Construction Procurement Reforms

The Construction Leadership Council has set out its recommendations for procurement reform, including a new form of contract.

The report provides recommendations on how government, clients and the construction industry can develop a new approach to procurement. It has been produced by the Construction Leadership Council (CLC)’s business models and supply chains workstream.

To get away from clients simply accepting lowest bids regardless of quality, it recommends the development of an industry-wide definition of value that takes into account more than capital cost.

Most compellingly, it advocates the production of new forms of contracts that reduce the role of lawyers in the construction industry.

The theme of ‘contracting for success’ as opposed to contracting for possible failure is at the heart of the issue. While contracts continue to be structured to allow blame and risk to be passed down the supply chain, rather than evaluated and placed, and whilst parties are still not incentivised to work together to achieve the ultimate outcomes identified at the outset of the project, it will be difficult to change the blame culture that still dominates the industry.