Certification and Independent Assurance Unit

This page has been created to assist manufacturers, who have products used on VTrans projects, with certification requirements. It is the intent to clarify, for the manufacturer, what product information is required and the differences between each type of certification. Manufacturers can find material requirements in the VTrans specifications at the following link:

http://www.aot.state.vt.us/conadmin/2006StandardSpecs.htm  

Links are available to download the project specific certification form required for products, and an instruction page is available to help guide manufacturers through the certification form.

Below is an excerpt from the “2006 Standard Specifications for Construction” outlining certification requirements and definitions:

700.02 MATERIALS CERTIFICATIONS

(a) General. When these Specifications require a certification, the certification will be approved prior to use of the material, unless otherwise directed by the Engineer. In all cases, certifications must be approved prior to payment.

All material used on the basis of a materials certification may be sampled and tested at any time. The fact that a material is used on the basis of a certification shall not relieve the Contractor of responsibility for incorporating material in the work which conforms to the requirements of the Contract and any such material not conforming to such requirements will be subject to rejection whether in place or not.

New materials, purchased by the Contractor for use on an Agency contracted project, may be used on another Agency project. To do this, the Contractor must submit a sworn statement certifying such materials were part of the quantity purchased for use on another project. The sworn statement must identify the project and certify that the certifications were furnished to the Agency covering such materials for that project.

When Agency approval is given for Working Drawings under the requirements of Section 105 and the referenced drawings have identified a component of an item by a specific product name and/or number, the Engineer may waive all or part of any certification requirements for that particular product. The Agency reserves the right to refuse the use of materials where acceptance is based only on certification. Within each Subsection, materials designated to conform to another Subsection shall require the certification type of the referenced Subsection.

For steel and iron materials, the following requirements shall apply:

(1) To comply with Buy America provisions, a manufacturer must certify that all manufacturing processes have occurred in the United States. To identify a chain of custody documentation trail that the product meets the Buy America provisions, each supplier or fabricator involved in a product will be required to include in its certification a statement that each process performed by them was entirely done in the United States. All certifications shall be forwarded to the Vermont Agency of Transportation Materials and Research Section.

1. Type A:  Type A Certification shall certify that the component materials, manufacturing operations and/or finished products conform to all requirements of the Agency of Transportation, State of Vermont, pertinent project plans, special provisions and specifications for the contract item or items indicated.

2. Type B:  Type B Certification shall certify that the material is in conformance with the requirements of the Agency of Transportation, State of Vermont, current specifications, and is of the same formulation as that previously approved by the Agency.

3. Type C:  Type C Certification shall consist of certified test results showing actual chemical and/or physical analysis of material used in the manufacture of products delivered to the project.

4. Type D:  Type D Certification shall consist of both a Type A Certification and a Type C Certification.

5. Type E:  Type E Certification shall consist of both a Type A Certification plus a certification prepared by the manufacturer indicating test results of the physical and/or chemical properties of discrete, identifiable quantities of material.  The manufacturer's measured test values will be compared against independent assurance test results.

Advanced Certification.  Manufacturers of materials requiring either a Type A or Type B certification may submit their certifications annually at the beginning of each calendar year. Products whose certifications meet the requirements will be included on a list of materials with advanced certification.  Materials included on that list will not require separate certification for each contract that year.

The Agency reserves the right to remove any manufacturer's product from the List of Materials with Advanced Certification at any time for just cause.

STAFF:

Chris Rea

C. and I. A. Supervisor

802-828-6923

Brennan Earls

Certifications Technician

802-828-6912

Jeff Brown

I. A. Technician

802-828-6913

John Domey

I. A. Technician

802-828-6914

James Marshall

I. A. Technician

802-828-6914

Unit Manager:

Chad Allen, P.E.

Quality Engineer

802-828-6924

Section Manager:

802-828-3751

Comments?  Email Steve Jeffrey.