General contractors and subs continue to find common ground

Nov 13, 2002 12:00 PM

Less than a month after signing a partnering agreement with the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) in the interest of improving professionalism in the contracting industry, the American Subcontractors Association (ASA), recently signed a similar agreement with the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) with the intention of helping “better serve construction users.”

Under the agreement ASA and AGC have agreed to work together on industry guidelines, documents, and procedures, and will improve communications to that end.

“Contractors at all tiers have a responsibility to their customers and one another to help projects move along in a safe, expeditious, and mutually profitable manner,” says Anne Bigane Wilson, ASA’s president. “This agreement creates the common ground that subcontractors and general contractors need to make this vision a reality.”

The partnership comes at a time when the relationship between general and subcontractors has become strained. Just last week ASA pledged its support for a court ruling threatened to be overturned that makes it illegal for general contractors to refuse payment for extra work not documented in written change orders.