PRE-CONSTRUCTION PLANNING
Pre-construction planning from award to site start
Pre-construction planning services for contractors between award and site start. The first programme ready for acceptance, long-lead procurement inside the logic and the controls set up before site starts. A first programme from £1,250 + VAT.
Sample pre-construction pack on a demo project. Opens as a PDF.
NEC ACCREDITED
APMG QUALIFIED
P6 / MS PROJECT / ASTA
NEC / JCT / FIDIC
THE FIRST WEEKS AFTER AWARD
What the contract asks for between award and site start
The contract clock starts at award, usually before the site team is in place. These are the first dates under NEC4, with the FIDIC and JCT equivalents below them.
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2
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5
Award
CONTRACT DATE
The Contract Date, when the contract comes into existence. The period for the first programme runs from here, not from the starting date.
Starting date
CLAUSES 15.1 AND 15.2
The Project Manager issues the first Early Warning Register within one week. The Contractor and the Project Manager give an early warning as soon as either becomes aware of a matter that could increase the total of the Prices or delay Completion.
First programme submitted
Where the Contract Data identifies no programme, the first one is due within the period it states. The clause sets no default period.
CLAUSE 31.1
Project Manager's reply
CLAUSE 31.3
Acceptance or reasons within two weeks. If the reply is late, the Contractor may notify it and a further week of silence is treated as acceptance.
First assessment
CLAUSE 50.5 · NEC3 50.3
Until a first programme with the information the contract requires is submitted, a quarter of the Price for Work Done to Date is retained.
Where the Contract Data already identifies a programme, clauses 31.1 and 50.5 do not apply. FIDIC 2017: the initial programme within 28 days of receiving the Notice under Sub-Clause 8.1 (Sub-Clause 8.3). JCT SBC 2016: the master programme as soon as possible after the contract is executed, unless already provided (clause 2.9.1.2).
WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT
Why pre-construction planning decides how the project runs
Built for the team that runs the job, not for the bid file.
Long-lead items sit in the logic
Order, approval, manufacture and delivery are activities with dates, linked to the work that needs them. A late approval then shows in the programme while there is still time to act.
A first programme built to be accepted
Built to the clause 31.2 list, with a narrative the Project Manager can test against the Scope. Submitted with the information the contract requires, it ends the quarter retention where clause 50.5 applies.
Controls set up before site starts
Coding, calendars, cut-off dates and the report format agreed before the first update. Assumptions written down now are the record a later compensation event can rely on.
Pre-construction through to completion. On a £20M carbon capture facility, NEC Planning Solutions was engaged from tender stage through pre-construction and into live delivery, building the baseline programme from first principles and maintaining it through continuous design change to practical completion. View case study
OUTPUTS
What our pre-construction planning services include
Five outputs, issued together as one pack and reviewed before issue.
FOUNDATION OUTPUT
First programme for acceptance
Logic-linked from award to planned Completion, with the Key Dates and the Completion Date
To clause 31.2 under NEC, Sub-Clause 8.3 under FIDIC 2017 or clause 2.9 under JCT SBC 2016
Native file in P6, MS Project or Asta, with a PDF for submission
INTERFACE OUTPUT
Constraints and interface plan
Access dates, permits and possessions built into the logic
Design, third-party and client interfaces with the date each side needs
Each assumption written down, so a later change can be measured against it
PROCUREMENT OUTPUT
Long-lead procurement schedule
Each long-lead item from order to delivery, linked to the work it feeds
Design approvals and submittal dates tied to the programme
Float on each item shown, so the late ones are seen early
NARRATIVE OUTPUT
Programme narrative
For each operation, how the work will be done and the principal Equipment and other resources, as clause 31.2 asks
Assumptions, exclusions and the dates the Contractor needs access, acceptances and information
Written for the Project Manager to read, not to file
CONTROLS OUTPUT
Controls set-up
Coding, calendars and activity naming fixed before the first update
Cut-off dates, progress rules and the update cycle agreed
The report pack and its readers, handed over in a session with your team
WHO IT'S FOR
Contractors with a short window between award and site start
Most useful where access, permits, interfaces, long-lead items or unfinished design will shape the first months on site. It also fits a PCSA or an early contractor involvement stage.
WORKS FOR
HOW IT WORKS
How the pre-construction planning works
Scope and fee agreed in writing before any chargeable work. A first programme for a single-phase job is ready within 5 working days of that agreement.
STAGE 01
Confirm the scope
We read the contract, the Scope and what exists from tender, then agree the outputs, the fee and the dates.
WRITTEN SCOPE BEFORE BILLING
STAGE 02
Build and review
Programme, procurement, interfaces and narrative built together, then checked against the contract before issue.
SENIOR REVIEW BEFORE ISSUE
STAGE 03
Hand over
The pack goes to your team in a working session, ready for the first submission and the first update.
FULL PACK AND HANDOVER SESSION
PRICING
Pre-construction planning prices, agreed before work starts
Priced by the number of phases, interfaces and long-lead items. A fixed fee where the scope allows.
ENGAGEMENT STRUCTURE
FIXED-FEE OPTIONS
SCOPE CONFIRMED IN WRITING
FIRST PROGRAMME IN 5 WORKING DAYS
CONFIDENTIAL
Fixed fee where scope allows, otherwise a defined upper limit. Confirmed before any chargeable work begins.
Outputs, fee and timeline confirmed before chargeable work begins.
On a single-phase job, counted from the day the scope is agreed.
Your contract documents and programmes are used for your job only.
FIRST PROGRAMME
From £1,250 + VAT
SINGLE PHASE, FEW INTERFACES
A first programme ready for acceptance, with its narrative, within 5 working days of the scope being agreed.
PRE-CONSTRUCTION PACK
From £2,500 + VAT
PROGRAMME, PROCUREMENT AND CONTROLS
All five outputs in one pack, with a handover session for your team.
COMPLEX SCOPE
Scoped
MULTI-PACKAGE, INFRASTRUCTURE OR ENERGY
Several phases or packages, possessions or outages. Priced once we understand the packages and the dates.
Every fee is confirmed in writing before any chargeable work. See full pricing
QUESTIONS
Common questions about pre-construction planning services
How much do pre-construction planning services cost?
A first programme for a single-phase job starts from £1,250 + VAT. The full pre-construction pack, with procurement, interfaces and the controls set-up, starts from £2,500 + VAT. Larger multi-package jobs are scoped. The fee is confirmed in writing before any chargeable work.
How quickly can a first programme be ready?
Within 5 working days of the scope being agreed, for a single-phase job. Under NEC4, where the Contract Data identifies no programme, the first programme is due within the period the Contract Data states (clause 31.1), so the best time to start is at award.
What happens if the first programme is late under NEC4?
Where the Contract Data identifies no programme, one quarter of the Price for Work Done to Date is retained until a first programme with the information the contract requires is submitted (clause 50.5, 50.3 in NEC3). Until a programme is accepted, the Project Manager also uses its own assessment of the programme when it assesses a compensation event itself (clause 64.2).
Does it work under a PCSA or early contractor involvement?
Yes. Under a pre-construction services agreement or an early contractor involvement stage (NEC4 Option X22, used with Options C and E), the same pack sets up the programme and procurement before the main works. Our PCSA guide covers the obligations a PCSA can carry.
What do you need from us?
Nothing to start the conversation. Once the scope is agreed, we work from the contract, the Scope, the tender programme if there is one and the procurement list. Everything stays confidential.