Steps involved in construction claim management

Construction claims have become quite a complex part of the construction projects. All the stakeholders try to reach their own goals to increase their benefits. Conflicts usually arise due to diverse expectations of relevant parties. If the conflicts are not managed successfully, it could ultimately affect the successful completion of the construction project. This is where the role of construction claim management starts.

The management requires effective management practices throughout the project. The first step is claim prevention process. Contract documents, project plans and scope of work should include all necessary requirements related to the project. Once the contract is awarded you cannot prevent any claim.

Claim identification is the second step in claim management. This can be done by analyzing both the scope of work and the provisions of the contract. Once an activity is identified as a claim, it will be quantified in terms of additional payment or a time extension to the contract completion or other milestone date. It is essential that the schedule and critical path analysis should be made so that you can easily calculate the delay of the project. Moreover, any additional direct and indirect costs, which have originated from the claimed activity should also be calculated.

The final step in construction claim management is the claim resolution. Claim resolution is a step by step process that is used to resolve the claim issues. Any negotiation, mediation, arbitration and litigation processes will be conducted, depending on the resolution terms of the final contract.

Article submitted by Lyle Charles Consulting. Construction claims management will help in the successful completion of the project by avoiding any delay to from potential claims.