AN ASSESSMENT AND COMPARISON OF VARIOUS CLAUSES BETWEEN PSSCOC FOR CONSTRUCTION WORKS 2020 (8TH EDITION) AND FIDIC CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT 1999 (1ST EDITION)

Abstract

The construction industry has always been crawling with disputes between contract parties due to the complex nature of construction projects. These disputes often result in the loss of unnecessary time and money for both parties. Ambiguity in contract provisions, different interpretation of contract clauses and unfair risk allocation are few of the many reasons that lead to conflicts between parties. While Red Book 1999 is known for its well-balanced risk allocation, it has been argued otherwise for PSSCOC Construction Works 2020. This merits a comparison of the provisions between the two contract forms, to analyse and evaluate the differences in their risk allocation. This research study uses a comparative approach in analysing the two contract forms to draw conclusions and literature reviews were employed to give background and support the findings. The comparison has revealed that there is value in the Dispute Adjudication Board concept in Red Book 1999 and various improvements can be made to PSSCOC Construction Works 2020 for better risk allocation. Recommendations were made accordingly in hopes to improve the dispute resolution process and risk allocation in PSSCOC Construction Works 2020. As the recommendations were mainly changes to the standard contract forms, the cooperation and buy-in of the contract parties is crucial for favourable results. This dissertation is limited in the lack of inputs from experienced industry players and law practitioners which would be valuable to include in potential further studies, especially since they would likely have first-hand experience in dealing with the two contract forms.