Completion

Building commissioning

The commissioning of a building is the moment when all of its facilities and technical equipment are put into operation. This includes heating, air-conditioning, and ventilation equipment, as well as measurement facilities, control engineering systems, conveyor systems, fire safety facilities, operating facilities, alarm systems and access control systems. The procedures involved are carried out by construction management and specialists, contractors and suppliers. The commissioning of a building requires checking and adjustment of the technical equipment, as well as carrying out test runs to check usability, functioning and safety. In the case of technically elaborate buildings, such as hospitals or museums, this commissioning process may require a considerable time. Checking is not the same as acceptance. As soon as the clients start using the property, it is described operational commissioning.

Inspection for acceptance

The inspection procedure is used to check whether the building corresponds to what was agreed in the works contract and that it is free of defects. The legal basis for this is the Law of Obligations (OR), article 363ff. If a works contract has been concluded on the basis of the SIA 118 standard ‘General Conditions for Construction Work’ (2013), which provides much greater detail on construction-specific matters, then the latter is applicable.

Following the completion of a building, an inspection procedure is carried out – for a separate completed section of the work ¹ in the case of an individual contractor, or for the work as a whole in the case of a general contractor or design-build contractor. Once the contractor declares that construction work is complete, the clients are obliged to check it for fulfillment of contract within one month. ² If they miss the deadline, the work is regarded as having been accepted as free of defects; the same also applies to taking the building into operational commissioning without an inspection for acceptance.

The inspection for acceptance is jointly carried out by the overall project leadership, construction management, contractors and clients and leads to a jointly signed inspection report. The report lists defects that need to be remedied and sets deadlines for repairs and a date for a renewed inspection. The period of guarantee and periods of limitation for defect rights begin after inspection has been completed.

The SIA 118 standard, article 159ff., distinguishes between various types of inspection for acceptance:

Acceptance of the work free of defects:
- the work is accepted at the end of the inspection.

Acceptance with minor defects:
- defects are to be remedied by the contractor within an appropriate period.

Deferment due to major defects:
- acceptance will only take place after the contractor has remedied the defects.

Acceptance despite major defects:
- clients’ rights in relation to defects remain unaffected.

Acceptance while waiving the right to enforce claims regarding defects:
- The work is approved despite recognized defects, with express or tacit waiving of rights to improvement.

Acceptance without inspection:
- If the joint inspection does not take place, the work is regarded as accepted.

Note

The clients should be present at the inspection for acceptance. This is the only way in which they can ensure that the work that has been carried out corresponds to their original targets. If they are represented by the overall project leadership or by construction management, acceptance is legally valid and the clients have no further entitlement to complaint.

Once the clients have accepted part of a building or a structure from a contractor, the acceptance is legally valid, since the contract was signed between the clients and the contractor. Any objections by the architect – e.g., in relation to the execution of exposed concrete – have no legal force.

Defects

According to article 368 of the Law of Obligations (OR), a defect is present when the work deviates from what is specified in the contract. The SIA 118 standard defines defects as follows: ‘A defect consists either of the work not showing a promised or otherwise agreed characteristic, or lacking a characteristic that the client would be entitled to expect in good faith without special agreement … A state of the work (or part of the work) that is in contravention of contract is not a defect if it has been caused exclusively by the client or an assistant of the client (e.g., the construction management) (own fault, article 369 of the OR) – particularly a state that is due to an error in the construction documents (article 99ff.). Own fault on the part of the client is not present if the contractor has breached its duty of notification and warning (article 25).’ ³

A deviation from the contractually agreed state of a building applies both to structural defects, in which the focus is on usability, and also to aesthetic defects, which can be described as reducing the building’s value. If a specific form of implementation has not been defined, then the recognized rules of architecture apply without further discussion. The clients are entitled to receive a usable work of high quality (article 197 of the OR).

Once a defect has been identified, the contractor has the right to remedy it within an appropriate time. If it does not comply with this, the clients are entitled to make use of their legal rights arising from defects.

Legal rights arising from defects in accordance with article 368 of the OR and SIA 118 standard, articles 169 and 170:

• To demand improvement free of charge or replacement by a third party at the contractor’s cost
• To claim a reduction in cost by reducing payment
• To withdraw from the contract if appropriate
• Right to compensation (fire damage, interruption of operations)

A defect that was not evident at the time of acceptance and is only discovered by the clients after the expiry of the term of guarantee is referred to as a hidden defect. Liability lies with the contractor here, provided that an objection is raised immediately it is discovered. In case of dispute, the burden of proof lies with the client. Rights accruing from defects expire after five years. In case of defects that are intentionally concealed, the period of limitation is extended to ten years.

Excursus

Constructional defects represent the material result of errors that have been made during the design and implementation process. They are extremely important economically. In the Swiss residential building system, the building industry uses approximately 8% of its expenses to remedy defects – representing around 1.6 billion Swiss francs annually. We investigated the causes of this quantitatively and qualitatively in a research study conducted in collaboration with the Swiss Association of Master Builders. The type of defect is quantifiable; for example, around 76% of architectural defects occur in the shell of the building, with causes often lying in a lack of watertightness, inadequate drainage, faulty construction or faulty installation of façade elements. The persons who cause construction defects are to be found among all of the decision-makers, consultants and construction personnel, during the entire design and implementation process.[4]

Guarantee period

The contractor is basically liable for ensuring that its work does not show any defects. The guarantee period – also described by the SIA as the complaint period – starts from the day of acceptance and lasts two years, or normally five years for general contractors and design-build contractors. During this period, clients have the right to complain regarding defects of all sorts and to request contractors to remedy them within an appropriate period. However, the clients must raise an objection immediately after the defect is noticed; otherwise they themselves will be liable for any consequential damage. If a defect is disputed, the burden of proof lies with the contractor. Shortly before the expiry of the guarantee period, the state of the work can, on request, be jointly recorded and recognized in a protocol, in order to secure evidence. At the end of the guarantee period, the client’s right to complain regarding defects lapses (see also the SIA 118 standard, article 172ff.). Work carried out under guarantee is conducted by the overall project leadership team in collaboration with the construction management team.

Securities from consultants and contractors, which assure clients that contracts will be fulfilled, become payable after acceptance has taken place, final invoices have been sent and the inspection period has expired. For the period of the guarantee, a joint security (= certificate of guarantee) can be requested from a contractor as a security for its liability in case of defects. Instead of a joint security with a bank or insurance company, a cash guarantee with interest may also be agreed on. A service amount of the fee may also be withheld by consultants up to the completion of any guarantee work.

Final accounts

The final accounts lists all of the contractor’s outstanding charges, supplemented with a compilation of all invoices already sent and payments made by the clients. The resulting balance is the contractor’s final accounts charge. Unless the contractor declares any reservations, it dispenses with all further claims to remuneration from the same contractual relationship.

The final accounts must be submitted to the construction management team for checking within two months after the completion of work. If there are no divergences, the final accounts along with the inspection report are regarded as accepted by both parties. This implies an obligation for the clients to pay within 30 days. Terms and objects, submission and inspection, as well as payment deadlines, are defined in the SIA 118 standard, article 153ff.

After all of the final invoices from contractors, suppliers and consultants have been checked, the construction management team prepares the final accounts for the entire construction project. This compares the final accounts with the cost plan and explains additional or reduced costs to the clients.

Documentation of the building

The documentation of the building contains all of the essential information and documents, and it is therefore indispensable for the long-term operation and upkeep of the building. It also provides the essential basis for any later conversion and modernization measures. The documentation is compiled in a project-specific way, depending on the type and usage of the building. It may include the following, among other items – see also the SIA 469 standard, ‘Maintenance of Buildings’ (1997):

• List of project participants, with an organization chart
• Contract specifications, space programme, usage agreement
• Specification, materials and colour scheme, product lists
• Construction approval
• Revised construction documents, such as construction application plans, working drawings, construction drawings, detailed plans, fire compartment plans and fire escape plans
• Updated technical building services plans and schemes, operation and maintenance instructions, fault and maintenance services
• Construction log
• Records documenting commissioning process and acceptance
• Final accounts
• Contracts and guarantees

The completion phase corresponds to Subphase 53, ‘Commissioning, Completion’ in Phase 5, ‘Implementation’ in accordance with the SIA 112 standard, ‘Model – Construction Planning’ (2014).