Circular No. 13/2013/TT-BXD of August 15, 2013, providing the verification, appraisal and approval of work construction designs

MINISTRY OF CONSTRUCTION

Circular No. 13/2013/TT-BXD of August 15, 2013, providing the verification, appraisal and approval of work construction designs

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

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 15/2013/ND-CP of February 6, 2013, on quality management of construction works;

At the proposal of the director of the Construction Activities Management Agency,

The Minister of Construction promulgates the Circular providing the verification, appraisal and approval of work construction designs.

Article 1. Scope of regulation and subjects of application

1.   Scope of regulation

This Circular provides the verification, appraisal and approval of technical designs of works with three-step design, construction drawing designs of works with one-step or two- step design, and other designs following the base design as prescribed in Articles 20 and 21 of the Government’s Decree No. 15/2013/ND- CP of February 6,2013, on quality management of construction works (below referred to as Decree No. 15/2013/ND-CP).

2.   Subjects of application

State management agencies in charge of construction; work construction investors; organizations and individuals engaged in the survey, design and verification of designs of construction works; and other related organizations and individuals.

Article 2. Interpretation of terms

In this Circular, the terms below are construed as follows:

1.   Construction state management agencies assigned by ministers or chairpersons of provincial-level People’s Committees to verily work construction designs (below referred to as specialized construction agencies) include:

a/ Central-level specialized construction agencies, which are agencies under the Ministry of Construction, ministries managing specialized construction works, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of National Defense;

b/ Provincial-level specialized construction agencies, which are provincial-level Construction Departments, Transport Departments, Industry and Trade Departments and Agriculture and Rural Development Departments.

2.   Design verifiers include specialized construction agencies, and organizations and individuals capable of verifying designs in accordance with law.

Article 3. Forms of verification, contents of appraisal, and approval of work construction designs by investors

1.   For works not mentioned in Clause 1, Article 21 of Decree No. 15/2013/ND-CP:

a/ In case of one-step design: Investors shall appraise construction drawing designs and submit them together with work construction econo-technical reports to investment deciders for approval;

b/ In case of two-step or three-step design or other designs following the base design: Investors shall appraise and approve technical designs of works with three-step design, or construction drawing designs of works with two-step design and other designs following the base design.

During appraisal, investors may, when necessary, hire capable organizations or individuals to verify the contents serving the appraisal and approval of designs. The contents of hired verification comply with Points c, d, dd and e, Clause 3 of this Article.

2.   For the works mentioned in Clause 1, Article 21 of Decree No. 15/2013/ND-CP: Before approving designs, investors shall send dossiers to specialized construction agencies for verification of technical designs, for works with three-step design, or of construction drawing designs, for works with one-step or two-step design and other designs following the base design as prescribed in Articles 4 and 5 of this Circular.

3.   The contents of appraisal of construction designs by investors cover:

a/ Examining the compliance of the composition and format of the design dossier with the construction contract and law, including design explanations, design drawings, construction survey documents, and work maintenance process and with other dossiers as prescribed by relevant laws;

b/ Examining the capacity of survey and designing organizations and individuals in comparison to the requirements of the contract and law;

c/ Assessing the conformity of the design with the base design or approved design task (in case of one-step design), and with the requirements of the construction contract and relevant laws;

d/ Assessing the Suitability of the scale, technology, technical parameters and main econo-technical norms of the work;

dd/ Assessing the conformity with applicable technical regulations and main stamp

e/ Assessing the safety of structures of the whole work;

g/ Examining the compliance with regulations on environmental protection and fire and explosion prevention and fighting;

h/ Requesting the design contractor to explain and modify the design dossier based on verification opinions (if any).

4.   Approval of work construction designs:

a/ The approval of work construction design steps complies with Clauses 2 and 3, Article 20 of Decree No. 15/2013/ND-CP;

b/ Construction drawing design, including one-step designs approved by persons with investment-deciding competency must be signed for certification and appended with approval seals by investors or their authorized representatives according to the form provided in Appendix 4 to this Circular on each sheet of the drawings before being used for construction.

 5.   Persons who organize the appraisal, verification and approval of designs shall take responsibility for the results of appraisal, verification and approval.