NEC4 Professional Service Contract / Short Contract Overview  Face-to-Face / Virtual Classroom

This one-day workshop introduces you to the common philosophies of the NEC family of contracts and focuses in more detail upon the key mechanics and provisions of the NEC3/4 Professional Services Contract (PSC).  This is the main contract that will be used to administer works between an Employer and a Consultant.

You will gain an understanding of the key aspects of PSC from both Parties perspectives. It will emphasise the importance of administering this form of contract during the life of a project rather than “leaving it in a drawer”, as being contractual should be viewed very much as being proactive rather than being considered negative.  The session will review the contract strategy options between the primary PSC options A, C, E & G as well as the choice of secondary options that are available, all of which alter the risk profile and the payment mechanisms on a given project.

The workshop will then review the key contractual clauses and mechanisms throughout the contract, including the responsibilities of the Employer/Consultant; flow of communication; early warnings; provisions for time and programme; payment; compensation events; risk and insurance and dispute avoidance. It considers how the contract, if administered as intended, should raise the level of understanding and transparency between the Parties involved and how the PSC contract can contribute to the effective management of a project to achieve the project objectives using a collaborative, transparent approach.

Attendees of this course will have a much clearer understanding of the intent of the specific contractual clauses and in practical terms begin to see how they should administer them for the benefit of all parties on a particular project.

Learning outcomes:

the philosophy and commonality amongst all the contracts within the suite of NEC3 contracts

the use and appropriate contract strategy to adopt when choosing both primary(A,C,E&G) options and secondary (X1-X20) options

appreciating the use of Contract Data and Scope

consider factors involved when preparing tender documents and assessing tender submissions

consider common amendments that are often made in the form of “Z clauses” and their potential to alter the dynamics or risk profile of an un-amended contract

roles and responsibilities of the key Parties

the important PSC clauses and processes, in particular early warning, the programme, Risk Register, communications and compensation events

Understand how to apply PSC in practice and achieve satisfactory solutions to problems