Byng warns of huge NEC training challenge ahead of Olympic construction programme

RICS construction and QS faculty chairman Michael Byng has warned that the NEC contract poses a huge educational challenge for the industry. The document is to be used on the 2012 Olympics. Byng also said the industry must focus on improving efficiency ahead of 2012 and use the Games as a “test-bed” for improved ways of working across the UK.

Speaking to QS News, Byng said to work under the new NEC form of contract, users needed to have a comprehensive knowledge of programming and scheduling, which was currently lacking in the UK.

Byng said the contract was as yet untried but added that he believed the industry could learn to work under it if proper training was implemented.

He said the NEC was “a resource planning form of contract, not so much one that deals in Bills of Quantities. It relies on a good understanding of programming. Using it on the Olympics means a huge educational challenge for the industry. But I’d say it’s a bit like when the country went metric – the transfer to it happens very quickly.”

A lot of people using NEC now probably don’t understand it and need on the job training

Michael Byng

Byng said criticism that NEC was over-bureaucratic was potentially off the mark. “A lot of people using it now probably don’t understand it and need on the job training. Once you understand how it works and the skill required to operate it, it will probably become second nature.”

Byng’s concerns over the NEC were backed by contracts expert Geoff Brewer, founder of Brewer Consulting. Speaking about the current use of the contract, Brewer said: “The government and OGC (Office for Government Commerce) seem to be confident to back the NEC without really knowing what it is they are endorsing. I think they believe the use of the NEC contract encourages the various good practices they are rightly looking for. But they have never explained why this contract alone is the document of choice.

“All too often people tend not to apply the terms (of the NEC contract) as rigorously as the drafters intended.” Instead, he said disputes or commercial issues on NEC jobs are being resolved by informal agreement or adjudication instead of the formal procedures within the NEC.

Byng challenged the industry to focus on greater efficiency and better programming ahead of the Olympics. “The RICS is going to lose 25% of its members by then simply by age. This is a huge opportunity to train people and to roll this expertise out to the rest of the country. Major infrastructure is not just needed in London – there is a lot of work needed in our other major cities.”

The government has never explained why this contract alone is the document of choice

Geoff Brewer, Brewer Consulting

Byng said he and colleagues from the RICS were due to meet Bernard Williams, the author of a critical report on the respective efficiency of the UK compared to the rest of Europe, this month.

Byng said: “The report raises a lot of questions, especially as to what he based the figures on. We want to encourage him to do further work. His work is worthwhile but we need a far more indepth study.”

Byng said his faculty was determined to build a more efficient industry by creating a new standard of measurement and by focusing on more basic training for young QSs and more CPD for more experienced practitioners.