DELAYS AND THE CONSEQUENCES AND TIME MANAGEMENT

Luise Lorenz Christina Mohr

DELAYS

Completion of a project in time and within budget is a common goal of contractor and client    Delays  money) failure of budget  disputes (time = Delayed completion of work compared to the planned/contract schedule (= loss of time)  It’s possible to make up time by working faster or rearranging the work sequence Contractor related delays are the most significant ones

GENERAL REASONS FOR DELAYS

 Delays can be caused by one or more of the following agencies: 1.

2.

3.

4.

Client and his team-mates Contractor and his team-mates Nature (i.e. earthquakes) Due to a third party (i.e. strike)

SOME REASONS FOR DELAYS

 faults in documents, designs or decisions  insufficient number of equipment  inaccurate cost or time estimation  poor site management and supervision  shortage of construction materials  incompetent project team  contractor’s/client’s financial difficulties  etc.

TYPES OF DELAY

The following types of delay help to determine the impact of a delay on the project.

1.

critical or non-critical 2.

excusable or non-excusable 3.

concurrent or non-concurrent 4.

compensable or non-compensable

1. CRITICAL or NON-CRITICAL

Critical delays:  the delay interferes with the total time frame Non-critical delays:  the delay does not interfere with the total time frame

2. EXCUSABLE or NON-EXCUSABLE

Excusable delays  delay caused by the client, e.g. the owner denies access to the site  delay caused by strike, fire, unusual weather etc.

Non-excusable delays:  delay caused by the sub-/contractor, e.g. not enough manpower on site to complete the job in time

3. CONCURRENT

Concurrent delays:  two or more delay events occur at the same time or overlap to some degree  at least one of the delays has to be caused by the contractor and one by the client Non-concurrent delays:  delays do not overlap

4. COMPENSABLE

 the client’s failure to coordinate several prime contractors  the client’s failure to provide adequate access to the project  change orders placed by the client  any interference by the client  delays caused by a third party under the control of the client

CONSEQUENCES

The claim depends on the cause of the delay, which must be identified. Therefore the responsibility is being clarified.

Possible Claims:  Time extensions (for the contractor)  Financial compensations (for client and contractor)

FOLLOW-UP For the client:

   Delay in use of project Capital is blocked Escalation in subsequent investment

For the contractor:

   Delay in getting profit Idle of resources (machines, workers etc.) Productivity loss due to uncontracted work period

MINIMIZING DELAYS

        Identifying the cause that led to the delay Providing enough financial resources Competent project management Resource availability Frequent progress meetings Choosing the right (experienced) consultants, suppliers and contractors Accurate cost estimation etc.

TIME MANAGEMENT

 Part of the construction budgeting process  Project management team determines the amount of time which is needed for the project  Determining the amount of man hours and employees  Major role for cost estimation

Thank you!

References

   Singh, P. (n.d.). Delay in construction project and its consequences. Retrieved from http://www.scribd.com/doc/6106511/Delay-in-Construction-Projects and-Its-Consequences Ibbnu Abbas, M. (2006). Causes and effect of delays in aceh construction industry. Retrieved from http://eprints.utm.my/5304/ Cooke, B., & Williams, P. Construction planning, programming and control. Wiley-Blackwell.