Mock 2 Flashcards
What was your connection to the basebuild project?
I was engaged to undertake the fit-out works by my client and additionally to agree landlord contributions from the basebuild project
You mention in your lessons learnt; you would make more visits to the basebuild works – Was that part of your brief? Why would you suggest you would do something that was not part of your brief? Why would you do something if you’re not getting paid for it?
My brief for this project did not include visiting the basebuild works, however on future projects I would ensure the Project Manager has scope within their fee to monitor the basebuild progress in more detail
What is the difference between defined and undefined provisional sums?
Whether the Contractor should allow for the works within their programme
Defined = described in sufficient detail that the contractor is expected to have made allowance for them in their programming, planning, and pricing preliminaries
Undefined = less well described as they refer to work which is not completely designed. As such, the contractor cannot be expected to make allowance for them in their programming, planning, and pricing preliminaries. This means the contractor may be entitled to an extension of time and/or additional payments when the actual works are undertaken.
Deferment of possession – what did the main contractor have to do in relation to that delay?
Notice of Delay - The Contractor shall notify the Employer as soon as the likely effect of a Relevant Matter on regular progress or the likely nature and extent of any loss and/or expense arising from a deferment of possession becomes (or should have become) reasonably apparent to him
Was the contractor entitled to any money & how was that calculated?
Loss & Expense – calculated by using rates from their prelims
– Prolongation Costs
– Finance Charges
– Disruption
– Cost of compiling claim
What information did you request from the contractor for additional prelims?
Breakdown of their time-related prelim costs & OH&P
What do you call that money owed to the contractor as a result of deferment of possession?
Loss & Expense
Is that how loss & expense works, you pay them the figures within the contract?
It should be their direct loss & expense; however, this can be difficult to prove, therefore, I agreed with the client and contractor to utilise the rates within the tender documents
Did you pay them their actual loss or rates from the CSA?
I agreed between the contractor and client to use rates from CSA
Are they allowed to give you peoples payslips?
Difficulties relating to GDPR
Partial Possession – what are the benefits of Partial Possession from client’s perspective?
Early use of the space
You mention an option for considering additional funding. What were the reasons you didn’t do that?
One of the key client drivers was cost, therefore the more viable solution was to consider a Value Engineering exercise
There was a significant overspend from CSA to FA, how did you monitor that?
I monitored this by issuing monthly cost reports on the project + change control procedures in place
What are some of the certificates the CA is responsible for issuing?
a. Practical Completion Certificate
b. Non-Completion Certificate
c. Valuation Certificates
d. Making Good Defects Certificate
What the consequence of a non-completion certificate?
Liquidated Damages may apply
You mention one of the VE options was an alternative programme. Can you explain what you looked at in relation to that?
As part of the tender process, I provided each tenderer the opportunity to offer an alternative programme if they thought they could provide a betterment or if the contract programme was not long enough. The appointed contractor offered a 2-week betterment of the programme, which was then instructed.
What are the benefits of the contractor of doing it two weeks quicker?
a. Save costs on prelims
b. Opportunity to complete the project and move onto another project sooner
What research did you do in relation to the alternative glazed partition supplier VE?
I reviewed the commercial impact from a cost and programme perspective
What was the outcome in relation to the glazed partitioning VE option?
Went with an alternative manufacturer which provided a £20k saving
What was the importance of the decibel ratings of these partitions?
Client was a law firm, where confidential conversations take place, therefore requirement for a high acoustically performing design
How does management contracting work?
i. Employer appoints a Management Contractor, and the Management Contractor then appoints the trades direct, through a number of works contracts
ii. Management Contractor’s remuneration is based on the cost of the works packages plus agreed fees (to cover the Management Contractor’s overheads and off-site activities)
How does construction management work?
Employer appoints separate trade contracts to carry out the works, and a construction manager to oversee the completion of the works for a fee.
What is the difference between management contracting and construction management?
Employer has a direct relationship with the sub-contractors under construction management and appoint someone to manage the project. Whereas, management contracting, the relationship is with the contractor who appoints the sub-contractors
ASOS – What was included within the tender information?
i. An invitation to tender letter
ii. The form of tender or ‘tender submission’
iii. Preliminary documents and information around pre-construction and site management
iv. Contracts and contract conditions
v. A tender pricing and specs document
vi. Design drawings and project specs
vii. Tender return form
What is a pre-construction information plan + who produces that?
Document which provides the information already in the Client’s possession, or which is reasonably obtainable, to relevant CDM Duty Holders, such as Designer(s), Contractor, or Principal Contractor
- Produced by Principal Designer
What is the content included within a pre-construction information plan?
i. Description of the project
1. Programme dates, details of client/designers
ii. Client’s considerations and management requirements
1. Security of the site
2. Welfare provisions
3. Traffic management
iii. Environmental restrictions and existing on-site risks
1. Site boundaries
2. Asbestos
iv. Significant design and construction hazards
1. Materials requiring particular precautions
v. The health and safety file
1. Description of the required format and any conditions relating to its content
ASOS - Negotiated with the phase 2 contractor – what were those reasons?
i. Exiting contractor relationship
ii. Ability to re-use rates from previous phase
iii. Contractor had knowledge of the building/lessons learnt
KN – Why did you advise single stage traditional tender?
i. Cost certainty
ii. Client retains control of the design
iii. Competitive pricing
iv. Sufficient time in the programme to enable this option
What is an Air Handling Unit in simple terms?
Piece of plant, which provide filtered/fresh air into a building
What are the benefits of an AHU?
Provides a more comfortable working environment for occupiers
Patrizia – Concealed cistern behind drywall – what is the disadvantage?
Difficult from a maintenance perspective
What are the benefits of an Integrated Plumbing System (IPS)?
i. More aesthetically pleasing
ii. Easy to access for maintenance
What is a Variable refrigerant volume system?
Type of air conditioning system which provide heating and cooling to an internal space
What is the BCIS?
i. Building Cost Information Service of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). It is described by RICS as ‘the leading provider of cost and price information to the construction industry and anyone else who needs comprehensive, accurate and independent data
How do they get their cost and price information?
By customers submitting data of recent cost and tender returns
Economist – What research did you do to establish lead times of materials as a risk?
During the pre-construction stages, I would call the suppliers and request lead in times
How did you integrate this into the risk register?
I discussed this at meetings and on the Smartsheet tracker and allocated this risk to the appropriate person (designer) to consider when selecting products
Festival House – TPI – what did you do to factor this into cost plan?
I applied the tender price index as a % to my cost plan