Designing Buildings - User contributions [en]

Lean construction

2018-04-28T12:57:05Z

@archiuser:

= Introduction =

Lean production (sometimes referred to as lean manufacturing) was pioneered by Toyota in Japan after the second world war. The Toyota Production System was considered to be the most efficient in the world, and it was recognised that their lean production principles could be applied not only to any other manufacturing process, but also to other business activities.

The term 'lean construction' is an adaptation of lean production techniques applied to the construction industry. Very broadly it can be characterised as techniques aimed at maximising value and minimising waste.

= UK construction =

The construction industry in the UK has consistently performed in a way that is thought to be wasteful compared to other industries. There is a general perception that it does not deliver good value for its customers. In part this is due to the unusual nature of construction, where, unlike a production line, each building is a one off. But in addition, the nature of contracting arrangements means that it can be adversarial, with significant potential for disputes.

In 1997, the then Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott set up the Construction Task Force, chaired by Sir John Egan. In 1998, the task force published ‘Rethinking Construction' (the Egan Report), on the scope for improving the quality and efficiency of UK construction. Amongst other things, Egan advocated lean thinking, suggesting that it “…presents a powerful and coherent synthesis of the most effective techniques for eliminating waste and delivering significant sustained improvements in efficiency and quality….We recommend that the UK construction industry should also adopt lean thinking as a means of sustaining performance improvement.”

Other countries around the world have also made attempts to apply lean thinking to construction, notably Denmark, USA, Chile, Brazil and Australia (ref Lean Thinking in Construction).

= Lean construction =

Lean construction is a broad philosophy that has been defined in many different ways and includes a range of different approached, tools and techniques.

It is defined by the Lean Construction Institute as “…the application of lean thinking to the design & construction process creating improved project delivery to meet client needs and improved efficiency for constructors.” Other definitions include, "...a philosophy for working based on continuous delivering of better value to customers whilst increasing business profitability and competitiveness" (ref Lean Thinking in Construction) and "... managing and improving the construction process to profitably deliver what the customer needs" (ref Constructing Excellence).

Whilst the goals of lean construction and lean production may be similar, the approaches are necessarily different, due largely to the fact that developing a building is a ‘project’ rather than ‘programme’ (ie it has a start and end rather than an ongoing activity such as a production line) and the product is is often a one off.

Lean construction is a continuous process that applies through design, procurement, manufacture and construction. It is an integrated process in which clients, designers, contractors, and suppliers must be committed to working together, focussing on delivering value (as seen by the ultimate customer) rather than low cost, and striving to get it ‘right first time’.

Some of the varied principles underpinning lean construction include:

* Improving communication.
* Eliminating waste and errors.
* Direct intervention to drive immediate and apparent change.
* Improving work planning and forward scheduling.
* Specifying value from the perspective of the customer.
* Identifying the processes that deliver customer value (the value stream).
* Eliminating activities that do not add value.
* Ensuring the working environment is clean, safe, and efficient.
* Continuous improvement.

Some of the techniques that can be adopted include:

* Using modelling and visualisation techniques to improve planning and communication.
* Early planning, to improve workflow, focussing on defining achievable tasks and avoiding mistakes, duplicated effort, out of sequence working and activity that does not add customer value. The objective is the maximisation of workflow and the minimisation of performance variation rather than point speed.
* Look-ahead scheduling.
* Pre-fabrication and modular building to reduce activity on site and better distribute the workload.
* Just-in-time deliveries.
* Value management techniques.
* Integrating the supply chain through partnering and collaborative practices.
* Benchmarking techniques and the use of key performance indicators.
* [[The_Last_Planner_System|Last Planner System]]
* Critical path analysis and management.
* Risk management techniques.
* Continuous improvement from one project to another.

= Uptake =

There is some suggestion that the adoption of lean construction has not been entirely successful. To a certain extent this is because some of its techniques are already part of best practice, however successive reports assessing the industry continue to be highly critical. Notably, the Government Construction Strategy, published in May 2011, suggested “..the UK does not get full value from public sector construction… “ and that “…there is broad consensus, spread both across the industry and its customers, that construction under-performs”, advocating a “leaning” of the procurement process.

The Egan report itself was not entirely welcomed, and there was some suggestion that applying experience in manufacturing to construction was unrealistic (Sir John Egan was chief executive of Jaguar Cars from 1984 to 1990, and chief executive of BAA from 1990 to 1999). In May 2008, ten years after publication of Rethinking Construction, Sir John Egan stated that "...we have to say we’ve got pretty patchy results. And certainly nowhere near the improvement we could have achieved, or that I expected to achieve…..I guess if I were giving marks out of 10 after 10 years I’d probably only give the industry about four out of 10" (ref [http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/CLIP/SirJohnEgan21-05-08.pdf Egan: I’d give construction about 4 of 10]).

= Find out more =

=== Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki ===

* Advanced manufacturing.
* Block planning.
* Briefing documents.
* Construction consolidation centre (CCC).
* Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA).
* Egan report.
* Government construction strategy.
* Green supply chain management.
* [[Last_Planner_System|Last Planner]]
* Latham report.
* Lessons learned report.
* Logistics management.
* Mean lean green.
* Output-based specification.
* Performance in use.
* Post project review.
* Soft landings.
* Total quality management in construction.
* Value management.
* Whole life costs.

=== External references ===

* [http://www.leanconstruction.org/training/the-last-planner/ Lean Construction Institute]
* [http://www.leanconstruction.org.uk Lean Construction Institute UK]
* [http://www.bre.co.uk/page.jsp?id=355 The Construction Lean Improvement Programme] (CLIP)
* Egan: [http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/CLIP/SirJohnEgan21-05-08.pdf I’d give construction about four out of 10], 21 May, 2008
* [https://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/research/groups/22/home.aspx/group/142953/overview/lean_project_management Centre for Lean Projects, Nottingham Trent University]
* [mailto:gl51hb@me.com?subject=%5BDBwiki%5D%20Please%20tell%20me%20more%20about%20the%20ECI%20Lean%20Task%20Force European Construction Institute Lean Task Force]
* [http://linkd.in/lcnetwork Lean Construction Network on LinkedIn]
* [http://www.leanconstruction.org/training/glossary/ Lean Construction Glossary LCI]
* [http://publish.coursebaker.com/lean/ Lean Construction Glossary]

[[Category:History]] [[Category:Theory]] [[Category:Client_procedures]] [[Category:Construction_management]] [[Category:Construction_techniques]] [[Category:Public_procedures]]

Lean construction

2018-04-28T12:55:12Z

@archiuser:

= Introduction =

Lean production (sometimes referred to as lean manufacturing) was pioneered by Toyota in Japan after the second world war. The Toyota Production System was considered to be the most efficient in the world, and it was recognised that their lean production principles could be applied not only to any other manufacturing process, but also to other business activities.

The term 'lean construction' is an adaptation of lean production techniques applied to the construction industry. Very broadly it can be characterised as techniques aimed at maximising value and minimising waste.

= UK construction =

The construction industry in the UK has consistently performed in a way that is thought to be wasteful compared to other industries. There is a general perception that it does not deliver good value for its customers. In part this is due to the unusual nature of construction, where, unlike a production line, each building is a one off. But in addition, the nature of contracting arrangements means that it can be adversarial, with significant potential for disputes.

In 1997, the then Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott set up the Construction Task Force, chaired by Sir John Egan. In 1998, the task force published ‘Rethinking Construction' (the Egan Report), on the scope for improving the quality and efficiency of UK construction. Amongst other things, Egan advocated lean thinking, suggesting that it “…presents a powerful and coherent synthesis of the most effective techniques for eliminating waste and delivering significant sustained improvements in efficiency and quality….We recommend that the UK construction industry should also adopt lean thinking as a means of sustaining performance improvement.”

Other countries around the world have also made attempts to apply lean thinking to construction, notably Denmark, USA, Chile, Brazil and Australia (ref Lean Thinking in Construction).

= Lean construction =

Lean construction is a broad philosophy that has been defined in many different ways and includes a range of different approached, tools and techniques.

It is defined by the Lean Construction Institute as “…the application of lean thinking to the design & construction process creating improved project delivery to meet client needs and improved efficiency for constructors.” Other definitions include, "...a philosophy for working based on continuous delivering of better value to customers whilst increasing business profitability and competitiveness" (ref Lean Thinking in Construction) and "... managing and improving the construction process to profitably deliver what the customer needs" (ref Constructing Excellence).

Lean thinking is defined in the Egan Report. It says that Lean Production is the generic version of the Toyota Production System, recognised as the most efficient production system in the world today. Lean Thinking describes the core principles underlying this system that can also be applied to every other business activity – from designing new products and working with suppliers to processing orders from customers.

The starting point is to recognise that only a small fraction of the total time and effort in any organisation adds value for the end customer. By clearly defining value for a specific product or service from the end customer’s perspective all the non-value activities, often as much as 85% of the total can be targeted for removal step by step.

Few products or services are provided by one organisation alone, so that waste removal must be pursued throughout the whole value stream – the entire set of activities across all firms involved in jointly delivering the product or service. New relationships are required to eliminate inter-firm waste and to manage the value stream a whole.

Instead of managing the workload through successive departments, processes are recognised so that the product or design flows through all the value adding steps without interruption, using the toolbox of lean techniques to successively remove the obstacle to flow. Activates across each firm are synchronized by pulling the product or design from upstream steps just when required in time to meet the demand from the end customer.

Removing waste time and effort represents the biggest opportunity for performance improvement. Creating for and pull starts with radically recognising individual process steps, but the gains become truly significant as all the steps link together. As this happens more and more layers of waste become visible and the process continues towards theoretical end-point of perfection, where every asset and every action adds value for the end customer. Lean Thinking represents a path of sustained performance improvement and not a one-off programme.

The Egan Report states that ‘This has been used by Pacific Contracting of San Francisco a specialist cladding and roofing contractor, who have used the principles of lean thinking to increase their annual turnover by 20% in 18 months with the same number of staff’.

Whilst the goals of lean construction and lean production may be similar, the approaches are necessarily different, due largely to the fact that developing a building is a ‘project’ rather than ‘programme’ (ie it has a start and end rather than an ongoing activity such as a production line) and the product is is often a one off.

Lean construction is a continuous process that applies through design, procurement, manufacture and construction. It is an integrated process in which clients, designers, contractors, and suppliers must be committed to working together, focussing on delivering value (as seen by the ultimate customer) rather than low cost, and striving to get it ‘right first time’.

Some of the varied principles underpinning lean construction include:

* Improving communication.
* Eliminating waste and errors.
* Direct intervention to drive immediate and apparent change.
* Improving work planning and forward scheduling.
* Specifying value from the perspective of the customer.
* Identifying the processes that deliver customer value (the value stream).
* Eliminating activities that do not add value.
* Ensuring the working environment is clean, safe, and efficient.
* Continuous improvement.

Some of the techniques that can be adopted include:

* Using modelling and visualisation techniques to improve planning and communication.
* Early planning, to improve workflow, focussing on defining achievable tasks and avoiding mistakes, duplicated effort, out of sequence working and activity that does not add customer value. The objective is the maximisation of workflow and the minimisation of performance variation rather than point speed.
* Look-ahead scheduling.
* Pre-fabrication and modular building to reduce activity on site and better distribute the workload.
* Just-in-time deliveries.
* Value management techniques.
* Integrating the supply chain through partnering and collaborative practices.
* Benchmarking techniques and the use of key performance indicators.
* [[The_Last_Planner_System|Last Planner System]]
* Critical path analysis and management.
* Risk management techniques.
* Continuous improvement from one project to another.

= Uptake =

There is some suggestion that the adoption of lean construction has not been entirely successful. To a certain extent this is because some of its techniques are already part of best practice, however successive reports assessing the industry continue to be highly critical. Notably, the Government Construction Strategy, published in May 2011, suggested “..the UK does not get full value from public sector construction… “ and that “…there is broad consensus, spread both across the industry and its customers, that construction under-performs”, advocating a “leaning” of the procurement process.

The Egan report itself was not entirely welcomed, and there was some suggestion that applying experience in manufacturing to construction was unrealistic (Sir John Egan was chief executive of Jaguar Cars from 1984 to 1990, and chief executive of BAA from 1990 to 1999). In May 2008, ten years after publication of Rethinking Construction, Sir John Egan stated that "...we have to say we’ve got pretty patchy results. And certainly nowhere near the improvement we could have achieved, or that I expected to achieve…..I guess if I were giving marks out of 10 after 10 years I’d probably only give the industry about four out of 10" (ref [http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/CLIP/SirJohnEgan21-05-08.pdf Egan: I’d give construction about 4 of 10]).

= Find out more =

=== Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki ===

* Advanced manufacturing.
* Block planning.
* Briefing documents.
* Construction consolidation centre (CCC).
* Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA).
* Egan report.
* Government construction strategy.
* Green supply chain management.
* [[Last_Planner_System|Last Planner]]
* Latham report.
* Lessons learned report.
* Logistics management.
* Mean lean green.
* Output-based specification.
* Performance in use.
* Post project review.
* Soft landings.
* Total quality management in construction.
* Value management.
* Whole life costs.

=== External references ===

* [http://www.leanconstruction.org/training/the-last-planner/ Lean Construction Institute]
* [http://www.leanconstruction.org.uk Lean Construction Institute UK]
* [http://www.bre.co.uk/page.jsp?id=355 The Construction Lean Improvement Programme] (CLIP)
* Egan: [http://www.bre.co.uk/filelibrary/pdf/CLIP/SirJohnEgan21-05-08.pdf I’d give construction about four out of 10], 21 May, 2008
* [https://www.ntu.ac.uk/apps/research/groups/22/home.aspx/group/142953/overview/lean_project_management Centre for Lean Projects, Nottingham Trent University]
* [mailto:gl51hb@me.com?subject=%5BDBwiki%5D%20Please%20tell%20me%20more%20about%20the%20ECI%20Lean%20Task%20Force European Construction Institute Lean Task Force]
* [http://linkd.in/lcnetwork Lean Construction Network on LinkedIn]
* [http://www.leanconstruction.org/training/glossary/ Lean Construction Glossary LCI]
* [http://publish.coursebaker.com/lean/ Lean Construction Glossary]

[[Category:History]] [[Category:Theory]] [[Category:Client_procedures]] [[Category:Construction_management]] [[Category:Construction_techniques]] [[Category:Public_procedures]]

Stakeholders in development projects

2018-04-27T11:02:11Z

@archiuser:

Stakeholders in development projects

2018-04-27T11:00:39Z

@archiuser:

The term 'stakeholder' refers to anyone that has an interest in a project and can influence its success.

It is important to identify stakeholders in a project as early as possible. They may include:

* Members of the client organisation (such as user panels, champions and department heads).
* Other user groups (such as customers, residents, occupants, and visitors).
* Neighbours and community groups.
* Funders and shareholders.
* The local authority.
* Other statutory authorities and non-statutory consultees.
* Special interest groups such as heritage organisations.
* Suppliers.
* The emergency services.
* Statutory undertakers.

Stakeholders may not all have the same objectives. It is important therefore to identify areas of convergence and areas of difference between them and to manage individuals whose expectations are unlikely to be met.

A first step in considering how to interact with stakeholders can be the preparation of a stakeholder map or stakeholder matrix (see [http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100503135839/http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/Stakeholder_Management_Plan.pdf examples on the archived OGC website] and Buro Happold: [http://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/File:A_Rough_Guide_to_Stakeholder_Mapping.pdf A Rough Guide to Stakeholder Mapping])

A stakeholder map might assess:

* The likely impact of the development on the stakeholder.
* The issues that they will have an interest in.
* Their likely position.
* Their ability to influence the development.
* Their potential impact on the project.
* Potential mitigating actions.

A stakeholder map allows a plan to be developed for how to manage the involvement of different stakeholder groups. Clearly, a stakeholder that the project will significantly impact upon, who has a strong ability to influence the development and is likely to be against it, will require a great deal of attention. This may result in the preparation of a stakeholder management plan outlining strategies for stakeholder communication and consultation.

Where the intention is to involve stakeholders in the development of the project, they should be involved early on to allow them to influence key stages such as brief development, rather than just allowing them to comment on designs after they have been completed (see the article consultation process for more information).

Stakeholders can provide useful feedback (and an indication of the likely response to a subsequent planning application), however, as they may not be experienced in building projects, and their actions may be beyond the control of the client, their involvement requires careful organisation, and a clearly understood mandate. Large or complex projects may benefit from a professional third-party facilitator to ensure that stakeholder involvement is properly managed.

A variety of communicating methods can be used to help stakeholders properly understand the project (such as 3D visualisations), and a variety of consultation methods can be adopted:

* One to one consultations.
* Meetings.
* Focus groups.
* Questionnaires.
* Exhibitions and open-days.
* Workshops.
* Websites.
* Printed materials.
* The use of specialist toolkits and games.

Stakeholder management should be an ongoing process not a one-off event, and the stakeholder map and management plan may need to be updated throughout the life of the project.

Definition and Best Practice:

A stakeholder is defined as anyone who has an interest in the project and can influence or impact the success of the project. It is important to identify stakeholders in a project as early as possible.

By understanding an individuals motives and position, it becomes possible to influence, in a positive way, the process of change, and to minimize or resolve issues which may halt the project.

Direct and indirect stakeholders, some are passive, but influential and some are active.

Arb: standard 5- consider the wider impact of your work.

5.1 Whilst your primary responsibility is to your clients, you should take into account the environmental impact of your professional activities.

RIBA- principle 3- relationships. Members shall respect the relevant rights and interests of others.

3.1 Members should respect the beliefs and opinions of other people, recognize social diversity and treat everyone fairly. They should also have a proper concern and due regard for he effect that their work may have on its users and the local community.

List of potential stakeholders:

* Local residents
* Neighbours and community groups
* Funders and shareholders
* Regulatory bodies: The local authority
* Special interest groups: English Heritage, victorian society, Georgian group, 20thC society.
* Statutory undertakers- public bodies (post office, environment agency) and private bodies (electricity supply, gas, water, sewerage). Highways agency.

First step in considering how to interact with stakeholders can be the preparation of a stakeholder map or matrix. This might assess:

* The likely impact of the development on the stakeholder.
* Distinguish key, direct stakeholders and others.
* The issues that they will have an interest in
* Their likely position
* Their ability to influence the project
* Their potential impact o the project
* Potential mitigating actions.

If identified stakeholders are to be involved in the development it is keys to involve them early to allow them to influence key stages rather then just allowing them to comment on the designs after they have been completed.

Stakeholders can provide useful feedback and potential indication of the likely response to the planning application. Their involvement requires careful organisation.

Communication methods to help stakeholders understand the project and consultation methods can be adopted.

* One to one consultations
* Meetings
* Focus groups
* Questionnaires
* Exhibitions and open days
* Workshops
* Websites
* Printed materials
* The use specialist toolkits and games

The coalition government have created the Localism Act which will make the public consultation a statutory requirements for specific schemes of a certain size, or specific organisations.

= Find out more =

=== Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki ===

* Champions.
* Collaborative practices.
* Community engagement in conservation.
* Conflict of interest.
* Consultation process.
* Design quality.
* Design review.
* Interface risk in construction.
* Non-statutory consultees.
* Project risk.
* Risk management.
* Risk register.
* Stakeholder map.
* Stakeholder management.
* Statutory authorities.
* Statutory undertakers.
* Third party dependencies.
* User panels.

=== External references ===

* Buro Happold: [http://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/File:A_Rough_Guide_to_Stakeholder_Mapping.pdf A Rough Guide to Stakeholder Mapping].
* [http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100503135839/http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documentation_and_templates_stakeholder_issues_stakeholder_map.asp OGC guidance on stakeholders].
* [http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100503135839/http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/Stakeholder_Management_Plan.pdf OGC guidance on stakeholder management].
* OGC [http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100503135839/http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/CP0069AEGuide9.pdf Achieving Excellence Guide 9 -][http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100503135839/http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/CP0069AEGuide9.pdf Design][http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100503135839/http://www.ogc.gov.uk/documents/CP0069AEGuide9.pdf Quality]P19.
* [http://www.projectsmart.co.uk/stakeholder-management.html Projectsmart: stakeholder management].
* [https://www.projectcubicle.com/ ProjectCubicle:] [https://www.projectcubicle.com/stakeholder-management/ Stakeholder Management].

[[Category:Roles_/_services]]

Latham Report

2018-04-23T06:16:35Z

@archiuser:

= Background Information =

The construction industry in the UK has consistently performed in a way that is thought to be wasteful compared to other industries. There is a general impression that it does not deliver good value for its customers. In part this is due to the unusual nature of the industry, where, unlike a production line, each building is a one off. But in addition, the nature of contracting arrangements means that it can be an adversarial industry with significant potential for disputes.

A succession of reports had considered how to tackle these issues, including; ‘Reaching for the Skies’ in 1934, the Simon Report in 1944 and the Barnwell report in 1967. However, their recommendations largely failed to gain traction within the industry.

In 1994 the Latham Report 'Constructing the Team' was published. The report was commissioned by the UK government to investigate the perceived problems with the construction industry, which the report’s author, Sir Michael Latham described as ‘ineffective’, ‘adversarial’, ‘fragmented’ and ‘incapable of delivering for its customers’.

[[File:Latham_report_front_cover.jpg|link=File:Latham_report_front_cover.jpg]]

= Recommendations =

Latham proposed that the client should be at the core of the construction process and that the industry should move away from its adversarial structure, adopting a more integrated approach with greater partnering and teamwork.

There were a great number of detailed recommendations within the report, some of which are set out below:

* As the largest single procurer of construction, the government should commit itself to becoming a best practice client.
* The New Engineering Contract (NEC) should be adopted more widely as a less adversarial form of contract.
* There should be legislation to prevent ‘set off’.
* Partnering should be used to encourage the establishment of long-term contracting arrangements.
* Public sector registers should be established for approved contractors, sub-contractors and consultants.
* There should be greater standardisation and better integration of contract documents.
* There should be compulsory latent defects insurance.
* There should be publication of a number of codes of practice and guidance documents to clarify, co-ordinate and standardise practices across the industry.
* A specified duty to deal fairly with each other, and the supply chain in an atmosphere of mutual co-operation.
* Interrelated documentation, clearly defining roles.
* Risk allocation to the party best able to manage, estimate and carry it.
* The avoidance of conflict, speedy dispute resolution and adjudication.
* Firm duties of teamwork with shared financial motivation.

The Latham report refers to 'partnering' and includes the concept of teamwork between supplier and client, in a process of total continuous improvement. It required openness between the parties, ready acceptance of new ideas, trust and perceived mutual benefit.

Latham suggested that if the full range of measures described in the report were adopted, savings of 30% could be achieved over five years.

= Risk =

Increasing numbers of construction projects are using risk management to cut costs and reduce errors. The Latham Report recommended that the most effective form of contract should include a 'choice of allocation of risks, to be decided as appropriate to each project but then allocated to the party best able to manage, estimate and carry the risk'. There are four common methods of dealing with risk: avoidance, abatement, retention and transfer.

= Consequences =

The Latham report led to the creation of the Construction Industry Board (CIB) in 1995 to oversee implementation of its recommendations (the CIB was replaced by the Strategic Forum for Construction in 2001, chaired by Sir John Egan, author of the Egan Report 'Rethinking Construction').

A number of other organisations were established following the Latham report and the subsequent Egan Report:

* Reading Construction Forum
* Design Build Foundation
* Construction Best Practice Programme
* Movement for Innovation
* Local Government Task Force
* Rethinking Construction
* Be
* Constructing Excellence
* Construction Clients' Group

These organisation united to become Constructing Excellence in 2003.

Some of the recommendations of the Latham Report were implemented by the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act (the Construction Act) which amongst other things, set out fair payment practices and regulated ‘set off’. In addition, the Scheme for Construction Contracts, which applies when construction contracts do not comply with the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act established the right to adjudication.

The Report also led to the creation of the Considerate Constructors Scheme intended to help improve the image of the construction industry.

More recently, there have been significant moves in government procurement to encourage collaborative working and foster partnering, and the government has abandoned GC Works contracts in favour of NEC3.

= Subsequent reports =

The Latham report has been followed by a number of subsequent reports, with similar aims:

* In 1995, the [[Levene_Efficiency_Scrutiny_into_Construction_Procurement_by_Government|Levene 'Efficiency Scrutiny' report]] was published.
* In 1996, the CIB published a second report, 'Partnering in the Team'.
* The core message of Constructing the Team was reinforced by the Egan Report in 1998 'Rethinking Construction'.
* In 2001, the National Audit Office (NAO) published 'Modernising Construction'
* In 2002 the Strategic Forum for Construction published a report on its first year of activity Accelerating Change.
* In 2011 the Government Construction Strategy made a damning assessment of the industry, suggesting amongst many criticisms that:

# the UK does not get full value from public sector construction
# there is broad consensus, spread both across the industry and its customers, that construction under-performs
# (there are) poor and inconsistent procurement practices… leading to waste and inefficiency
# (there are) low levels of standardisation, and fragmentation of the public sector client base

Several of these reports have made similar projections of substantial savings within the industry if their recommendations were adopted. Notably, the Government Construction Strategy states an intention to achieve savings of 15 to 20%.

Given that despite all of these reports, the perception of the industry as wasteful and adversarial remains, and that significant savings continue to be projected if the industry reforms, it might be inferred either that; under the circumstances the industry operates more effectively than it appears from the outside; or that expectations are unrealistic; or that recommendations have been consistently poorly implemented. See List of construction industry reports since 1944 for more information.

It is worth noting that criticism of construction is not peculiar to the UK, and that for example similar assessments have been made in the USA (ref [http://www.nvo.com/vklaw/nss-folder/ukusconstructioncomparison/ Constructing the team: A US Perspective], King 1996).

= Sir Michael Latham =

[[File:Sir-Michael-Latham.jpg|link=File:Sir-Michael-Latham.jpg]]

Sir Michael died on 2 November 2017, aged 74.

Born in Southport, he was MP for Melton between 1974 and 1983, when the constituency changed to Rutland and Melton. He stood down in 1992. He was married to Caroline, and had two sons, Richard and James.

He was chairman of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) for eight years. 2017 CITB chairman James Wates said; "His commitment to and passion for the industry was clear to all of us who worked with him."

He was also ConstructionSkills chairman until 2010 and chairman and deputy chairman of Willmott Dixon until 2009.

Julia Evans, Chief Executive at BSRIA, said; "...Sir Michael’s contribution to the industry is remarkable. And he has undoubtedly left the industry in an enhanced place.”

Recalling the impact of the Latham Report, Sir Michael's son Richard said; “Dad got lots of honorary degrees from universities because of his work in construction. My brother and I used to giggle because he could barely rewire a plug at home.”

= Find out more =

=== Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki ===

* Adjudication.
* Accelerating change: A report by the Strategic Forum for Construction.
* Banwell Report.
* Collaborative practices.
* Considerate Constructors Scheme.
* Constructing Excellence.
* Construction 2025.
* Construction Industry Board.
* Construction Task Force.
* Egan Report.
* Emmerson Report.
* Fair payment practices.
* Government Construction Strategy.
* Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act.
* Key dates.
* Levene report
* List of construction industry reports since 1944.
* New Engineering Contract.
* Office of Government Commerce.
* Partnering.
* Penfold Review (non-planning permissions).
* Public procurement.
* Scheme for Construction Contracts.
* Set off.
* Strategic Forum for Construction.
* Supply chain management.

[[Category:History]] [[Category:Publications_/_reports]] [[Category:Theory]] [[Category:Client_procedures]] [[Category:Procurement]] [[Category:Public_procedures]]