Once unthought, now the best practice within the construction sector

As the title of the paper suggests, what was once unthought within the construction industry, is now not only being thought but also being implemented and considered by public clients as the best practice within construction industry in the UK. Traditional procurement, resulting in an over-the-wall scenario, is being rejected by public sector clients and forward looking contractors. The situation is now changed and project participants are trying to demolish these 'walls' and are coming together to work as an integrated supply chain from the outset of a project. The Client's role within the whole process is quite crucial; this paper will show the contribution of public sector clients, taking the initiative not only to think but to implement the previously unthought in construction through new and innovative procurement routes. At the same time, the role of main contractors is also appreciable in adopting these new procurement approaches which were previously not among the best practices within the industry. This paper reports on the findings of two detailed case studies. It shows the techniques used by public clients - such as aggregation of demand and the establishment of longer term relationships - to bring about resultant changes in the supply side – including the involvement of subcontractors along side main contractors in various forms and degrees of integration. The paper concludes that contractors and subcontractors, now working under such innovative procurement umbrella have come within an integrated supply chain. In some cases, the first tier includes the Main Contractor, the Design team and M & E Contractors and they are all involved with the client from the outset of the project to develop the plans for the proposed projects.