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Construction cranes with text: Construction Audit and Cost Control Institute Effective Management and Auditing of Construction Activity.


This is a 2-day In-Person Only Event

Seminar Location: JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn - Scottsdale, Arizona 
May 27, 2026 8:30am - 4:30pm
May 28, 2026 8:30am - 4:30pm


Earn up to 16 CPE
 

Managing construction activity effectively for large complex projects requires experience and special knowledge.

Owners and their construction-related outside consultants will learn several ways to refine and improve their construction contracting methodologies to proactively address significant potential overpayment situations that could cost them millions of dollars in excess construction costs.

 

A series of real life examples of cost avoidance/cost recovery situations will be presented to illustrate the major learning points covered throughout the seminar.

Who Should Attend

  • Owner construction management executives

  • Owner project management firm representatives

  • Owner architect firm representatives

  • Owner outside attorneys specializing in construction

  • Owner in-house construction project managers

  • Owner in-house construction contract administrators

  • Owner construction contract procurement representatives

  • Owner in-house legal representatives

  • Owner construction audit representatives (internal audit and/or external consultants)

Types of Contracts Covered

The course will emphasize effective strategies and construction cost control techniques for projects involving the use of the following types of construction contracts:

  • Cost plus FEE – Construction Manager at Risk- Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) contracts

  • Cost plus FEE – Design-Build GMP contracts

  • Cost plus FEE contracts with General Contractors (with or without a GMP)

  • Cost Plus FEE contracts with major subcontractors/trade subcontracts (with or without a GMP)

  • Lump sum and/or Unit price prime construction contracts and/or trade subcontracts 

Exterior shot of a white building with text EMACA-Scottsdale, AZ-May 27-28, 2026 landscaped around it.
Hotel Venue
JW Marriott Camelback Inn Scottsdale 
Scottsdale, Arizona

 

Discounted Group Room Rate Available until 4/24/026:

$259.00 per night + taxes and fees

Rates available for dates May 26 - 28, 2026​

Click Here for Link to Make Reservations

​Address:

JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn 

5402 East Lincoln Drive

Scottsdale, AZ 85253

  • Breakfast will be provided each morning of the seminar

  • Mid-Morning and Mid-Afternoon refreshment breaks

  • Lunch will be provided on Monday

Hotel
Fee
Registration Fees

Regular and Discounted Conference Registration Fees:

$1,395 USD is the Regular Registration Fee to Attend this Conference for anyone registering between 4-01-2026  and 05-22-2026.

 

$1,295 USD is the $100 Discounted Early Registration Fee for anyone registering between 2-01-2026 and 3-31-2026.

 

$1,195 USD is the $200 Discounted Early Registration Fee for anyone registering by 1-31-2026.


 

 

When registering, you can pay by credit card and/or PayPal, or you will have the "manual invoice" option to choose to receive an invoice and pay later by check or credit card.

Tuesday, May 27, 2026:  8:30 am to 4:30 pm

Wednesday, May 28, 2026:  8:30 am to 4:30 pm

  • Breakfast: A full breakfast will be available for our group from 7:30 am to 8:25a.m. each day.

  • Lunch: We will be providing lunch for our group starting around noon and ending at approximately 12:50 pm.

  • Recommended dress is your choice of “Business Casual.”

Cancellation Policy

If you register and pay for one of our seminar or conference events and are unable to attend, please notify us by email or phone and we will apply your credit toward any future training or issue a refund. If you need to cancel please contact either of the following:

Ashley Humphries (214) 551-4942 ashley.humphries@rltownsend.com

Rich Townsend (972) 679-6762 rltownsend@rltownsend.com

Objectives
Learning Objectives

Earn up to16 CPE Credits

Attendees Will Learn

  1. How to avoid making costly mistakes when entering into construction contract agreements

  2. Key steps to help ensure the best value is received when the CM/GC contracts with subcontractors

  3. Critical process to ensure subcontractor change orders are fairly priced

  4. Process to control costs related to materials purchased by the Contractor including material escalation/de-escalation and the current volatile climate surrounding tariffs

  5. How to structure your contract to limit exposure to potential excessive billings for contractor-owned equipment

  6. Possible overcharges for third party equipment to watch out for

  7. How to avoid making excessive payments for Subguard® (Subcontractor Default Insurance) and/or Contractor Controlled Insurance Programs (CCIP)

  8. Methods to effectively minimize the loopholes in contracts that create opportunities for contractors to realize excessive hidden profits

  9. Strategies for partnering with management/construction consultants to ensure construction cost controls are working as anticipated to benefit the project

  10. Owner’s Project Managers will learn specific problems to watch out for when managing their projects to avoid significant overpayments to their construction contractors

  11. Owner’s Project Managers will learn how to effectively partner with their construction oversight teams to prevent significant overcharges and/or overpayments going undetected

 

Learn The Pros and Cons of

  1. Cost reimbursable pre-construction services versus Lump Sum payments for pre-construction services

  2. Pre-established labor billing rates versus reimbursement of actual wages and verifiable labor burden

  3. Lump sum general conditions versus cost reimbursable general conditions

  4. Lump sum self-performed contractor work versus cost plus fee with GMP for self-performed contractor work

  5. Converting GMP contracts to lump sum contracts

  6. Supported payment applications versus percentage of completion payment applications

  7. Pre-agreed labor burden percentages versus reimbursement for actual defined labor burden costs

  8. Bonding both the prime contractor and the subcontractors

  9. Subcontractor default insurance aka Subguard® versus conventional performance and payment bonds

  10. Savings Sharing clauses versus no savings sharing clauses

  11. Worker’s Compensation and General Liability Insurance – Conventional insurance versus Contractor-Controlled Insurance Programs (CCIP)

  12. Worker’s Compensation and General Liability Insurance – Conventional insurance versus Owner Controlled Insurance Programs (OCIP)

 

Other Learning Points To Be Covered

  • Typical contractor fees for cost plus fee with GMP construction manager/general contractor projects of various sizes

  • Whether or not to reimburse for general liability insurance or have it covered by Fee

  • Typical charges for general liability insurance

  • Typical charges for Subcontractor Default Insurance (Subguard®)

  • Typical charges for Contractor Controlled Insurance Programs (CCIP)

  • Typical charges for worker’s compensation when the contractor is self-insured and/or uses high deductibles

  • Change order markup percentages allowed on subcontractor self-performed work and work performed by sub-subcontractors

  • Actual material pricing and labor analysis for trade subcontract change orders

 

Course Outline

Introduction to Effective Management of Construction Activity

  • Cost control objectives for construction projects

  • Project team roles and responsibilities

  • Delivery systems – fast track, design build, conventional

  • Contract procurement methods, types, and phases

Cost Plus and Time and Material Contracts – Typical Overcharges

  • Design contract billings for time and reimbursables

  • Billings for personal computer and/or mainframe computer time

  • Construction contractor and/or construction manager billings for labor and labor burden

  • Billings for contractor-owned equipment, third-party equipment rental, expendable tools, equipment and

  • consumables, and material used during construction

  • Transactions dealing with subcontractors

Construction Change Orders

  • Typical overcharges in lump sum change orders

  • Electrical change order – discussion exercise

  • Change order labor and labor burden pricing

Lump Sum or Unit Price Contracts

  • Quality and scope of work overcharges

  • Substitution of materials or methods

  • Not performing required services

  • Not installing proper quantities

  • Special types of lump sum contract overcharge situations

  • Adjusting allowances

  • Required bonds and insurance

  • Improper charges for sales tax

  • Special unit price overcharge situations

  • Excessive quantities billed

  • Improper measurement method used

  • Inaccurate measurements

  • Billings for excessive quantities actually performed

Instructors

Instructors

Rich Townsend

Smiling man wearing glasses, suit, and tie in front of a stone wall.

Rich Townsend is President of Construction Audit & Cost Control Institute, Inc.​ and an instructor for public offering and in-house professional development seminars related to construction auditing and construction cost control.

He is also Co-Owner of the consulting firm, R. L. Townsend & Associates, LLC. The firm provides construction audit and construction cost control advisory services to a wide variety of organizations throughout the United States. He currently serves on the advisory board for The National Association of Construction Auditors.​

Mr. Townsend is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), Certified Construction Auditor (CCA),  and serves as a member of the advisory board for The National Association of Construction Auditors.​

His extensive experience in construction cost control covers a wide range of industries such as public and private universities, school districts, hospitals/healthcare, industrial, real estate development, airport infrastructure, and airport terminal construction.

Ashley Humphries

Smiling woman with long blonde hair in a suit, professional headshot portrait

Ashley Humphries joined R. L. Townsend & Associates, LLC in 2015. Ashley is a Certified Internal Auditor (CIA), a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), and a Certified Construction Auditor (CCA). She has extensive experience working on construction audits of major construction projects for private and public universities, university healthcare organizations, public school districts, industrial, and real estate development with GMP’s ranging from $10 million to $1 billion. She has been part of the instructor team conducting professional development training for the Construction Audit & Cost Control Institute for the last several years, as well as public speaking for industry conferences around the country.

CPE
National Registry of CPE Sponsors logo with American flag waves, blue text.

Construction Audit & Cost Control Institute (CAACCI) is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its website:  www.nasbaregistry.org

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