Midas Construction is suing structural engineer C&A Consultants (Plymouth), in liquidation, in a dispute over a new £4m building at Truro College in Cornwall.
In a claim issued at Londons High Court, which has just been made public, Midas alleges that the engineer, trading as Chadwick Associates, underestimated the amount of steel required for a new information technology building at the college.
The claim says that 263 tonnes of steel were needed for the scheme, as opposed to the 88 tonnes estimated by Chadwick.
Midas also accuses Chadwick of providing a drainage design that was so poor, lacking in economy and value-engineering that it had to be rejected and redesigned.
Midas says that it has sustained loss as a result of Chadwick’s mismanagement. The company contends that if it had been properly advised, it would have submitted a revised tender that would probably have been rejected by the college, and all losses would have been avoided. Midas also says that, in this event, it would have been able to use its resources on a project with the potential of earning more than the 4.5% allowed in the college tender.
PLS News 11/4/02
