Contract Administration Pitfalls and Solutions for Architect-Engineering Projects

The basic building block of all architect-engineering firms is the client-funded individual project. These firms, of all sizes and complexities, have one thing in common: they all operate under the authority of contracts that must be successfully executed to ensure overall success and continuity of the firm. Without that success, the firm goes out of business. It therefore holds true that the degree to which these contracts are successfully managed determines the degree of success or failure of the enterprise. This journal therefore is dedicated to the business process we refer to as contract administration, or the combined acts of the firm's staff to ensure that all elements desired by the client are formulated into a relationship that is reduced to writing known as the written contract and then successfully executed by the firm. Whether the company is comprised of one hundred employees or ten thousand, these contracts must be administered for success, within budget and within schedule, and meet the changing dynamics of the project's requirements over time. Effective contract administration is essentially a sound communications process that guarantees that fundamental information in the contract relationship is disseminated to the project and support personnel who are expected to perform the contract's requirements. This journal describes those tasks that must be executed to ensure that contract administration is a successful outcome, and that all the players on the company team execute their individual tasks professionally, repetitiously, and successfully.