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By W. Scott Tidemann

by Joe Colgan

For a market whose construction projects are almost beyond imagination in terms of scale and design, the UAE’s contracting policy, when compared to the UK’s, is languishing in the past.

Whilst the UK has introduced novel forms of procurement and contract, such as PFI, PPP and the NEC, virtually all contracts in the UAE are executed using the FIDIC conditions of contract.

Both the 1987 and 1999 forms are used to varying degrees, with bespoke project requirements generally picked up in the Particular Conditions of Contract (PCCs). [Read more...]

by Joe Colgan

In his second article, Joe Colgan, senior project manager, EC Harris, follows up on the problems associated with FIDIC’s nomination clause.

FIDIC ‘99 provides for a right of objection under Clause 5.2 that is conditional upon the contractor’s receipt of an indemnity from the proposed nominated entity. [Read more...]

By Samer H Skaik

Introduction

Strategic thinking has engaged the brains of business leaders for centuries. Many books and researches have been developed to cover the strategy subject because of its importance. Organizations always seek to adopt dynamic and effective strategic management to secure proper growth and remain competitive.

Strategic management is necessary to any organisation particularly those working in construction where there is a rapidly changing environment with adverse competition and surprises which may act as serious threats to organisation stability.

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by Mukund Karnick

In his second article, Mukund Karnick, senior contracts advisor at Nakheel’s Palm Jebel Ali, broaches the topic of Nominated Subcontractors (NSC). The benefits of introducing Nominated Subcontractors (NSC) in tenders By introducing NSC in tenders, the client: [Read more...]

By Robert Palles-Clark

In my previous article for the Legal Review, I argued that, in the case of a claim for delay on a construction project, the courts are directing us towards the need for some sort of critical path analysis to be provided as part of the evidential material required to prove the claim. There are plenty of planners out there that will tell you that the use of critical path analysis for this purpose is essential. It is certainly the norm ultimately for both parties to an arbitration or litigation concerning delays to appoint planning experts and for those experts to present their critical path model and analysis of the delays contended for. In this article I thought that it would be interesting to examine some of the many problems associated with the requirement and use of such techniques. [Read more...]

Quality problems may not be raised to the level of an issue, but they are problems nonetheless and can be resolved using some of the same problem-solving techniques described in Managing Issues. Guessing the cause of the problem rarely works. A structured approach works much better. You want to not only resolve this particular problem, but you also want to understand the problem well enough so that you can identify the root cause and ensure that this particular quality problem does not occur again. [Read more...]

by Chris Larkin

The construction market in the UAE poses many challenges: the number and scale of projects have generated a tremendous demand for construction services; the weakening of the US dollar against other major currencies coupled with other inflationary factors has further increased the cost of construction; and the potential impact on the global economy caused by difficulties in the US sub-prime market has created uncertainty amongst investors. These issues give rise to particular risks for developers and contractors alike. [Read more...]