Commodities in the construction industry
In economics, a commodity is a basic good or service that cannot be differentiated from a product of the same type emanating from another producer – it is interchangeable with that product. Wherever encountered, the market treats the commodity (whether a good or service) as equivalent irrespective of manufacturer or country of origin. Examples include agricultural products (sugar, rice, wheat), raw materials (copper, iron, aluminium), steel and so on.
A kilogramme of copper of a specific purity cannot be differentiated from any other kilogramme of copper of the same purity, whether by mine, country of origin or smelter. This general lack of distinction means that commodities are usually sold on the basis of price which will be determined by market value.
This quality of having little or no differentiation is called ‘fungibility’, and commodities are either fully- or substantially fungible. A further quality is that commodities are usually the basis for making other goods or services.
In contrast to commodities, goods such as cars may be highly differentiated in the market based on criteria such as the manufacturer, design, features, fuel consumption, etc.
In recent years, the definition of a commodity has expanded to include currencies, indexes, phone minutes and bandwidth.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
This weeks guest editor, Ankita Dwivedi of Firstplanit.
Fropm practice to research and the business of materials.
Terms, histories, theories and practices.
Types of work to existing buildings - repurposing of buildings
Alteration and everything else before demolition.
2023 HSE data on workplace injuries and ill health
And CIOB's response.
Building Safety Act and Secondary Legislation
Presidential update from CIAT's Eddie Weir PCIAT.
Starting pistol Statement for an election campaign?
Rates freeze, NI cuts, full expensing; early election?
Positive pressure or positive input ventilation
Could this be a remedy for condensation, damp or mould?
Unlocking a Healthier Tomorrow
Report on Social housing retrofit in Scotland 2023
Call for ministerial group and National Retrofit Delivery Plan.
The Great Transformation 1860–1920. Book review.
2023 Autumn Statement in brief with reactions
Including the devolved governments, CIOB, ECA, APM and IHBC.
Irish Life Sciences HQ, an exemplar of adaptive reuse
AT awards small to medium size project category winner.
Formal and informal adaptive re-use or new use of buildings.
Broken Record. Emissions Gap Report 2023
Temperatures hit new highs, yet world fails to cut emissions (again).