Procurement Techniques In Construction

Introduction

On any Construction project, Procurement is vital for its success and for the clients satisfaction. Procurement simply means ‘the process of obtaining or buying a good or service in exchange for consideration’. The meaning of Procurement for Construction Projects in simple terms, means the purchasing of building work and the method of which this work will be executed.

There are different procurement paths which the client can take. Deciding what path is best suited for a particular construction project is very important as different procurement paths are suited to different situations and different types of buildings. Each Procurement path obtains a different contractual framework which clearly shows how the responsibilities

With their advice the client will then start the procurement process by devising a plan or strategy. The strategy will consider the benefits and risks, the main function or purpose of the building and what budget the client has allocated for the project. This will help to decide what procurement path is best suited, and what contractual arrangements will be required, which cover how the client will pay the building contractor and other conditions embodied in the contract such as Bill of Quantities or Prime Cost sums.

The chosen path by the client will effect the amount of which the project will cost, the amount of time that each construction stage will take, and the quality or performance of the building on completion of the construction work.

Methods or Paths of Procurement:

There are four different Procurement methods or paths that exist in the construction industry to choose from. They are as follows:

• Traditional

• Design and Build

• Management Contracting

The clients Quantity Surveyor will also make sure that the correct amount of work is being paid for through interim payments, not allowing the contractor to exploit the client’s lack of knowledge to the industry.

Traditional types of contracts:

There are three different types of contracts that can be chosen from when using a traditional method of procurement. They are as follows:

• Lump Sum Contracts

Here, with lump sum contracts, the contract is agreed or determined before the commencement of works. A contract will be priced using the Drawings and a Bill of Quantities. Where the client has not provided a Bill of Quantities in the documents, the contract will be priced on the basis of drawings and specifications or a schedule of works.

• Measurement Contracts

This type of contract can arise when the work for a contractor cannot be completely measured. The contractor is able to agree on a price for work that is possible to measure from drawings and specification of certain elements of the work to be carried out. The remainder of the work will be usually priced on the basis of agreed rates. The Contract sum is not finalised until the works have been successfully carried