Training and Certification of Construction Inspectors for Transportation Infrastructure (2023)

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1 SUMMARY Construction inspectors (CI) are the frontline workforce that ensures the work on transportation infrastructure projects meets the design and contract requirements and that the finished product meets or exceeds the quality standards. Quality work during construction helps increase the lifespan of transportation assets, which increases the value for both transportation agencies and the taxpayers’ investment. However, there is a growing concern in the transportation construction industry about the inspection process due to the declining availability of well-trained and experienced CIs. The current challenge of declining availability of CIs for transportation infrastructure emulates a much larger issue of construction worker shortages in general across the industry. The retirement of the generation that built the U.S. interstate system was followed by periods of recessions where pressures on governments forced state transportation agencies (STAs) to cut budgets and reduce their in-house workforce. The result is that fewer STA employees possess less experience while managing more complex transportation infrastructure construction projects. This web-only document details the process for developing NCHRP Research Report 1027: Guide to Recruiting, Developing, and Retaining Construction Inspectors (hereafter, Guide) that presents a systematic process to establish and maintain the career development of CIs as an integral asset to the transportation infrastructure sector. The Guide provides assistance that allows STAs to select, align, create, and tailor core competency training, education, certifications/qualifications, and career development to meet evolving and expanding needs of construction inspectors. The Guide was created using a two-phased approach. In Phase I of this study, as in the initial effort of the Guide, the research team conducted a comprehensive literature review to investigate the current practices and processes used for education, training, certification, and development of transportation CIs. The Rapid CI Review Deliverable provided the initial literature review that the NCHRP Project Panel has previously reviewed. The research team then surveyed STAs, including members of the AASHTO Committee on Construction and the AASHTO Committee on Materials and Pavement. A total of 57 responses represented by staff from 46 STAs were collected for the STA survey. Simultaneously, the consultant questionnaire survey was distributed to third-party construction consultant firms. A total of 30 responses were recorded, representing 26 different consultant firms that provide consultant inspectors to 45 states. Next, the research team conducted three focus group interviews that included a total of 21 participants. The first focus group collected data on education requirements, core competencies, training programs, and certifications for CIs from eight training and certification personnel representing four STAs and one industry organization. The second focus group collected data on recruiting and retaining CIs from nine HR personnel representing eight STAs. The third focus group collected data on training, certification, development, and career paths of CIs from five construction inspectors representing five consultant inspection firms. Finally, the research team conducted 13 interviews (six STA and seven consultant interviews). The primary findings from Phase I of this study are as follows: • Core Competencies o Transportation CIs are tasked with inspecting on-site construction and workmanship, testing materials, and documenting results. Other responsibilities

2 include inspecting source materials and plant operations and verifying quantities for contractor payment. o Common knowledge, skills, and abilities that represent core competencies that CIs should possess include:  Personal effectiveness competencies: Professionalism, Integrity, Interpersonal skills;  Academic competencies: Reading comprehension and basic math;  Workplace competencies: Problem-solving/decision-making, Safety, Planning and organizing, Teamwork; and  Technical competencies: Experience in inspecting, testing materials, and documenting work; Knowledge of quality assurance principles; Knowledge of construction materials; Knowledge of construction means and methods; Ability to comprehend plans, specifications, and contract provisions; Understand agency regulations, policies, and procedures; Able to work with construction and inspection tools and technologies. • Education and Training o CI minimum education requirement is high school or equivalent; o Common CI training methods include on the job and classroom training; o Virtual training is used for CIs and increased in use during the COVID-19 pandemic; o Mentoring is underutilized for educating newer CIs; o CIs are cross-trained to perform inspections in all areas of transportation infrastructure projects; o STAs are training their CIs to use technologies for inspections; and o A primary challenge in training CIs is training conflicts with work schedules. • Qualification and Certification o All STAs require in-house certifications; o Standards used for testing of materials vary among STAs, which makes it challenging to have reciprocity across state lines to perform inspections; o Common external certification used by STAs is American Concrete Institute (ACI) for concrete work; o Regional certification programs may be possible based on AASHTO regions for specific inspections and materials; and o Re-certifications are typically required every three to five years for all CIs. • Career Development o Factors that help recruit new CIs include stable employment and offering various benefits; o STAs typically offset shortages of in-house CIs with third-party consultant firms or risk-based inspections; o CI turnover rate is unknown at most STAs. Those STAs that do track this have a 5- 15% annual turnover of CIs; and o Factors that help retain CIs include better salaries, promotions, and flexible work schedules. In Phase II of this study, the research team developed a draft of the Guide. The NCHRP panel reviewed the draft Guide, and the research team vetted the Guide content with three STAs and one group of industry professionals. The research team coordinated the participants’ topic area-specific

3 feedback across the Guide to confirm and promote consistency and continuity. Based on the critiques obtained, the general concept of the Guide was acceptable and judged helpful for STAs. The format and layout of the Guide evolved and were improved based on comments from the workshops. The Guide content addresses the following paths of workforce development: (1) Inspector Need and Recruitment, (2) Core Competency Assessment, (3) Training and Certification, and (4) Retention and Career Development. The critical lessons learned from the development of the Guide can be summarized as follows: For the recruitment of construction inspectors, strategies for STAs to consider are as follows: • Recruitment of construction inspectors begins with the STA identifying the need for inspectors based on current workforce size and skillsets and the scope and size of forecasted transportation construction work. Identifying the need helps the STA know the inspection workforce that will be needed and whether those inspectors are hired internally or if the STA hires a third-party consultant inspection firm. • The STA should advertise open construction inspection positions and implement recruitment strategies to find quality candidates. Recruitment factors and incentives include appealing job positions, education support/tuition reimbursement, health benefits, paid time off, promotion opportunities, retirement benefits, a streamlined application process, stable employment, and working as a public servant. • As candidates apply for open inspector positions, their application is evaluated for education and experience and how those align with the skillsets needed to perform construction inspection responsibilities. • A qualified candidate is provided employment opportunity and placed into an entry-, intermediate-, or advanced-level construction inspection position. For core competencies of construction inspectors, strategies for STAs to consider and adapt are as follows: • Determine the roles and responsibilities for all construction inspection positions. The roles and responsibilities are crucial to evaluating whether an inspector possesses the correct Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) for the position. • Determine the core competency and associated KSAs an inspector needs to be proficient in to perform the associated responsibilities. • Align core competency requirements with CI position responsibilities. • Consider the skills and knowledge an inspector will need to perform responsibilities using technologies. Skillsets are diversifying due to the changes in processes to perform construction inspections on transportation projects. • Each inspector should be provided necessary training based on the core competency assessment and identifying gaps in KSAs that an inspector needs. Each KSA's proficiency is based on current knowledge and skills, along with the STA providing training to address gaps. For training of construction inspectors, strategies for STAs to consider and adapt are as follows: • When inspectors need training, the STA should develop a training plan that provides information on the source of training, the type of training, and the modality of how it will

4 be presented and received. Various training options exist internally at STAs as well as at external sources. • Each inspector should develop a training path based on their position level, experience, and proficiency in academic, technical, workplace, and personal effectiveness competencies. A logical and well-defined training path promotes a specific progression of desired and required training. Training tied to career paths clearly shows inspectors how they will advance in their inspection career at the transportation agency. • On-the-job training is one of the primary training methods used for construction inspectors. When staffing permits, STAs should have less experienced inspectors shadow experienced inspectors in the field, devote as much time as possible to instruct the trainee, and develop specific KSAs that experienced inspectors can communicate and teach to trainee inspectors. • Technical development should entail inspectors gaining proficiency in the technical competencies to perform inspection duties accurately and efficiently. Career development includes coursework and applications that allow inspectors to gain KSAs and advancement to higher level inspection positions. • STAs should update training programs and needs to meet the demand of the construction inspector’s responsibilities. STAs need to review training materials regularly and update them as needed, based on the STA’s inspector needs and their current and upcoming workload. • STAs must ensure that trainers are appropriately trained to facilitate construction inspection learning. Provide appropriate training as is necessary to the trainers. For certification/qualification of construction inspectors, strategies for STAs to consider and adapt are as follows: • Certification processes and programs vary across STAs. While STAs commonly use a few national certification organizations, most certifications/qualifications come from internal STA programs and external regional organizations. • Development of regional certifications for inspection reciprocity is possible but challenging. STAs and their neighboring states should compare their certification programs to find commonalities and make changes to align their construction inspection certifications. Reciprocity allows inspectors to cross state lines to perform inspections for more than one STA to offset inspection staff shortages. STAs should also consider sharing inspectors internally across the STA’s districts/regions. • Recertification programs should consider conducting annual audits of the inspector’s KSAs; implementing short or abbreviated course(s) and exam(s); using condensed training and examination based on performance; and requiring recertification at larger intervals, such as eight to ten years. For retention and career development of construction inspectors, strategies for STAs to consider and adapt are as follows: • Factors that help STAs retain construction inspectors are: aligning expectations, annual reviews, bonuses, career paths, cross training, education support, mentoring programs, paid time off, pay/salary raises, professional development, promotions, recognition of work, reimbursement for certification exams, relocation assistance, rotational programs, compassion, and work-life balance.

5 • Informal continuing education opportunities include: peer-to-peer exchanges on new methods, software, and other tools; providing inspectors with new job duties or projects that expand current individual skills; cross training employees and providing self-paced learning options; and reading trade publications. • Formal continuing education opportunities include: (1) obtaining required inspection certifications (e.g., grade and drain, materials) as well as continuing education requirements for professional certification or licenses; (2) peer exchanges organized by regional and national groups such as AASHTO; (3) obtaining advanced college degrees; (4) taking advanced certification courses in technical and managerial skills; and (5) networking through regional and national organizations for continuing education and attending workshops. • STAs need to consider the institutional knowledge for construction inspection and how to manage that knowledge when experienced inspectors leave the STA. Knowledge management specific to construction inspection should be a part of the STA's overall knowledge management process/protocol. • Internships should be considered for high school and college-level students to show them the potential of a career in transportation construction, specifically for inspection careers. • Informal or formal mentoring provides less experienced and knowledgeable inspectors with access to resources and more experienced inspectors so that a mentee inspector can gain KSAs from the knowledge and experience of the mentoring inspector and engineer. • STAs should establish clear career path progression for construction inspection positions. If career paths already exist, STAs need to ensure that construction inspectors know these paths and the requirements for promotion and advancement.