CON 2440 / CON 244 / CON 2440V — Construction Contracting — DoD / DoW (DAWIA)

This course focuses on the unique issues of construction contracting — acquisition planning, contract performance management, funding, environmental concerns, construction contract language, construction contracting in a commercial setting, the Construction Wage Rate Requirements Statute, design/build, basic schedule delay analysis, constructive changes, acceleration, and construction contract quality management.

Taught live and instructor-led, the course works through the full life of a construction contract:

• The legislative history of government construction contracting law, the most recent and proposed changes affecting it, and the federal laws, regulations, and best practices that govern soliciting and administering construction contracts

• Construction acquisition planning — contrasting a construction requirement with a regular support requirement and devising a Construction Acquisition Plan under FAR Part 7, DFARS 207, and agency policy; selecting the appropriate plan type, contract type, and process; assembling the construction acquisition team; comparing funding types and the use of Government-Furnished Property; environmental planning; and the Plan of Action and Milestones (POA&M)

• Developing the construction solicitation package under FAR, DFARS, and agency policy — review purposes, contract format, UCF versus CSI solicitation formats, required social programs, whether a pre-solicitation notice is needed, and the purpose of a pre-bid or proposal conference

• Evaluating bids and proposals — determining responsiveness and responsibility, analyzing documents requiring evaluation, the sufficiency of bonds, and recommending award

• Construction contract administration and compliance — applicable construction clauses, government and contractor quality-assurance responsibilities, the essential elements of quality assurance and the three phases of quality control, the pre-construction conference, applicable labor laws, and formal partnering

• Changed conditions — the unique construction clauses, differing site conditions, the elements of constructive changes, schedule analysis to determine construction time and delay, acceleration and expediting, equitable compensation for changes, the rights and responsibilities of the parties in construction terminations, and construction claims

• Invoice and payment, and closeout — reviewing the construction schedule and processing invoices, retainage, withholding and liquidated damages, subcontractor notice of non-payment, progress payments and special costs, construction punch lists, beneficial occupancy, warranty and turnover, and the unique procedures for construction contract closeout

The course is built for application, not lecture-and-leave: through discussions, real examples, and hands-on exercises, participants build the judgment to manage a construction contract with confidence from planning through closeout. It also incorporates the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO FAR) — including how to research the updated FAR, work with the FAR Companion and Practitioner Albums, and find the Class Deviations that apply.

This course is taught by Melinda Milheim, JD, who spent her federal career in the acquisition workforce. She served as a Contract Specialist, COR, and AOR for the U.S. Navy (and later a Contract Specialist for the Department of Health and Human Services / Indian Health Service), where she worked on more than $7.7 billion in federal contracts across construction, engineering, major weapon-systems, RDT&E, IT, and medical programs. She draws on that experience, along with her law degree and MBA studies, to teach the “why” behind the “how “— so participants leave with sharper judgment, not just a stack of slides. An award-winning DAU/WarU (DAWIA and FAI) instructor, she has taught more than 1,000 federal acquisition workforce students across 20-plus agencies.

Best for: DoD/DoW acquisition workforce members assigned contract administration duties for construction contracts. This course is for DoD/DoW only, however Phoenix Canyon offers the same curriculum content for non-DoD/DoW agencies: Federal Construction Contracting — For Federal Civilian Agencies .

Format: Five-day course, delivered in person (CON 2440) or virtually (CON 2440V), covering the same competencies as the DAU/WarU CON 2440, and including approximately four hours of pre-work (to be completed no later than seven days before class start). Phoenix Canyon, a DAU/WarU Recognized Equivalent Provider, issues every attendee a certificate of completion documenting the training hours, CEUs, and CLPs earned. Eligible attendees earn 38 CLPs and 3.8 CEUs.

For DoD/DoW (DAWIA) students, Phoenix Canyon can provide course-level DAU equivalency for CLP, certification, or credential credit if requested at time of quote. CON 2440 is a required course for the DoD construction-contracting credential.

You might also consider

• Project Management for Contracting Personnel — construction contracting is project management at its most demanding; build the scheduling, risk, and stakeholder skills that keep a complex project on track.

• Revolutionary FAR Overhaul: Construction & A/E— how the FAR Overhaul reshaped the rules for construction and architect-engineer work specifically; essential for keeping your construction contracting current as the FAR changes.

• Performance-Based Acquisition — design/build and outcome-based methods are central to modern construction; learn to structure outcomes, set quality standards, and build surveillance that holds up.

Pricing is set per engagement. Contact Phoenix Canyon to request a quote.