Architect's instruction number what?
On a domestic extension under a JCT contract, the architect is the contract administrator. Over the build there are dozens of instructions: a change to the kitchen window, a provisional sum spent, an omission. The architect writes each one in a Word template, numbers it, and emails it. Then there are valuations to certify on a regular cycle, each needing a certificate and notices issued in time. At the end, practical completion, the defects period and the final certificate.
Halfway through the job, the numbering has a gap, one instruction was emailed but not filed, and the architect is not sure whether the last payment certificate went out on time.
Why the paperwork gets away from you
Contract administration on smaller projects is often done alongside design work, by the same person, without dedicated tools. Documents are produced from templates, but the register of what was issued, when and with what value lives in folders and memory. Contractual timings depend on the contract and its particulars, and it is easy to lose track in a busy week.
- Instructions are numbered and filed by hand.
- Valuation and certificate dates are tracked in a diary, if at all.
- The running total of instructions and their value is not maintained.
- Documents are emailed but not always filed.
- The contractor and client have different records from the architect.
What loose contract administration costs
Missed or late certificates and notices can have contractual consequences, which are a matter for the parties and their advisers rather than anything we comment on. Practically, they cause disputes with the contractor and awkward conversations with the client. Unclear records of instructions make the final account harder. And contract administration takes more of the architect's time than it should.
A contract administration register per project
- The contract form and key particulars for the project are recorded, such as the payment cycle, dates and parties, as set out in the signed contract.
- Instructions are raised in a short form and produced as a document from your template, numbered automatically, issued by email and filed.
- Each instruction can carry an estimated value, agreed later, so a running summary of instructed changes is always available to you and the client.
- Valuation dates and the timings your contract and practice procedures require for certificates and notices are set up as reminders, which the contract administrator confirms from the contract.
- Interim certificates are drafted from the valuation figures you enter, with previous certificates brought forward, for the contract administrator to check and issue.
- Practical completion, the defects period end and the final certificate are tracked, with reminders as dates approach.
- Every issued document is logged with its date and recipients, and the contractor and client can be given a view of their own documents.
The register uses the dates and templates you set from your contract. It does not interpret contracts or advise on contractual obligations, which remain with the contract administrator and, where needed, legal advisers.
The register at a glance
| Document | Numbered | Issued | Next date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Architect's instruction | Automatically | Logged with recipients | Not applicable |
| Interim certificate | Automatically | Logged with recipients | Next valuation date |
| Practical completion certificate | Automatically | Logged with recipients | Defects period end |
| Final certificate | Automatically | Logged with recipients | Per your contract |
Contract administration that keeps itself in order
Instructions are numbered and filed without thinking about it. Reminders arrive ahead of valuation and certificate dates set from your contract. The client can see the running summary of instructed changes, which makes cost conversations easier throughout the build. And at the end, the final account starts from a complete record.
Does this sound like your contract admin?
- Instructions are typed and numbered in Word.
- Certificate dates are tracked in a diary or memory.
- You have issued a document and not filed it.
- The client asks for a summary of changes and you have to build it.