Week 2: Day 4

Commercial Management of The Construction Process

On Wednesday, we got to learn more about the commercial side of the construction management. In the first lecture of the day, Mr Andrew Mcleish, commercial manager at DCC, explained to us how a traditional contract is usually formed: In short, it all starts with an offer from the client, accepted by the Contractor. Both parties will then consider the conditions of the project and work on creating legal relations. Now before any traditional contract is made, a design should be developed by the client and architect and then a feasibility study must be made by the contractor to choose the best projects to work on for which bidding documents will be prepared. The tender stage, from submission of pre-qualifications and tender to the selection of the contractor and the contract award were all discussed in details. Also the post contract period was discussed including  the interim payments, the work documentation, the defects liability period, etc..

Mr Andrew explaining the offer and acceptance process.

After lunch, a second lecture was given by Mr. Chris Battle, also a commercial manager at DCC. 

In this lecture, we discussed the alternative types of procurement such as design and build, turnkey, guaranteed maximum price, partnering contracts, etc.. Important aspects of any contract like the bonds and financial instruments, the contract terms, the measurement provisions and the program of works were considered. Mr Chris ended his lecture in a remarkable way where he gave us useful tips on how to write a CV and a cover letter, and how to do an interview.