Opinion

Construction should be a product, not a service

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Comments

  1. Finally someone has found the words to define one of the fundamental issues within the construction industry.

    The next question is have any of us got the courage or morals to do the right thing?

  2. And Tier 1 contractors need to be constructors rather than merchants where they buy work from clients and sell it onto Tier 2s and suppliers.

  3. In my 25+ years in the CIOB this is the first time that I have found an article that is bold, courageous and a the “call to arms” that many in the construction sector need. The industry I joined in the 80s is wholly different to the one that now exists. So much so, that I have elected to take a sabbatical from the industry because of my frustration with how many within the sector now feel that it should operate.

    Mr Harding may be accused of harping towards the good ol’ days but recent events with Carillion, the struggles of Balfour Beatty a few years ago and the decimation of medium-sized contractors in the industry is surely evidence enough that this current regimen does not work.
    The only caveat, with so much of what this industry needs, the “real constructors” have little influence on their business strategies. Ultimately, the client and their advisory team are the ones that set the parameters in which work is procured and ultimately managed. Despite clients struggling to get tender returns, it is still only that, “a struggle”, it is not impossible and there are “real constructors” still keeping afloat (barely) purely because they are able to secure work this way. A vicious spiral to the lowest common denominator that will only stop once the small to medium contractors have been completely decimated.
    A real change is needed and I for one am willing to join the fight to bring about this change!

  4. Colin Harding’s article in March 2018 CM includes a paragraph not quoted above comparing tier one contractors to “virtual construction” where they merely “administer” and don’t even “supervise” their projects, “dumping” risk on their supply chain. This has not ceased since the demise of Carillion but will continue as long as Government procurement systems systematically seek to ensure blame and responsibility is pushed further down the chain. The inherent flawed practices within Public sector procurement are the cause of the problem. Harding’s article could/should have been written 20 years ago. If you keep doing the same thing you tend to find you get the same results.

  5. I read Colin Harding’s article with interest in this month’s edition and I have subsequently ordered his book and read some of his previous articles. I found ‘Integrate to Innovate’, which was written at the height of the recession, to be particularly interesting. Colin essentially identified the recession as an opportunity for change. Instead, here we are, worse than ever and in the midst of a ‘real construction’ skills crisis whilst some incredibly talented professionals operate in the ‘virtual construction’ world.
    I also recently read the “From Transactions to Enterprises” report by the ICE. There are some similar thought threads around the need for greater integration. Are there any plans for the ICE and CIOB to collaborate on initiatives like this to help drive some change?

  6. Thank you Mr. Colin Harding for your article. You are holding a candle of truth in deep darkness. You came to the point directly and define the real meaning of construction.
    Every word you wrote is an evidence of what construction has become nowadays starting approximately 25 years ago in the reverse transition.
    I hope construction returns back to its craftsmanship/product status with its profound respect to Clients, Engineering and Innovation.
    Many Many thanks for your words.

  7. The worst part for me is, those doing the design and dump, often enough have no idea of the risks they are transferring to a contractor, which remain in reality with the client, who is now risking not getting the project he expected.

    All the cleverness of contract language won’t stop problems from happening, and hoping others with inadequate resources and under pressure to make a profit will manage and resolve them to a satisfactory conclusion for all, is more than wishful thinking, it’s highly risky and increasingly reckless.

  8. Hi Colin, Is virtual another term for non value adding?

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