Schedule
Synonyms: Project Schedule، Construction Programme، Time Schedule، Baseline Programme
Last updated: 2026-09-25
Short Definition
A project schedule is a time plan that sets out the project's activities, their sequence, the duration of each, start and finish dates and the relationships between them; it is used to measure progress, identify the critical path and calculate the effect of any delay on the completion date.
Overview
Legal Basis
Art. 465 of the Civil Transactions Law (M/191 dated 29/11/1444H) obliges the contractor to complete the work within the agreed or a reasonable period; Art. 466 allows immediate rescission for a delay that makes timely completion hopeless; Art. 178 allows compensation to be fixed in advance; and Art. 179 empowers the court to reduce it if excessive or if the obligation was partly performed. For off-plan sales, the Off-Plan Law (M/44 dated 10/3/1445H) requires the developer's undertaking to start construction within six months and delivery dates specified to the day (Art. 6) and mandates compensation for late delivery (Art. 20); its regulations allow an extension of no more than one year, treat a stoppage of more than 180 days as stalling (Art. 34) and set a minimum compensation (Art. 35).
Practical Example
A villa construction contract in Riyadh is worth SAR 900,000 over 12 months, with agreed delay damages of 0.1% per day (SAR 900). The schedule shows tile selection as a critical-path activity the owner must approve in week 30. The owner approves 20 days late; the contractor records this in minutes and requests an equal extension, which is granted. The contractor then runs 15 more days late because of labour shortages, so the owner is entitled to 15 × 900 = SAR 13,500. Without the documentation and updated schedule, the disagreement would have become a dispute over a full 35 days (SAR 31,500).
Common Mistakes
- ✗Preparing a generic schedule with no logical sequence or critical path, making it useless for measuring delay or proving responsibility.
- ✗Not updating the schedule regularly or documenting delay causes in signed minutes.
- ✗Blaming the contractor for all delay although part of it stems from the owner's late approvals or payments.
- ✗Stipulating excessive, uncapped delay penalties, although the court may reduce excessive agreed compensation.
- ✗Accepting an off-plan sale contract with a vague delivery date, whereas the law requires dates specified to the day.
International Differences
International contracts (such as FIDIC) have detailed mechanisms for submitting and updating the programme and claiming extensions of time, and delay analysis often follows methods set out in the UK Society of Construction Law protocol. In Egypt and the UAE, civil codes allow the judge to reduce an excessive penalty clause, a rule close to the Saudi Art. 179. Saudi off-plan law is distinctive in requiring delivery dates specified to the day and a statutory minimum compensation for late delivery to buyers.
