nima has welcomed the Construction Industry Council‘s push for a wider data-driven approach across the sector.
The representative forum for UK professional bodies, research organisations and specialist business associations has highlighted the opportunity to improve sectoral outcomes through data in its response to a UK government consultation.
Responding to a Department for Business and Trade consultation on Invest 2035: the UK’s modern industrial strategy on 2 December 2024, the CIC urged the UK Government to consider a long-term sectoral strategy for construction and the built environment. It said construction should be seen as “a critical foundational sector” and called for a sectoral strategy to be drawn up with meaningful input from built environment professionals.
A long term, data-driven commitment to the construction industry would bring cross-government benefits which include saving the NHS money by improving poor quality homes and reducing the £22bn a year expense to the taxpayer to maintain Government’s property portfolio. Construction is also a huge contributor in terms of UK greenhouse gas emissions and can play a crucial role in reducing embodied carbon and leading the transition to a circular, low-waste economy.
The CIC stressed the need to embrace a data-driven approach and agree milestones for progress.
“A coherent strategy and measurable objectives would help develop the skills and capacity to deliver major infrastructure and drive best practice through improved reporting and analysis of post-occupancy performance data. Government and industry would need to work together to move data reporting further away from a box ticking exercise and more in line with the spirit of the ‘Golden Thread’ requirements being brought in through the Building Safety Act to foster a longer-term, more collaborative approach.”
nima vice chair Paul Wilkinson has written to the CIC welcoming its stance. He says: “The CIC’s response is timely, coming less than a month after nima and the Construction Leadership Council launched the Information Management Initiative – a long-term change management project to get industry organisations developing and adopting IM best practices.
“The IMI aims to help organisations derive significant improvements in cost, value, health and safety, sustainability and performance through better management of data and information. Organisations can demonstrate their long term, data-driven commitment to the construction industry by signing up to the IMI. We have already had conversations with some membership organisations about how IM should be an intrinsic part of an individual’s competence, opening a route that extends beyond recent requirements regarding building safety and the golden thread (think NetZero, digital twins, etc).
“Achieving sector-wide change demands a sustained programme financed and supported by industry. To support the IMI and to help extend awareness, interest and adoption of the IMI, the CLC is seeking founding sponsors and supporters from across the sector: asset owner-operators (‘clients’) funders, insurers, regulators, contractors, consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, technology providers, membership bodies, etc.
“Recognising that some CIC members are already nima affiliates, I hope the CIC and its constituent organisations all become supporters of the IMI.”
- IMI founding sponsors will be the initial champions of the IMI, helping to further develop and steer the initiative, fund its initial dissemination, and build its supporting framework. They will be recognised by the IMI as industry leaders backing digital transformation, will be able to badge themselves as IMI founding sponsors, and will be promoted at events and in IMI supporting materials.
- IMI supporters will be organisations prepared to commit to the IMI and to encourage adoption of its principles. They will be listed as IMI supporters and may badge themselves as such.
