vol. iv issue no. 4

1. Volume IV Issue No. 4
The Global Leader in Managing Construction Risk
The Saga of Concurrent Delay
When delays occur on a construction completion of design which under 1. If the effect of Employer delay on
project it is not uncommon for each party to the Contract is a Contractor the completion date is longer than
attempt to use concurrent delays in defense responsibility and late access to that of the Contractor’s, then the
against the opposing party’s delay damages: site which is the Employer’s
Contractor would potentially be
Employers often cite concurrent delays by responsibility.
the Contractor as a reason for awarding an entitled to recover damage for a
extension of time without compensation; 2. Impacts to more than one critical period equivalent to the difference
whereas, Contractor’s claims usually ignore path in which one path is affected between the effects of the two
the concurrent delay from the claimed delayed periods.
by an Employer delay, and the
delays in order to claim the full prolongation
costs stemming from the Employer delays other being affected by a
Contractor delay. 2. If the effect of the Employer’s and
and to prevent exposure to liquidated Contractor’s delay’s on the
damages. completion date are felt
Evaluation/Identification of Concurrent concurrently, the Contractor may
Providing a clear definition of concurrent Delays recover additional costs only if it
delays and how they affect the Contractor’s A meaningful evaluation of concurrency and was able to separate its incurred
entitlement to additional costs along with how it affects the Contractor’s potential additional costs from those of the
guidelines to an independent delay analysis entitlements requires a totally independent Employer.
methodology may assist parties to settle and objective delay analysis approach. For
disputes in relation to concurrent delays. this, I recommend Time Impact Analysis Finally, the Employer would be entitled to
undertaken in short windows of time. apply liquidated damages if the effect of
The Definition of Concurrent Delay Contractor caused delay on the completion
Concurrent delays are experienced when In this instance, Hill has established and date is longer than that of the Employer’s.
two or more independent critical delays, effectively employed on a number of The period to which the damages are
one caused by the Employer and one assignments, predefined steps which in applied should be equivalent to the
caused by the Contractor occur at addition to providing total auditability difference between the effects of the two
approximate the same time period, each enhances the objectivity of the results delays.
having the ability to delay the Time for thereby assisting the parties in resolving
Completion. disputes in relation to concurrent delays. - - Jad Chouman, Associate Director of
Following these steps systematically allows
For delays to be concurrent, the following the identification of delay events, Hill International, Claims Group
key factors should exist: assessment of delay responsibility and
determination of their impact within the
1. They should critically impact the defined windows of time while taking into
Time for Completion, and not consideration any mitigation measures
simply absorb float; taken to reduce the delays. This approach
mainly depends on the availability adequate
2. They should be independent and programme updates and contemporaneous
not caused indirectly by the other project records.
parties delay; and
Effect of Concurrency on Entitlement to an
3. They should occur approximately Hill International, with 3,200
Extension of Time
employees in 110 offices worldwide,
at the same time period and their Barring any Contractual provision to the
provides program management,
impact should be concurrent but contrary, the Contractor’s concurrent
project management, construction
not necessary identical. delay(s) should not impact its entitlement to
management and construction claims
an Extension of Time due to the actions of and consulting services. Engineering
Accordingly, there are two possible the Employer News - Record magazine recently
scenarios when considering the
ranked Hill as the 11th largest
impacts of concurrent delays: Effect of Concurrency on Entitlement to construction management firm in the
1. Impacts to the same critical path, Compensation United States.
at least one of which is As for Contractor’s entitlement for
attributable to each party. For compensation in case of concurrent delays, For more information on Hill, please
example, the commencement of there are two possible scenarios: visit our website at www.hillintl.com.
works is delayed by the late
David Brodie-Stedman David Merritt
Disclaimer: This article does not constitute advice, legal or
Senior Vice President & Managing Director Senior Vice President & Managing Director otherwise, and is provided only as general
Asia, Middle East and Africa Middle East and Africa commentary. Appropriate professional advice should always
be obtained before taking or refraining from taking any
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