Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The
Government Construction Strategy
(2011) reiterated many of the themes
that had emerged during the last decade in so far as there was recognition that
construction underperforms in terms of its capacity to deliver value, and that there
is a lack of investment in construction efficiency, low levels of standardisation and
a fragmented public sector client base. But, most importantly, this report made a
further call for the industry to reduce its costs by 20 per cent and to improve its
long-term sustainability (Cabinet Office 2011: 5-6).
In all these reports the government's role is acknowledged:
•
as a regulator with regard to aspects such as building and planning regulations
•
as a policy maker for issues that directly affect but go wider than the industry,
such as energy efficiency, waste management and climate change
•
and, as a major client.
It is in its role as a client that a government can make the greatest progress in
implementing the sustainability agenda. As pointed out at several points throughout
this text, the government has responsibility for a large variety of public buildings
and infrastructure, extending to an estate of around 7,500 buildings that occupy
more than 10 million square metres of space (HM Government 2012). This is one
reason why public sector work accounts for nearly 40 per cent of the industry's
workload. So the government is in a position where it can literally lead by example,
as well as by setting policy targets and making and enforcing regulations.
The last two reports cited in
Table 15.6
both express the hope that the industry
will adopt
building information modelling (BIM)
. This is a tool used to generate
and manage multidimensional data with the aim of increasing productivity in
building design, construction and facility management. It is far more than a
3D model or a simple visualisation. The key word in BIM is 'information' as it
integrates data relating to costs, time, energy and sustainability. In effect, it is more
of a 6D model, providing a complete picture that allows for complex analyses from
concept to completion and beyond. The government's goal is that all construction
projects procured in the public sector should be using BIM by 2016 (Cabinet Office:
2011: 14). BIM is seen as a way to integrate the construction team and get it to
work collaboratively, to reduce errors and unnecessary changes, to cut out layers
of waste and reduce transaction costs in the transmission of information across the
supply chain (IGT 2010: 66). In short, it streamlines and integrates the processes
of design, procurement, construction and asset management. But whether it will
succeed in being the game-changer that it is set up to be and unlock opportunities
to support sustainable design, construction and operation remains to be seen. This
challenge is further complicated by the fact that buildings and infrastructure - the
products of the industry - have such lengthy life spans. Developments that are under
construction today will still be in use in 50 - or even 100 - year's time.
To close this section, the government clearly has a role to play. It takes this role
seriously, evidenced to some extent by the 2009 appointment of a senior civil servant
to advise the government (as head of the Construction Sector Unit), and, in fact, the
IGT report was his first responsibility. However, as pointed out in
Chapters 9,
10
and
11,
government policies do not always achieve the desired results. Critics have
