The men and women involved in the construction of the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum deserve big thanks. Its completion date remains tentative as June or July 2013, with constant rescheduling forcing subcontractors to pause and resume their efforts. Their work is predicted to break architectural records in the United States as well as the world. Upon completion, the memorial itself will be officially recognized as the tallest building in the country and the third tallest in the world. It isn’t often an accomplishment of this caliber is achieved, so congratulations to every subcontractor involved.
However, the construction efforts surrounding the Memorial and the Museum have raised questions about the structures surrounding subcontractor payments. Until recently, the subcontractors involved at the site were owed over 50 million dollars. A pending negotiation with the Port Authority of New York and the Subcontractors Trade Association will begin to reimburse subcontractors for their work. Executive director of the Subcontractors Trade Association said “the majority of that [50 million dollars owed] stems from work that was changed from the original tasks, making billing a longer process” (Crain’s).
Not getting paid for your work is unfortunate, and in the construction industry we know one thing is certain: we get paid for the work we document. Change Orders happen all the time, its effectively documenting them with project management software that can help prevent the bill from accruing to a crazy amount, like 50 million dollars. Read more here
