Risk Management
The increased risk of property loss due to fire damage and the growing costs of fire damage mitigation incurred by businesses have defined the fire protection sector during the past three years. As the number of wildfires and value of losses have skyrocketed, the costs to protect properties have increased, especially for the most vulnerable firms in high-risk areas.
Hire Reliable, Well-Schooled Subcontractors to Reduce Risk
Few general contractors can successfully complete projects on time and within budget without the help of reliable subcontractors. Never underestimate the potential harm and disruptions posed by under-skilled, unreliable and under-insured subcontractors.
Preparing a Construction Business to Survive a Disaster
In the event of a disaster, every organization should have an effective business continuity plan that identifies risks, conducts an analysis of the impact on the business, adopts controls to prevent and mitigate risk, and prepares employees for emergencies by testing and improving procedures regularly.
Negotiating a Construction Contract: Clauses, Changes and Delays
Beginning with a sound construction contract can have a significant impact on a firm’s profit, loss, reputation and overall ability to manage a project. Understanding the impact of project delays and changes to a contract can help contractors navigate risks and adjust bids to more accurately account for unknown contingencies or claims.
P3s, Design-Build Models and the Spearin Doctrine: A Shift in Design Risk
As P3s gain traction and new building delivery models emerge, the lines for design liability become blurred. In projects with shared design building delivery models, it seems unlikely that in the event of a dispute, the contractor will invoke the principles under the Spearin Doctrine as its best defense.
Negligence Claim Proves Designers Can Be Held Directly Liable to Subcontractors
Is it reasonable for a subcontractor bidding on a design-build project to assume that the designer has followed the owner’s requirements in preparing the preliminary design documents? The answer is yes, according to a recent ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals...
Negotiating a Contract: Clauses, Changes and Delays
Beginning with a sound construction contract can have a significant impact on a firm’s profit, loss, reputation and overall ability to manage a project.
There Is Pervasive Non-compliance With the IBC for Fire-rated HVAC Assemblies
A recent multi-state market analysis has revealed that industry standard horizontal HVAC fire-rated duct assemblies are not in compliance with requirements of the International Building Code (IBC).












