NEWSLETTER

New Contract Forms from ConsensusDOCS

June 2009 will see the release of a new edition of ConsensusDOCS, with 11 new contract forms and revisions to a number of the 90+ documents available. The new forms include ConsensusDOCS 752 – Subcontract for Use on Federal Government Construction Contracts and ConsensusDOCS 235, a short form agreement between owner and contractor on cost-plus projects.

ConsensusDOCS contract forms are construction form documents built on a consensus process involving 22 different construction industry organizations. These organizations represent general contractors, subcontractors, building owners, and surety professionals, and they have collaborated on development of documents designed to be fair to all parties.

The documents are delivered electronically in the DocuBuilder software developed by BSD that permits editing of the documents for specific projects while preventing their unauthorized use. Users may purchase an annual subscription for unlimited use of one or more of the four groups of documents (General Contracting, Design-Build, Subcontracting, and Construction and Program Management), or they may buy a Meter Mode account that offers access to all documents and deducts a charge only when a final document is printed.

SpecLink users will find the look and feel of the DocuBuilder software very familiar, because it was developed directly from the BSD SpecLink® product, with built-in linking and context-sensitive notes to the editor in a separate window. Users of the software can choose to print the edited project documents in a redline format that shows the changes from the standard form document, or they can print ”clean” documents that include only a footnote that the documents may differ from the standard forms and should be read carefully.

Users of the AIA contract forms and the AIA Contract Documents software may want to take a closer look at the ConsensusDOCS product. Not only is the language of the contract forms more accessible and easier to understand, but the DocuBuilder software makes editing and printing the documents much easier than with the AIA product. More information about these contract forms can be found at www.ConsensusDOCS.org or on the AGC website at www.AGC.org. The product can be purchased from either site.