Foreword

When I was working in an office many years ago and studying for what is now known as the ‘Part III’, I searched in vain for some book which would give me clear and authoritative answers to my questions about contract administration.

In those days it was rare to see a building contract, much less know anything about it. The instruction on building contracts that I received at university lasted exactly an hour and a half late one Friday afternoon. We were given copies of the form of contract and we were taken through it at a rapid pace. I still have the notes I took on that day. Under ‘extension of time’ I had written: ‘It is the architect’s job to give extensions of time’. The rest was no better. I never found the elusive book, and even many years later, when I was actually administering contracts for a local authority, I was still feeling my way.

In this book, contract administration is clearly and precisely explained and many common questions are answered in the process. How I wish I had had this book, not only when I was working for the Part III, but also years later, when I was regularly faced with administering building contracts that I barely understood. I thoroughly recommend it to architects young and old.

Dr David Chappell
Architect, Building Contract Consultant, Adjudicator and Professor in Architectural Practice and Law.
Author of over 60 books for the construction industry.