Saving time, money and any confusion – we give a basic guide to change management tools & strategy…
When it comes to writing about Quantity Surveying – it’s important to understand that it’s all in the details: What would be common knowledge to those in the field, might be completely unknown to everyone else. For this reason, we would like to clear up some jargon before delving into further details.
Change management is a strategy put in place to protect both parties if any changes are made to the requirements of the contract and project.
In construction, there are many variables to consider, and it is very possible that changes will be made to the likes of drawings, materials and site conditions, to name a few. Regardless of the reason for change, a contractor must have a change management strategy put in place to prevent any confusion and financial difficulties. So now you know what change management is – what’s involved? A change management strategy is made up of tools which fall into two divisions; upline and downline.
Upline is where there is a change from the contractor to the client or design team, and require the following:
• Site Diary
• Labour/ day worksheets
• Confirmation of Verbal Instruction (CVI’s)
• Revised programmes
• Progress reports/minutes
• Delay letters
• Request for Information (RFI’s)
• Variation cost breakdown sheet
Downline is where there is a change from the contractor to the supply chain (I.e. Subcontractor/specialist contractor/supplier) and require the following:
• Subcontractor instruction
• Non-compliance instruction (also known as non-conformance)
• Delay notice/action (commonly known as a 7 day letter)
• Payless notice
• Payment notice
• Contractor’s Terms & Conditions
• Suitable subcontract order (short-form & long-form)
The main aim of any of these documents is to mitigate a reasonable amount of risk from the contractor in terms of time and cost – therefore it is even more important to have a good professional relationship with both the client and supplier. Should you wish to discuss the above in more detail or need assistance with any commercial aspects of your construction projects, please do not hesitate to get in touch: grant@qsadvisor.com
