Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
firms. We pointed out this type of consequence in
Chapter 6
when we reviewed PFI
contracts and there are interesting parallels here. Successfully completed projects, of
either the green or PFI variety, have the potential to be more economically efficient
and more sustainable. But both project types seem, at present, to favour the big firm
and not the small firm that typifies the industry.
One possibility in the longer term is that teams of small firms will begin to work
together more closely to secure a place in the green market. This was one of the
ways that the Egan report hoped the industry would go forward. As Egan (1998:
32) expressed it: 'Alliances offer the co-operation and continuity needed to enable
a team to learn and take a stake in improving the product. A team that does not
stay together has no learning capability and no chance of making the incremental
improvements that improve efficiency over the long term.'
Key Points 9.2
❍
Thinking long term instead of short term makes an important contribution
towards achieving greater resource efficiency in the built environment.
❍
Some analysts argue that resource productivity can be increased by a factor
of four, and that the barriers to achieving these gains are cultural rather
than technological.
❍
For traditional commercial buildings, the running costs outstrip the capital
costs by a ratio of at least 10:1.
❍
An important consideration of any economic activity is to consider the end
user. For example, in construction, the internal design of an office building
should be conducive to work.
LIFE CYCLE ANALYSIS
It should be apparent that any firm interested in producing products for the green
market needs to consider a broad range of criteria. And the few firms that have
begun to take their environmental performance seriously have adopted auditing
procedures that go far beyond narrow financial measures. By auditing how much
energy is used and how much waste is generated at each stage of a product's life,
producers can increase resource efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of
the product. But deciding where to start and where to stop with these environmental
analyses is a contentious issue and the boundaries need to be clearly defined. For
example, a construction firm could consider energy efficiency, the reuse of building
materials, the energy embodied in the manufacture and transport of materials to site
and the use of the building throughout its entire life span, etc. In fact, there seem
to be ample opportunities to break into many new markets. In an ideal world,
the complete 'cradle-to-grave' aspects of a building would be analysed, but this
would take a business into making detailed assessments of first, second and third
generation impacts. The important message is to identify carefully the quality and
