BK SURCO Certified NEC Professional Training Course

The BK SURCO “Certified NEC Professional” Training Course is recognised by the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors and is approved by the Government of the Hong Kong SAR as enabling participants to be regarded as having acquired the standard of a Certified NEC Professional necessary to act in the role of Project Manager, Supervisor or Contractor’s or Consultant’s representatives in the management, supervision or administration of an NEC ECC Contract.

The BK SURCO Certified NEC Professional Training Course addresses the need in the Hong Kong construction industry to provide project participants with essential knowledge and understanding of the new procedures and skills required by projects using NEC ECC contracts, so as to assist in optimizing the delivery of these projects. Importantly, it incorporates local practices and procedures such as the Hong Kong Government Practice Notes for Z-clauses, local procedures and ordinances and case studies in Hong Kong. It is based upon the NEC4 ECC contract (the latest published version of the NEC ECC contract), making it completely up-to date with current best practice.

The BK SURCO Certified NEC Professional Training Course is approved by the Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (CCES). The eight course modules match the essential part of the core and specialist competencies required for becoming a corporate member of ICES. Additionally, those who successfully pass the course are eligible for inclusion in the CCES Register of Certified NEC Professionals.

The course is Quality-Assured in accordance with the provisions of ISO 9001:2015.

Hong Kong Government has announced recently its intention the use of the NEC contracts for all future Hong Kong public works projects. The NEC model of collaborative-style project delivery represents a step-change in the management of risk, the administration of project change, and the working relationships of clients, contractors and consultants, and the people that work for them. Since most industry practitioners have little hands-on experience of NEC projects, there is an immediate requirement for knowledge upgrading to enable project staff to understand the new duties and responsibilities of projects using NEC contracts, and to help in delivering the expected benefits.

The Hong Kong Government has recently issued “Practice Notes for NEC” which, along with significant amendments to the NEC contract, now requires key people of the contractors involved in NEC projects to have a number of years of proven practical experience in using NEC contracts, or to have attained an approved training qualification in NEC contracts.

• To provide first quality, flexible, Hong Kong-relevant and up to date training on NEC ECC contracts to HK project staff on NEC at a reasonable cost
• To accelerate the training of skilled and knowledgeable NEC professionals in Hong Kong
• To improve the performance of Hong Kong projects using NEC contracts
• To provide construction staff with training leading to a recognised training qualification, as a formal demonstration of the competence-level achieved
• To be able to use the qualification as a stepping-stone to further professional/ academic recognition

More than 7,000 Hong Kong-based clients, contractors and consultants have attended BK SURCO’s NEC training courses since 2012. We currently offer a comprehensive programme of 12 full-day or half day public courses covering a full range of important topics related to NEC contracts. We have a 95% satisfaction rating based on those that have attended.

BK SURCO training courses are designed to deliver the necessary theoretical course content together with available time for group participation using examples of the various features of Hong Kong NEC contracts. From 2017, our training programme was updated to accommodate content related to the Hong Kong Government Practice Notes and standard amendments to NEC contracts, and from 2018 guidance is also provided on the newly published NEC4 contract suite..

Existing NEC training courses often focus exclusively on the duties and responsibilities of Project Managers (PM). Whilst the role of the PM is an important one on all projects, especially projects using NEC contracts, the BK SURCO Certified Training Course is designed to provide a broad understanding of the NEC ECC contract for all of those involved in a project, not just the PM.

Organisations who should consider BK SURCO’s Certified Professional Training Course will include Government agencies, Engineering Architectural and other Consultants, Contractors, Sub-contractors and other members of the project team who are/will be involved in contracts using NEC contracts during procurement, contract strategy, tendering, execution and post contract stages.

Staff who will benefit include all those involved in preparing, designing, tendering advising, managing or implementing projects using an NEC ECC contract.

Enrolment for a BKSURCO Certified Training Course should be done online and is a personalized application in the name of the person registering for the course.

Those wishing to enroll, should first check on the timing of an available course then go to the ‘Login/Register’ menu option to register their details, then login.

The “User Name” will be the registrant’s email address for the purpose of accessing training records.

Following registration an applicant may reserve a place on any of the upcoming courses where there are available places.

Q1: What if a delegate  misses one or more of the 4 days classroom training? 

• Delegates must attend all four days training and complete all eight modules in order to pass Stage 3.
• A missed classroom day or part day can be rebooked on another future date within 6 months from the original start date of Stage 1.
• Whilst efforts will be made to accommodate any such request, BK SURCO cannot guarantee a suitable course date will be available for delegates to complete the course.
• Booking of additional course dates to cover missed days or part days will be charged at HK$2,000 per day or part day.

Q2: Can a delegate obtain an extra copy of training materials if he/she loses these?

Training materials are distributed on the first day of training.  Delegates are expected to bring them along for the rest of the course.   An additional fee of HK$1,000 will be charged in the event of a new/replacement set of training materials being required by the delegate.

Q3: What is the marking schedule of the final examination?

All the examination papers are marked by experienced and qualified NEC experts, on the basis of an objective assessment of the candidates’ answers.

To ensure marking accuracy, assessment of both Stage 2 and 3 scores within 5% of borderline scores will be automatically re-assessed.

 Final Score Ratings (i.e. Combined Score for Stages 2 and 3) will be as follows:

Any delegate  who is dissatisfied with the outcome of their Stage 2/3 assessment may raise an appeal within 5 working days from the date of the results email. Appeals may be submitted by email to bksurcotraining@bkasiapacific.com.

 Acknowledgement of a delegate’s appeal will be made within 7 working days of receipt and a response made within 30 days of receipt of the appeal.

Q4: What if a candidate fails the final examination?

If a delegate fails to achieve a mark of 50% or fails to submit a Stage2/3 assessment within the prescribed period, then he/she will fail the course and will be required to reapply for a new course.

If a delegate fails the final examination but scores more than 50% but less than 60% for Stages 2/3 then he/she will be offered upon request one further opportunity to resit the Final Examination in Stage 3. The examination questions will be chosen randomly and will most probably be different to the original questions. Any resit request together with an Assessment Resit Fee of HK$2,000 must be made within 30 days of the Stage 3 result notification. The pass mark remains the same as the original assessment (60%).

Q5: Can a delegate request for extension of the date for submission of final examination?

Request for a time-limited extension to submission deadlines for the final assessment will only be granted by BK SURCO in exceptional circumstances. Any extension will not be for more than a period of 10 days. Any request for an extension, with reasons, should be by email to bksurcotraining@bkasiapacific.com at least three days prior to the deadline, with email subject "Extension Request for Stage 3 – Final Assessment". 

Q6: Can a delegate appeal the result of the final examination?

As stated above, candidates with borderline scores will automatically be reassessed prior to result notification. However, if a candidate is dissatisfied with the outcome of his/her assessment mark then the candidate may appeal the decision, stating reasons, within 7 days from the date of the notification. Appeals should be submitted in writing to bksurcotraining@bkasiapacific.com and will be considered impartially and promptly.

 Q7: What are the terms of substitution or cancellation?

Charges (% of full course fee) before the first classroom date in Stage 2:

Q8: How can I book an in-house course?

If your organisation/company has 10 or more delegates that wish to undertake a BK SURCO certification course at the same time, it will usually be more cost effective and may be more convenient for you and BK SURCO to deliver the classroom training in your office and/or at a time convenient for your staff. For further information please contact Ms Phoebe Lai by calling +852 2687 2267 or send email to bksurcotraining@bkasiapacific.com.

Q9: Do I need to apply for inclusion in ICES Register?

All delegates who successfully pass the BK SURCO Certified NEC Professional course will be eligible for inclusion in the ICES Register of Certified NEC Professionals. Your final examination ‘pass’ email will include details of how to apply, and any fees which will apply.

The ICES List is controlled and maintained by the ICES. They are also responsible for setting any annual fee. All correspondence about the list including submission of your registration form should be sent to:

Chartered Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (ICES)

Dominion House, Sibson Road
Sale, Cheshire
M33 7PP
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 161 972 3100
Fax: +44 (0) 161 972 3118
Web: www.cices.org

Q10: How do I give feedback to BK SURCO on the training course, my tutor, course materials, assessment or any aspect of the programme?

BK SURCO Training is an ISO9001 certified company. We take quality seriously. All delegates are asked to complete a feedback questionnaire at the end of the training course. Feedback is also welcome to be submitted by email to bksurcotraining@bkasiapacific.com. All feedback is examined and fed into our quality improvement processes.

Our feedback questionnaires are designed to capture not just comments on the quality of our course delivery, but also suggestions for future improvement in our training programmes. Through continuous feedback we seek to ensure that our training courses continue to represent money well-spent for BK SURCO Training customers.

BK SURCO Training has consistently achieved a higher than 90% approval-rating from attendees for the courses on NEC contracts that we have run to date. We are committed to continuing that solid approval rating by ensuring that our courses represent a high quality, relevant and good-value learning experience.

Q11: What are BK SURCO Training contact details?

Please contact Ms Phoebe Lai by phone on +852 2687 2267 or by email bksurcotraining@bkasiapacific.com.

Group discount will be offered for in-house training course depends on the number of delegates.
In-house training course can be conducted in English or Cantonese.

If you are interested in organizing an in-house training course, please complete the form below and we will contact you shortly.