Paradoxically, advances in tech--nology have made document management on construction projects both much more efficient and far more complex. The files on each project, from pre-bid work to final closeout, now usually include records in both paper and electronic form and are becoming more and more difficult to maintain and keep organized. Well organized and properly maintained documents become critical to your ability to prevail when a dispute arises and requires resolution by negotiation, mediation, arbitration and/or a court proceeding. What documents should be preserved? How should they be maintained? The first question is easy. The second, more individualized and complex.
Even before the project begins, the pre-bid documents, including takeoffs, bid estimates, modifications and proposals start the document growth, and with it the need for internal methods to store and track the project document flow. There are many categories of documents that the construction industry has used for years including correspondence, daily reports, submission logs, meeting minutes, diaries, request for information logs, labor and manpower records, change order proposals, change orders and construction change directive logs, requisitions and files as to lower tier contractors and material vendors. In short, virtually every document generated on the project may be relevant or necessary to resolve a dispute which arises during, or even after, the project.
How do you preserve these voluminous documents? With the advent of the electronic age you have to blend the use of paper with the vast capabilities offered by electronic technology, including the internet, scanning, searching, emailing and digital photography.
Electronic technology results in the ability to more easily identify, store and recall documents if done in a systematic manner. This takes on added significance (and benefit) when a dispute arises. You should always create a separate file to keep all documents relating to the subject matter of the dispute. Also, any effective document control system should include easy and economical access to records, especially if the matter is turned over to your lawyer. There are many commercial systems and programs available to help with this process.
It is also important to control the ever increasing use of email. An email can take the place of many phone conversations, faxes and letters that normally generate an identifiable paper trail. However, without procedures, emails, both intraoffice and external, can easily get deleted with little chance of recovery with the passage of time. Do you have an email procedure in place? Are copies of all emails retained just by the person sending or receiving that email or are those emails also collected by a system administrator? There are an increasing number of court cases involving discovery disputes due to a party’s failure to maintain records of email correspondence, and the destruction or loss of electronic evidence carries the same sanctions as the destruction or loss of physical evidence. The same questions arise as to the use of digital photography, which is increasingly used to document job progress and problems. Do you have a system to make sure you know when the photographs were taken, what the photographs show and where they are stored?
Whether you rely on the latest technology, or an “old fashioned” paper filing system, the only common denominator is that you must maintain your documents in a way to allow you to quickly and efficiently access your complete set of records. Although such organization requires time, energy, and, as always, money, a document management system and policy may ultimately minimize your costs, including legal fees, when disputes arise and may be the critical factor in your ability to recover or defend yourself on disputed claims.
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