In engineering contracting, a construction project often has more than one contractor. Different relationships and positions between contractors and construction units, as well as between different contractors, have also formed different contracting methods. There are five common types.
1. General contracting
The contractor is responsible for organizing the implementation of the whole construction process or all the work in a certain stage (such as the construction stage) of the construction project. This contractor can entrust some professional work to different professional contractors to coordinate and supervise their work in a unified way. Under normal circumstances, the construction unit only has a direct relationship with this contractor, and has nothing to do with various professional contractors. This contracting method is called general contracting. The unit undertaking this task is called the general contractor, or simply the general contractor, which usually includes consulting and design institutions, general civil engineering companies and large-scale construction companies integrating design and construction. The engineering general contracting company in China is an organizational form of the general contracting unit.
Main ways of project general contracting: EPC)/ turnkey project procurement and construction general contracting means that the general contracting enterprise undertakes the design, procurement, construction and commissioning services of the project according to the contract, and is fully responsible for the quality, safety, construction period and cost of the contracted project. Turnkey general contracting is an extension of the general contracting business and responsibility of engineering procurement and construction, and ultimately it is to submit a project that meets the use function and has the use conditions to the owner.
Design-Construction General Contract (D-B) Design-Construction General Contract means that the general contracting enterprise undertakes the design and construction of the project according to the contract, and is fully responsible for the quality, safety, construction period and cost of the contracted project. According to the different scale, type and owner's requirements of the project, the general contracting of the project can also adopt the methods of design-procurement general contracting (E-P) and procurement-construction general contracting (P-C).
2. Subcontracting
Subcontracting, referred to as subcontracting, is relative to general contracting, that is, the contractor has no direct relationship with the construction unit, but subcontracts a sub-project (such as earthwork, formwork, steel bars, etc.). ) or a professional project (such as steel structure fabrication and installation, sanitary equipment installation, elevator installation, etc. ) to the general contractor, the general contractor will co-ordinate arrangements for its activities at the scene, and be responsible for the general contractor. Subcontractors are usually professional engineering companies, such as industrial furnace companies, equipment installation companies, decoration engineering companies and so on. There are two main subcontracting methods in the world: one is that the construction unit designates the subcontracting unit and signs the subcontracting contract with the general contractor; One is that the general contractor chooses subcontractors to sign subcontracts.
3. Independent contracting
Independent contracting refers to the contracting mode in which contractors rely on their own strength to complete contracting tasks without subcontracting. Generally, it is only applicable to small projects and repair projects with simple technical requirements.
4. Joint contracting
Joint contracting is a kind of contracting method relative to independent contracting, that is, two or more contractors form a consortium to contract a project task. It is presumed that representatives of all units participating in the consortium will sign a contract with the construction unit, and * * * will be responsible for the construction unit and coordinate their relationship. However, all the units participating in the joint venture are still independent enterprises, and only undertake their respective obligations and share the benefits of the joint venture according to the agreement reached in advance, including investment, dispatch of workers and management personnel, cost sharing of mechanical equipment and temporary facilities, profit sharing and risk sharing.
Because there are many joint ventures with abundant funds, this contracting method can learn from each other in technology and management, give full play to their respective advantages and have the ability to contract large-scale engineering tasks. At the same time, due to the cooperation of many companies, the exchange of experience in quotation and bidding strategy is also helpful to improve competitiveness and win the bid easily. In international project contracting, the joint operation of foreign contracting enterprises and contracting enterprises in the country where the project is located is also conducive to understanding and adapting to local national conditions, customs, laws and regulations, and is conducive to the development of the work.
5. Direct contracting
Direct contracting means that different contractors sign contracts with the construction unit on the same project, and they are directly responsible for the construction unit. There is no general subcontracting relationship between contractors, and on-site coordination can be done by the construction unit itself, commissioned by the contractor, or managed by a special project manager.