Overview
This unit covers the administration of construction contracts including: control of extensions of time, variation, site instructions; chain of responsibilities; reporting and quality assurance; management of sub contractors and suppliers; head contract management. It also develops an understanding of contract management including: specification and the preparation of building contracts; the assessment of tenderers and tender negotiation; project planning; worker induction; documentation control and records management; progress reporting; contract inspections; management of variations, extensions of time, breaches of contract; liquidation damages and reporting; project commissioning and defects liability period activities and responsibilities improvement mechanisms and processes.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2025
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Evaluation
Students suggested that assessment criteria and expectations need to be a lot clearer
UC will work with the lecturer to develop a rubric for all assessments. The lecturer is advised to make a video of the assessment criteria so students who miss the tutorial can watch it later.
Feedback from Student Evaluation
Students suggested making unit slides more engaging
The Unit Coordinator will work with the lecturer to make slides visually engaging by using minimal text, strong visuals, and interactive elements like polls or questions. Embed more real-world examples to keep students interested and involved.
- Describe the role as building professional for clients towards the successful completion of the project.
- Compare the different types of building contract arrangements.
- Apply systems and management procedures for the control of contract documentation and cost control.
- Formulate a tendering process for collecting and analysing tenders.
- Explain quality management and quality control with regard to contract administration.
- Explain variation administration, contract scope changes and contract review and evaluate their implications.
- Conduct a site meeting and site inspection.
- Explain the administration requirements and procedures of project completion and hand-over.
- Use effectively a range of appropriate communication modes.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 35% | |||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 35% | |||||||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||||||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 30% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 35% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 35% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Construction Contract Administration
Edition: 2 (2004)
Authors: Greg Goldfayl
NewSouth Publishing
Australia
ISBN: 9780868405179
Contractual Procedures in the Construction Industry
Edition: 7
Authors: Allan Ashworth and Srinath Perera
Routledge
United Kingdom
ISBN: 9781138693937
Innovations, Disruptions and Future Trends in the Global Construction Industry
Edition: 1 (2024)
Authors: Temitope Omotayo, Temitope Egbelakin, Olabode Ogunmakinde, Adebayo Sojobi
Routledge
United Kingdom
ISBN: 9781032435794
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- MS Teams
- Zoom access for weekly meetings
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
o.ogunmakinde@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Topic 1: Contractual background
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Introduction to Assessment 1 (30%).
Assessment 1 has three parts.
Part 1: Requires students to reflect on the professional team composition.
Part 2: Requires students to discuss contract selection.
Part 3: Requires students to investigate an appropriate contract procurement strategy.
Module/Topic
Topic 2: Types of contract arrangements
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 3: Traditional lump sum contracts (part 1)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 3: Traditional lump sum contracts (part 2)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Introduction to Assessment 2 (35%).
Assessment 2 has three parts.
Part 1: Requires students to discuss building claims.
Part 2: Requires students to investigate and report on tendering procedures.
Part 3: Requires students to explain project contract administration processes.
Module/Topic
Topic 4: The tender period and pre-contract administration (part 1)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Assessment 1 is due Friday of Week 5.
Assessment 1 Due: Week 5 Friday (15 Aug 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Module/Topic
No scheduled study
Chapter
Enjoy a short break or use the time to catch up or work on an assessment.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 4: The tender period and pre-contract administration (part 2)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 5: Post-Contract Administration (part 1)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 5: Post-Contract Administration (part 2)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Assessment 2 is due Friday of Week 8.
Introduction to Assessment 3 (35%)
Assessment 3 has three parts:
Part 1: Requires students to discuss contract administration compliance.
Part 2: Requires students to research aspects of project finalisation.
Part 3: Requires students to investigate the importance of time on projects.
Assessment 2 Due: Week 8 Friday (12 Sept 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Topic 5: Post-Contract Administration (part 3)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 5: Post-Contract Administration (part 4)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 6: Project completion (part 1)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Topic 6: Project completion (part 2)
Chapter
Refer to Moodle for additional information and resources.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Assessment 3 is due Friday of Week 12.
Assessment 3 Due: Week 12 Friday (10 Oct 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Review Period
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
There is no examination.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Written Assessment
The assessment consists of three parts and focuses on Topics 1 and 2.
Part 1: Requires students to reflect on the professional team composition.
Part 2: Requires students to discuss contract selection.
Part 3: Requires students to investigate an appropriate contract procurement strategy.
AI Assessment Scale: AI Planning (You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas).
Please ensure that you upload your completed work by the nominated due date. Follow the step-by-step instructions provided on-screen during the submission process. Once uploaded, your work will be automatically checked using Turnitin, a tool that detects text similarity to identify possible instances of plagiarism. You are encouraged to review your Turnitin report and, if necessary, revise your work to address any issues before the deadline.
It is essential that your submission is entirely your own. If you use any sources, they must be appropriately cited in accordance with the CQU Harvard referencing style, as outlined in the CQU Harvard referencing guide.
Additional guidance and information about the assessment requirements can be found on the unit's Moodle site.
Week 5 Friday (15 Aug 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Your submission must be done via the assessment link in Moodle by uploading your file following the on-screen instructions.
Week 7 Friday (5 Sept 2025)
Via Moodle
The assessment will be assessed on the following criteria:
- Clarity and succinctness of expression.
- Adequate coverage of topics discussed.
- Use of supporting information where appropriate and associated references.
- Original thought.
- Overall presentation and the ability to communicate using correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
- Where appropriate, the use of graphs, illustrations, and other diagrams that visually support the context of the submission.
- Demonstration of the core knowledge associated with this course and appropriate application of this knowledge.
- Describe the role as building professional for clients towards the successful completion of the project.
- Compare the different types of building contract arrangements.
- Apply systems and management procedures for the control of contract documentation and cost control.
- Use effectively a range of appropriate communication modes.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
The assessment consists of three parts and focuses on Topics 3 and 4.
Part 1: Requires students to discuss building claims.
Part 2: Requires students to investigate and report on tendering procedures.
Part 3: Requires students to explain project contract administration processes.
AI Assessment Scale: AI Planning (You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas).
Please ensure that you upload your completed work by the nominated due date. Follow the step-by-step instructions provided on-screen during the submission process. Once uploaded, your work will be automatically checked using Turnitin, a tool that detects text similarity to identify possible instances of plagiarism. You are encouraged to review your Turnitin report and, if necessary, revise your work to address any issues before the deadline.
It is essential that your submission is entirely your own. If you use any sources, they must be appropriately cited in accordance with the CQU Harvard referencing style, as outlined in the CQU Harvard referencing guide.
Additional guidance and information about the assessment requirements can be found on the unit's Moodle site.
Week 8 Friday (12 Sept 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Your submission must be done via the assessment link in Moodle by uploading your file following the on-screen instructions.
Week 10 Friday (26 Sept 2025)
Via Moodle
The assessment will be assessed on the following criteria:
- Clarity and succinctness of expression.
- Adequate coverage of topics discussed.
- Use of supporting information where appropriate and associated references.
- Original thought.
- Overall presentation and the ability to communicate using correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
- Where appropriate, the use of graphs, illustrations, and other diagrams that visually support the context of the submission.
- Demonstration of the core knowledge associated with this course and appropriate application of this knowledge.
- Explain quality management and quality control with regard to contract administration.
- Explain variation administration, contract scope changes and contract review and evaluate their implications.
- Use effectively a range of appropriate communication modes.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
3 Written Assessment
The assessment consists of three parts and focuses on Topics 5 and 6.
Part 1: Requires students to discuss contract administration compliance.
Part 2: Requires students to research aspects of project finalisation.
Part 3: Requires students to investigate the importance of time on projects.
AI Assessment Scale: AI Planning (You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas).
Please ensure that you upload your completed work by the nominated due date. Follow the step-by-step instructions provided on-screen during the submission process. Once uploaded, your work will be automatically checked using Turnitin, a tool that detects text similarity to identify possible instances of plagiarism. You are encouraged to review your Turnitin report and, if necessary, revise your work to address any issues before the deadline.
It is essential that your submission is entirely your own. If you use any sources, they must be appropriately cited in accordance with the CQU Harvard referencing style, as outlined in the CQU Harvard referencing guide.
Additional guidance and information about the assessment requirements can be found on the unit's Moodle site.
Week 12 Friday (10 Oct 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Your submission must be done via the assessment link in Moodle by uploading your file following the on-screen instructions.
Exam Week Friday (24 Oct 2025)
Via Moodle
The assessment will be assessed on the following criteria:
- Clarity and succinctness of expression.
- Adequate coverage of topics discussed.
- Use of supporting information where appropriate and associated references.
- Original thought.
- Overall presentation and the ability to communicate using correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
- Where appropriate, the use of graphs, illustrations, and other diagrams that visually support the context of the submission.
- Demonstration of the core knowledge associated with this course and appropriate application of this knowledge.
- Apply systems and management procedures for the control of contract documentation and cost control.
- Formulate a tendering process for collecting and analysing tenders.
- Explain quality management and quality control with regard to contract administration.
- Explain variation administration, contract scope changes and contract review and evaluate their implications.
- Conduct a site meeting and site inspection.
- Explain the administration requirements and procedures of project completion and hand-over.
- Use effectively a range of appropriate communication modes.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Team Work
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
