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NEC3: Time to trade in?

Ten years on, the NEC3 contract works well but it is time for an upgrade, says Driver Group's Mark Wheeler.

Over the weekend, I spent several hours visiting car dealerships with the current Mrs Wheeler. We spent time at Fiat, Citroen and Audi. We both knew, however, we would be back at Mini after lunch.

She has had two minis spanning the last 10 years, and the combination of style and practicality is just right for her. So why trade in at all? Well the new one has lots of improved features, is bigger, faster and more economical.

"The NEC has its roots in big engineering projects, where a low volume of high value change needs the machinery of the contract to deal with time and money methodically and efficiently"

What on earth has this got to do with the NEC3 contract, you may ask. Well I have been using this contract for the last 10 years myself. I upgraded from NEC2 to NEC3, and I have seen some features upgraded, with revisions in 2006, 2011 and 2013, it even has a new colour scheme. But time has passed, and I would like some more upgrades. I keenly await NEC 4.

I am not really looking for heated seats. I am keen on addressing the problem of getting a programme accepted, by adding in a requirement for the Project Manager to issue a detailed list of any issues preventing acceptance. No one wants to adjudicate mid-project, and so instead of sat nav, I would like the option to have a project Dispute Adjudication Board (DAB) to cure the problems associated with programmes not being accepted and compensation events not being agreed for months on end.

The NEC has its roots in big engineering projects, where a low volume of high value change needs the machinery of the contract to deal with time and money methodically and efficiently.

However in a building project, say a grade 1 listed renovation where there might be a very high volume of very low value change, this machinery can grind to a halt. If you are a Contractor with 50 compensation events to price; and you do not know if all, none, or some will be accepted, the estimation of time impact can be near impossible. The precise time when an instruction will be given is also often impossible to predict.

"The precise time when an instruction will be given is also often impossible to predict."

The interaction of various of those events, in whatever combination they may be instructed, and when they are instructed becomes unfathomable to predict. This means the Contractor has to price the worst case for each item, and the Project Manager ends up making his own assessment.

Instead of a sunroof, I would therefore like the option for the Contractor to make assumptions, in his quotations, which can be re-visited if later incorrect. For example the Contractor may say his price and time impact is based on the assumption that the instruction will be given within three weeks. At the moment only the Project Manager can make this type of assumption.

There are other options I would like to see, but this is a good start. The time is coming to add in what we have learnt in recent years, and to upgrade to the Mark IV. I will certainly be queuing outside the showroom when it arrives…

Mark Wheeler is chief operating officer - Americas, Europe & UK at Driver Group.