Share this
Mister Wong
Digg
Del.icio.us
Slashdot
Furl
Yahoo
Technorati
Newsvine
Googlize this
Blinklist
Facebook
Wikio
Hear this text
Export PDF
Print
E-mail
Tags
The evolution of project managers on building projectsIncreasingly, project managers are being appointed in the role of “principal agent” on building projects – particularly on multi-million, complex and fast-track building projects – which has traditionally been fulfilled by the architect.
In my 30 years of experience in the building industry, I have noted that in South Africa, the National Building Regulations, building designs, material specifications, the contract documents and law, and the role assigned to the building consultants are all based on the British building industry system – the result of the British rule of South and southern Africa.
One has to agree that the structures of South African buildings comprise ‘solid’ type materials such as concrete, reinforcement, bricks timber and roof sheeting and tiles as opposed to the ‘timber frame’ structures clad in timber or synthetic panels.
In South Africa, we are also fortunate in that the primary materials are produced from natural products available locally.
In this country, both public and private building clients generally have appointed the ‘traditional’ building consultants team, comprising the architect, civil and structural engineer, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, quantity surveyor, land surveyor and geotechnical engineer on most multimillion-rand complex building projects.
In 95% of the projects, the clients have appointed the architect as the principal agent of the building project; and in 5%, the structural engineer or the quantity surveyor as the principal agent.
The principal agent, as appointed by the employer (client), has the full authority and has an obligation to act on behalf of the employer to complete the building project according to the time frames, design specification and cost.
The principal agent has the authority to appoint the main and nominated sun contractors; issue variation orders/contract instructions; condemn portions or all of the building works; grant or deny extension of time; certify payments; issue the various completion certificates; as well as resolve disputes or refer to mediation or arbitration.
In a building project, the principal agent is charged with the task to ensure that the project runs smoothly; that there are no unnecessary delays; that all the necessary information is provided to the contractor to enable him/her to fulfil the obligation to complete the project; and importantly, to issue regular payment certificates among others.
The principal agent has to exercise independent decision-making and not be biased toward the employer.
The first Standard Conditions of Contract were issued in the early 1900s after the establishment of the Building Industries Federation of South Africa (BIFSA) – then known as the National Federation of Building Trade Employers in South Africa.
Thereafter, the first Standard Form of Building Contract was published in 1932 – this was based on the Royal Institute of British Architects building contract documents, and was later revised to the Agreement and Schedule of Building Contract.
The public sector has had its own version, generally known as the White Form of Contract.
In these forms of contract, the architect was traditionally appointed as the principal agent.
In 1991, the initial Joint Building Contracts Committee (JBCC) issued the Principal Building Agreement.
The JBCC comprises: Association of South African Quantity Surveyors, BIFSA, Institute of South African of Architects, South African Association of Consulting Engineers, South African Property Owners Association, Master Builders South Africa, South African Black Technical and Allied Careers Organisation, and Specialist Engineering Contractors Committee.
In the 1991 version, it was stated clearly that: “The employer shall, for the purpose of this agreement, appoint at his own cost an architect as the principal agent”.
The JBCC Series 2000 was introduced toward the end of 1997. In the Principal Building Agreement of the JBCC 2000, Clause 5.1 states: “The employer shall appoint the principal agent as stated in the schedule.
“The employer warrants that: 5.1. The principal agent has full authority and obligation to act in terms of the agreement”.
The schedule provides for a principal agent and various agents.
The JBCC 2000, which is being used generally by the public and private sector, now allows the employer to appoint someone other than the architect as the principal agent.
On most multi-million, complex and fast-track projects, the employers using the JBCC 2000 are appointing the project manager as the principal agent, with the architect and engineers as the design team and the quantity surveyor responsible for the cost control.
There is another contract document that also has originated in Britain – the New Engineering Contract (NEC). It was designed and drafted in the early 1990s by Dr Martin Barnes, an engineer, together with a panel of experts – mostly engineers in the UK – and the first edition printed in 1993.
The NEC has since been revised and is being used extensively in the UK.
In the foreword to the Professional Services Contract guidance notes, it states: “The NEC requires the appointment of a project manager, a supervisor and an adjudicator.”
The employer using the NEC therefore appoints a project manager as the principal agent.
In South Africa, the NEC is currently used by Eskom and Transnet for their building and civil projects, with project managers appointed to manage these building and civil projects.
Some 10 years ago, the director-general of Public Works embarked on a project to remove the ‘project management’ responsibilities of each of the building consultants’ individual responsibilities, with the intention of reassigning these to the project manager. The thinking was to appoint a project manager on the entire department.
Public and private employers are now seeing the value of appointing project managers to manage their multi-million, complex and fast-track building projects, with the architect and engineers assigned to the specific design responsibility and the quantity surveyor as the cost controller.
In this era of many multi-million, complex and fast-track building projects, it is ideal for a specialist project manager to manage not only the time, cost and quality aspects, but also the aspects of scope, integration, risk, communication, human resources and procurement as per the PMBoK® project management knowledge areas.
The ideal building project manager is one who has a primary qualification in one of the building consulting areas of expertise and a secondary qualification in project management.
In South Africa, we have many well-qualified and experienced individuals in all the building consultant fields: architects, engineers and quantity surveyors, who all would do very well to obtain formal project management qualifications, to be appointed as project managers on the multi-million, complex and fast-track building projects.
There is also an excellent current initiative by the Services Seta to ‘professionalise’ project manager status – this initiative will ensure that the individuals with the relevant experience and qualifications will be entitled to call themselves project managers.
Hareesh Patel, a practising quantity surveyor and project manager, has been involved in the building and property industry for the past 30 years and is also the president of Project Management South Africa and the chairperson of the Project Management Chamber Board: Services Seta
Patel can be e-mailed at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
