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Launched by NEC, the construction industry’s leading procurement contract suite, and the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM), the new set of contracts are specifically for the procurement of facilities management services and to help identify best practice in the sector and establish the way forward.
The suite consists of four contracts, six user guides and two flow charts, as well as introductory training from NEC, and is designed to cover most facilities management procurement and delivery strategies. These include “total FM” / integrated services FM contracts, managing contractor FM contracts, and single and / or multiple supplier FM contracts. Practice notes covering specific geographic and FM themes will continue to be published over the coming months.
As with all NEC4 contracts, they are based on three core principles – ensuring they work to support good relationships between all parties; they can be used in a wide variety of commercial situations or locations, and are written in clear, simple terms.
The new contracts and their supporting documents will enable the facilities management sector to offer more integrated and consistent procurement strategies, add value to the supply chain and develop stronger, more collaborative, relationships and ways of working.
Rekha Thawrani, Global Head of NEC, said: “We are delighted that the new contracts have been developed specifically for the FM industry, using tailored research, stakeholder workshops with IWFM members and individual consultations.
“The new suite will provide the FM industry with more consistent procurement strategies, supported by NEC guiding principles of mutual trust and co-operation and therefore strengthen the sector as a whole. The feedback we have had since the prepublication editions of the contracts was launched in January has been very encouraging, with interest from across the sector. We look forward to seeing them used and encourage anyone who is interested in finding out more to get in touch.”
IWFM Chief Executive Linda Hausmanis said: “Workplace and facilities managers have long wanted a dedicated contract that meets our profession’s and the sector’s specific needs.
“The NEC4 FMC suite is rooted in collaboration and ‘bakes in’ a number of principles for best practice in procurement, which is fundamentally important to our profession’s advancement. It is a key tool for embedding best practice that can help our profession to thrive and grow.”
The full suite includes the Facilities Management Contract (FMC), to be used by a Client to appoint a provider to manage and deliver any type of facilities management services, and the Facilities Management Subcontract (FMS), which can be used by a FM provider to appoint a subcontractor to help deliver its service.
There is also the Facilities Management Short Contract (FMSC), which can be used to appoint a FM provider to deliver any type of straightforward, low-risk services which do not require sophisticated management techniques, and the accompanying Facilities Management Short Subcontract (FMSS), which covers the same services for subcontractors.
The final editions of the contracts will be available from the NEC website and information can be found here.
