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NEC definition

What does NEC mean? NEC (formerly “New Engineering contract”) describes the widely used suite of standard-form construction and engineering contracts published by the Institution of Civil Engineers. It is not defined in legislation; the term is a descriptive label for these standard forms. The current edition is NEC4 (first issued 2017 and periodically updated). NEC3 remains in circulation on legacy and ongoing projects. Core forms include the NEC4 Engineering and Construction Contract (ECC), Professional Services Contract (PSC), Term Service Contract (TSC), Framework Contract (FC), Supply Contract (SC) and the Alliance Contract (ALC). Key legal features include collaborative drafting, proactive risk management (early warnings and the...

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NEC3/NEC4 Professional Service Short Contract (PSSC): legal overview, key provisions, payment and risk, HGCRA compliance, IP and liability, termination and dispute resolution, with 2019/2020/2023 updates

Practice notes
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Overview of the

The NEC Professional Service/Services Short Contract (PSSC) sits within the NEC3 and NEC4 contract suites (see Practice Note: NEC contracts—introduction). Under NEC3 it carried the title Professional Services Short Contract; in NEC4 it is retitled the Professional Service Short Contract. Often abbreviated to PSSC, it is aimed at simpler professional service appointments and operates as a shorter-form option in NEC3/NEC4 alongside, and as an alternative to, the longer NEC3 Professional Services Contract and NEC4 Professional Service Contract (PSC), used for appointing consultants and discussed in Practice Note: NEC Professional Service Contract. Before the April 2013 NEC3 edition introduced the Professional Services Short Contract, the PSC was the sole NEC3 agreement without a corresponding ‘short’ form for straightforward commissions. NEC4 has continued the Professional Services Short Contract, albeit with certain adjustments set out in this Practice Note, together with some rearrangement of clauses and minor drafting refinements mirroring those made across other NEC4 agreements. Where clause numbering or references diverge between the NEC3 and NEC4 iterations, this Practice Note identifies the differences; otherwise the cited clause references are intended to apply to both forms. These revisions mirror the wider NEC4 practice of reordering and minor drafting changes across the...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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