Engineering Inc. - January/February 2006 - 28

 Sometimes project A CASE managers are too Study willing to please clients.
If you don't stand firm with the T he Council of American amount of money
Structural Engineers' are too willing to please clients, R e s o l v i n g
a claim, whether you need or a better CASE Risk Manage- says David H.
Collings, a part- through mediation or in a court- ment Program is based
on the fol- ner in the Atlanta office of insur- room, is always onerous
for the scope for your work lowing 10 foundations. For more a n c e broker
Ames & Gough, structural engineering firm. It is and you just dive in
details, visit www.acec. org/rmp. which has over 700 design firm
time-consuming and takes key to please a client that Create a culture of
managing clients. If you don't stand firm p e o p l e away from their
jobs, with the amount of money you where they could be doing pro- risks
and preventing claims by can really be to your need or a better scope for
your ductive, billable work. stressing quality control. detriment. w o r k
and you just dive in to Clients bring the majority of Use preventive
techniques; don't please a client, that can really be claims against
structural engi- just react. Early planning and to your detriment. neering
firms, says Schinnerer, inter vention can mitigate the DAVID H. COLLINGS
Collings cites the example of a followed by other design profes- severity
of claims. AMES & GOUGH mid-size structural engineering sionals and
contractors. Proper planning leads to claim- firm that was asked by a
devel- free results. Managing Your Risk oper of a commercial property
Emphasize effective communica- t o determine why several The best defense
for structural tion. masonry walls were cracking. engineering firms
against law- Make sure your staff and clients Trying to save money, the s
u i t s and soaring insurance have realistic expectations of d e v e l o p
e r refused to let the p r e m i u m s is implementing a what will be
required for a job e n g i n e e r perform tests inside broad-based risk
management to be done effectively. the walls and allowed only min- p r o g
r a m . Such a strategy Develop a clearly defined scope emphasizes
effective communi- of services to avoid misunder- cation and contracts
that clearly A lot of developers standings. define the scope of work to be
Prepare and negotiate fees that and owners treat performed and fee
structure. allow for quality work. i m a l investigation. Unfortu- Most
claims against structural [our] liability Negotiate clear and fair con- n
a t e l y, the engineer agreed to engineers are not the result of
insurance as tracts. Use contracts prepared these limited terms and recom-
t e c h n i c a l mistakes, but stem by organizations representing
contingency funds. mended a number of immediate f ro m more basic, human
fail- designers. f i x e s to bring the walls into ures, experts say. They
will initiate a Produce quality contract code compliance. The single most
common claim very quickly, documents. After the repairs had been issue
that leads to the initiation Protect against risk right to the made, the
developer and con- of claims is a lack of communi- as soon as there's end.
Stay on top of tasks and tractor who had built the walls cation and
improper communi- something out of details throughout the construc-
charged that the engineer had cation, says Ericson. Avoiding the ordinary
on tion phase. D.R.L. overstated the problem and the t h i s means not
only ensuring s t e p s taken were unnecessary. t h a t what is expected
of each their budget. They filed a claim against the p a r t y on a
project is clearly doesn't go into litigation or has engineer for $250,000
in dam- understood by all, but making threatened litigation as you get
ages. Just before trial, the dis- the extra effort to confirm that toward
the end it. VAL ERICSON pute was settled when the engi- an e-mail, voice
mail or fax was Adds Val Ericson, CEO of the DISALVO ERICSON GROUP neer
agreed to pay the developer re c e i ve d by your counterpart, D i S a l v
o Ericson Group in and contractor $75,000. for instance, in the architect's
or R i d g e f i e l d , Conn., and chair- Teaching structural engineers
client's office. m a n of the risk management how to identify and avoid
such Liability claims also frequently p r o g r a m of the Council of
situations is Ericson's primary result when engineers take on American
Structural Engineers goal as chairman of the Council j o b s with
unreasonable limits C A S E , A lot of developers o f American Structural
Engi- r e s t r i c t i n g the scope of their and owners treat [our]
liability n e e r s' CASE Risk Manage- w o r k and when they sign on
insurance as contingency funds. ment Program. His model is the with
clients who are so obsessed They will initiate a claim very Structural
Engineers Risk Man- w i t h controlling costs that it quickly, as soon as
there's some- a g e m e n t Council, a program affects the quality of
work. t h i n g out of the ordinary on t h a t was formed in 1988 by
Sometimes project managers their budget. 2 8 E N G I N E E R I N G INC. J
a n u a r y l February 2006
Engineering Inc. - January/February 2006

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