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The New Engineering Contract (NEC) is a series of contracts planned and structured to manage a project, particularly a civil or construction engineering project right from the foundation level to the closing phase of the construction project. These contracts are explained and documented in plain and simple English language and designed in a structure that is easy to comprehend.
The essential rudiments needed for the agreement to be a legally enforceable contract are mutual concur, expressed by a valid offer and acceptance; sufficient consideration; capacity; and legality.
The core principles of New Engineering Contract are flexibility, minimalism and precision and a stimulus for excellent management
Evolution of NEC:
NEC contracts were introduced in 1993 with the intent to mitigate pricey disputes in construction projects. As conventional NEC contracts had a number of hinder that led to an upsurge in conflicts of interest and dispute rates, therefore, UK Institute of Civil Engineering introduced a new NEC to replace the traditional contracting methods. NEC contracts are authorized by both the government and industrial units. They are identified for helping to deliver large-scale projects successfully.
The second edition of the NEC Engineering and Construction Contract was introduced in 1995. This included a professional services contract and an adjudicator’s contract designed to settle disputes.
The world witnessed the publication of the NEC3 contract range in 2005. The new contract successfully delivered plenty of work, services and supplies around the world.
NEC4 was launched in 2017 with restructured contracts and development in flexibility, clarity and ease of use.
Contract documents related to NEC
- Form of agreement
- Conditions of contract
- Contract data
- Bill of quantities
- Statement of work
- Site information
Why NEC for the construction industry?
NEC is a standard contract designed with best practices to be employed in project management. It is also identified as a collaborative approach to risk management associated in every commercial construction project.
Benefits of NEC training in the construction industry:
- NEC adaptation for a project not only enhances the working relationship between the clients and the contractors but also ensures effective management of the relationship between the working parties.
- Different types of work under construction projects use NEC contracts. NEC training gives a synopsis of the different types of contracts existing with the NEC4 suite of contracts. The training helps in classify and categorise all types of risks and hazards a project can impose and instead of distributing risk to various stakeholders, the training helps in efficiently dealing with these risks.
- NEC training allows a person to work flexibly with parties adopting a contracting system
- NEC training gives clear and brief assistance on communications required between the parties and the process for dealing with alterations and evolutions. There is complete transparency in terms of costs, programs and risks.
- NEC contracts facilitate the working parties to work collaboratively under a commitment to act ‘in a spirit of ‘mutual trust and cooperation’. This means both parties are obliged to inform each other of any unforeseen situations which may affect the cost, program and quality and then work together to minimise the impact.
- If people who work in commercial construction projects undergo NEC training can jointly administer and resolve risks involved in a project.
NEC training majorly covers time-conscious bursts of information, relevant to a company’s projects and contracts.
David Prior
David Prior is the editor of Today News, responsible for the overall editorial strategy. He is an NCTJ-qualified journalist with over 20 years’ experience, and is also editor of the award-winning hyperlocal news title Altrincham Today. His LinkedIn profile is here.
