SCHOOL OF THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT

D31PZ Contracts and Procurement Postgraduate Paper Semester 1 - 2008/09

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Answer any THREE questions. All questions carry equal marks.

Attached: Supplied

Heriot-Watt University

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Question 1 A client wants to adapt the design and build procurement route to improve the quality of design and workmanship they will receive. They are undecided between: • requiring prospective contractors to pass a pre-qualification process that assesses the contractors' design competency; or • appointing their own design team to develop a concept solution so that they can novate this solution to the successful contractor. Which of these two options would you recommend to this client? Explain why you would make this recommendation and why the alternative is not, in your view, appropriate. (33 marks)

Question 2 “When a PFI scheme is developed by negotiation with a single interested bidder, value for money cannot be achieved.” (Anon., 2008). Critically analyse the ability of the Competitive Dialogue process to address this criticism of current PFI procurement practices. (33 marks)

Question 3 A partnership structured by a partnering contract that defines a "core group" is not really a partnership. Discuss. (33 marks)

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Heriot-Watt University

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Question 4 a)

A prospective construction industry client is proposing to employ a contractor using a contract that it has written specifically for the project. Advise the client as to whether or not they should do this. Support your position with an analysis of the main risks the client would be exposed to by using its own contract rather than one of the many standard construction contract forms. (11 marks)

b)

Assume that the Client employed a Contractor using a non-standard contract written specifically for the project. Also assume that expenditure on the project has exceeded the agreed Contract Sum but the work is not yet complete and the Contractor is requesting additional payment. The Client has discovered that the contract does not provide a process for paying the Contractor extra money. Advise the Client regarding how it should respond to the Contractor's request. (22 marks)

Question 5 In a site meeting, the Contractor provides a fully-documented heads of claim requesting payment of Loss and Expense incurred as a consequence of ongoing delays in the Employer's response to a series of queries over the last three months. How should the Employer react to the provision of this document in accordance with JCT05 SBC/Q? (33 marks)

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