Synthesis Statement Form

Synthesis Statement Form GUIDELINES FOR SYNTHESIS STATEMENT FORMAT IN RED PROPOSED SYNTHESIS STATEMENT EXAMPLE IN BLACK Title: Preferably ten words or less Quality Assurance of Structural Materials Submitted by: Name and affiliation of submitter John Doe, XDOT Scope: SCOPE: This statement should be brief (i.e., one or two paragraphs), but there is not a limit on length. However, one-page write-ups for each recommended synthesis topic are preferred. The scope statement should describe the problem and identify the parts to be covered by the synthesis. The proposed research should be able to be accomplished in approximately 400 hours of professional time. In developing the scope of work, please note that the purpose of the synthesis series is to report on various practices in the highway or transit areas, making specific recommendations where appropriate but without the detailed directions usually found in handbooks or design manuals. For each topic, the project objectives are: (1) to locate and assemble documented information; (2) to learn what practice has been used for solving or alleviating the problems; (3) to identify all ongoing research; (4) to learn what problems remain largely unsolved; and (5) to organize, evaluate, and document the useful information that is acquired. The strategies employed by effective quality assurance (QA) programs include training and certification, statistical measures of conformance, pay adjustment factors, contractor quality control (QC) and performance-based specifications. While there is a growing body of experience showing that these strategies work well for highway construction materials, there is concern that some may be misapplied to critical components of structural work. For purposes of this proposal, structural materials are defined as any materials used in an engineered structure whose premature or unplanned failure may pose a threat to public safety. Examples include structural steel girders, structural concrete, and reinforcing bars. These materials merit the highest levels of quality assurance available. Deficiencies in their quality cannot be tolerated and are not easily corrected. It is proposed that a synthesis be made covering the experiences of transportation agencies and other construction industries, both foreign and domestic, in the application of quality assurance strategies to structural materials. The synthesis will identify QA practices that have proven effective for structural materials, as well as those that have not. It will serve as a guide to states revising the QC/QA provisions of their structural materials specifications. Information Sources (optional): Organizations, individuals, or literature references American Society of Civil Engineer's Manual on Quality in the Constructed Product, American Welding Society, American Society of Nondestructive Testing