Do we need to do more?
The next topic on the agenda was another headline grabber – sustainability.
Will explained the impact the climate crisis is having on the industry: “When we're putting a new framework out there, we always look at ensuring the contracts and the consultants are considering climate change. We’ve done similar for social value and this is something we’ve been able to adapt for sustainability. We're in a position where we can enlist best practices across our suppliers and make sure that the people we work with are not just sharing knowledge between each other but also sharing it with us.”
ESG commitments shouldn’t just sit at the door of larger organisations, Will went on to explain: “Big contractors can engage well with the supply chain on these matters but we mustn’t leave the SMEs behind. It’s important that we bring them into the conversation, get their thoughts and implement some processes collaboratively.”
Moving from the subject of protecting our future to adapting to it, discussion turned next to digital consumption and BIM, which all panellists agreed wasn’t utilised as widely as it could be.
Rachel explained: “With newer buildings, it's becomes a lot easier to implement technology. However, we have such a vast stock of existing buildings in this country and it can be very difficult to locate certain building elements. I think it needs a bigger from both clients and contractors – both from a project management perspective, and a contract administration perspective. If there's no push to embrace innovation, we're not going to get any further forward.”
Lewis agreed and stressed that this must be addressed on a macro level: “Getting the government and public sector clients buying into BIM is essential. It's not just about the awareness of it, I think as an industry we need to invest more in training – particularly on the digital construction side of things – to make sure that that's carried through into the client side and the end user as well.”