"Dealing with Architects who Spec Non-Existent Products" is the topic for a roundtable discussion at next month's convention of the Ceiling and Interior Systems Contractor Association (CISCA). I understand the problem CISCA is trying to address; I have seen project specifications with:

Discontinued products.
Products that exist, but are not produced by the named manufacturer.
Model numbers combined with descriptions or performance requirements that don't match.
Customizations that require entirely new sets of tooling.
Errors in naming or describing products.

I recommend two ways for a contractor to deal with this:

1. Submit a request for clarification during the bidding process.
2. Ask a product rep to make a call on the specifier.