Construction Contract Documents

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The construction contract is very “important”. It includes several documents and items aiming at indicating the project method of implementation and procedures required for implementing the contract and completing the project with its different works, several specializations, and defined levels of quality that must be achieved in the final product The continuity of the implementation of the construction contract for a long period of time requires that the contract document should precisely define the responsibilities and commitments of each party. This definition is also necessary in order to manage all the possibilities and unpredicted incidents that that may occur and cannot be controlled by any party while implementing. The documents of the construction contract can be summarized as follows:

Contract Form:

It is the abridged form that is set to determine the main features and conditions of the contract. It is signed at the final stage and before the actual implementation of the contract. Therefore, contractors who haven’t submitted their offers without an accepted excuse for two consecutive tenders (in the same specialization) while being inserted in the list of contractors invited to the contracts of these projects will be excluded. These contractors will be invited to the tenders they are qualified for if the Committee accepts a formal request submitted by the participating company. This contract is written and concluded between the Employer and Contractor. It usually defines the following:
Announcing acceptance (the tender offer submitted or after the negotiation phase):
It means that the contractor accepts implementing the works in response to the invitation of the employer. The tender offer includes the tender offer documents, the contract value requested by the contractor, and any other conditions the contractor sees necessary to be included in the contract, negotiated, or agreed upon.

Contract Conditions:

They are the conditions governing and regulating the implementation of the contract, both generally and specifically. Additionally, they include the rest of the technical documents specifying the scope and level of the permanent works required for enabling the contractor to implement the specifications, design drawings, implementation drawings, shop drawings, bill of quantities, bid, acceptance letter (bid format), and any other documents openly agreed by the two parties to be attached as of the announcement of acceptance of the result of direct negotiation. They mainly comprise the following:

A- General Conditions:

They encompass the item set forming the general work frame and how to precisely deal with contract documents. They also determine the mutual obligations of the contracting parties, the method of dues payment, dispute settlement, and the procedural steps required to be followed to retain both parties' rights. They also form the general frame for the contractual requirements. The general conditions are a very crucial document in the construction contract. It will be a reference on a daily basis during the implementation of the project since they contain all the details related to the implementation process. The general conditions are updated and reviewed in timely manner from the accumulating and introduced experiences the construction industry. Therefore, the general and special conditions documents are periodically updated when it is necessary to cope with the technical and economical developments.
Table 1 shows the most important General Conditions which are common among most forms of local and international general conditions. It’s worth noting that the main source of these conditions is the international conditions (F.D.IC).

Subject: some part items

Contract: definitions—laws and language – contract documents - explanation
Employer: Employer’s obligations – enabling the contractor - accessing the site - submitting the information and the documents
Employer’s representative – Engineer – Engineer’s representative –and his tasks and authorities – requirements and conditions – limiting
Engineer’s authorities
Contractor: general obligations – guarantee – representatives - subcontractors
Designing: general obligations – construction documents – drawing of works implemented
Supervision and labor – wage rate – labor laws – public health
Equipment – material – implementation method - selection
Time – feedback – work start – work end – completion equipment - compensation
Testing – Contractor's obligations - retesting
Delivery – delivery certificate – Employer’s usage of the project
Performance tests – Employer’s obligations – test delay
Performance tests – Employer’s obligations – test delay
Responsibility for failures and cost of defect repair – extending the contract term
Contract value and payments: contract value - advance payment - payment schedule
Changes: modification right – value engineering – modification method
Additional works: submitting changes – argument around evaluation
Contractor’s fault: excuses – termination – evaluation on termination
Subject: some part items
Employer’s fault: work suspension (stopping) – termination – payment at the end
Risk: fixation – Employer’s risk – Contractor’s risk
Insurance on workers: on equipment - on workers - on others
Force majeure: definition – effect – exclusion from performance
Disputes and arbitration: claim methods – claim payment - arbitration

B- Special conditions:

These conditions determine the contractual requirements related to the contract, modifications, and details required to the general conditions. They are set in accordance with the nature of the contract, type of works, special conditions related to this contract not applicable to other contracts. The Special Conditions have absolute priority over other contractual conditions.

C- Technical conditions

1. Specifications
They are a set of technical and technological specifications that are required for the implementation of the temporary and permanent works. They usually consist of two parts: the special specifications for the project which has priority and the general standard condition periodically issued by the competent and general authorities to describe quality and implementations methods for the construction projects.
2. Drawings
They include the architectural, constructive, mechanical, electrical drawings, in addition to other types of drawings. These drawings are needed to complete the project. They are divided into general drawings and detailed drawings, which have priority over the general drawings.
3. Bill of quantities
It is an important document in contracts by virtue of which the contractor is charged on the basis of the unit price in the remeasured contracts or on the basis of a lump-sum payment. It includes the work quantities that will be implemented in accordance to their types. The drawings and specifications are the main source for this document.
4. Price list
It is usually accompanied with the bill of quantities and they both constitute one document determining the prices of work units to be completed. The bill of quantities may not be attached to some contracts with the price list only attached. In the target price contracts, the conditions must provide a certain priority used for documents and contracts to determine which to be used in case of contradiction. It is important not to breach regulations when deciding priorities.
Document II-1
Legal Conditions – General Articles
It is recommended that a tenderer should read these conditions carefully.

Subject of the Contract:
This contract is about constructing, completing, examining, delivering and maintaining “works” defined in Document III in “Tender file” in accordance with the conditions set forth in Documents I, II, and III from the previously mentioned Tender File

Tender Documents:

Contract Documents: Document I Tender Documents

Announcement or invitation to the tender
Instructions to tenderers
Tender offer and appendix
Form of primary guarantee
Form of final guarantee
Contract form
Statement of tender offer document
Acknowledgement 1

Document II
Contract Conditions:

General Conditions – legal rights of 1971 – (January Edition 2003) and the amendments thereof.
Special Conditions
Tender law (applicable law)

Document III
Technical conditions:

General technical specifications
Special technical specifications
Drawings
Tables of quantities and prices
Price analysis table
Appendices
Technical requirements