Question

3a. Explain to the Contractor the content requirements of the programme under the NEC4 ECC Option B and the consequences of not meeting them.

3b.By reference to Clauses in the contract mentioning the Contractor’s programme, outline its contractual significance.

Answer 1

Content requirements of the programme under NEC4 ECC Option B

It is used for the appointment of a contractor for engineering and construction work, including any level of design responsibility.

Under Option B, the bill of quantities is a ‘traditional’ bill of quantities, i.e. a document prepared by the cost consultant (often a quantity surveyor) that provides project specific measured quantities of the items of work identified by the drawings and specifications in the tender documentation.

From the employer’s specified quantities the contractor prices its rates accordingly, and bears the risk of carrying out the work at the agreed prices.

The contractor is entitled to interim payments, certified at assessment dates by the project manager as set out in the contract. The price for the work done to date is the quantity of completed work for each BoQ item multiplied by the relevant rate and a proportion of any lump sum item in the BoQ. The proportion of the lump sum items to be paid is determined by the extent to which they have been completed.

The contract contains core and secondary option clauses, the shorter schedule of cost components, and contract data.

Clauses in the contract mentioning the Contractor’s programme

This clause lists the matters which are to be shown on a revised programme. It should record the actual progress achieved on each operation and the reprogramming of future operations. It should also show the effects of implemented compensation events. If a compensation event affects the timing of future operations, the consequent alterations to the programme are to be submitted as part of the Contractor’s quotation (Clause 62.2). The revised programme should also show proposals for dealing with delays, Defects and any changes the Contractor wishes to make. Failure by the Contractor to submit revised programmes is of considerable disadvantage to the Contractor in that if a compensation event occurs, the Project Manager may assess it entirely on the basis of his own judgement. Thus it is in the Contractor’s interests to keep the programme up to date and maintain the existence of an Accepted Programme (Clause 64.2).