Why NEC claims fail (it's almost always the records)

2 Jul 2026 · 1 min

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In this expert commentary, William Doyle explains how using a digital platform for site record keeping can dramatically improve the management of NEC contracts and prevent claim failures. He outlines three key advantages: (1) aggregating records into a trend‑able big‑data set that reveals productivity rates and supports forward‑looking forecasting within NEC procedures; (2) providing a single source of truth that can be presented in multiple formats for different audiences—such as shift‑pattern monitoring, cost recording, program building, and payment applications—enhancing accessibility for both contractors and project managers; and (3) linking those records to other digital sources like commercial event logs, work‑activity data, and BIM asset components, thereby unlocking currently untapped opportunities for insight and efficiency. The speaker positions digital record‑keeping as a strategic tool that moves beyond mere evidence to become an analytical and integrative asset in NEC contract administration.

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So to manage NEC contracts effectively using a digital platform for site record keeping, I think it opens up all sorts of possibilities. I think firstly it takes the role of the record beyond just being a point of evidence to justify a particular account on record. I think having them in aggregate in a trendable big data way enables us to establish productivity rates and really help us with some of the forecasting and prospective forward-looking parts of the NEC procedures. I think the, the second bit, and this goes for whether you're a contractor or a project manager, of course, you know, just simple access and the way in which the data is orientated as well. So, you know, different audiences will look at records for different reasons. And having a single source of data leveraged digitally means that we can present that single source in multiple different ways, whether we're satisfying somebody who's looking after shift patterns, or we're using that for cost defining cost records, or we're assembling a program based on some productivity, or we're looking at, you know, applying for payment. I think there's lots of different ways digital enables us to leverage it in those different ways. And thirdly, combining it with other digital sources. So indexing those records with real events and matters from a commercial point of view, or indexing them to things like activities at work or asset components in the BIM model, perhaps. Really fantastic opportunities that are so untapped at the moment. Really exciting area to get into.