Collaborative project delivery is gaining ground on traditional delivery methods in the building industry, giving rise to the creation of more varied project collaboration agreements.
The C102 Teaming Agreement, released by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a timely, vital agreement to have emerged out of this trend. It provides teams comprised of multiple parties a way to pursue shared opportunities with an agreement that establishes roles and responsibilities for the proposal process, all without the creation of a new legal entity.
What is the C102 Teaming Agreement?
Teaming agreements enable firms with different expertise to create a combined team that can more effectively compete in requests for proposals and design competitions. Teams governed by C102 agreements are not legal entities, but define prime and sub-consultant roles, compensation expectations, and contingency plans for the purpose of pursuing a project before any project work begins.
Though multidisciplinary team arrangements are becoming increasingly common, there were no suitable contracts available until recently that allowed firms to partner without creating a whole new legal entity (like in joint ventures).
Benefits of Teaming Agreements
Teaming agreements provide clear definition of roles from the outset of a project while enabling teams of experts to work together toward a common goal. Risk is defined and distributed in a more equitable and transparent manner, which empowers every team member to be fully responsible and aware of their role and contributions to the project. Learn more about the benefits of teaming agreements and how they’re changing the way small and medium firms are coming together to win large projects.
The C102 Teaming Agreement can be crafted to address a partnership’s unique needs. It defines clear roles and functions for two important roles (the team manager and team member) to carry out during the proposal process. Architects, engineers, contractors or consultants can easily fulfill these roles.
Terms are clearly defined in the agreement for various outcomes. If there is a challenge to the bid, if the team wins with their proposal or doesn’t, if the owner wants to change out a specific team member, the C102 Teaming Agreement covers all these scenarios with everyone on the same page from the start. Most importantly, it doesn’t include the unenforceable “agreement to agree”, according to Michael Bomba, AIA Attorney in this interview with Architizer. With a comprehensive take, vulnerable parties are covered and owners have leeway to make decisions in the best interest of their project. This also makes negotiations and project management easier on the team manager.
How can Technology support Collaborative Project Delivery?
Technology is changing the way products, buildings, and infrastructure are delivered. Design, building, operations, and supply chains are in need of collaboration and data management solutions as the lines between industry teams are becoming blurred.
There is a major shift in how design and construction firms operate as they leverage cloud technologies. Worksharing across multiple specialties, locations, and devices becomes the hallmark of high-collaboration projects, like those that will use C102 Teaming Agreements. From cloud-based file sharing with any time, anywhere access to having multiple users working out of a central model at the same time, technology can help you maximize the power of collaboration in your project.
