Construction Project Risk Management for Contractors
Published: 02-Aug- 2011
Construction and renovation projects carry complex risks for all involved — including contractors, owners, and design firms — that can increase dramatically when construction takes place near an active facility or congested area. Risks include geological or pollution-related conditions, interference with ongoing operations, construction accidents, and design and construction errors that manifest during construction—or even long after project completion.
Too often, contractors rely on other project participants to manage and fund risk, only to find themselves unprepared and inadequately protected should something go wrong.
Marsh helps contractors identify and quantify the range of risks faced by all project participants and promotes a collaborative, team-based approach appropriate for their projects. Doing so enables contractors to negotiate favorable terms with owners, control losses, and minimize the impact of adverse events, while providing improved financial protection to protect the schedule and budget, the performance of the finished project, and your reputation.
Service Highlights
Marsh provides access to a highly experienced, global network of risk consultants and brokers to help you identify and manage the full spectrum of construction risk. We focus on helping you reduce overall project risk rather than simply transferring the responsibility or consequences of risk.
Whether you seek to emphasize collaboration and risk sharing among all project participants, or to define and enforce individual accountability, we offer solutions for both insurable and uninsurable risk. From risk evaluation to loss prevention, loss mitigation, insurance, and other services, we provide customized solutions to meet the specific needs of your project and demonstrate that value to owners and other stakeholders. Although this process is most effective when the owner and design team participate, we can scale our services to fit any situation.
Risk Evaluation
If one party fails on a construction project, the entire team can suffer. Marsh offers a detailed assessment of the risk to all project participants, which we call the project risk management process (PRMP). We start by examining the risks arising from project finance, the operating environment, project participants, and project scope, including industry-specific considerations such as efficacy or aesthetics. We then assess the consequences of these risks individually and in combination to help you prioritize and manage them.
Loss Prevention
Once risks have been identified, we work with all participants to implement loss prevention strategies that help reduce overall project risk at its source. We recommend solutions in such critical areas as communication among members of the design and construction teams; safety of workers, third parties, and property; rights and responsibilities upon project completion; and follow-up inspection and maintenance. We help you formulate contract provisions that delineate which entity will assume on-site control of risk, standards, and protocols to be followed by all participants; duties in an emergency; and other key provisions.
Loss Mitigation
Should a loss occur, immediate, decisive action can often mean the difference between a manageable setback and a catastrophic event. Marsh can help you put procedures in place to lessen the severity of an adverse event.
For example, we can help you formulate a comprehensive emergency response plan that provides for the protection of persons and property; orderly evacuation of job site and adjacent structures; notification of police, fire, medical and other emergency personnel; communication with the media; and establishing accounting codes to capture insured expenses. We can also help you with other mitigation strategies, including developing a return-to-work program for injured workers and compliance with any and all insurance policy conditions to secure coverage.
Insurance
Insurers typically reserve their best terms and conditions for those projects and companies that actively manage risk. Building upon your risk management program, Marsh can help determine the insurance coverage you need and which project participant is in the best position to buy it. We help you secure coverage at competitive premiums by presenting a strong case to insurers. We also help you review owner-provided insurance to negotiate and coordinate limits, deductibles, and coverage among all project policies. We offer expertise in critical areas, including:
environmental liability (including mold);
professional liability and contractors protective professional indemnity (CPPI);
property coverage/builders risk insurance including delay in start-up (DSU) protection;
wrap-up insurance programs (OCIPs/CCIPs); and
surety/subcontractor default insurance.
Deliverables
Typically, Marsh clients receive:
a detailed risk profile of their project;
evaluation of your existing approach to risk control, including contractual requirements, procedures, and insurance;
strategies for managing risk, including cost/benefit analysis of available risk treatment options;
advice on an appropriate insurance program structure, including specific coverages, retention levels, and coverage amounts, as well as advocacy for contractors in securing favorable rates and terms; access to expert risk consultants in the fields of management, environmental liability, professional liability, construction management, safety, and claims.
Additional Services
In addition to the services described above, Marsh offers the following loss control and mitigation services either as part of a robust risk management program or individually:
environmental and natural hazard risk assessment and quantification;
behavior-based safety programs;
forensic accounting and claims services;
dispute resolution services;
project governance; and
claims consulting and advocacy.