Contractor perspective of the new Irish public works contracts

Traditionally in Ireland the forms of contract used for government-funded projects were those published by either the Institution of Engineers of Ireland or the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland. They were based on the Institution of Civil Engineers and Joint Contracts Tribunal standard forms with minor changes to reflect local conditions. In 2007 the Irish government introduced a suite of bespoke contract forms for both employerdesigned and contractor-designed projects. Although officially entitled 'public works contracts' they are colloquially known as the GCCC contracts after the Government Construction Contracts Committee, the body within the Irish Department of Finance responsible for drafting and introducing them. The new forms are fixed-price lump-sum contracts with considerably more construction risk transferred to contractors than under the previous forms. The forms are now mandatory for all new building and civil engineering infrastructural projects and many contractors have complained that some of the risks transferred are not only inappropriate but are incapable of assessment at tender stage. The paper sets out the history of the development of the new forms and provides an overview of the more contentious provisions.