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Stephen Bamforth, Griffiths & Armour will explain the benefits of IPI at the masterclas

Integrated Project Insurance: what is it, can you benefit from it?

Next month on 17 September a free masterclass on a new form of insurance that will revolutionise site relationships is being held in London by indemnity insurance specialist Griffiths & Armour.

IPI’s claim is that it insures project risks rather than liabilities and covers everyone involved so there is no finger pointing and legal claims should anything go wrong. IPI operates on a blame-free basis and insures outcomes rather than causes; all members of the project are covered – including the client – and all rights of subrogation are waived. IPI is designed to support collaborative working and the use of truly integrated teams, helping to drive out waste, deliver innovation and provide better, more cost effective solutions to meet the needs of clients.

APPLY FOR A PLACE on the IPI masterclass being run by Griffiths & Armour on 17 September in London via Carl Evans at cevans@griffithsandarmour.com

It is the only insurance product capable of supporting BIM Level 3, according to Griffiths & Armour chief executive Stephen Bamforth, whose company developed IPI.

First trial of a project operating with Integrated Project Insurance is now underway in Dudley in the West Midlands on a scheme to build a new Centre for Advanced Building Technologies (CABTech) at Dudley College. 

The Dudley project has been approved by Cabinet Office via its Roll Out Management Group. It is also the primary nominated project under procurement trials by Innovate UK’s Technology Strategy Board. It has the support of an industry steering group and academic partner reviewing its implementation and success. 

Procurement for the project has now been completed and the alliance of consultants, specialist contractors, constructors and an overall project co-ordinator has begun the process of fusing together into an integrated and collaborative team. That team is supported by a project bank account, BIM and lean design and implementation practices.

The project has undergone a review of comparative benchmarking and availability of investment funding to establish the project cost - which has been set at £11.7M. The members of the alliance take collective responsibility for creating and delivering a solution which is fit for the purpose as set out in the strategic brief, and have to meet prioritised success criteria within agreed target cost. 

There is a collective commitment of the alliance members to control cost, with the objective of saving 15% - 20% by cutting out process waste. And there is collective accountability for completion by Spring 2017 along with gain share options for the team to inspire them to hit the performance targets.

The team are the client – Dudley College – and Metz Architects, Pick Everard, Fulcro Engineering Services, Speller Metcalf Construction and Derry Building Services.

"The initial selection of the team was not on price, but on quality," explained Pick Everard director Alastair Hamilton.

"The process was one of the most challenging we've been through, but was delivered on programme, which is very unusual in the public sector at the moment. Under the IPI model we have created a multi-party, virtual company, called the Alliance, which is contracted to deliver the new college building under an incentivised cost plus contract."

"If there is any issue with IPI, it is that it is still in its infancy and therefore there are a lot of lessons to be learned on how the process will work and how we will demonstrate value for money across the design and delivery of the new building at Dudley College," said Hamilton.

"The experiences we have on this project will be vital in helping others who adopt IPI."

You can find out more about the Dudley trial at the IPI masterclass. Contact cevans@griffithsandarmour.com for a place.

 

What is Integrated Project Insurance? Q&A with Stephen Bamforth, Griffiths & Armour

What is Integrated Project Insurance?

IPI is an innovative form of insurance that insures project risks rather than liabilities.  It operates on a blame-free basis and insures outcomes rather than causes; all members of the project are covered – including the client – and all rights of subrogation are waived.

Why is it needed?

IPI supports collaborative working and the use of truly integrated teams, helping to drive out waste, deliver innovation and provide better, more cost effective solutions to the needs of clients.  It is the only insurance product capable of supporting BIM Level 3.

Is Government supporting it?

Yes, government has committed to trialling IPI as part of its Construction Procurement Strategy.

How and why?

Government is supporting demonstration projects to show that

(a) the hoped-for savings in capital costs and procurement times can be achieved in practice; and

(b) to encourage the insurance market to create a commercially viable product that can be made available to both the public and private sectors.

How would it work?

IPI insures the integrated project team’s performance against specification, time and cost.

How would liabilities work?

Liabilities to third parties arising during the construction process are covered.  There are no internal liabilities to consider; the project 
team operates on a completely 
blame-free basis.

Who would be in charge?

A project board, including the client. There would be a light touch audit of designs by an independent party.

 

If you would like to contact Jackie Whitelaw about this, or any other story, please email jackie.whitelaw@infrastructure-intelligence.com.