CONSTRUCTION LEADERS’ SUMMT: Change will be the way to survive and flourish
Last week at the NBS Construction Leaders’ Summit and looked at the big levers of change, political, economic and technological drivers, that those in the built environment should better understand and prepare for the challenges ahead. Delegates heard from a host of influential industry figures, including Dame Judith Hackitt (pictured above) and the construction minister Nadhim Zahawi MP. Themes highlighted the stark choice in the future is between short term retrenchment or embracing new models in order to successfully survive in a changing market.
The double-whammy of a pandemic and a recession has made 2020 one of the most challenging and disrupted years in living memory. Digital adoption has ramped up exponentially this year and played an essential part in keeping the sector open for business. However, evolution will not stop there, and delegates heard about the tsunami of change approaching.
Nadhim Zahawi, the construction minister, discussed the government’s objectives for construction and outlined its commitment to the sector, from decarbonisation and building safety to digital technologies and modular construction. He also touched upon ‘Project Speed’ and the forthcoming Cabinet Office ‘Construction Procurement Playbook’.
The Minister said, “We want to build dozens more hospitals, upgrade hundreds of schools and get thousands of new homes up on the market. We will only achieve this by working in unison, using our position as the sector’s biggest client. Our aim is to drive innovation, spark industry investment and create more opportunities for SMEs to deliver government projects.”
He concluded his speech by saying, “I spoke today about greener, quicker, safer and more efficient building. I’ve not said the word ‘better’ all that often. That is because this is precisely what we mean by ‘building back better’, recognising our economy and people need support, building in a way that helps both but focussing on what we need to renew and where we want to be in the future. We are ensuring we build a better country now and for the decades to come. By embracing the technology at our disposal today, we can make sure that everything we’ve built is the best it can be.”
Dame Judith Hackitt, chair of the Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety, delivered an equally powerful speech about the changes which the construction industry must prepare for in the forthcoming Building Safety Legislation which is currently a Draft Bill yet to go through Parliament.
This will be the biggest shake-up in building safety for a generation. She outlined what will happen after it passes into law, specifically the implementation period before the regulator is up and running, not expected to be fully operational until 2023.
Earlier this year Dame Judith expressed her frustration with the lack of progress being made on resolving problems uncovered in high rise buildings since the Grenfell Tower fire. Today she again underlined the urgent need for radical changes in culture, competencies and processes. Digital will be the norm, so the sector can expect to see improved record keeping, less substitution, and ‘value engineering’ will move from being about cost reduction to focus on quality.
Dame Judith said: “The essence of the change that is needed is to stop looking at the letter of the law and finding ways to comply with minimum standards. The new approach to building safety must be about the opportunity to deliver buildings which we would all be happy to have our loved ones live in – confident that they feel safe and are safe. There is a moral imperative above the legal one.”
Richard Waterhouse, chief strategy officer at NBS, said: “We’ve seen that, if a major driver like the current pandemic comes along, all industries can change. Construction in particular, has really moved on. This was an industry known for being resistant to change, so it shows what’s possible in the right set of circumstances. Design teams used to working in co-located ways have found they can collaborate and communicate from their offices or from home, and can have their virtual teams working with the construction teams, still getting the input and the advice they need from manufacturers and sharing that with clients. New digital, collaborative ways of working have evolved and have been delivered rapidly.”
He added, “COVID hasn’t really changed things. It’s simply accelerating the things that were already happening. We wanted to curate an event which brings together the latest thinking and brightest and best minds to look at the construction ecosystem, and the opportunities technology offers to build a better world. Day one of The Construction Leaders’ Summit – The Digital Future succeeded in providing attendees with inspiration and practical guidance to equip them for the future.”
Mark Farmer, CEO of Cast, spoke about modular off-site construction and how key this approach will be in delivering the buildings the country needs. Mr Farmer said: “The ‘Modernise or Die’ challenge that I set out to the industry in 2016 has only become more urgent. Faced with a heady cocktail of Brexit, COVID-19, regulatory and policy reforms businesses have difficult decisions ahead. Economic headwinds are forcing a stark choice between short term retrenchment to business as usual, or embracing new models and innovation in order to successfully survive in a changing market.”
The NBS Construction Leaders’ Summit was organised by NBS, which has its roots in the UK’s National Building Specification, and for nearly 50 years has been helping the construction industry build better and with lower risk.
