Last edited 21 Jun 2018

Transforming Infrastructure Performance

On 6 December 2017, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) published plans to improve infrastructure and boost the productivity of the construction sector with the intention of saving £15 billion a year on economic infrastructure such as transport and energy networks, and social infrastructure such as schools and hospitals.

(Ref. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/transforming-infrastructure-performance)

This followed a series of other significant announcements for the industry:

22 November 2017, Autumn Budget 2017.
27 November 2017, Industrial Strategy: building a Britain fit for the future.
29 November 2017, details of the Construction Sector Deal.

Transforming Infrastructure Performance (TIP) is a long-term change programme with a ten year horizon to tackle systemic problems with the performance of UK infrastructure. It also describes the immediate priorities for the IPA, and was revealed alongside a revised National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline which sets out £600 billion of public and private infrastructure investment over the next ten years.

The programme explains out how the government will ensure pipeline projects are delivered quickly and efficiently, using the government’s influence to drive modern methods of construction, as well as addressing how lessons learned will be applied to efficiency and productivity in transport. Government spending accounts for a quarter of all construction projects, and this purchasing power can be used to drive innovation and encourage investment in methods such as off-site manufacturing, which they suggest could reduce waste by 90% and speed up delivery times by 60%.

The TIP programme will be led by the IPA and is intended to improve the ways in which infrastructure is planned, procured and delivered, focussing on the whole life performance of systems, rather than the capital efficiency of individual projects.

It defines the core issues as:

Prioritising investment in the right projects.
Improving productivity in delivery.
Maximising the overall benefits of infrastructure investment.

The report is set out in four sections:

Benchmarking for better performance.
Alignment and integration.
Procurement for growth.
Smarter infrastructure.

The immediate priorities for the first two years are:

Establishing a new IPA benchmarking team to define cost and performance benchmarks.
Developing a framework for cross-sector integration.
Rolling out the Procuring for Growth Balanced Scorecard.
A presumption in favour of offsite construction by 2019.
Supporting delivery of the Construction Sector Deal.
Using digital technology and innovation to extract maximum whole life value from infrastructure.
Supporting and assuring projects.

In addition, a Transport Infrastructure Efficiency Strategy has been produced by Crossrail, Highways England, HS2 Ltd, Network Rail, Transport for London, and the Department for Transport. The Strategy sets out seven core challenges to boost efficiency and productivity. Andrew Wolstenholme, (then CEO of Crossrail and co-chair of the Construction Leadership Council (CLC)) will chair a Transport Infrastructure Efficiency Taskforce (TIET) to oversee delivery of the TIP programme and the TIES, alongside the IPA and CLC. For more information see: Transport infrastructure efficiency strategy.

Tony Meggs, Chief Executive of the IIPA, said; “Publishing our Transforming Infrastructure Performance (TIP) programme today demonstrates our commitment to tackling the annual £15 billion productivity gap in construction. The IPA has a significant role to play in helping to create a more productive and innovative sector. We want to maintain confidence in the sector and will work alongside industry, using our purchasing power to drive the adoption of modern methods of construction in both new and existing infrastructure.”

Andrew Wolstenholme said; “The Transforming Infrastructure Performance programme presents a huge opportunity for the industry and government to reap the economic gains from improving productivity during the delivery of the UK’s £600 billion infrastructure pipeline."