Schinnerer's RM Blog - casestudy tag

Library Claims

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:51:00 GMT

Library project claims tend to be less severe than claims stemming from other project types. From 2001 through 2010, the highest frequency (55%) and severity (76%) for library claims involved delays and extras. The following is an example of a library claim:

An architect was hired by a university to design a new library with a construction value of $40 million. The university used an intensive value analysis process to reduce the construction contract to $38 million. The project experienced substantial delays and cost overruns that increased the project to an eventual cost of $48.5 million. The contractor filed a claim against the university for $3 million for delays and extra costs. The university negotiated directly with the contractor and then looked to the design team for $1.6 million, alleging that the plans contained numerous design errors, and that the design team failed to respond to RFIs and submittals in a timely fashion. The claim settled for $400,000, with the architect paying two-thirds and the mechanical/electrical subconsultant paying the remaining one-third. In addition the architect paid expenses of $39,000.

For more information including risk management advice, please see our entire library claims study (access limited to current policyholders and brokers only). This study was updated with current statistics in September 2011.

Use Our Claims Resources

Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:58:00 GMT

Serving the design and construction industry for more than 50 years has its advantages. Stability. Predictability. Reliability. And also, a deep well of claims data from which to pull benchmarking and claims trends. Our claims study offerings are vast, allowing firms to see which project types, problem areas, and other critical practice and project components present both challenges and rewards.

Last summer we updated 19 of our claims/case studies with claims data through 2009. This summer we’ve updated a significant amount of our benchmarking and claims studies with data through 2010, which we’ll be posting each Wednesday through the fall. We started this process two weeks ago with a revised version of From Risk to Profit: Benchmarking and Claims Studies, our expansive look at critical practice areas for all design firms. After that we posted updated versions of our design-build and environmental services claims/case studies. We will be posting a revised study each week for the next 9 weeks. Remember to check back each week for the latest update. As always, our risk management resources are password-protected for the benefit of our policyholders and brokers.

Construction Contract Administration

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 15:38:00 GMT

In recent years, design professionals have had their roles during the construction phase limited severely by cost-conscious clients looking to save money on projects. From a risk management perspective, design professionals are uniquely qualified to provide services during the construction phase so that the likelihood of project success is enhanced. The ability to observe and evaluate the contractor’s work enables the design professional to serve the client’s needs, while at the same time keeping current on the latest construction practices in the marketplace. As long as design professionals devote sufficient resources to the construction contract administration phase and diligently carry out their contractual responsibilities, it appears that the risks during this phase can be successfully managed. We have recently updated our construction contract administration phase claims study with some interesting case studies (access limjted to policyholders and brokers only).

http://www.schinnerer.com/risk-mgmt/Documents/BenchmarkingandClaimsStudies/Construction-ca-claims.pdf