SEH Ltd Commercial expertise, delivered with clarity.

SEH Ltd

Commercial expertise, delivered with clarity.

Latest Articles

Strength Behind the Signature: Testing a Parent Company Guarantee Before You Rely On It
Commercial Guidance

Strength Behind the Signature: Testing a Parent Company Guarantee Before You Rely On It

A parent company guarantee is often offered as an alternative to cash security, but it transfers real protection only if the guarantor's covenant and the drafting both hold. This guide sets out how UK commercial teams can test a guarantee before accepting it, from covenant strength and wording to duration, enforcement and the distinction between a guarantee and an indemnity.
The Notice Window: A Payment Discipline for UK Commercial Teams
Commercial Guidance

The Notice Window: A Payment Discipline for UK Commercial Teams

Missed payment notice dates can turn a disputed sum into a payable one without argument. This guide sets out a practical calendar discipline, document checklist and escalation triggers for UK commercial teams managing payment notices and pay-less notices.
Specified, Substituted, Signed Off: A Commercial Test for ‘Or Equal’ Proposals
Commercial Guidance

Specified, Substituted, Signed Off: A Commercial Test for ‘Or Equal’ Proposals

An ‘or equal’ clause is a permission to consider an alternative, not an automatic approval of one. This guide sets out a practical commercial test for evaluating proposed equivalents before they are accepted into a UK project.
Set Aside, Not Settled: A Commercial Discipline for Provisional Sums
Commercial Guidance

Set Aside, Not Settled: A Commercial Discipline for Provisional Sums

Provisional sums are estimates, not commitments, yet they are frequently read as firm budgets once the contract is signed. This article sets out a practical discipline for recording assumptions, tracking drawdown and agreeing instructions before spend is committed.
The Completion Ledger: A Commercial Close-Out Discipline for UK Projects
Commercial Guidance

The Completion Ledger: A Commercial Close-Out Discipline for UK Projects

Practical completion is a commercial event, not a ceremonial handover. This article sets out how UK project teams can turn the snagging list into a valued, owned and evidenced completion ledger that supports the final account rather than feeding a dispute.
The Quiet Addition: Detecting Scope Drift Before It Reaches the Programme
Commercial Guidance

The Quiet Addition: Detecting Scope Drift Before It Reaches the Programme

Scope drift seldom begins with a formal instruction. It usually starts as a helpful amendment, an informal request or a drawing issued for information. This article identifies five practical signals for UK commercial teams and sets out a short weekly routine for converting ambiguity into documented, priced decisions.
The Last Five Per Cent: Why Retention Release Deserves a File, Not a Favour
Opinion

The Last Five Per Cent: Why Retention Release Deserves a File, Not a Favour

Retention is a contractual security mechanism, not a closing gratuity. This article sets out five questions UK clients should answer before releasing the final five per cent, and why a documented release decision protects both sides.
Brief Before Budget: Eight Assumptions UK Commercial Teams Should Record Before Tender
Commercial Guidance

Brief Before Budget: Eight Assumptions UK Commercial Teams Should Record Before Tender

Most cost surprises in UK commercial projects begin in an unclear brief, not in poor delivery. This eight-point audit helps clients and project teams record the assumptions, exclusions, interfaces and acceptance criteria that must be settled before pricing starts.
Lead Times Are Promises Until They Are Slots: A Programme Confidence Test for UK Commercial Projects
Opinion

Lead Times Are Promises Until They Are Slots: A Programme Confidence Test for UK Commercial Projects

Long-lead items do not become delays on the day they arrive late; they become delays when a quoted lead time is treated as a confirmed slot. This programme confidence test gives UK commercial teams a practical way to separate supplier hope from commercial reality.
The Inherited Project: Ten Tests for a Handover Pack That Earns Its Signature
Opinion

The Inherited Project: Ten Tests for a Handover Pack That Earns Its Signature

A handover pack is not a closing document; it is the operating manual for everyone who inherits the asset. This ten-point checklist argues that completion ceremonies should wait until warranties, training, asset records and defects are genuinely usable by the people on the ground.
The Waiting Room Premium: How Slow Approvals Inflate UK Project Costs
Commercial Guidance

The Waiting Room Premium: How Slow Approvals Inflate UK Project Costs

Delayed commercial decisions are often treated as neutral housekeeping. In practice, every extra week a yes sits in a queue carries a cost in preliminaries, supplier capacity and programme certainty. This article sets out a practical way to measure decision latency, delegate authority sensibly and shorten approval cycles without weakening governance.
Clear Records, Fewer Surprises: A Six-Document Test for UK Commercial Projects
Commercial Guidance

Clear Records, Fewer Surprises: A Six-Document Test for UK Commercial Projects

If a UK commercial project cannot produce six core records within ten minutes, control may be thinner than the status report suggests. This deep-dive checklist explains what good looks like for each document, what goes wrong without it, and the questions clients should ask before the project drifts.
The Casual Yes: How Informal Approvals Undermine UK Commercial Projects
Opinion

The Casual Yes: How Informal Approvals Undermine UK Commercial Projects

A thumbs-up in a project chat can feel like progress. In practice, informal approvals are where scope creep, payment disputes and accountability gaps begin. This opinion piece sets out a lightweight approval protocol that keeps speed without losing the record.
Seven Metrics That Separate a Good Supplier from a Great One, and Why Most Scorecards Miss Them
Opinion

Seven Metrics That Separate a Good Supplier from a Great One, and Why Most Scorecards Miss Them

Supplier scorecards are easy to produce and remarkably hard to make useful. A balanced set of seven measures, properly weighted and reviewed quarterly, can turn a paperwork exercise into a genuine commercial tool.
Reading the Warning Signs: A UK Buyer's Playbook for Supplier Insolvency in 2026
Commercial Guidance

Reading the Warning Signs: A UK Buyer's Playbook for Supplier Insolvency in 2026

Supplier failure rarely arrives without warning. This practical guide sets out the distress signals UK buyers should monitor, the contract clauses that actually help when a supplier wobbles, and a ten-step response plan for the weeks before any formal insolvency event.
Before You Sign Again: Seven Commercial Questions for UK Contract Renewals in 2026
Commercial Guidance

Before You Sign Again: Seven Commercial Questions for UK Contract Renewals in 2026

Renewal season is a commercial decision point, not an administrative formality. This practical self-audit sets out seven questions UK managers should ask before renewing a contract in 2026, from scope creep and indexation to exit costs and dispute resolution.
Clearer, Not Cleverer: The Case for Plain English in UK Commercial Advice
Opinion

Clearer, Not Cleverer: The Case for Plain English in UK Commercial Advice

UK clients do not need more commercial jargon; they need advice that makes trade-offs, risks and costs visible. This opinion piece argues that plain English is not a simplification of expertise but the clearest proof of it.