LARE LARE Project and Construction Management 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: During earthwork, a contractor encounters soil with a swell factor of 25%. If 800 bank cubic yards (BCY) are excavated, how many loose cubic yards (LCY) must be hauled away?
- 640 LCY
- 800 LCY
- 1,000 LCY (Correct answer)
- 1,200 LCY
Correct answer: 1,000 LCY
Loose volume = Bank volume × (1 + swell factor) = 800 × 1.25 = 1,000 LCY; swell increases volume when soil is excavated and loosened.
Question 2: A project specification requires imported topsoil to have a minimum organic matter content of 5% by weight. The contractor submits a soil test showing 3.8% organic matter and requests a waiver. What is the most appropriate response?
- Accept the soil if the contractor agrees to add compost amendments
- Reject the soil because it does not meet the minimum specification requirement (Correct answer)
- Accept the soil to avoid project delays
- Request a second soil test from a different laboratory
Correct answer: Reject the soil because it does not meet the minimum specification requirement
Specifications establish minimum performance standards; a soil failing to meet those standards should be rejected unless a formal specification modification is issued by the landscape architect.
Question 3: What is the primary purpose of a construction observation site visit by the landscape architect?
- To supervise workers and direct construction methods
- To observe work in progress and determine if it generally conforms to the contract documents (Correct answer)
- To serve as the quality control inspector for the contractor
- To manage the construction schedule on behalf of the owner
Correct answer: To observe work in progress and determine if it generally conforms to the contract documents
Observation (not supervision) involves the LA periodically observing work to evaluate general conformance with the contract documents, not directing means and methods, which is the contractor's responsibility.
Question 4: A landscape architect is preparing a cost estimate at the schematic design phase. Which estimating method is most appropriate at this stage?
- Unit price estimate based on material takeoffs
- Detailed quantity survey estimate
- Square footage or parametric estimate (Correct answer)
- Contractor bid comparison
Correct answer: Square footage or parametric estimate
Parametric or square footage estimates are appropriate at schematic design when insufficient design detail exists for unit price or quantity survey approaches.
Question 5: A landscape contractor installs irrigation pipe at 18 inches depth instead of the specified 24 inches in a freeze-prone climate. The landscape architect discovers this during an observation visit. What is the correct course of action?
- Accept the work since 18 inches is adequate in most climates
- Issue a non-conformance notice and require the contractor to reinstall at the specified depth (Correct answer)
- Recommend a design change to reduce the specification to 18 inches
- Document the deviation but allow it to avoid disrupting the schedule
Correct answer: Issue a non-conformance notice and require the contractor to reinstall at the specified depth
Non-conforming work that does not meet specifications must be rejected and corrected; in freeze-prone areas, inadequate burial depth will cause pipe damage, creating owner liability.
Question 6: Which scheduling technique shows task durations and overlaps on a horizontal bar chart without explicitly showing task dependencies?
- Critical Path Method (CPM)
- Gantt chart (Correct answer)
- PERT chart
- Precedence Diagramming Method (PDM)
Correct answer: Gantt chart
A Gantt chart displays tasks as horizontal bars against a timeline showing start/end dates and durations, but does not explicitly depict logical dependencies between tasks.
Question 7: A change order increases the contract sum by $15,000. The contractor's overhead and profit markup allowed by the contract is 15%. What is the contractor's markup on a $15,000 net cost change?
- $1,500
- $2,000
- $2,250 (Correct answer)
- $3,000
Correct answer: $2,250
The markup = $15,000 × 0.15 = $2,250; the total change order amount to the owner would be $15,000 + $2,250 = $17,250.
LARE LARE Project and Construction Management 4
During earthwork, a contractor encounters soil with a swell factor of 25%.
If 800 bank cubic yards (BCY) are excavated, how many loose cubic yards (LCY) must be hauled away?