The changing face of construction procurement

Irene Peter’s famous line, “Just because everything is different doesn't mean anything has changed” could apply to the Government’s recently published ‘Construction Strategy’, according to David Mycock, although there is more to come. The question is, how does procurement fit into this picture?

In this apparent age of austerity, the principal aim of the plan is to cut costs on government construction projects by 20 per cent. There’s no reason to doubt that private sector clients won’t want similar savings. So how does procurement fit into this picture?

First, let’s provide some context. The main themes of the Government’s strategy include greater integration, improved visibility of the public sector pipeline, standardised buildings and building details, and mandatory BIM (building information modelling) on all government construction projects, starting with those over £50m but eventually covering all public sector projects. This will tend to increase the emphasis on the complete construction lifecycle and should lead to a better appreciation of all buildings’ operational and end-of-life requirements.

The focus is currently on process, but let’s not forget about personal relationships. Whether it’s products or services, it’s still the case that people buy from people, so engaging with your customers will remain as important as ever.

Among those businesses and organisations that are sufficiently flexible the ongoing and proposed reforms present an opportunity. For example: by having robust, standard details available which can be dropped straight into a building’s BIM model; by engaging with architects, contractors and facilities managers at an early stage to show how products and systems can add value over the whole life of a building; and by recognising that there are new customer groups that can be targeted. (Editor’s note: [link to product enquiry form] ribaproductselector.com now enables manufacturers to upload their own CAD and BIM files for specifiers to download and use in project specifications).

As with all reforms, questions are being thrown up where the answers are not yet clear. For instance, how can we achieve greater integration but still maintain a fair and competitive marketplace? How do we achieve cost savings via standardisation when no two construction projects are ever the same? Is there a dichotomy between ensuring good, innovative design and having standardised construction? This is exemplified by school design: do we want bright, interesting learning environments for our children, or should they be dumped in identikit, modular boxes?

We shouldn’t forget that around 61 per cent of the £110bn UK construction market is in the private sector, so how keen will private sector clients and developers be to embrace similar changes? And what’s happened to sustainability? The Government’s strategy document mentions it once, and then only to put it off for another day.

Obviously, the above questions simplify the debate and none need be mutually exclusive, but they do provide some insight into future discussions.

Linked to this we have PAS 91, the Government’s standard PQQ (pre-qualification questionnaire) issued last year, which provides a standard procurement process. To me, PAS 91 looks more like an attempt to sell assessment services than an effort to simplify the process for clients and suppliers. And it isn’t mandatory for all public sector client bodies.

As always, market intelligence is vital. Do you understand what your competitors are doing? Do you know the size and structure of your market? Talk to specifiers across the industry, not just those you sell to; you could easily pick up tips about future trends or product requirements. Get involved with industry bodies (such as [link to: www.cimcig.org] CIMCIG); these are very useful for general market intelligence, but also good for personal development and relationship building.

All of this points to continuing change. How well prepared are you to cope with it?

 

Author David Mycock is head of marketing at Shephard Gilmour, an international engineering consultancy based in Manchester. He is also a national committee member of CIMCIG and a committee member of TARGET.

 

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