Category Archives: project management

Is collaboration working? – your views sought …

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The Strategic Forum, as apart of the Accelerating Change programme set the industry a target for 50% (by volume) of the UK construction industry to be undertaken in an integrated manner by the end of 2007. As we approach that milestone, the question is are we achieving that target

This target also appears as the centerpiece of the Defra / Strategic Forum Strategy for Sustainable Construction currently out for consultation.

Last year the Constructing Excellence Building Estates (formely Be) held an inetegrated workshop, comprising of the top 100 thinkers and practitioners of integrated working in the (built environment) industry and asked the question are we on track to this target. The conclusion was illuminating:

How are you doing as an organisation to (achieve this target):

Well Ahead 19%

On Course 19%

A Bit Behind 27%

Nowhere Near 35%

How are we doing as an industry to (achieve this target):

Well Ahead 0%

On Course 3%

A Bit Behind 38%

Nowhere Near 59%

Recently the Collaborative Working Champion group of CE, as part of their ongoing collabaoative state of the industry survey found that only 27% of the industry was fully collaborative, and 35% partly collaborative.

Now, throught the SF, I have been asked to publisice a further much wider survey that needs your input:

The Strategic Forum for Construction is seeking information from firms in the construction industry about their experiences of the barriers to project team integration and supply chain integration. This information will be used to develop a programme to further promote integration within the industry.

The Forum would like to hear from all interested parties – their questionnaire can be completed on line or downloaded here and http://www.strategicforum.org.uk/itgs.shtml All returned information will be treated in the strictest confidence.

Barriers so far identified include:

  • Industry Culture
  • Industry Capabilities and Capacity
  • Procurement, Contacts and Payments
  • Engagement with the Supply Chain
  • Understanding of Cost v Value v Risk

A detailed review of each of these barriers is also available on the Strategic Forum website.

View document on Barriers to Integration MS Word

At the same time, the Construction Clients’ Group (CCG) is launching a survey of its own members in November. Their aim is to establish how many CCG members are practising an integrated approach. This can be completed at

http://www.constructingexcellence.org.uk/sectorforums/constructionclientsgroup/

Martin Nielsen, who chairs the Forum’s Integration Task Group, said: “We want as much of the industry as possible to respond to this survey. The views of clients and companies from all parts of the supply side are welcomed. Their responses will help to shape the future work of the Strategic Forum.”

Mike Davies, Chairman of the Strategic Forum for Construction: “We are hoping that through these two surveys we will get a real feel for whether project team integration and supply chain integration are increasing across the industry. We are also hoping to learn from these surveys how some of the key barriers to integration can be overcome.”

Please take the time to respond. Comments also welcome here !

CKE Events

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CKE have free business support events planned in the North West in October and November covering Marketing, Mentoring and Project Management.

Check out the details and download the flyer from the CKE page.

Project Management – yesterday today and tomorrow

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Last night I presented to the NW CIOB Students meeting at UCLAN on the topic of project management, modern methods – subtitled OM yesterday today and tomorrow.  The slides in pdf format are available over on the events page.

Demonstration Event – 20th Sept

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The next Lancashire Best Practice club event will be held on the 20th Sept at Leyland and will look at coastal demonstration projects at Cleveleys and Morecambe.  Demonstration projects aim to showcase best practice within the industry .

More details, flyers and registration forms available on the events page.


Construction work prices to soar 34% over next five years

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From today’s Building daily news :

Rise in PFI and Olympic works will see tender prices grow 2.5 times faster than inflation says report

The price of construction work is expected to surge ahead of inflation over the next five years.

Tender prices are forecast to rise 34% compared to an expected inflation rate of 13%, according to a report published by BCIS.

Changing our carbon footprint…

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Earlier this week the Government launched the draft Government and Industry Sustainable Construction Strategy for conusltation.Reducing on-site waste, using sustainable materials, and increasing skills in the workforce are just some of the 35 or so  targets set out for our industry, in a strategy that will undoubtedly have a profound impact on education, design, procurement, construction and facilities management.

The draft strategy’s key areas include:

  • Reducing the carbon footprint of activities within the construction sector
  • Production of zero net waste at construction site level
  • Developing voluntary agreements and initiatives between the construction industry and its clients with the aim of reducing the carbon footprint and use of resources within the built environment
  • Creating a safer industry by improving skills, boosting the numbers of workers taking part in training programmes, and retaining more skilled workers.

Stephen Timms, Minister for construction  said:

“The threat of global warming is of enormous concern to the community, and it demands change from Government, industry and the public alike.

“Currently the built environment accounts for around 47% of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK (Construction accounts for 1.5%). Not only must the construction industry rise to the challenge of reducing those emissions, it must also consider how it will adapt its products to deal with the impacts of unavoidable climate change.”

 Use your chance to comment – download the consultation document 

unacceptable project management style?

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Built to order

“my philosophy is to treat everybody in this industry as a crook, a cheat or a liar. Don’t trust anybody.”

This was the subheading for The Guardian’s Working Life article on Saturday.

Built to order profiled one of Banner Homes ‘specialist’ project managers, who wears a number one on his hard hat as “it winds some of them up”

It is a reminder that the shout and order, adversarial and aggressive approach to construction project management still exists. But in an environment of collaborative working, integrated working and building trust does this approach have a place in our industry today?

Even Banner Homes on their website do not think so, recognising on their customer care page

…that continued success comes not only from the expertise of the team itself, but from the importance it places on the relationships it has with contractors …

As a CE collaborative working champion and some one very much involved in the progress towards a collaborative, trust based sector, it saddens me to read articles like this.

I would urge readers of this to write to the Guardian (and even Banner Homes) pointing out the totally unrepresentative nature of this site manager, and lets hope the Guardian can balance this article with a profile that is representative of today’s progressive collaborative industry.