ASA and our Contract Documents Taskforce worked with ConsensusDocs to draft a new contract integrating Lean Practices for Design-Build projects. This document was released this week from the Coalition. The 431 Lean Design-Build Addendum is the industry’s first standard contract document that tailors’ Lean practices to work with the design-build project delivery method.
Lean practices are growing in importance to the AEC industry, because they improve value, efficiency, and relationships. Design-build is an alternative project delivery method that has grown in popularity that offers integrated design and construction services. However, before now, design-build projects have not explicitly incorporated lean practices contractually. Consequently, the ConsensusDocs 431 will help facilitate subscribers to obtain the vast majority of the benefits offered by Lean tools and processes without requiring an integrated project delivery (IPD) contract.
“Many people believe that you need to an IPD contract to get the benefits of Lean.” comments Brian Perlberg, Executive Director and Senior Counsel of ConsensusDocs. He comments further, “This simply isn’t true. The ConsensusDocs 431 leverages the integration of design-build with the innovation and efficiency of Lean. This is good news because not everyone is ready to sign an integrated form of agreement (IFOA) like the ConsensusDocs 300 IPD agreement that requires 3 or more parties to all sign the same agreement.”
The Lean Design-Build Addendum coordinates well with the ConsensusDocs 400 series of design-build agreements but can also be easily be customized with other standard design-build agreements as well as bespoke design-build agreements. By providing Lean practices in your agreements explicitly, owners, design professionals, and builders have a contractual standard to utilize to collaborate more effectively, rather than rely upon cultural aspirations.
ConsensusDocs standard construction contracts are the only contracts written and endorsed by 40 construction organizations that collectively represent over 300,000 companies and individuals. ASA is happy to be a part of this impressive Coalition as a resource for our valued members.