DIVISION 26
Division 26 commercial electrical contractor
BUILT TO THE SPEC
Reading Division 26 before the price, not after award
Division 26 is the electrical section of the specification format most architects and engineers use. It sets the materials, methods, manufacturers, testing and documentation for the electrical work, and on larger or institutional projects it carries real cost that never appears on the drawings.
Required manufacturers, wiring methods, witnessed testing, extended warranties, spare parts and commissioning support are all written into the spec. A contractor who prices from the drawings alone will miss them, and the gap comes back as a dispute after award.
We read the division before pricing and state in our bid which sections we have included. Where a specified product has a lead time or availability problem, we raise it with a priced alternative early, through the proper substitution process, rather than after the submittal is rejected.
Division 26 sections that commonly carry cost
- General requirements for electrical work
- Specified wiring methods and raceway types
- Named manufacturers for gear and devices
- Testing, including any witnessed tests
- Lighting control commissioning requirements
- Warranties, spare parts and training
SCOPE OF WORK
What a specification-driven project requires
Spec review
A section-by-section read of Division 26 and the related general requirements before pricing, with inclusions stated in the bid.
Submittals
Product data and shop drawings organized to the spec’s section numbers, complete on the first submission wherever possible.
Substitutions
Formal substitution requests with equivalent products when a specified item has a lead time or availability problem.
Testing
Insulation, continuity and functional testing as the spec requires, with witnessed tests scheduled with the engineer.
Commissioning support
Working with the commissioning agent on lighting controls and other systems, and correcting items they find.
Closeout deliverables
As-builts, test reports, O&M manuals, warranties, spare parts and owner training delivered as the spec lists them.
HOW THE JOB RUNS
A specification-driven job, step by step
01
Read the division before pricing
02
Submit to the spec
03
Install and test
04
Commission and close out
COMMON QUESTIONS
Division 26 questions
It is the electrical division of the standard construction specification format. It covers materials, installation methods, testing and closeout for the electrical work on a project.
The drawings show what goes where. The specification sets what it is made of, who can make it, how it is installed and tested, and what must be delivered at the end. Much of the cost lives there.
Yes, through the substitution process the spec defines. We submit equivalent products with the documentation the engineer needs to approve them.
Yes. Lighting controls in particular are frequently commissioned by a third party, and we schedule our work and corrections around their process.
Division 27 covers communications and Division 28 covers electronic safety and security. We can carry both with the electrical, or coordinate with separate contractors who hold them.