CEWales E Bulletin April 24

Our first Intelligence report focused on ‘Creating efficiencies in Public sector procurement’. We will be launching the insight report on our website shortly, but the key unifying points include:

 1: The public sector procurement process needs to be standardised and tendered as a single source which feeds in a common source of truth for Welsh context Net Zero, Social Value and well-being standards.

2: The requirements of frameworks and agreements need unification, consistency and clear pathways of support. Allowing LA’s to procure consistently and reduce costs to SME’s.

3: Progress on digital standardisation is a gateway to effective procurement and can enable points 1 & 2.

This has coincided with supporting Welsh Government on consulting with the sector on the merits in alignment between UK Gov and Welsh Gov concerning the adoption of the Common Assessment Standard for all procurements, relating to works in construction contracts. Unpicking the procurement reform legislation and how that interacts with the selection questionnaire and the pre-qualification questionnaire process.

CEWales’ second Welsh Government intelligence report focused on MMC, where we held a workshop to capture key challenges and opportunities. CEWales has subsequently captured this insight to embrace principles of ‘industrialisation’ towards ‘industrialised construction’ as a means for unlocking productivity in the construction sector for achieving greater efficiencies, better outcomes and holistic transformation. This includes unpicking if the term ‘MMC’ is fit for purpose. Again, we will be launching this paper on our website shortly.

We have held a Construction Industry Wales Stakeholders Group which provides views from the sector to feed into the Welsh Government Construction Forum for Wales, which took place on 15th April. Jeremy Miles the newly appointed Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Welsh Language, chaired the meeting. Thank you to all who attended and gave your views and market intelligence.

We need you! CEWales is leading on a Welsh Construction Playbook. The intention is not to completely rewrite the Construction Playbook, it should reflect the environment in which the Welsh construction sector operates and hopefully prospers and grows; also reflecting some of the nuances that we have in Wales to ensure that these and the Future Generations Act and such other provisions are fully understood and deployed. My call is to our MEMBERS, to get engaged via a compact industry group. I am looking for a working group to explore, ‘What should a Welsh Construction Playbook look like?’ and ‘How will you use it?’. I will be sending an email to all our members seeking support and interest to be involved. I really hope you support this scheme of work and offer your time and expertise.

CEWales has been working with Welsh Government to explore how we might be able to support activities and direction of travel for attention with digital as far as the construction industry is concerned. Scoping out a Construction Digital action plan. First and foremost, there is a need for market intelligence to identify what good looks by way of constructions use of digital both in the UK and on an international basis and understand what the landscape looks like in Wales by way of digital maturity. There is a body of work that WG has been involved with Cardiff University over the last six or seven years that would help inform that. This collaborative work with Cardiff University is to identify sectors in Wales that could benefit from an increase in digital maturity should they do so we will see meaningful and measurable economic benefit for Wales both micro and macro level but in short, how we can end up with a jointly agreed and jointly created digital plan for construction industry and Wales moving forward. We are working with WG to add to the intelligence with what CEWales already has as well as our members.

I was delighted to be a part of the Welsh Net Zero Carbon Hwb launch this week, which CEWales is a delivery partner. I presented on the ‘Supply Chain Industry Advisory Group’, at the event. The groups aim is to ensure that the Hwb addresses the issues relating to Net Zero from a best practice perspective within the supply chain and ensures it provides the necessary information and knowledge in a clear and concise manner to the social housing sector. The group advises the Hwb to ensure its outputs and deliverables are directly relevant and helpful to the supply chain, Local Authorities and Housing Associations. It informs the Hwb team, enabling them to meet current and future challenges towards Net Zero effectively.

If you have any information to put forward then please, as ever, do get in touch!