Division 31: Earthwork for Building Product Manufacturers

For a broad, role-neutral explanation of the scope and its coordination boundaries, start with [CSI MasterFormat Division 31: Earthwork](/MasterFormat-division-31-earthwork). This page focuses on how building product manufacturers apply that division in practice.

How Building Product Manufacturers Use Division 31 – Earthwork

Core system for guide specifications, product page section numbers, submittal packages, and any content organized by CSI divisions that specifiers and contractors rely on. Division 31 is one of the divisions that building product manufacturers encounter most frequently in practice. The sections within Division 31 define the products, execution methods, and quality standards that building product manufacturers must reference, review, or author.

Key sections within Division 31 include: - 31 10 00 – Site Clearing - 31 20 00 – Earth Moving - 31 23 00 – Excavation and Fill - 31 25 00 – Erosion and Sedimentation Controls - 31 30 00 – Earthwork Methods

These sections shape how building product manufacturers publish guide specifications using MasterFormat numbers and titles. When section numbers are outdated or inconsistent, the downstream impact on building product manufacturers is immediate: product data that doesn't match specifier expectations.

Division 31 in the Building Product Manufacturers Workflow

Companies creating or distributing product content with CSI classifications—including PIM systems, eCatalogs, guide specs, BIM families, and sales tooling. Within this scope, Division 31 plays a specific role:

1. Documentation — Building Product Manufacturers publish guide specifications using MasterFormat numbers and titles. Division 31 sections must be correctly numbered and titled in every document that references them.
2. Coordination — Division 31 scope intersects with other divisions on every project. Building Product Manufacturers need consistent classification to coordinate earthwork work with adjacent trades and disciplines.
3. Quality — Maintaining accuracy in Division 31 references prevents costly errors during construction administration.

Pain Points Building Product Manufacturers Face with Division 31

• Product data that doesn't match specifier expectations — When Division 31 section references are affected by product data that doesn't match specifier expectations, the result is rework, RFIs, or coordination failures that building product manufacturers must resolve.
• BIM families with outdated classification tags — When Division 31 section references are affected by BIM families with outdated classification tags, the result is rework, RFIs, or coordination failures that building product manufacturers must resolve.
• Inconsistent section numbering across catalogs — When Division 31 section references are affected by inconsistent section numbering across catalogs, the result is rework, RFIs, or coordination failures that building product manufacturers must resolve.

These issues compound across projects. A single incorrect Division 31 section number in a team's template can propagate across every project that uses that template.

Division 31 Cross-References for Building Product Manufacturers

UniFormat: Division 31 maps to UniFormat G (Sitework)—the site preparation work that precedes building construction.

OmniClass: OmniClass Table 22 (Work Results) includes earthwork results; Table 13 (Spaces by Function) covers site spaces.

Understanding these connections helps building product manufacturers maintain consistency when Division 31 work touches UniFormat elements or OmniClass classifications in their deliverables.

Why Building Product Manufacturers Need Current Division 31 Data

CSI Dynamic Standards includes Division 31 as part of a connected, edition-aware system—licensed through The Construction Standard. For building product manufacturers, this means always-current section numbers and titles for Division 31, governed cross-references to UniFormat and OmniClass, and edition tracking that prevents referencing obsolete classifications in building product manufacturers deliverables.