ABSTRACT
Two important aspects of Part A have been to explain the importance of resource efficiency and to overview the characteristics of various market structures. We suggested that, in most cases, the market structures in the construction sector are different from those found in the manufacturing sector. Manufacturing is mostly dominated by a concentration of very large companies that are able to utilise capital-intensive modes of mass production and benefit from economies of scale. Whereas, in direct contrast, the construction industry is traditionally characterised by a large number of small firms, with very few barriers to entry, a dispersed market structure, a relatively low level of fixed costs and few opportunities to benefit from economies of scale. Which sector achieves greatest resource efficiency (value for money) is left open to debate.
