International Federation of Consulting Engineers

FIDIC News

June 2007
Online at FIDIC.org/news
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Activities
Singapore 2007 beckons
The FIDIC 2007 Singapore conference offers an in-depth analysis of the latest
business developments in a remarkably multicultural atmosphere.
BIMILACI 2007 highlighted procurement policies
FIDIC's biennial BIMILACI meeting with the multilateral development banks
focussed on ways to improve the quality of procurement outcomes.
Events
SKOL-Finland celebrates its 40th anniversary
Finland's recognized its 40th anniversary by reflecting on the universal challenges
that the consulting engineers face everywhere.
FIDIC Jordan Training Programme gets underway
Regular two-day training courses given by international experts are now being
offered by a Jordan-based FIDIC programme.
Forthcoming meetings and events
Late-2007 events include FIDIC contracts courses, training seminars andconferences.
Contracts

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Contracts
Amsterdam
6-7 Sep 07

JordanTraining
Courses8-12 Jul07

Several new publications on track
The FIDIC DBO contract, one of several new FIDIC publications, will be released
at a special FIDIC 2007 conference seminar.
Representation
Developing vigorous consulting industries in eastern Europe
FIDIC urges firms operating in east and central Europe to support newly
established associations.
Asia-Pacific 2007 regional conference targetted disaster mitigationRole of consulting engineers in disaster mitigation recognized at the FIDIC 2007
ASPAC-TCDPAP Asia-Pacific Regional Conference.
GAMA-Africa consolidates
African associations reviewed key industry issues and adopted an action plan at
the FIDIC GAMA-Africa 2007 Regional Conference.
Business practiceJapan pursues quality and state-or-the-art practice in procurement
A FIDIC delegation to Japan was briefed on AJCE-Japan initiatives to promote bestpractice in procurement.
Business development
Sustainability management links carbon credits to standards
FIDIC's Project Sustainability Management can offer practical tools for linking ISO
project indicators and Kyoto carbon credit baselines.
EthicsGovernment Procurement Integrity Management System
FIDIC is developing a demand-side integrity tool called Government Procurement
Integrity Management System (GPIMS).
ImageAfDB procurement rules revision
FIDIC to comment on draft revised African Development Bank procurement rules
for consultants and for works.
FIDIC attends the USIC-Switzerland 2007 annual meeting
Enrico Vink, FIDIC Managing Director, stressed the importance of international
best practice at the USIC-Switzerland 2007 meeting.
Infrastructure need highlighted at the ACEC-US 2007 annual convention
A FIDIC delegation participating in the ACEC-US 2007 annual convention heard
about an US infrastructure report card indicating a USD 1.6 trillion requirement.
Notices to Member Associations
MA Notices: June 2007

Conference
9-13 Sep06
Singapore07

DBO
Singapore
Seminar
9 Sep07

CoursesponsorActivities
Singapore 2007 beckons [full item: 94Ac]
FIDIC 2007 Singapore Conference (9-13 September;www.fidic2007.org) keynote speakers will offer a wealth ofexperience and a solid foundation for the workshops that follow.
Mah Bow Tan (see photo; CV) Singapore's Minister for National
Development and Leader of Parliament, will be the Guest of
Honour. He will describe his country's success in becoming botha regional and an international hub, with consulting engineers
playing a major role in infrastructure development anddemonstrating the global nature of the international trade inservices. An Asian Development Bank Vice-President will then focus on the bank'srole as a major regional investor, highlighting the importance of engineers indeveloping the sustainable infrastructure needed for robust economies. A Japan
Bank of International Cooperation project director will then compare and contrast
the roles of aid agencies and the international financial institutions, both of whichstress the need for quality in infrastructure projects.
On the supply side, the chief executive of Leighton Asia, a major construction
firm, will share his considerable experience on the opportunities arising from new
types of project delivery, with new roles for consultants and clients, to achieve
higher quality projects. His counterpart from Maunsell AECOM Asia, a major
consulting firm, is well placed to describe how these changes are affecting
business dynamics: local and international firms are both using innovative models
for business relationships to enhance collaboration and maximise opportunities.

Claims
Bucharest25-26 Jun07
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Contracts
Amsterdam
6-7 Sep 07

JordanTraining
Courses8-12 Jul07

FIDIC 2007 also offers an exciting social programme, including post-conference
Conference
tours to Malaysia and Indonesia, a lively and varied programme for accompanying 9-13 Sep06
persons, and special activities for young professionals. Registrations and bookings Singapore07
can be made online at www.fidic2007.org, and there are special hotel prices forparticipants making reservations through the organizers.
BIMILACI 2007 highlighted procurement policies [full item: 95Ac]
In early-May 2007, FIDIC led the charge on
procurement reform at the biennial BIMILACI
meeting with the major multilateraldevelopment banks (MDBs). Under the banner"Partners for Quality Infrastructure",procurement systems were put under the
spotlight, and found lacking (presentations anda summary report are available atwww.fidic.org/bimilaci). This was emphasised by a presentation of the key
findings of an important study commissioned by the World Bank, the need forwhich had been identified and agreed at the 2005 BIMILACI. The study, as yet
unpublished, revealed significant opportunities for improvement in procurement
policies that impact on integrity, capacity utilisation and the quality of services.
With the growing demand for consulting engineering services and fewer firms
participating in MDB funded work, there was a positive reaction for collaborative
solutions to improving procurement policies. FIDIC argued for release of thestudy's report to help provide a solid background for new initiatives. The areas inmost need of reform are evaluation committees, selection criteria, opportunities
for local consultants, and transparency and integrity in procurement. The photoshows the FIDIC delegation, from the left: Gregs Thomopulos, Executive
Committee (EC) member; Enrico Vink, Managing Director; Jorge Diaz Padilla,
President; John Boyd, President-Elect; Bayo Adeola, EC Member.
As an outcome, the MDB heads of procurement agreed to hold an integrity
workshop to review anticorruption tools, including FIDIC's Business Integrity
Management System (BIMS) and Government Procurement Integrity Management
System (GPIMS), see News item below. The outcome would be to review thepossibility of implementing a pilot project to analyse the applicability of GPIMS in
MDB executing agencies, an area of procurement that was identified as requiringconsiderable support.
The banks also agreed to hold a workshop to share tools on sustainableprocurement, including FIDIC's Project Sustainability Management System (PSM),
and to review their applicabilty for procurement policies, and to inform all
involved. On consultant selection, the banks agreed to focus on: selection
methods; timeframes; shortlisting; terms of reference and scopes of service; costand revised scoring formulae in quality-cost based selection; capacity
development; local consultants. Other issues raised and taken up by the banks
related to late payments and unclear liability provisions in consultant contracts.

DBO
Singapore
Seminar
9 Sep07

CoursesponsorEvents
SKOL-Finland celebrates its 40th anniversary [full item: 54Ev]
Finland is recognised as having one of the most sophisticated and developed
consulting engineering sectors. Nevertheless, many issues of particular interest
such as skill shortages and fees are no different from elsewhere. SKOL-Finland,
which has been responding to the challenges for 40 years, invited Enrico Vink,
FIDIC Managing Director, to recognise this milestone by addressing a 250-strongaudience on FIDIC principles, which have not changed in nearly 100 years.
However, consulting engineering's contributions, while widely recognised, are notappreciated by all clients and by society at large. Enrico emphasised the need to"humanise" the business of consulting engineering, so that people can better
relate to what consulting firms actually do.

Claims
Bucharest25-26 Jun07
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Contracts
Amsterdam
6-7 Sep 07

FIDIC Jordan Training Programme gets underway [full item: 55Ev]
The FIDIC Jordan Training Programme got underway in June 2007 with twocourses given by international experts. There was a full house for each two-day
course, and repeat events will need to be organized. The plan is to offer
participants from the region the full range of courses based on the FIDIC
Contracts and Guide to Practice manuals. Jordan is enjoying an unprecedented
economic boom, and its engineers are highly sought after owing to language
skills, excellent training and their knowledge of FIDIC contracts. The programme
is a joint venture with the Jordan Engineers Association (www.jea.org.jo) that
registers firms and the A/E Business Council (www.aeb-council.org) that
represents the business interests of consulting engineering and architecture firms.
An umbrella association grouping the two partners is planned so that Jordan's
dynamic industry can be represented in FIDIC.
Forthcoming meetings and events [full item: 56Ev]
FIDIC-ECV Adjudicators (Module 3) Course, Bucharest, 14-15 Jun 07
FIDIC-ECV Contracts (Module 1) Course, Bucharest, 25-26 Jun 07
FIDIC-JTP Contracts (Module 1) Course, Amman, 8-9 Jul 07
FIDIC-JTP Claims Management (Module 2) Course, Amman, 11-12 Jul 07
FIDIC-ECV Contracts (Module 1) Course, Trinidad, 9-10 Jul 07
FIDIC-ECV Claims Management (Module 2) Course, Trinidad, 13-14 Jul 07
FIDIC PSM Training Seminar, New Zealand, 9-11 Aug 07
FIDIC-Cornerstone Contracts Workshop, Abu Dhabi, 6-7 September 07
FIDIC 2007 Conference, Singapore, 9-13 Sep 07
FIDIC DBO Seminar, Singapore, 13 Sep 07
Contracts
Several new publications on track [full item: 68Co]
A FIDIC Contracts Committee in Berlin in early May 2007 confirmed that FIDIC's
new and eagerly awaited Design-Build-Operate (DBO) contract is on track for
publication as a Trial Edition at the FIDIC 2007 Singapore Conference(9-13September; www.fidic2007.org) where there will be a special DBO Seminar (seeFIDIC.org/DBO) on 13 September 200. Also well advanced are updates to the
Joint Venture Agreement and to the Sub-Consultancy Agreement, and a revisionof the FIDIC Tendering Procedures publication as a new publication called FIDIC
Procurement Procedures. A huge debt of gratitude is owed for the considerable
efforts of members of the committee and its task groups.
Representation
Developing vigorous consulting industries in eastern Europe [full item: 57Re]
FIDIC has been working closely for several years with emerging consulting
engineering industries in central and eastern Europe. A special forum was held in
Moscow in April 2007, with delegations from Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus
confirming their commitment to agreements to develop closer collaboration,
especially by supporting newly established, independent associations. Belarus,
already a FIDIC member, was able to share its experience, and other countries
are also following the FIDIC model. While opportunities in the emerging
economies are huge, much work is needed to change years of state control, sothat the value of a private sector industry is clearly demonstrated. The support ofmultinational firms operating in the region is vital for developing robust industries.
FIDIC Member Associations are being asked to encourage any of these firms thatare members to support the new associations (please contact Enrico Vink, FIDICManaging Director, for more information).

JordanTraining
Courses8-12 Jul07

Conference
9-13 Sep06
Singapore07

DBO
Singapore
Seminar
9 Sep07

CoursesponsorAsia-Pacific 2007 regional conference targetted disaster mitigation[full item: 56Re]

Following on from the FIDIC 2006 Asia-Pacific(ASPAC) Regional Conference on poverty
alleviation, the consulting engineering industry
continued to raise its profile at the 2007 ASPAC
conference (Lahore, Pakistan; 20-22 March
2007) on disaster management bydemonstrating, with many practical examples,
how consulting engineers make a significant
impact on improving the quality of life. The photo shows, from the left: A.
Hirotani, ASPAC Chair; M. Haque, TCDPAP President; K. Ullah Chaudry, ACEPPakistan President; J. Diaz Padilla, FIDIC President; S. Abrol, TCDPAP Secretary
General. Hosted by ACEPand with some 300 participants, including delegations
from nine ASPAC Member Associations, ASPAC 2007 enjoyed strong support fromthe Pakistani government. This reflected the import role of engineers in mitigating
and alleviating the effects of natural disasters. Although often frustrated bypolitical issues and the well-intentioned efforts of volunteers, consulting engineers
are acknowledged contributors to sustainable solutions. There are many
opportunities for becoming more involved through planning for a longer term,
developing appropriate infrastructure and disseminating best practice.
An ASPAC meeting held during the conference (chaired by Aki Hirotani, AJCEJapan) recognized that there were both challenges and opportunities for FIDIC
ASPAC to provide a platform for closer collaboration and to find new ways forcollaborating. The value of the Asia-Pacific ASPAC regional conference and theinternational FIDIC conference (Singapore; 9-13 September 2007;
www.fidic2007.org) were appreciated. With skill shortages being a major issue,
ongoing training was also high on the agenda, with FIDIC now organizing regulartraining events throughout the region (see FIDIC.org/ASPAC).

Claims
Bucharest25-26 Jun07
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Contracts
Amsterdam
6-7 Sep 07

JordanTraining
Courses8-12 Jul07

Conference
9-13 Sep06
Singapore07

GAMA-Africa consolidates [full item: 55Re]
Excellent presentations (see www.fidic.org/gama) at the
FIDIC Group of African Member Associations (GAMA)
Africa 2007 Regional Conference (12-14 May; Gaborone,
Botswana) covered crucial issues such as anti-corruption
strategies in procurement, capacity development, thevalue of engineering services, public sector reform,
regulation of the engineering industry, risk management in road construction,
procurement issues impacting on firms, and ways to develop an engineering
industry. GAMA 2007 was opened by Ms L. Motsumi, Botswana Minister ofConstruction (shown in the photo with Jorge Diaz Padilla, FIDIC President, andKeinee Kwerepe, ACEB-Botswana Chair), who highlighted the opportunities
stemming from economic growth and the industry's need for more women andyoung professionals. Noting her interest in best practice and international
standards, The FIDIC President and Enrico Vink, FIDIC Managing Director,
presented her with copies of FIDIC's documents.
The host association, ACEB-Botswana, offered a superb setting and a wellorganised conference, and 11 African countries were represented at the GAMA
Annual Meeting, including Tunisia and Sudan with which GAMA has been working
closely to develop capacity. The general assembly adopted a new GAMA structureand elected a steering committee to push forward the recommendations of the
GAMA Task Force. The task force was established two years ago to develop
strategies for enabling the consulting engineering industry in Africa to tackle
specific regional issues. Its action plan based on key outcomes is available atwww.fidic.org/gama in PDF). A new GAMA Executive was also elected comprising:
G. Sitali, Zambia; R. Izzert, Botswana; A. Taute, South Africa; M. Atetiba, Nigeria- chair; N. Chater, Tunisia; A. Zaki, Sudan; E. Mushi, Tanzania.
Business practiceJapan pursues quality and state-or-the-art practice in procurement[full item: 73Pr]

Gregs Thomopulos, FIDIC Executive Committee Member, and Richard Stump,
FIDIC Young Professionals (YP) Forum Chair, took advantage of a business trip toJapan to meet with AJCE-Japan to be briefed on FIDIC-related initiatives. AJCE
has been actively promoting international best practice in a several areas,
including state-of-the art contracts, Risk Management, Business Integrity
Management, and quality-based selection and design-build in procurement (where
there have been AJCE surveys of several countries). The AJCE Newsletter isavailable at www.ajce.co.jp and the association runs a very active YP programme.

DBO
Singapore
Seminar
9 Sep07

CoursesponsorBusiness development
Sustainability management links carbon credits to standards [full item: 54De] Claims
If buildings are recognized as activities under carbon credit trading schemes, they Bucharest
25-26 Jun07
could generate tradable carbon credits, and the energy saving potential of a
ORDER NOW
building would represent a business opportunity. The UNEP Sustainable Building
and Construction Initiative (SBCI) of which FIDIC is a member, thus has as amain focus area the eligibility of buildings and construction for support under the
Kyoto Protocol's flexible mechanisms. At present, owing to complicatedContracts
administrative requirements for developing a business-as-usual "baseline" for a
Amsterdam
certain type of project, there are very few construction-related projects registered 6-7 Sep 07(the difference between the planned emission from, say, a building and thebaseline is counted as an emission reduction for which an investor can claim
credit). SBCI will develop proposals for specific provisions in post-2012 Kyoto
agreements so that construction can receive improved support under Kyoto
carbon trading schemes (a so-called Kyoto Strategy). Further details of the UNEPSBCI work programme are at www.unepsbci.org. It is unclear how thisJordanprogramme relates to a ISO Technical Committee 59 proposal (available online)
to use the ISO Technical Specification 21929-1 Framework for the development of Training
Courses
indicators for buildings to develop a core set of sustainability indicators for
8-12 Jul07
buildings. What is sure that FIDIC's Project Sustainability Management (www.p-sm.net) aims to integrate both Kytoto baselines and core indicators in its set oftools.
EthicsGovernment Procurement Integrity Management System [full item: 34Et]
As corruption is a two-way street, FIDIC's Integrity Management Committee isdeveloping an integrity system that mirrors FIDIC's Business Integrity
Management System (BIMS) but is geared to the demand side of corruption.
Called the Government Procurement Integrity Management System (GPIMS), it isalso a ISO 9001-2000 quality management based system where integrity is
considered as part of quality. GPIMS meets the protocols for the government
procurement anticorruption policies of the OECD's Principles for Managing Ethics
in the Public Service and of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. In
addressing the integrity of government procurement processes for consulting
services, GPIMS also accommodates the fundamental principles of a government's
legal system. Details of BIMS are available at FIDIC.org/BIMS, together with asummary of the development of GPIMS.
Image
AfDB procurement rules revision [full item: 37Im]
The African Development Bank (AfDB) reports that it is time to reform the Bank's
Rules of Procedure for the Procurement of Goods and Works and Rules ofProcedure for the Use of Consultants. The 2000 versions (available in Works Rules
PDF and Consultant Rules PDF) have gone through a lengthy revision and "arigorous harmonization process and the inclusion of new modalities which will help
the Bank improve its efficiency and delivery on its mandate" (available in New
Draft Works Rules PDF and New Draft Consultant Rules PDF, see ADB.org). FIDIC,
which been invited to comment by 5 July 2007, will coordinate remarks from its
Group of Africa Member Associations (GAMA) and from committees through the
FIDIC Secretariat.
FIDIC attends the USIC-Switzerland 2007 annual meeting [full item: 38Im]
Despite its proximity to the FIDIC office in Geneva, it took Enrico Vink, FIDICManaging Director, three years since taking office before he could attend theannual meeting of USIC-Switzerland. As with other European countries, progresswithin the consulting engineering industry has been impressive, in spite of issues
related to risk, sustainability, skill shortages and fees. Enrico took the opportunity
to explain FIDIC's many guidelines and policies covering most of the crucial
topics. That FIDIC represented much more than just international businessinterests was of considerable interest to the audience assembled in Basel
University's venerable halls. The message was that FIDIC develops international
best practice for local use: think global - act local.

Conference
9-13 Sep06
Singapore07

DBO
Singapore
Seminar
9 Sep07

CoursesponsorInfrastructure need highlighted at the ACEC-US 2007 annual convention[full item: 39Im]The US consulting engineering industry is enjoying record levels of activity,
thanks in part to the ACEC-USA success in lobbying the US Congress for increased
spending on infrastructure. While visiting Washington DC for the BIMILACI 2007
meeting with the development banks (see News item) a FIDIC delegation
participated in the ACEC-USA annual convention that reported on a recent
infrastructure report card (see www.asce.org/reportcard) indicating that USD1.6
trillion is required over a five-year period to bring US infrastructure to "a goodcondition". Such report cards have been adopted by other countries, and may beof interest to FIDIC Member Associations interested in highlighting a country's
needs, from an industry perspective. Infrastructure report cards use a panel ofleading engineers to analyze studies, reports and other sources, and to survey
individual engineers to determine what has happening in six areas (aviation;
bridges, roads and transit; industrial sites ; dams; water; waterways). Grades are
assigned on the basis of condition, capacity and operations, and funding versus
need. They are then adjusted to reflect positive or negative trends and the criticalconsequences of a catastrophic failure. An excellent example of report card
methodology (for California) is available online (Word file).

Claims
Bucharest25-26 Jun07
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Contracts
Amsterdam
6-7 Sep 07

JordanTraining
Courses8-12 Jul07

Notices to Member Associations
Meetings: see Meetings
Contracts Committee, Geneva, 28 Aug 07
MA Letters
03/07: Young Professionals PDF
04/07: Events PDF
05/07: FIDIC 2007 PDF
06/07: FIDIC 2008 GAM agenda PDF
Newsletters
Young Professionals June 2007 PDF
ASPAC Asia-Pacific Group May 2007 PDF

Conference
9-13 Sep06
Singapore07

DBO
Singapore
Seminar
9 Sep07

CoursesponsorThis email edition of FIDIC News is sent to FIDIC Member Associations, contacts and members of working
committees, groups, task forces and forums as a multipart formatted email message with an attached print
friendly PDF file. If difficulties arise, please download the newsletter from FIDIC.org/news. Member Associations
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