Build Magazine August 2015

Build Magazine 27 Inside the Industry Stringer describes the industry as “old fash- ioned”, and feels that this is a key problem which needs to be resolved in order for UK construction to move forward and overcome the skills shortage. Additionally, diversity is also a key problem. Although Integral Build has a team of which 25% are female and partners with the Women in Property organisation, which aims to raise the profile of women in con- struction, there are still not enough women in the industry as a whole. Again, Stringer believes that a change in image is crucial, with the perception of a dirty all boys club needing a drastic overhaul in order to en- courage more women to study construction skills whilst in education. In terms of moving forward, the Director of Integral Build, a specialist fit out and refur- bishment contractor, believes that automa- tion is not a route which will be successful, but that rather efficiency needs to become a top priority. “There are lot of things that can be done to make us more efficient as an industry. I know that some of the very large construc- tion companies have started to suggest that there are some automated processes that could take place on site but I think we are a long way away from seeing those being an everyday reality across the UK. “I think, in general, we are quite a wasteful industry in terms of how we procure projects, how we build things on site, we need to be looking at more efficient ways of procuring projects and the tendering process that a lot of clients go through and we’ve got to look into how we can be more efficient onsite, us- ing better materials, more efficient methods, looking at ‘lean techniques’. “These are all things we need to be doing, as traditionally the construction industry has been very old fashioned and that’s some- thing we need to change to ensure we are offering the very best value to our clients and the best environment for new staff to enter.” Overall, a complete image overhaul for the industry can do no harm, and with the skills shortage showing no signs of abating, action is required sooner rather than later to stop the industry from running out of skilled workers.