ABSTRACT
Any drive for improvement in any activity must start by knowing with absolute certainty where you are with your current performance and where you wish to arrive with your improved performance.
The imperative of measuring and understanding your current performance applies particularly to the utilisation of labour in each sector, by the design consultants, construction contractors, specialist suppliers (sub-contractors) and manufacturers. This will almost certainly be the weakest area of performance, and will be where the greatest potential for improvement and cost saving lies. The 1994 Latham Report, and subsequent work in the UK by the Building Research Establishment (BRE) CALIBRE team and the Building Services Research and Information Association (BSRIA), suggests that up to 30 per cent of the capital cost of construction is consumed by unnecessary costs and much of this is caused by the inefficient utilisation of labour throughout the design and construction supply chain, with the remainder caused by wastage of materials due to reworking.
