International Federation of Consulting Engineers

FIDIC News

March 2006
Online at FIDIC.org/news
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Activities
Budapest 2006 conference takes shape
The 2006 International Consulting Engineering Conference in Budapest on 24-27
September is designed around three complementary themes that tackle the newchallenges in an era of accelerated change.

Contracts
Bucharest
10-11 May06
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EventsYoung professionals 2006 training programme gets underway
The 2006 FIDIC online training programme has 30 participants, among them Sara Contracts
Cairo
Senyondo, the first Future Leader prizewinner from Uganda.
25-26 Apr06
Forthcoming visits and meetingsORDER NOW
Contracts courses expand to target the Americas through Caribbean events.
Contracts
New bank harmonised Construction Contract
FIDIC has released to participating multilateral development banks a March 2006
version of the bank harmonised Construction Contract.
FIDIC says farewell to a trusted adviser
John Bowcock steps down from the Contracts Committee after 12 years at theforefront of FIDIC's highly regarded suite of works contracts.
Representation

MDB Contract
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Sweden looks outside the box
Sweden's STD has launched activities to stimulate creativity that is seen as a key
to success in a globalised market.
Business practice
ADB procurement procedures
The Asian Development Bank has thanked FIDIC for its contributions tostreamlined consultant procurement procedures aimed at greater efficiency andtransparency.
Complementary studies of scope of service definitions launched
Scope of service definitions, vital for open competition, are being developed by
FIDIC with input from a European study.

Conference
Budapest06

CoursesponsorBusiness development
UNEP's Sustainable Buildings and Construction Initiative launched
FIDIC has joined UNEP's Sustainable Buildings and Construction Initiative which
will pilot new ways to ensure that buildings are truly sustainable.

Positions
Announced

Ethics and integrity
FIDIC participates in anticorruption discussions
FIDIC argues for preventive measures rather than sanctioning to combat
corruption.
Image
China training centre explores certification
Beijing's FIDIC-Tsinghua Training Centre is exploring with FIDIC ways to pilot acertification scheme
Notices to Member Associations
MA Notices: March 2006
Announcements
Employment opportunities at the Asian Development Bank
The Asian Development Bank seeks Transport Specialists (Announcement in PDF).

SISE Tunis
7-9 Jun06

Activities
Budapest 2006 conference takes shape [full item: 78Ac]
Keynote speakers from Europe, Asia and the Middle Eastat the action packed 2006 International ConsultingEngineering Conference in Budapest on 24-27
September will explore best practice procurement,
trends within the industry that impact on member firms
and the key ingredients for delivering quality projects.
The full programme as well as online registration areavailable at www.consulting2006.org. Please register as soon as possible: theearly bird rates end on 15 July, and hotel bookings at conference rates andpayment for all tours and optional events must be settled by 15 August.
Several important meetings take place before the conference, including a special
meeting for permanent and honorary Member Association managers on Saturday,
23 September, followed by a special meeting for Presidents on Sunday, 24
September. FIDIC Young Professionals management trainees will also becompleting their training programme, before participating in the conference. Theconference gala dinner is at the world-renowned Gellert Hotel, shown in thephoto, on Tuesday evening, and the General Assembly Meetings of both FIDICand the coorganizing European federation EFCA are on Wednesday, 27
September.

Contracts
Bucharest
10-11 May06
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ContractsCairo
25-26 Apr06
ORDER NOWMDB Contract
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EventsYoung professionals 2006 training programme gets underway[full item: 48Ev]

Some 30 participants from 18 countries "met"online in early-February 2006 to launch the2006 FIDIC Young Professionals Management
Training Programme (the 2005 programmeparticipants are shown in the photo, taken at
the FIDIC 2005 Beijing conference). Firms areto be congratulated for supporting these future
leaders, who will spend seven months training
online. Issues to be covered include growth and profit strategies, the marketing ofconsulting services, personnel development and ownership structures. Casestudies will be analysed and the many rich experiences shared to enable eachparticipant to add value back into their firms and associations, with FIDIC gaining
from the collective expertise. The programme ends at the 2006 International
Consulting Engineering Conference (Budapest; 24-27 September) with a special
workshop that will be a conference feature.
Among the trainees is Uganda's Sara Senyondo, the first recipient of the newly
established FIDIC Past-Presidents Future Leader Scholarship. Sara was thrilled toreceive the award, which enables her to participate in the training programme
and attend the Budapest conference. The scholarship, aimed at firms from lessdeveloped countries, identifies budding managers who would benefit fromexposure to the international benchmarking that is offered by the FIDIC
programme. See www.fidic.org/ypmtp for information.
Forthcoming visits and meetings [full item: 32Ev]
GAMA Annual Conference, Bagamoyo, Tanzania, 20 Apr- 5 May2006
FIDIC-ACEA Project Sustainability Management Workshops, Australia, 2-5 Apr2006
FIDIC Adjudicators Assessment Workshop, UK, 27-29 Apr 2006
FIDIC-Cornerstone Contracts Workshop, Cairo, 25-26 Apr 2006
FIDIC-ECV Contracts Course, Bucharest, 10-11 May 2006
FIDIC-ECV Contracts Course, Zagreb, 25-26 May 2006
Les journées internationales de l'Ingénerie, Tunis- Contracts Seminar, 7 Jun 2006
- SISE Salon Workshops, 8-9 Jun 2006
International Consulting Engineering Conference, Budapest, 24-27 Sep 2006

Conference
Budapest06

CoursesponsorPositions
Announced

SISE Tunis
7-9 Jun06

Contracts
New bank harmonised Construction Contract [full item: 57Co]
The multilateral developments banks (MDB) have had the opportunity to test thefirst version, issued in May 2005, of the MDB Harmonised Edition of the FIDIC
Construction Contract for use on bank-financed projects. Further additions andmodifications were required for their needs: after full consultation, these havebeen agreed with FIDIC for a new March 2006 version. The contract's
anticorruption clause has been adjusted, with the each bank incorporating
different wording with a view to a harmonisation of definitions. So, for printed
copies, the anticorruption clause is on a separate page for each bank: users need
only to remove the pages that do not concern them, thus ensuring the integrity
and authenticity of the General Conditions. The General Conditions areincorporated in a bank's Standard Bidding Document for major civil works, or its
equivalent. Meanwhile, FIDIC ensures delivery by download from fidic.org/mdb ofauthentic, fully formatted General Conditions. An electronic version of the fullConditions of Contract that include Particular Conditions' forms are available fromthe FIDIC Bookshop, with server-controlled access protection to ensure theauthenticity of the General Conditions if they are distributed to a third party.
FIDIC also ensures that its numerous training courses, workshops and seminars
on FIDIC contracts deal with the harmonised contract.

Contracts
Bucharest
10-11 May06
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ContractsCairo
25-26 Apr06
ORDER NOWMDB Contract
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FIDIC says farewell to a trusted adviser [full item: 58Co]
Long-standing FIDIC supporter John Bowcock was recognized at
his final meeting with the FIDIC Contracts Committee, on which
he has served in various capacities for 12 years. A certificate
and plaque were presented by FIDIC Managing Director Enrico
Vink on behalf of the FIDIC Executive Committee and all FIDIC
members. John, who has provided sage and valued advice on
many FIDIC activities, was awarded FIDIC's highest award, thePrangey Award, in 1999, and continued to serve after retirementfrom consulting work. His expertise is evidenced in all the recent
FIDIC contract documents. A committee working group hasdrafted a Dredgers Contract, the first edition of which (see cover illustration) waspublished in March 2006. The committee is currently tackling the difficult task of
updating FIDIC's widely used Client-Consultant Model Services Agreement (TheWhite Book) with is accompanying joint venture and sub-consultancy agreements.
Other committee task groups are updating the publication Tendering Procedures
and drafting a Construction Contract subcontract and a new design-build-operatecontract (draft General Conditions will be presented at the 2006 International
Consulting Engineering Conference, Budapest, 24-27 February;
www.consulting2006.org).
Representation
Sweden looks outside the box [full item: 43Re]
Recognizing that in a globalised world some new thinking is required to stayahead in a fiercely competitive market, Sweden's FIDIC Member Association STD
organized a seminar in late-2005 to tease out some of the paradigm shifts inthinking required to capitalize on opportunities. Presentations and discussions
highlighted that, whilst the market has tried to standardize the industry,innovation and good communication can still bring success for consulting firms.
We live in an ideas world, says STD, and selling ideas is what consulting
engineering is all about. The all-important networking between firms after theseminar suggested that the ideas planted were being put to good effect. Followup activities will explore how to enhance creativity to enable innovation to flourish
and to develop competitive advantages. Among them is Building Smart, which
focuses on modeling for improved buildings. STD has also worked with "creativityguru" Richard Florida (see www.creativeclass.org) who has fascinating views on
how to "think outside the box".

Conference
Budapest06

CoursesponsorPositions
Announced

SISE Tunis
7-9 Jun06

Business practice
ADB procurement procedures [full item: 66Pr]
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) allocated some $300 million in 2005 fortechnical assignments, and opportunities for consultants through ADB funded
projects are increasing. Reflecting recommendations from the market, including
FIDIC as the consulting engineering industry's global representative, the ADB has
adjusted procedures for procuring consulting services for greater transparency
and improved efficiencies. Individual and company appointments will both beaffected by the changes, and assignments will be bundled for improved economy.
Project Administration Instructions (www.adb.org/documents/manuals/PAI/) arenew. They outline the procedures to be followed by ADB staff in administering
ADB-financed loan and technical assistance projects. Member firms affected bythe changes are encouraged to become familiar with the new guidelines before
their implementation on 1 April 2006 (see www.adb.org). The key drivers for thechanges are streamlining (time reduced from 60 to 40 days), harmonization(some 90% of procedures have now been harmonized with the other major
development banks), transparency (more information will be available; debriefing
becomes more important), modernization (greater use of internet; performancebased contracting introduced).
FIDIC President Jorge Díaz Padilla, Managing Director Enrico Vink and Executive
Committee member Xie Shaozhang were briefed on the new procedures during avisit to the bank in February 2006, and congratulated by senior officials on
FIDIC's positive and helpful contributions during the review process. For its part,the FIDIC delegation expressed gratitude for the frank and open exchange ofviews, and for the tremendous support from the ADB at the hugely successful
FIDIC 2005 conference in Beijing.
Complementary studies of scope of service definitions launched

Contracts
Bucharest
10-11 May06
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ContractsCairo
25-26 Apr06
ORDER NOWMDB Contract
ORDER NOWConference
Budapest06[full item: 67Pr]

For a greater transparency in procurement and to reduce or even remove
technical barriers to open competition, FIDIC is working to develop standard
definitions for the scope of services offered by consulting engineers. In acomplimentary project, FIDIC is also collaborating with the European federation
EFCA on an European Union (EU) funded project investigating the possible
standardization of consulting services within the Union. Although the EU study ismuch broader, and includes a survey of current systems in European states,
FIDIC's work offers valuable information. In turn, the EU study will help FIDIC
identify existing definitions. Progress will be reported at the 2006 International
Consulting Engineering Conference (Budapest, 24-27 September, www.consulting2006.org) that is organized by FIDIC and EFCA in association with their Member
Association AHCEA-Hungary.
Business development
UNEP's Sustainable Buildings and Construction Initiative launched[full item: 46De]

Identifying ways to promote energy and resource efficientbuilding and buildings is challenging since activities span several
industry sectors and involve a wide range of skills, with few
major actors. FIDIC's Project Sustainability Management (PSM)
takes a global approach to ensuring that building and buildings
are sustainable by putting in place processes to align project
goals with global objectives. This contrasts with a regulatory, standards-based
approach that aims to specify sustainability requirements for each component, butdoes not ensure that the end result is sustainable construction. International
agencies such as UNEP have an important role to play in defining and piloting
strategies that work, so it is heartening that firms including Taiwan's Sinotech
have agreed to support UNEP's Sustainable Buildings and Construction Initiativethat was launched in early-March 2006. FIDIC, a founding member, looks forward
to partnering with several organizations and member firms in the implementationof new approaches, among them PSM. The photo shows a school building in theUSA that was used as a case study in FIDIC's publication on PSM guidelines.

CoursesponsorPositions
Announced

SISE Tunis
7-9 Jun06

Ethics and integrity
FIDIC participates in anticorruption discussions [full item: 20Et]
FIDIC President Jorge Díaz Padilla participated in an anti-corruption policy
roundtable in Brussels in January 2006. Although the meeting, organised byTransparency International (TI) and OLAF, the European Commission's Unit tocombat fraud and corruption, focused on an analysis of debarment systems andthe blacklisting of firms, FIDIC emphasized the need to consider prevention rather
than on sanctioning. In addition to TI, European Commission, OECD, UN, andWorld Bank representatives, those from the private sector included Robert
Couturier who chairs the European federation EFCA Partnership for Development
Committee.

Contracts
Bucharest
10-11 May06
ORDER NOW

ContractsCairo
25-26 Apr06
ORDER NOWImageChina training centre explores certification [full item: 29Im]
FIDIC has long promoted the concept of a quality
standard for consulting engineers. Finding practicalways to move forward has proved challenging. There is
MDB Contract
strong support for the concept in China, where some
ORDER NOW
form of formal recognition by the industry of aconsulting engineer's qualifications and experience isseen to offer major benefits. The FIDIC-Tsinghua
Training Centre at Beijing's Tsinghua University has
developed, in collaboration with FIDIC, a set of criteria for certification. Theseinclude the fundamental range of business skills, plus integrity management andsustainability management (articulated in the FIDIC Guide to Practice Manual)
Conference
Budapest06
together with knowledge of procurement procedures and FIDIC contracts(currently being articulated in a proposed FIDIC Contracts Manual). Sponsorshipis being sought for a pilot project in China, and proposals for a more global
scheme are expected to take some time to develop. Arrangements for a scheme
Coursein China, reviewed at the FIDIC Executive Committee when it met in Geneva insponsor
mid-January, were discussed during a visit in March 2006 by a FIDIC delegation
to the training centre. The photo shows Jorge Díaz Padilla, FIDIC President, on theleft, wth the centre's Professor Wang Qizheng during an earlier visit in September
2005.
Positions
Announced

Notices to Member Associations
Meetings: see Events
2006 International Consulting Engineering Conference, Budapest, 24-27 Sep 2006
Adjudicators Assessment Workshop, UK, 27-29 Apr 2006
MA Letters
20/05: Adjudicators Assessment PDF

SISE Tunis
7-9 Jun06

Announcements
Employment opportunities at the Asian Development Bank [full item: 5An]
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