Today's supply shortages will leave their mark on future contracts

摘要

Material shortages are causing contractors and developers to become increasingly entrenched in their views, and more adversarial than ever.The shortage of some key materials - especially steel - is proving so damaging that it could even change the way contracts are negotiated in the UK.Research published by Arcadis in June indicated that the average value of disputes has more than doubled in the space of just one year, with three-quarters of contractors saying their projects have been affected by the pandemic.Price rises resulting from material shortages are putting contractors and developers in untenable positions. Steel, for example, has seen price variations of up to 30 per cent - and outlay on steel is a major proportion of many modern projects. Understandably, it is becoming difficult to deliver some projects at the agreed cost. In some cases, where materials can't currently be sourced, delivery is completely impossible until supplies resume.