learned that is worthy of sharing in the Quality Matters Newsletter.

To request a Post Construction Review, please fill out the form here.

LESSONS LEARNED

One of the primary functions of the Quality Assurance Branch is gathering feedback from various stakeholders involved in the development of KYTC road projects. This information is collected and compiled in the Lessons Learned Database.

LESSONS LEARNED DATABASE

equipped with GIS mapping feature - allows for tracking and analyzing patterns
tool for reviewing historical information and identifying trends
resource for finding readily available solutions to common design and construction obstacles
contains information from: