Geoff Brewer is right when he says “the government and OGC seem... to back the NEC without really knowing what it is they are endorsing” (News, QS News, 25 August).

NEC claimed in 2005 that NEC 3 complied with the principles of achieving excellence in construction. It has also claimed that OGC recommends the use of NEC 3 by public sector construction procurers on their projects.

In respect of these principles, the OGC advised in August 2005 that the following documents were relevant: Achieving Excellence Initiative, March 1999, Building on Success, February 2003 and Procurement Guides, October 2003. It suggested that one should start with the procurement guides in sequence (all 10 of them).

In March 2006, the NEC User Group said it had not seen a succinct summary of what “achieving excellence” is about.

The OGC confirmed its recommendation that public sector procurers of construction should adopt NEC 3.

From 1942 the government’s standard form of contract for building and engineering works has been GC/Works/1. So why has it fallen out of favour? Property advisers to Civil Estates were responsible for maintaining GC/Works/1. It was absorbed by the OGC in 2000 but the OGC makes no reference to GC/Works/1. Has it been a victim of the cost cutting to meet the OGC’s efficiency target of £21.5bn?

James Nisbet, founder of Nisbet

Source

QS News