BCA launches NEC4 contract for construction and engineering projects in Singapore
30 May 2024
On 29 April 2024, the Building and Construction Authority (“BCA”) announced the launch of the NEC4 contract for construction and engineering projects in Singapore. The NEC4 contract is the latest edition of a suite of collaborative contracts for construction and facilities management projects. In particular, BCA and NEC, the commercial arm of the Institution of Civil Engineers and the owner and developer of the NEC suite of contracts, have developed a set of additional contract clauses (“Y clauses”) to align the NEC4 contract with Singapore’s laws. The Y clauses were made available on 1 May 2024.
The launch of the NEC4 contract in Singapore will provide the built environment sector with more options when adopting collaborative contracting in their projects for better project delivery. Collaborative contracting allows project parties to have better time and cost control, better management of risks, and efficient project management. Compared to conventional lump-sum contracts, collaborative contracts such as the NEC4 contract provide a target cost option which allows project parties to share cost savings or overruns when they occur. This could encourage project parties to resolve issues early and explore more productive solutions together.
BCA has been driving efforts to increase the adoption of collaborative contracting in Singapore, including identifying pilot projects to use the Public Sector Standard Conditions of Contract Option Module and more recently, the NEC4 contract. Public sector developers such as the Housing and Development Board, JTC Corporation, and Land Transport Authority will be piloting the use of the NEC4 contract in their upcoming projects. BCA will work with industry partners to facilitate the adoption of the NEC4 contract in their projects as suitable opportunities arise.
The BCA Academy will provide training to facilitate the adoption of the NEC4 contract in pilot projects. This is in addition to the courses and seminars to raise competencies in collaborative contracting introduced by the BCA Academy, the Singapore Academy of Law, institutes of higher learning (e.g. the Singapore University of Social Sciences), industry associations (e.g. the Singapore Contractors Association Limited, Association of Consulting Engineers Singapore, and Society of Project Managers) and firms.
Lawyers from our Construction & Engineering Practice have been extensively involved in advising on the adoption of collaborative contracting in public and private sector projects, training the industry to build familiarity with collaborative contracts, and launching the Y clauses in Singapore.
Reference materials
The following materials are available on the BCA website www1.bca.gov.sg and the NEC website www.neccontract.com: