Planning & EstimatingQuestion 618 of 700

A grading and utility project has uncertain quantities of rock excavation that cannot be measured accurately until digging begins. Which contract type is BEST suited?

a.Lump-sum, because the total is fixed regardless of quantities.
b.Cost-plus with no fee cap for the entire project.
c.A single fixed guaranteed maximum with no measured quantities.
d.Unit-price, paying an agreed rate per unit (e.g., per cubic yard) for the actual measured quantities.

Explanation

Correct: a unit-price contract fits work with uncertain but measurable quantities; the owner pays the agreed rate for each unit actually installed or excavated. Lump-sum forces the contractor to guess the quantity and load the bid with risk. Open-ended cost-plus gives no cost control here. A fixed GMP without measuring the variable quantity does not match the uncertainty.

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