Which records do you need to start a forensic delay analysis?

The baseline programme and its updates in native Primavera P6 format, progress reports, notices, correspondence, meeting minutes and site diaries, plus the signed contract including the Particular Conditions. We log what each document can and cannot prove before any analysis starts, and tell you early where gaps in the record limit what can be shown.

Can delay be analysed if the programme updates are unreliable?

Often, yes. Where an update is unreliable we say so and correct it openly, recording each change. Where the updates cannot be repaired but the as-built records are sound, a planned against actual comparison can still show what drove completion. Where the records cannot support a finding, we say that too, because an overstated analysis fails under cross-examination.

How is forensic delay analysis different from an EOT claim?

The analysis is the evidence; the claim is the submission. A forensic delay analysis establishes which events drove critical delay and by how much. An extension of time claim then sets that evidence against the contract's time and notice provisions to show entitlement. We can provide the analysis on its own, or support the full claim through our EOT claim consultancy in the UAE.

Do you work for contractors or employers on UAE delay matters?

Both, but never on the same matter. We prepare delay analysis for contractors, assess submissions for employers and engineers, and review the other party's analysis in a dispute. The method and conclusions do not change with the party that appoints us, and we check for conflicts before accepting any appointment.

Forensic Delay Analysis in Dubai & the UAE

Q: What is forensic delay analysis?

Forensic delay analysis is the structured investigation of why a project finished late and which events caused it. It uses the contemporaneous programme and project records to identify the critical path in each period, then measures the effect of each delay event on completion. On UAE projects we apply the SCL Delay and Disruption Protocol and AACE RP 29R-03, read through the contract actually signed.

What is forensic delay analysis on a UAE project?

It is the investigation that sits underneath an extension of time, a prolongation claim or a liquidated damages defence. The question is not who feels delayed, but which events drove the critical path in each period and what the contract says about each of them. We work through the same evidence chain on every matter:

Collect and log the record. Programmes, updates, progress reports, notices, correspondence, minutes and site diaries, with a note of what each document can and cannot prove.
Test the programme. The baseline and each update are checked for logic, constraints and reported progress against the record. Where an update is unreliable, we say so and correct it openly.
Date and source each event. Each event is tied to its source documents and to the risk allocation in the contract.
Trace the critical path. We establish the critical path in each period and test which events actually drove completion, including any concurrent contractor delay.
Report what the record proves. Every finding traces back to a document, so the reader can follow the reasoning and test it.

Which delay analysis method suits a UAE claim?

The one the records can sustain, explained in the report, because a tribunal will test the choice. The SCL Protocol (2nd edition, 2017) and AACE RP 29R-03 both describe the options and their limits.

Contemporaneous time impact analysis. A delay event is modelled as a fragnet in the programme update current at the time. It needs a well-maintained programme and an event that can be identified and dated.
Windows and time-slice analysis. The programme updates are analysed period by period to isolate the critical delay in each window. It needs contemporaneous updates with logic maintained through the delay period.
Planned against actual comparison. The planned sequence is compared with what actually happened. It suits projects where the updates are unreliable but the as-built records are sound.

Our guides on choosing a delay analysis method and time impact analysis versus windows analysis set out the trade-offs in more detail.

Why is the programme tested before any delay is measured?

Because every method relies on it. A programme with missing logic, hard constraints or progress that does not match the site record will produce a delay figure that the other side's expert can take apart in an afternoon. On UAE matters we run DCMA 14-point and GAO checks on the Primavera P6 baseline and updates before analysis starts, and record every correction so it can be reviewed. Our notes on what a Primavera P6 schedule audit finds and the DCMA 14-point assessment show what those checks look for.

How do FIDIC notice periods shape the delay record?

Most UAE works contracts are FIDIC-based, and the notice clauses decide what record exists when the analysis begins. Under the 1999 Red Book, Sub-Clause 20.1 requires notice within 28 days of awareness and a fully detailed claim within 42 days, with extension of time in Sub-Clause 8.4. Under the 2017 Red Book, Sub-Clauses 20.2.1 and 20.2.4 require a Notice of Claim within 28 days and a fully detailed Claim within 84 days of awareness, with extension of time in Sub-Clause 8.5. Particular Conditions often amend these periods, so we always read the signed contract. A delay analysis cannot rescue entitlement that was lost to a missed notice, which is why the record matters from the first month of delay.

How does UAE law affect the analysis of concurrent delay?

A UAE-law tribunal may be able to apportion responsibility where both parties caused delay, rather than follow the English approach to concurrency reflected in the SCL Protocol. The analysis therefore has to separate employer-caused delay from concurrent contractor causes period by period, so findings can be applied under more than one approach. Onshore contracts are governed by the Civil Transactions Law, now Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2025 from 1 June 2026, replacing Federal Law No. 5 of 1985, and its transitional rules can reach earlier contracts. We confirm the legal position with your advisers and keep our evidence to programme, records and causation.

Where is UAE delay evidence tested?

Arbitrations are commonly referred to DIAC in Dubai or arbitrateAD in Abu Dhabi, under Federal Law No. 6 of 2018 on Arbitration where seated onshore, and other disputes proceed in the UAE courts. Clients appoint us in one of two roles, never combined on the same matter: as party-appointed support, building and testing the programme and delay evidence with you and your counsel, or as an independent expert, whose duty is to the tribunal or board under a separate appointment. Either way, the analysis is built to be tested by the other side. If the delay is still live and the question is entitlement under the contract, see our work as an EOT claim consultant in the UAE.

Our references

On Hafeet Rail, a rail programme in Oman, we produced a forensic windows analysis that separated design-change impacts from concurrent contractor causes and set out a substantiated EOT entitlement. On Etihad Rail Stage 2 and 3 in the UAE we provided independent systems assurance across construction and commissioning. In the Emirates we work across rail and metro, aviation, waterfront and real estate, energy and utilities, and giga-projects.

Forensic delay analysis in the UAE