Late Addendum Leaves Finish Schedule and Detail Inconsistent
On a 300-sheet renovation set, Addendum 3 is issued four business days before bid opening. It revises Specification Section 09 30 00 from porcelain tile to quarry tile in the main lobby and adds a 1/2-inch cement mortar bed. Finish Schedule A-601 still lists porcelain tile in the lobby, and the tile detail on A-511 shows a thin-set assembly. A mechanical consultant's drawings also carry the previous titleblock and a superseded revision date. Bidders have already sent in questions; one asks whether the bid date will move. The owner's procurement rules require addenda at least 7 days before bid opening unless all bidders receive equal notice and the change is not material. The architect's project manager wants to issue a clarifying bulletin after bid opening to avoid delaying the schedule. The tile is a $38,000 line item, and the mortar bed adds 3/8-inch floor build-up that affects door undercuts and casework.
1. Is a clarifying bulletin after bid opening acceptable here? Explain.
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No, not as a substitute for an addendum before bid opening. The change is material: it changes the tile type, adds a mortar bed, and adds 3/8-inch floor build-up that affects door undercuts and casework. A post-bid clarifying bulletin would give the successful bidder a different basis than other bidders and could support a protest. The procurement rule requires 7 days unless all bidders receive equal notice and the change is not material; here both conditions fail. The correct action is to issue a new addendum now correcting A-601 and A-511, confirm the mechanical titleblock issue, and extend the bid opening to give at least 7 days. A post-award change order is possible only after a fair bid process, not to paper over a defective set.
2. What should be issued now, and to whom?
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Issue Addendum 4 immediately. Correct the finish schedule and the tile detail, show the mortar bed and the floor build-up, and coordinate door undercut and casework base details. Confirm which mechanical sheets are current and reissue any superseded sheets with the correct titleblock and revision date. Send the addendum to all bidders simultaneously, require written acknowledgment, and extend the bid date to meet the 7-day rule. Answer the bidder's question in the addendum, not in a side email. If the owner refuses an extension, document the objection and the risk in writing.
3. What document-control steps should prevent this next time?
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Use a single addendum log and a controlled distribution list. Before issuance, check every affected sheet and specification section, not just the one named in the addendum. Reconcile consultant titleblocks and revision dates against the sheet index. After award, issue a conformed set that incorporates all addenda, and archive the bid set separately. At the next OAC meeting, review the cause of the mismatch and assign responsibility for a pre-issuance check. The goal is that every bidder prices the same documents and the contract set matches what was bid.