Impact and Control of RFIs on Construction Projects

Why Should You Attend:

The webinar discusses the impact of RFIs on construction projects, drawing upon data provided by ACONEX and other studies to assess how RFIs and the RFI processes impact both small large scale construction projects. The webinar addresses the abuse of the RFI process examining how some contractors misuse RFIs to increase profitability, a practice that has become somewhat institutionalized in the past decade. Speaker explains how owners inadvertently contribute to the abuse of RFIs by failing to adopt practices that may contractually safeguard against the potential negative impacts of the RFI process. It sets forth a framework for reducing the impact of RFIs that consists of three principal recommendations: the incorporation of critical definitions and an RFI control specification; electronic RFI tracking and monitoring RFIs; and sets forth best management practices concerning RFIs that owners and contractors can adopt and implement for managing the RFI process.

Learning Objectives:

• Learn about how the RFI process can be abused and used as the basis of claims.
• Learn how to mitigate the adverse impact of RFIs through contractual mechanisms.
• Understand the value of an electronic RFI tracking and monitoring system.
• Understand the best management practices concerning RFIs and the RFI process.

Areas Covered in the Webinar:

• Learn how the RFI process came about and is intended to be used in the construction industry.
• Better understand the impact of RFIs on construction projects based on data from approximately 1,400 projects including the average time and cost to review and respond to an RFI.
• Gain an understanding of how the RFI process can be abused.
• Be exposed to legal decisions concerning how the number of RFIs on projects has been used to prove delay and cumulative impact claims.
• Understand what definitions should be included in construction projects to help lessen the impact of RFIs.
• Examine a proposed RFI specification which may be included in contracts to mitigate the impact of RFIs.
• Understand how electronic tracking and monitoring of RFIs will help further mitigate the adverse impact of RFIs on projects.
• Finally, learn about the best management practices concerning the management of RFIs.

Who Will Benefit:

• Attorneys dealing with construction delays and cumulative impact claims.
• Owners and owner representatives managing capital improvement projects.
• Contractor executives, project managers, project sponsors and project control personnel.
• Construction managers and design professionals performing services during construction.

Jim Zack
Executive Director, Navigant Consulting Inc

James G. Zack, Jr., CCM, CFCC, FAACE, FFA, FRICS, PMP, is executive director of Navigant Construction Forum™. He was formerly executive director of Corporate Claims Management, Fluor Corporation; vice president, PinnacleOne; and senior construction claims consultant, CH2M HILL, Inc.

For more than 40 years Mr. Zack has worked on both private and public projects. In the construction claims arena, he is a recognized and published expert in mitigation, analysis and resolution or defense of construction claims and disputes. He has worked on claims and disputes throughout the United States and has presented and worked on claims in Canada, Egypt, The People’s Republic of China, Germany, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, The Russian Federation, Chile, Peru, Guatemala, Mexico, Venezuela, Jamaica, Kuwait, South Africa, The United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Slovenia, Poland, Australia, The Philippines, India, and Trinidad & Tobago.

Mr. Zack has been involved in thousands of claims throughout his career and has been designated as an expert witness in mediation, arbitration and litigation. He is a Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering, International (FAACE), the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS) and a Fellow of Forensic Analysis (FFA) from the International Guild of Project Controls. He is also a member of the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) and the Project Management Institute (PMI). He is a Certified Construction Manager (CCM); a Certified Forensic Claims Consultant (CFCC); and a Project Management Professional (PMP). Mr. Zack is a former President of the Association for the Advancement of Cost Engineering, International (AACE). He is a nationally known author, speaker and trainer concerning the management, mitigation and resolution of construction claims and disputes.

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