Hospital work in Columbus Ohio

[Jsloan75]

Hello,
My name is John. I have recently ran into a problem on a job at a hospital in Franklin county Ohio. My company was installing a new hot water plant and the controls for said plant were completely forgotten. I have been in a rush to complete to get plant running . My company submitted change order to engineering firm or designers. They have since came back with an excuse of why not to pay change order. They say that we did not have to run low voltage cable in conduit in mechanical rooms or up the 900 ft. Steam tunnel to 2 other buildings . They said it could have been free air application . Nothing in the old control systems even the phematics were in conduit. I have done many hospitals in past . I have never free aired low voltage in a hospital and there was a referral to the electrical code and spec conduit in mechanical rooms and steam tunnels. Does anyone know where and what code book or building guide lines this could be in so I have something to discuss in meeting on Thursday.

Thank you in advance for your help

 

[hbiss]

Nothing in the Code that requires LV to be run in conduit so it's really a design issue. Although I agree with you in doing it that way, it is something that you should have specified in the change order. That way there wouldn't be a dispute if they approved it.

-Hal

 

[peter d]

If it's not in the building specs or state/local code, you are out of luck.

 

[dkidd]

They have since came back with an excuse of why not to pay change order.

If the controls work was not in the design (contract) documents, then they don't get it for free. It might be cheaper to run without raceways (which I wouldn't do), but it still is additional material and labor, which the owner needs to pay for. The temperature and humidity in the steam tunnels would require careful consideration of the wiring methods. You shouldn't design it. That is the engineer's responsibility. Ask for an an engineered design to quote.

If I understand the situation.

 

[sameguy]

If it isn't in the bid it's extra. They can engineer it or if your Co. is capable you can design build, or hand them two cheap prepaid cell phones and tell them to have inhouse run it by hand! Reminds me of an old joke about the worlds oldest profession.