Andrew McKenna is an experienced construction delay expert and leads Accura Consulting’s delay and planning team, working on Western Australian construction disputes from Perth.
Construction Delay Expert in Perth
Andrew spent years as a site engineer, site manager and planning manager before becoming an expert, so his delay analysis starts from how the job was actually built.
Experience relevant to WA
Andrew has prepared delay and extension of time analysis on rural road upgrades in Western Australia, and on process and refinery projects in Tasmania and Kuwait. He has been engaged as a delay expert on 17 disputes across Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and the UK, including arbitrations on energy, tunnelling and gas storage projects.
Construction Delay in Perth
WA courts, tribunals and laws
Andrew prepares delay evidence for disputes heard in:
Supreme Court of Western Australia, for major project and resources disputes
State Administrative Tribunal (SAT), for building disputes
Adjudication under the Building and Construction Industry (Security of Payment) Act 2021 (WA), where delay arguments must be made clearly on the papers within days
Arbitration and expert determination, common on resources, energy and infrastructure contracts
Each forum asks for something different, and Andrew shapes the analysis to fit the forum from the start.
What WA courts have said about delay
John Holland v Minister for Works [2021] WASC 312
A dispute over John Holland's claimed extensions of time on the Perth Children's Hospital. John Holland said its entitlement should be assessed prospectively; the State had not said which approach it relied on. The court held that the delay analysis method is dictated by the proper construction of the contract, and required the State to set out its position before expert evidence was exchanged. Andrew's view: read the time clauses before choosing a method. The contract, not the expert's preference, decides whether the analysis is prospective, retrospective or both.
The lesson for WA claims
Settle how the contract requires delay to be assessed before briefing the experts. It saves months of wasted analysis and avoids an ambush at trial.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Andrew leads the team from Melbourne with frequent visits to Perth where a number of Accura constants work from. Andrew also travels for site visits, expert conferences and hearings.
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Yes. Andrew has worked on gas storage, refinery, renewable energy and power distribution projects, and has prepared delay analysis for energy-sector adjudications and arbitrations.
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Start with the contract. WA courts have held that the delay analysis method depends on the proper construction of the contract, so the time clauses should be read before the expert chooses a prospective or retrospective approach.
Insights
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