Select hosts successful seminars on new Project Bank Account rules

Select, the trade association for the electro-mechanical industry in Scotland hosted a series of seminars on Wednesday, 22 February on the advantages conferred to the sector by the recent introduction of Project Bank Accounts (PBAs) by the Scottish government.

After extensive lobbying last year by a number of organisations including Select, PBAs are now a tender requirement for all building projects worth over £4.1 million, and over £10m for all civil engineering projects.

Payments for sub-contractors and suppliers are now ring-fenced, as a means of protecting them from upstream insolvency and other abuses, particularly the perennial concern of late payment.

The seminars, run by the Specialist Engineering Contract Group Scotland (SEC Group Scotland) at Select’s Edinburgh offices, were well attended, with nearly 50 delegates present to hear speakers cover PBAs from a variety of perspectives including those of clients, the Scottish government and bankers.

A topic of particular interest was the Scottish Building Contract Committee (SBCC) Standard Form and how it is affected by PBAs. This seminar was convened by Ann O’Connell, chair of drafting for SBCC.

Other speakers included the SEC Group Scotland Chair, Eddie Myles, the Scottish government’s principal construction adviser, Colin Judge and the chief executive of the SEC Group, Professor Rudi Klein.

Alan Wilson, Select’s head of membership and communications, said: “The main benefit of PBAs, apart from assured payment and protections if a main contractor goes into administration, will be greater transparency within the payment chain”.

Newell McGuiness, of Select, said: “I was more than happy to host these seminars. With the SEC Group, Select has been a leading exponent of PBAs as a means of addressing an issue which was detrimental to procurement in Scotland as a whole.”

Select‘s member companies account for over 90% of all electrical installation work carried out in Scotland.