FIDIC glossary · Roles
Engineer
Engineer
In short
A person appointed by the Employer to administer the contract (Red/Yellow). Must act neutrally when making determinations (Sub-Clause 3.7).
What is a Engineer?
The Engineer is the person appointed by the Employer to administer the contract under the Red and Yellow Books. It is neither a supervisory authority nor the Employer's negotiator: the Engineer has its own set of powers, written into the contract.
It issues payment certificates, instructs variations, assesses claims, certifies completion and makes determinations on contested matters. Practically the whole documentary life of the project runs through it.
The central duality: the Engineer is appointed and paid by the Employer, yet when making a determination under Sub-Clause 3.7 it must act neutrally. The 2017 editions state that expressly, because before then it was implied and routinely ignored. The Engineer is not required to be neutral at all times — it manages the project in the Employer's interest — but in the specific act of determining it switches mode.
The Silver Book has no Engineer at all: there an Employer's Representative acts, and makes no pretence of neutrality. That is one of the defining differences of the EPC model.
The recurring regional problem: the supervision consultant's budget is often built on a technical-supervision logic while its obligations are written to FIDIC. The gap gets absorbed by the quality of administration — determinations come late, or never.
Where it sits in the contract
Related terms
Need this read against your own contract?
This explains how the mechanism works in the standard form. How it works in your contract, after the Particular Conditions, is a separate question.
Talk to an expert →A reference explanation of the FIDIC standard conditions. Not legal advice, and not a reproduction of the FIDIC books.