Construction

The on-going economic uncertainty has underlined the vulnerability of the UK construction sector and its dependence on public sector markets. The private sector has yet to fill the gap, and with output falling and competition increasing, there is evidence that lowest price tendering and cost driven construction is re-emerging. This echoes previous cycles of boom and bust and a new more sustainable approach is required that delivers quality products for clients and better margins for contractors - Waterstons call this approach the Construction value supply chain.

The Construction value supply chain focusses primarily on the client and a culture which is transparent and collaborative between all partners helping to proactively manage expectations and outcomes. The supply chain is underpinned by high performing project teams that span multiple organisations and are cemented together by a culture of trust and the sharing of accurate and up to date information. More recently this approach has been referred to as Building Information Modelling (BIM), and ironically at a time when public sector orders are falling, the UK Government is setting a new benchmark for client responsibility by becoming informed and better co-ordinated when its requirements are specified, designed and procured. After 2016, all new government projects above a certain value will be mandated to use an open and shareable Building Information Model, following the CoBie standard.

Waterstons consultants can help transform an organisation’s ability to deliver BIM into a value supply chain by providing  expertise on information integration across multiple locations, intelligence solutions to provide visibility, and technology solutions for better consolidation of IT infrastructure and to drive communications performance.