3rd November 2006, 02:00 PM
Old chesnut I know but, what about insurance against those "variables"? A fully informed contractor can make a reasonable guesstimate but no more. There are also very few tenders that quote from and to in the final price.Developer insurance to cover lifes little "variables" like the Iron age burial ground that came up on the last day or, the other end of the Mary Rose sticking up out of the natural.Developers/clients pay a premium based on their past record and the location of their developments. A developer working in the City of York, Canterbury or Edinburgh is likely to pay a higher premium than one for example working in Loughborough, Skegness or Redcar(completely random choices). Premiums can be reduced the more a developer/client reduces impact upon the archaeology over time.Alternatively, premiums will raise should a developer/client neglect the conditions set by curators. I don`t think that a price guide would work in the current environment, I do think that project managers should give wider cost margins to account for the unexpected and wonder if an insurance system would`nt work all round?
..knowledge without action is insanity and action without knowledge is vanity..(imam ghazali,ayyuhal-walad)
..knowledge without action is insanity and action without knowledge is vanity..(imam ghazali,ayyuhal-walad)