Torrance, CA—Partner Engineering and Science, Inc. (Partner), in association with key industry partners, is announcing its creation of an inaugural Construction Lender Risk Management (CLRM) Roundtable to be held at the JW Marriot Desert Ridge Resort and Spa in Phoenix on March 3-5. Representatives from banks and lending institutions of all sizes will be in attendance, as well as law firms, architects, engineers and other stakeholders.
With construction and development reviving across the country, the CLRM Roundtable is coming at a critical time as construction lenders are re-energizing to serve this industry and learn from past experiences. The CLRM Roundtable will provide timely insight and an open forum to discuss construction risk management policies and issues facing the industry, and to share strategies for addressing them. The forum aims to open dialogue between peers on the establishment of uniformity of costs, scopes of work and best practices across the industry.
“There has long been talk in the industry that construction lenders need a forum specifically focused on their issues – an opportunity to come together and share ideas and best practices – but past efforts to do this never made it off the ground,” said Joseph Derhake, PE, president of Partner. “We’re excited to be bringing this group of people together, especially now that construction is coming back in a big way.”
The Roundtable will feature a robust program of panels discussing the following topics:
- When Projects Go Bad: How risk management and insurance can help
- Construction Cost Data: Where to get the best data, what are the shortcomings of these cost databases?
- Risk Management: A viable bond alternative
- Understanding Plans: Why they have shortcomings and spotting the problems
- Construction Loan Administration: Draw requests, mechanic liens, and funds control
- Document Cost Reviews and Draw Inspections: What stakeholders want, how to get consistency and standardized scope
- Seismic Risk Assessments: lender policy overview, when seismic assessments or retrofits are required for rehabilitations, insurance as an additional mitigant
- Unique Challenges Encountered During Tax Credit Deals
- Property Condition Assessments: Replacement reserve schedules, new agency requirements
While the sessions will be closed to the press and public, there will be many opportunities to share insights after the Roundtable. Partner and the CLRM community will continue the dialogue throughout the year as the construction lending community continues to evolve.
“Construction is risky – we all know that, but there are a lot of ways to manage that risk better than in the past,” notes Brian Ward, director of construction risk management at Partner. “We’re looking forward to a healthy discussion on best practices and what we can learn from each other.”