Is Offsite Construction the Answer?

/ General

Blog Author: Richard Saxon CBE, JCT Chairman The construction industry is heading for the buffers. Capacity is draining out as skilled tradesmen retire and few enter as apprentices. The go-to supply of EU migrant tradesmen is likely to be restricted soon and is already less interested as the pound falls. Construction quality is declining in the housebuilding world. Mark Farmer’s message: Modernise or Die, is clear that a major move to offsite construction is needed to keep the industry from decline. The core problem is…

Incompatible Provisions

/ Contractual Issues

Blog author: Peter Hibberd Contract interpretation and litigation, it is said, are not exact sciences: this is no better illustrated than by the recent case of MT Hojgaard vs E.ON Climate & Renewables UK Robin Rigg East Ltd, which went all the way to the Supreme Court. At the heart of that case was the tension between different provisions within the various documents that constituted a design and build contract for the design, fabrication and installation of foundations for 60 wind turbines. In essence the…

JCT Interviews…Nigel Davies

/ Interviews

In this series we shed some light on some of the key people who are involved with or give their time to support JCT, to ensure that all areas of the construction industry are represented and can contribute to the development of our contracts. We will look at how our interviewees contribute to JCT specifically, and gain their views on JCT’s wider role within the industry. Member of the JCT Council Facilities Management Contracts Working Group Construction Dispute Resolution Group Nigel Davies BSc (Hons) (Q.Surv),…

Hastings Pier

/ Case Studies

A devastating fire in 2010 destroyed 90% of the super-structure of Hastings Pier, leaving only the western pavilion building salvageable. With funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the local community, the opportunity was taken to redefine the role of a pier for the 21st Century. The fabulous result – which won the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2017 – was built on a JCT Minor Works Building Contract. Hastings Pier’s history goes back to 1872 as a classic, Victorian style, pier designed by Eugenius Birch…

“Reassuringly Expensive?”

/ JCT Product Updates

Blog author: Christopher Miers, Probyn Miers You may remember an advertising campaign which captured the slogan “reassuringly expensive”, along with a series of short films such as ‘Jacques de Florette’ (think French countryside, bouquets of flowers, and … cold beer), suggestive of the idea that price was not the only factor to consider when buying a product, and that a higher price may be an indicator of a higher quality (in this case, of beer). Deciding on your choice of beer, or any other product, is…

The Sector Deal

/ Chairman's Blog

Blog author: Richard Saxon CBE, JCT Chairman The Construction Leadership Council is an innovation set up by Government in 2016 to provide a successor to the concept of the Chief Construction Adviser and to provide an expert body to guide government in its approach to the industry. The concept was to select a group of chief executives or chairmen from leading firms across the supplier landscape, co-chaired by the construction minister and a major client, Andrew Wolstenholme of Crossrail. Government disdains the bodies set up…

MW 2016 Insurance: Not Sure How to Complete Clause 5.4C Particulars?

/ Insurance Provisions, JCT 2016 Edition

Possible solutions for you to consider: The following is an extract from ‘Insurance under the Minor Works Building Contract 2016’. This extract outlines possible solutions where clause 5.4C is to operate i.e. those circumstances where clauses 5.4A and 5.4B are not appropriate. The full text is available at https://corporate.jctltd.co.uk/insurance-under-the-minor-works-buildingcontract-2016/. Clause 5.4C is to apply where clause 5.4A does not apply and clause 5.4B cannot apply because the relevant insurance is not available. As a consequence one has to make other arrangements and which clause 5.4C…

White Collar Factory

/ Case Studies

Derwent London’s latest commercial development, White Collar Factory, combines years of research,lessons learned from well-built historic industrial spaces, and best practice in sustainable modern office design, to deliver a low-cost, low impact, and flexible working environment. A JCT Design and Build Contract provided the contract solution. Located overlooking Old Street roundabout, White Collar Factory is surrounded by the trendy and artistic enclaves of Shoreditch, Hoxton and Clerkenwell in the northern part of the City of London. Home to Tech City, Old Street is a diverse…

JCT Tendering Practice Note 2017: Available Now

/ JCT Product Updates

JCT has updated its Tendering Practice Note and the latest version, the JCT Tendering Practice Note 2017, is now available from JCT’s online store www.jctltd.co.uk/product/tendering-practice-note Now in its third edition, the 2017 Practice Note reflects key developments in public sector tendering following the coming into force of The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and updates the Note generally to reflect current best practice in both public and private sectors. The JCT Tendering Practice Note 2017 is a general guidance document, providing an informative and practical tool…

‘Going Soft’

/ Chairman's Blog

We need to be harder on ourselves as an industry and admit that most of our new buildings reach the end of their defects liability period without ever delivering the performance that they promised. BREEAM ratings at design stage do not predict carbon emissions commensurate with the grading. Sometimes, the certificated building burns several times the expected energy consumption. And typically, we don’t go back to analyse the performance, nor the workability of the design for the purpose intended. We move on to the next…