JCT 2016: Minor Works suite published

/ JCT 2016 Edition

Blog authors: Karen Clarke and Christopher Dickson – CMS Cameron McKenna The JCT launched its much awaited new suite of building contracts with the publication of its revised Minor Works family. The Minor Works building contracts (with options for contractor design or not) and a form of sub-contract that can be used in conjunction with the main form (also making provision for sub-contractor design) together constitute the first three agreements in the JCT’s new 2016 edition (“JCT 2016”). The 2016 editions of the remaining agreements…

JCT Student Competition 2017

/ Education, Skills and Students

JCT’s annual student competition will be running for 2017, opening in October 2016 and closing in March 2017. Once again, the overall winner’s prize will be £1,000, with two runner-up prizes of £250 also available. Following the success of last year’s competition, this year’s competition will continue the same focus on creativity and innovation. In recognising the different learning requirements of construction courses and disciplines, the competition will be open to receiving entries in a variety of media, including video, photography, photographic essay, drawings or designs, written essays, articles or any other creative format. However they present…

An Ill Wind?

/ Chairman's Blog

Blog author: Richard Saxon CBE, JCT Chairman Britain has a massive, long-term housing problem, with market-driven supply not nearly equalling demand and major skill shortages preventing any increase in that supply in the short term. The country also has a set of policies in place which hamper alternatives from making a contribution by seeing home-ownership as the people’s ideal. It may be the aspiration of the majority but it’s an impracticable one: home ownership rates are falling. But now we have another national crisis to…

Harlech Castle

/ Case Studies

Any building project has its unique complexities and a project which includes renovation and refurbishment, new-build construction, and the implementation of a variety of sustainable and energy saving techniques, is no exception. But in the case of Harlech Castle in Gwenedd, Wales, the former had to be achieved in a building, next to a scheduled ancient monument, on a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in a conservation area on the edge of a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), within a National Park. A JCT Standard…

Work placements for the student’s benefit, not their employer’s

/ Education, Skills and Students

JCT Student Competition 2016 – Overall Winner’s Essay Tom Haworth, Westminster University An essay addressing skills shortages in the construction industry, focusing upon the lack of experience-based architectural training during the early years of UK architectural education.   The Challenge Of The Unknown As a current Part Three student, I am approaching the end of a long qualification process. This essay contains my reflections on the process so far, and the change I would like to see, based on my observations. The problem, is that architects are currently not…

How well does procurement and contract practice enable BIM?

/ BIM, Chairman's Blog

We now have a government mandate to use BIM Level 2 for all centrally procured construction projects and the take-up of BIM usage is broadening out into the wider public and private sectors. Officially the concept of Level 2 is entirely compatible with established commercial arrangements. The CIC BIM Protocol (2013) is the key document here, agreed with the legal and insurance sectors. However, there have always been concerns in some quarters. JCT itself does not endorse the CIC Protocol in its entirety as it claims to override the contract in the event of discrepancies….

JCT Interviews…John Turner

/ 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. John Turner JCT Council Member Member of the JCT Drafting Sub-Committee John Turner is a Project Manager at Derwent London; a property investment and development company…

JCT Student Competition 2016

/ Education, Skills and Students

Skills, education and BIM spark student’s creativity Whether using the written word, video, visual graphics or designs – creativity, innovation and providing practical solutions were all hallmarks of winning students’ work in the JCT Student Competition 2016. The 2016 competition ran from 9 September 2015 to 16 March 2016 with judging taking place on Thursday 26 May. Students from over 40 institutions around the UK entered the competition, continuing the high level of interest and value that the competition generates for construction students. This year’s competition asked for creative ideas and solutions to address…

Making Amends

/ Contractual Issues

Blog author: Peter Hibberd Amending standard form building contracts is done more than is necessary and sometimes even changes the nature of the contract. Amendment might be done so as to change the risk apportionment or simply because of office practice without regard to risk – whatever, problems frequently arise. In addition to any imbalance of risk created there is also potential for inconsistency, conflict and or incoherence in the contract. Consequently, the effect of an amendment may become costly in an unknowing way. JCT Standard forms of contract are devised by experienced practitioners to…

Termination under JCT building contracts

/ Contractual Issues

Blog author – Andrew Keeley, Charles Russell Speechlys There is no general right to terminate without cause under most of the JCT contracts. This is unsurprising; a construction project requires a significant commitment from both parties and cannot be abandoned lightly. However, sometimes there is no other option but to part company. In these circumstances it is crucial to carefully check the particular contract terms of the contract you are using. Here are some important points to consider before terminating a JCT Standard Building Contract 2011 (SBC 2011) or JCT Design and Build…