It was great to read that the Minister for Business and Industry Nadhim Zahawi has confirmed that the government is backing the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) Roadmap to Recovery.
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic and economic downturn, the Roadmap to Recovery will be delivered over two years across 3 phases - Restart, Reset and Reinvent.
This is, for the time being, our new normal.
Without doubt the industry, can and will survive Covid-19, that is not to say, that there will be a few challenges in the process. The coronavirus pandemic has certainly highlighted our reliance on supply chains from groceries to materials.
Focus on geographic locations for supply of goods are somewhat short-sighted, given for example the supply of flour. Supply of flour in the UK throughout lockdown was plentiful, it was just that the supply chain was geared towards a different customer requirement, the hospitality sector. For anyone sourcing goods based purely on one factor, that factor should be “quality” as to geographic location.
At present there are lots of construction materials available, however this supply chain maybe geared towards a different customer requirement. The challenge is for manufacturers and suppliers such as Delta to be found. Please do ask our Technical Team or Sales Teams “Do you supply”, 9 times out of 10, we’ll be able to answer this with a confident “Yes”.
Whilst businesses adapt to the new normal, we must not lose sight of advancements made pre-COVID-19. The call for quality in construction is still and should still be a starting block for a failsafe recovery. For any supply chain to gain resilience, there is a requirement for this to be fact-based.
- Does this product have a BBA Accreditation
- What is the life cycle of this product?
- Can manufacturers make easily available third-party test data
- Do materials meet fire regulations?
- Do materials have CE Mark certification?
- Are Product Data Sheets easily available?
- Are Technical Guidance notes easily available?
- Is there Technical Assistance both on and off site?
Ensure you choose your construction materials and supply chains carefully and opt for one that will serve you well. With potentially heavy consequences (from hefty fines to imprisonment) for using or specifying products in the UK that do not meet the mandatory legal requirements, it is strongly advisable to check the source of products you are planning to specify, use or install.
Competitive pricing of goods may offer a short-term benefit, but a collaborative strategy will become critical to business successes in the future. Throughout Covid-19 we have sought to continue to collaborate with our partners to deliver supply chain visibility and a supply chain that can support not only our existing customers but those within the industry.
