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‘At the moment, I feel like a bank for the client,’


said Stacey. ‘We have to source materials, pay our labour force, pay revenue costs, meet the energy bill, and deliver our product to site before we even apply for payment. This makes it impossible to operate without an overdraft.’ PBAs are often regarded as being primarily


suited to very large projects, but Spence believes they should be universal. ‘Sole traders and SMEs are more at risk than anyone, so a mechanism like this is most valuable to them.’ At the same time, the Government is pursuing


policies to cut construction costs by 20%, despite the fact that raw material costs continue to rise steadily. The coalition’s proposed Construction Strategy has highlighted the importance of the industry working in a more collaborative and integrated way to achieve this – PBAs could help unlock this approach. The role of integrated project teams will also


be crucial to delivering the savings: ‘Integrated teams get started on site, on average, six months before conventional project teams; they deliver sustainable projects on time and to budget, giving far better value for money’ says Shelley. ‘The post-handover experience is always better too. They do this by working in a coherent team from the very early stages of the design right through until commissioning and beyond. However, for contractors to be part of that process they must have the necessary breadth of technical and management skills.’ They are also under increasing pressure


to be comfortable with modern methods of construction, such as building information modelling (BIM). BIM will be mandatory on public sector projects of more than £5m from 2016.


Hesitant ‘BIM is the future,’ says Martin Burton, another former president of B&ES and projects manager at Kent-based contractor DSL. ‘However, contractors will be hesitant to invest in the necessary hardware, software and skills training until they see a clear demand from clients – that is to be expected in these tough economic times, but we must not be left behind.’ Some contractors are concerned about the potentially complex legal situation surrounding BIM and the electronic storage and transmission of project data generally. ‘We do need to be a little wary of the contractual implications,’ says Burton. ‘There are inherent dangers in the electronic representation and transmission of project data calculations in a digital building model. However, the use of BIM moves our profession into the role of ongoing life-support for a building in tandem with the FM team. We are no longer just part of the team that


28 CIBSE Journal November 2012


disappears over the horizon after handover.’ The role of the contractor post-handover sets


another range of challenges. The increasing importance of Display Energy Certificates (DECs) challenges the industry to make sure buildings perform as designed. DECs will be required in all public buildings of more than 500m2 and those of more than 250m2


by 2013 by 2015 under the


requirements of the recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which came into force last year. This has major implications for commercial building owners as they will have very clear and transparent energy goals to meet. ‘They will be able to see exactly how much


energy they are wasting and, with energy costs steadily rising, this will become a clear business priority,’ says Sharp. ‘If you can measure your energy use you can also do something about it – as long as you know ‘a man who can’. That is both a responsibility and a huge business opportunity for building engineering services contractors with the right skills.’ The visibility of energy data adds to clients’ determination to bear down on operating costs and, while most contractors would state publicly that saving carbon emissions and cutting environmental impact is important, they realise that finance is the main driver for better buildings. ‘With the advent of performance guarantee


contracts, delivering on a building’s operational promise is a financial imperative,’ says Sharp.


Retrofits ‘The government intends the Green Deal to deliver energy retrofits for 26 million homes between now and 2050 – that will simply not happen if the measures do not work properly.’ The Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) is a


similar case, as payments are dependent on readings from the heat meters installed with every project. The amount of heat generated will be continually measured and monitored – and if they don’t deliver the RHI payments won’t materialise. Similarly with Feed-in Tariffs (FiTs), if systems are poorly installed or not properly integrated into the building, the results will be disappointing and the payback period on the microgeneration system extended. These are all aspects that increase pressure on contractors, but also present major business opportunities. ‘Sustainability and the low carbon agenda are


driving integration and multi-skilling, but against this backdrop, our sector continues to fight for its life,’ says Sharp. ‘Specialist sub-contractors are under intense pressure to cut , even though margins are already wafer thin. ‘This means we have to work in a smarter way


to survive and provide job security for our workforces. Failing to adapt and modernise is not an option.’


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There is very little room for sentimentality in the modern business setting


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