The Joint Building Contracts Committee (JBCC) has completed a revision of what is probably the building industry’s most essential documentation: the JBCC Principal Building Agreement.

JBCC is a non-profit company that represents building owners and developers, professional consultants, and general and specialist contractors who all provide input for the compilation of JBCC agreements (contracts) that portray the consensus view of the committee’s constituent members.

Uwe Putlitz, CEO of JBCC, said the constituent members felt the time had come to issue a revised JBCC Standard Form of Building Contract which has as its main aim the avoidance of disputes in contractual matters in the industry. Noteworthy among the changes for the 2018 editions are:

The adaptation of the text for easier reading with fewer cross-references;

Revised layout of the contract data;

Revision of certain definitions; and

Rewording of clauses relating to insurances and payments.

“In revising the JBCC Standard Building Contract, we also felt that aspects of insurance needed to be included. Insurance, such as work by direct contractors and ‘free issue’ to contractors that could lead to accidental damage, now has to be specified and included in the works insurance.

Also insurance cover against specialised work, or periphery actions involving construction equipment and materials that do not strictly fall under the ‘building’ category, must be specified and insured. Highlighted also in the revision is insurance to cover the transit phase of imported building materials, such as via shipping, where marine insurance may be required,” Putlitz explained.

New stipulations to expedite prompt payment, and rewording of aspects covering suspension, termination, dispute resolution, and penalties are in the revised agreement. “To make the JBCC agreement more adaptable for use in other African counties, the agreement furthermore allows for the use of local adjudicators, arbitrators, or mediators in the country where a contract is used.

Generally, the costs of adjudication and/or mediation will be shared equally by all parties involved in a dispute.”

Putlitz added that the JBCC agreement still had as main objective the identification of disputes before they occurred, proper and proactive action in this regard, and the creation and adherence to recorded and accessible communications. “The revisions simply clarify and/or strengthen the applicable contractual agreements,” he stated.

For more details about the revised 2018 JBCC Principal Building Agreement, email info@jbcc.co.za, or phone 011 482 3102.