🇺🇸United States

Slow Change Order Approval Extending Time to Cash and Tying Up Working Capital

4 verified sources

Definition

Change order guidance notes that after submission, negotiation and approval can involve multiple parties and senior management, and may extend until project closeout if there is disagreement, delaying payment for change work already performed.[2][3][4] Separate analysis of change order requests shows that substantial time is spent preparing, revising, and chasing approvals, and contractors often have significant value locked in pending, unapproved changes.

Key Findings

  • Financial Impact: On a project where change orders equal 10–15% of a $50M contract (~$5M–$7.5M), it is common for millions in change order value to remain unapproved for months, effectively acting as an interest‑free loan to the owner and materially worsening the contractor’s cash conversion cycle.[2][7][9]
  • Frequency: Weekly
  • Root Cause: Manual, paper‑ or email‑based workflows; lack of standardized logs; iterative negotiation over rates and scope; and owners deferring resolution of disputed change orders until substantial completion all contribute to long cycle times between performing changed work and receiving cash.

Why This Matters

This pain point represents a significant opportunity for B2B solutions targeting Nonresidential Building Construction.

Affected Stakeholders

Project Manager, Project Engineer, Accounts Receivable, CFO/Controller, Owner’s Representative

Deep Analysis (Premium)

Financial Impact

$100K-$450K in crew inefficiency; delayed revenue recognition; rework risk; schedule pressure • $100K-$500K in crew inefficiency across portfolio; delayed revenue; rework risk; schedule delays • $100K-$500K per project in crew idle time, rework, or risk execution; delayed billing; cash flow impact; inefficiency costs; potential disputes

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Current Workarounds

Email chains to contracting officer; Excel CO log; phone follow-ups; informal sub payment deferments; side agreements • Email chains; Excel tracking; phone follow-ups; informal sub payment arrangements; personal notes on approval status • Email CO proposals; WhatsApp photos; manual notes; informal cost estimates; paper documentation; personal tracking

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Methodology & Sources

Data collected via OSINT from regulatory filings, industry audits, and verified case studies.

Evidence Sources:

Related Business Risks

Unpriced and Late-Priced Change Orders Eroding Billable Revenue

For a $50M nonresidential project, change orders typically represent $5M–$7.5M; under‑recovery of only 10–20% due to weak pricing/approval controls equates to ~$500K–$1.5M per project, i.e., low‑ to mid‑seven figures annually for a contractor running multiple projects.[2][7][8][9]

Productivity Loss and Rework Costs from Poorly Managed Change Orders

If total change order value equals 10–15% of a $50M contract (~$5M–$7.5M), a 10–30% productivity hit on affected work can easily translate into several hundred thousand to multi‑million‑dollar unpriced labor and overhead costs per project.[2][7][8]

Rework and Defects from Informal or Rushed Change Order Implementation

Given change orders commonly total 10–15% of contract value, even a modest 5–10% rework rate on changed work can represent low‑ to mid‑six‑figure quality‑related costs on a $50M–$100M nonresidential project.[2][7]

Administrative Burden of Change Order Pricing Consuming Estimating and PM Capacity

One study example shows two hours of project staff time at $50/hour to prepare a change request, costing $100 before review; scaled across hundreds of change orders on a typical nonresidential portfolio, this equates to tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in indirect labor and lost opportunity capacity.[9][8]

Disputes and Claims from Non‑Compliant Change Order Procedures on Public/Institutional Projects

While the specific dollar impact varies per dispute, on large nonresidential and transportation projects change order claim disputes routinely involve millions in questioned costs and can lead to partial or full disallowance of compensation, effectively converting extra work into an unfunded cost burden on the contractor.[7][2]

Inflated or Opaque Change Order Pricing Enabling Abuse and Disputes

For owners on large nonresidential projects where change orders total 10–15% of contract value (~$5M–$7.5M on a $50M job), even a 5–10% premium from opaque or excessive markups on changes can mean several hundred thousand dollars in avoidable spend.[2][6][8]

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