Contract & Claim management

    Helping to secure project profit

    Project negotiation & Dispute avoidance

    Helping to secure project profit

    Learning & Development

    Helping to secure project profit

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    Who we are

    We work since 2017 helping and supporting our clients to secure project profit on their complex projects in the engineering and construction industry.

    Clients

    Our clients are owners, contractors, subcontractors, vendors and project developers in the Oil & Gas, Power, LNG, Petrochemical, Renewables energy (PV, CSP, Wind on&off shore, Biomass) Cement, Infrastructures, Railway manufacturing, Pipelines, Piping fabrication, Process Plants, Equipment manufacturing and off shore and shipbuilding industry.

    Methodology

    We work with your project teams – who know far more about their project than we ever will – to leverage that knowledge and together, with our experience in our area of expertise, create strategies to find pragmatic solutions for the challenges your team faces and help you deliver profitable projects.

    Challenges

    All projects face challenges - we know it, we´ve been there. It’s how we deal with risk, contracts, change, conflict, delays and disruption, loss of productivity, claims etc that determine whether projects deliver the typically narrow margins for a contractor – or whether the project is executed in the most capital efficient way for the asset owner. Our consultancy practice takes a pragmatic, results-oriented approach to handle all these commercial and contractual challenges, address conflict, and generate opportunities for negotiated settlements avoiding formal disputes. And during the process supporting your team so they can develop their capability for successful project delivery.

    Mission

    Our mission is to strength our client´s ability to protect their rights and interests and to reach negotiated settlements avoiding formal disputes– we do not believe that ending up in formal dispute ( Arbitration, Litigation) is good for any project party. But we recognize that these are sometimes unavoidable – and we can support our clients at these difficult times.

    Kingsfield Academy

    Kingsfield Academy is the leading training provider of Contract & Claims training and related commercially critical project management disciplines in the engineering and construction industry. Under Kingsfield Academy license we provide training in contracts, contract management and change & claim management.

    Services: Contract Management

    Project Contract & Claim Management advice & support

    continuous support, advice and coaching to you project team and directorate. A small monthly fixed fee with high added value for your projects. We will provide support and advice on contract management and changes & claim management during the performance of the Project and with the objective to:

    • enhance the ability to protect the project budget through effective management, in accordance with the contracts terms, of all events arising during the project.
    • make the necessary contract price and time adjustments and or amendments to the contracts in accordance with the rights and obligations established in the contract as they occur during execution as well as ensure that your Organization doesn´t over pay
    • hold other parties responsible for their obligations and commitments and resolve disagreements and conflicts as they arise , maintaining a collaborative project environment and avoiding Arbitration and Litigation.

    Corporate  Contract and Change & Claim Management advice& support

    in addition to project advice and support:

    • during bidding and contracting phase we assist in addressing key project non technical risk at a time when they can be dealt with most effectively – prior to
    • Develop and improve best practice procedures in contracts management and change and claims management.

    Planing for profit workshop

    carried out at the beginning of the project to aware the team about the main non technical risks and plan to successfully deliver a profitable project. We facilitate workshops – for the project management team with emphasis on strategic scenario planning, and with focus on commercial and contractual risks and awareness.

    Interim contract management

    deployment of a senior contract manager to your team to cover a temporary need or to for a long term assignment. The Contract Manager will ensure a proper administration and management of the contract and changes and contribute to protect the project margin.

    Project diagnosis

    an independent assessment of a project’s health to identify the risks and the opportunities from a commercial / contractual point of view to protect the project margin and strategic options and action plan to : increase contract price, entitlement to schedule adjustment, avoid delay damages, avoid subcontractor claims, develop counter claims, avoid overpaing ,…. And a strategy to an effective contractual & commercial project management until project completion.

    Recruitment

    we search for you the best contracts, claims and project control professionals

    Services: Claims Management & Dispute Avoidance

    Case appraisal

    an independent analysis of your case (claim made or under preparation, or claim defense). We challenge your claim to identify its weaknesses and strengths and identify risks and opportunities related directly and indirectly to the case and that strengthen or weaken your position, and recommended strategy and actions to improve the case and with the goal of reaching the best possible amicable agreement.

    Claim strategies

    We review the project issues and quickly provide advice on the best strategy and action plan to recover time and cost overruns for which you are entitled or defend a claim received. We analyse the causes that make things happening different than planned, the responsibility that each party has regarding these causes and related events and the liability of each party in terms of the effect and impact of these events in order to have a valid and good case. From our experience we know that delays, cost overruns etc. are usually the result of one or both parties not doing what they were supposed to do under the contract and either one or both parties not managing the circumstances effectively – therefore project management performance by both parties invariably features in our analysis of cause and impact.

    Claim preparation

    Once the case is defined and the claim strategy is agreed we work together with your team to prepare a claim, or defend your claims for extension of time and costs ( project prolongation, acceleration, scope change and their cumulative impact , disruption and losss of productivity,..etc), ensuring the impact to the project is properly assessed and in accordance with the entitlements under the contract and providing proper evidence to support the case, and telling a good and credible story. This will allow the other party to understand the case it has to deal with, facilitate a negotiation environment and increase the chances to reach agreements during the execution of a project and thus avoid the formal procedures for resolution of disputes, whenever possible.

    Project negotiation & Dispute avoidance

    strategic advise to create alternatives to resolve conflict and avoid formal dispute resolution procedures (Arbitration, Litigation,..)

    Critical interventions & negotiation strategies

    advise and support to prepare critical negotiations and support during negotiations

    Schedule Delay Analysis

    to request or claim for an extension of time and avoid liquidated delay damages, or for an acceleration plan. We look at all the events delaying the project attributable to both parties and taking into consideration mitigation measures, recovery, acceleration agreed or constructive as well as concurrent delay and its effect on the entitlement to extensión of time and prolongation costs.

    Services: Disputes & Expert Support

    Formal dispute resolution is costly, protracted and demands extensive senior management time. We therefore advocate resolving disputes through amicable negotiation and in all or jobs our goal is always to strength our client´s position to protect its interests and at the same time facilitate a negotiation environment to allow reaching to agreements during the execution of a project and thus avoid the formal procedures for resolution of disputes. However, when this is not possible, we are able to support dispute resolution mechanisms, including arbitration, adjudication and litigation.

    We provide expert support for project management to “tell the project story” from beginning to end, ultimately in a formal Expert Report and upon which the Expert may testify in the arbitration hearing (if any) and with the aim to:

    • Inform our Client´s legal team of the “facts” and circumstances happened within the project
    • provide an interesting and compelling story to assist the arbitrator to clearly understand what actually happened on the project and show, if at all possible, through a balanced and accurate account of the project that in reality our Client is actually the injured party.

    Expertdetermination & reports

    Expertwitness & testimony

    Kingsfield Academy

    Fernando Falcon, Andtec founding partner, believes in learning and coaching as the basis for professional development. Fernando is associate of Kingsfield Academy and supports the development of other project management professionals in the engineering and construction industry for the development of commercially critical project management disciplines

    Kinsgfield Academy in the UK, www.kingsfieldacademy.com, has 40 years experience supporting organizations worlwide in the engineering and construction projects industry. In 2017 Kingsfield,s chairman, John Fotherby, was appointed chairman of the ECI (European Construction Institute).

    Kingsfield Academy delivers training and learning programs, to organizations in contract and claim management, commercial and contract risks, contracting, leadership and stakeholder management,

    Kingsfield Academy is an approved training provider for the UK Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB), registered education provider with the Construction Industry Institute based at the University of Texas in Austin (CII) and approved international provider for the International Centre for Complex Project Management

    Our training designs and workshops are very interactive and participative and involve problem-solving, industry case studies and discussion & work in groups. This approach taps into the experience delegates already bring to the workshop and helps ensure their engagement in the learning content to achieve agreed outcomes.

    These are some of our courses:

    Contract & Claim management for project professionals

    Lack of understanding of contractual obligations together with poorly drafted and unsubstantiated claims is consistently shown to be the primary causes of legal disputes on projects. This 2 days course focuses on the management of major change & claims in the context of scope, risk, contract, time management, the difference between change and claim, total impact of a change, different legal forms of a claim and claim types as key project management discipline to deliver profitable projects. The target group is project managers, corporate managers and project management team members (engineering, construction, procurement, project control, contract management, ..)

    Delay & Disruption Claims

    Delay, disruption and loss of productivity can severely impact project results. This 1.5 days course focuses on essential contractual elements and provisions and their implication for the management of delay & disruption and its impact recovery.

    Commercial Awareness

    1 day course to build commercial awareness throughout your project teams with less experience in management of projects and focused to understand the basics of projects and contracts to successfully deliver a profitable project.

    Contract management program

    A full programme to understand a contract and how to effectively administer and manage it. As an option we can develop a contract maangement manual tailored to your organization The duration of the program shall be mutually defined according to the final content agreed.

    On the job

    and tailored training, we can design workshops training based on a particular project delivered or on going and develop case studies based on your project cases.

    Contracts for engineers

    1 day course which covers all the essentials that engineers must know about contracts: what is a contract?, Key contract terms, risk allocation in contracts, common areas of conflict and dispute resolution.

    Founding Partner

    Fernando Falcon

    Fernando has 25 years’ experience in international engineering and construction mega projects (oil & gas, power, LNG, petrochemical, photovoltaic, thermo solar, wind farm (off & on shore), biomass, infrastructures, railway manufacturing, pipelines, cement , manufacturing of vessels and equipment. He has participated in projects in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Argelia, Marruecos, Mexico, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, France, Belgium, UK, Portugal, India, Spain ...

    Fernando has experience as Project Manager, Contracts and Claim Manager, Project Control and Contract management and Claims Director, and Managing Director. Fernando has worked with companies such as Grupo Dragados, Sener and Tecnicas Reunidas, since 2017 working with Kingsfield Consulting in partnership with Andtec Consulting, his own consultancy firm, and having participated in the strategy, preparation and defence of large and complex claims and providing support, advice and coaching in contract and claims management and prevention and resolution of disputes in numerous projects. As a member of Kingsfield Academy, he participates in the learning and development of engineering and construction professionals in the areas of contract and claims management.

    Qualifications:

    • Master Degree in Naval and Marine Engineering
    • MBA, Master in Business Administration - IE Business School (Instituto de Empresa)
    • Master in Global Executive Management, Euroforum

    Special Interests & Experience:

    • He is passionate about working in complex projects applying his analytical and strategic skills combined with his ability to be creative in solving problems and with the aim of improving the project profit.
    • He understands the problems that the parties (Owners, EPC Contractors , Subcontractors,..) are facing in international environment and he is highly motivated to help finding solutions and achieve settlements for the profitable delivery of complex projects and or in distress.
    • Fernando believes in learning and coaching as the basis for professional development and as member of Kingsfield Academy supports the development of other project professionals.
    • Lecturer: at PMI (Project Management Institute) in Spain, Charter of Mechanical Engineers (Spain) , Deusto university (Spain) on effective contracts and claims management and dispute avoidance in engineering and construction projects.