How the two documents fit together
The CCTB carries the general technical content. The particular specification carries what is specific to the contract.
| Document | What it contains |
|---|---|
| The framework | general technical prescriptions, organised by element |
| The particular specification | clarifications, additions and derogations specific to the contract |
| The bill | the items retained, with quantities and units |
All three must correspond. An item in the bill without a selected element, or a selected element without an item, are two forms of the same error, covered in the article on matching specification and measurement.
What the particular specification does
Three operations, and only three.
It clarifies. The framework leaves choices open: materials, finishes, performance. The particular specification settles them for the project.
It adds. Some works do not appear in the framework, being either too specific or too new. The particular specification then describes them in full.
It derogates. Where a provision of the framework does not suit the contract, the particular specification sets it aside. That operation is the most sensitive and follows particular rules, covered in the article on clarifications, additions and derogations.
What the particular specification should not do: copy. Reproducing a text from the framework unchanged creates a duplicate, and a duplicate creates a risk of divergence as soon as the framework evolves.
The order of operations
Five steps, in this order, each conditioning the next. The order is not indifferent and is kept without exception.
1. Fix the version of the framework. It will be cited in the documents and determines everything else. This is covered in the article on the annual update.
2. Select the applicable elements within the classification, following the structure of the framework rather than a personal order.
3. Prepare the bill from that selection, not the reverse. A bill built independently almost always produces items without prescription.
4. Draft the clarifications, additions and derogations, tying them explicitly to the elements concerned.
5. Check the correspondence between the selection, the bill and the texts drafted.
Step three is the one most often reversed, by starting from a bill taken from an earlier project. That is the principal source of inconsistency.
Frequent errors of method
Four configurations recur regularly.
Starting from an earlier particular specification. The practice is understandable but dangerous: the document reused may refer to an outdated version and contain derogations whose rationale has disappeared.
Copying the framework into the particular specification. That turns a citation document into a self-contained one without its advantages, and freezes a text that would otherwise have continued to evolve.
Derogating without saying so. A provision contrary to the framework, written without being identified as a derogation, creates a contradiction the hierarchy of documents will have to settle.
Leaving choices open. A selected element whose options have not been settled leaves the contractor a latitude that will be paid for in discussion.
The role of the hierarchy of documents
A contractual point worth settling at drafting stage. It concerns the status of derogations from the framework.
Contract documents can contradict one another, however much care is taken. The contract must therefore say which prevails.
Practice holds that the more specific document prevails over the more general, hence the particular specification over the framework. But that order must be written, not assumed.
In its absence a contradiction is resolved by interpretation, which is the worst scenario, since each party will have a defensible reading.
The articles in this branch
The article on parts and site sequence presents the structure of the framework and its logic. The structure in ten parts is set out there.
The article on clarifications, additions and derogations details the three operations and their rules. Their documentary regime is specified there.
The article on the catalogue of reference documents covers the standards and texts cited by the framework. It lists the standards and documents the framework invokes.
This article reflects principles of professional practice at the date of checking and serves as orientation. It does not constitute legal advice and does not replace consulting the applicable framework.