CONTRACT
This agreement made and entered into this ____ day of ____ in the year one thousand nine hundred and ____ by and between the City of ____ by its duly constituted or elected authorities herein acting for the City of ____ without personal liability to themselves, party of the first part, hereinafter designated as the City, and ____ party of the second part hereinafter designated as the Contractor.
Witnesseth, that the parties to these presents each in consideration of the undertakings, promises and agreements on the part of the other herein contained, have undertaken, promised and agreed, and do hereby undertake, promise and agree, the party of the first part for itself, its successors and assigns, and the part ____ of the second part for ____ and ____ heirs, executors, administrators and assigns as follows, to-wit:
Art. I. To be bounden by all the articles of the General, Technical, and Special Specifications applicable, and by the terms of the Advertisement, Information and Instructions for Bidders, Proposal and Contract Drawings hereto attached, and which are understood and acknowledged to be an integral part of this contract.
Art. II. The work to be completed under this contract is ____
Art. III. The City shall pay and the Contractor shall receive as full compensation for everything furnished and done by the Contractor under this contract, including all work required but not specifically mentioned in the following items, and also for all loss or damage arising from the nature of the work aforesaid, or from the action of the elements, or from any unforeseen obstruction or difficulty encountered in the prosecution of the work and for well and faithfully completing the work as herein provided, as follows:
Then follows a copy of the Proposal with the prices bid. The contract closes with the final clause:
In witness whereof the said City of ____, party of the first part have hereunto set their hands and seals, and the Contractor has also hereunto set his hand and seal and the party of the first part and the Contractor have executed this agreement in duplicate, one part to remain with the party of the first part and one to be delivered to the Contractor this ____ day of ____ in the year one thousand nine hundred and ____
City of ____
____
____
Contractor ____
____
____
117. The Bond.—The bond called for in the Information and Instructions for Bidders is bound in the pamphlet following the Contract. No uniform practice is followed in the amount of the bond required. It varies from 50 to 100 per cent of the contract price and may be stated as a lump sum before the contract price is known. There is a possibility that the Contractor may fail before he has commenced work and the City may be unable to procure another contractor to take up the work. The City should then be protected by a 100 per cent bond. Such a contingency is remote. The Contractor seldom fails until work is well under way, and other contractors are usually available, although the failure of one contractor tends to increase the bids of other contractors for the same work. In fixing the amount of the bond the judgment of the Engineer is called into play in order that the amount may be as low as possible in fairness to the Contractor, and high enough to protect the interests to the City. By reducing the amount of the bond the expense to the City is also reduced as the City ultimately must pay its cost.
Upon the acceptance of the bond and the execution of the Contract, the Engineer’s duties take him out of the designing office and into the construction field.
CHAPTER XI
CONSTRUCTION
118. Elements.—The principal elements in construction are: labor, materials, tools, and transportation. The lack of or inadequateness of any one of these detracts from the effectiveness of the others. The engineer should assure himself of the completeness of his plans or those of the contractor on each of these points. The disposition of labor and the handling of materials to obtain the largest amount of good with the least expenditure of money and effort are problems which must be solved by the engineer or the contractor during construction.