Below is an excerpt of the “Legal Column” published in the Summer 2021 issue of PE Magazine, the flagship publication of the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE).
Prior to COVID-19, the term “design to budget” was probably not a scary concept. After all, modern designers always consider the client’s budget when putting our Leroy pens to paper. However, given skyrocketing material costs and the postpandemic challenges of the current labor market, the obligation to design to budget can be an unsuspected and sometimes overlooked source of exposure. In this article, we’ll look at some of the provisions in the standard industry contracts and consider how they can affect designers’ exposure for construction cost overruns. Read the article.