Innovation in Construction: Ideas are the currency of the future

Research by: Jamie Dale, CIOB

Survey 2007

CONTENTS

Foreword 3

Introduction 4 PurposeofStudy 4 Backgroundresearch 5

Methodology 6 Thesample 6

Findings 74.1 Areyouamember? 74.2 Whatisyouremploymentstatus? 74.3 Whatdescriptionbestsuitsyourprofession? 84.4 Whichofthefollowingsectorsareyoumostcloselyinvolvedwith? 84.5 Howmanypeopleareemployedatyourorganisation? 94.6 Howmuchdoesyourcompanyturnoverperannum? 94.7 Howimportantisresearchanddevelopmentintheconstructionindustry? 104.8 Whatdoyoubelieveisthemaindriverofinnovation? 104.9 WhichorganisationsdoyoubelieveholdresponsibilityforcarryingoutR&D? 114.10 Whichorganisationsdoyoubelieveproducemostinnovations? 114.11 Globally,wheredoyoubelievemostresearchanddevelopmentistakingplace? 124.12 By2020,wheredoyoubelievethemajorityofresearchanddevelopmentwilltakeplace? 124.13 WhichoftheseissuesrequiresthemostR&D? 134.14 Howiscreativity/innovationencouragedintheindustry? 134.15 Whatisthemostinnovativethingthathasdirectlybenefitedyouoverthelast5years? 144.16 Howimportantisresearchanddevelopmenttoyourcompany? 144.17 Howmuchdoesyourcompanyinvestinresearchanddevelopmentannually? 154.18 Howmuchshouldyourcompanyinvest? 154.19 Doesyourcompanyencouragecreativeproblemsolving? 164.21 Howimportantisinnovationforthefutureofconstruction? 174.22 Ifyouhada£1mbudgetforinnovation,whatwouldyoudevelop? 17

Discussion 18

Recommendations 19

Resources 19

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FOREwORD

Ideas are the currency of the future.

Theconstructionindustryisnotwidelyperceivedasofferinganenvironmentthatnurturescreativity,andyetthissurveyhasnotonlyshownthatthereisahugevolume,andquality,ofideaswithintheindustrybutalsothatinnovationisregardedbymanyascrucialtothefutureoftheindustry.

Constructionisauniqueenvironmentandbydefinitionisacreativeindustry.Nosingleprojectisthesameasanotherandthatdiversitybreedsinnovationandinnovativeproblemsolvingatthepracticallevel.

ItshouldbenotedthatwhilsttheOfficeofNationalStatisticsfigurewithinthisreportplacea£33mvaluetotheindustry’sresearch&developmentspend,itdoesnotreflecthowmuchtheindustryspendsemployinginnovativeanduniquesolutionsatthepracticalleveltoprojects.Italsodoesn’ttakeitaccounttheinnovationinpracticesandprocessesthatoccuronsiteintheformoflogistics,healthandsafety,traininganddevelopment,peoplemanagementorplanning.Thiscanbeclearlyseenonexemplarprojects,liketheworld’stallestbuildings,longestspanbridgesandthelike.Andtoalesserextentonanyprojectintheindustry.

99.7%ofrespondentsfeltthatR&Dwasimportantorveryimportanttotheircompanyand100%alsofeltthatinnovationwasimportantorveryimportanttothefutureofconstruction.However66.25%felttheirowncompanywasnotinvestingenough.Thatisaconcernwhenweconsiderthatalmost95%weredirectorsormanagersofwhom64%workedforcompaniesthatemployover100people,and65%workedinorganisationswithaturnoverinexcessof£10mayear.

Whatwehavealsoseenthroughthisresearchisthattheissueofsustainabilityisclearlyatthetopoftheagendaforinnovationinconstruction.Some48.25%ofrespondentsvoiced‘green’ideasthatrangedfromcarbonneutralconstructionmaterials,renewableenergysystems,energyefficientheatingsystemsthroughtosolarpoweredplantmachineryandbetterwastemanagementproducts.With60.6%ofrespondentsstatingthat‘green’issuescurrentlyrequirethemostR&D;itisclearfromthissurveythatthereisadeepconcernforenvironmentalissuesfromwithintheconstructionindustry.

ResearchconductedbytheOfficeofNationalStatistics,statesthatconstructionspendsacomparativelysmallamountoninnovation.

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INTRODUCTION

Purpose of study

AstherehasbeenlittleresearchintoinnovationwithintheconstructionindustrytheCIOBwantedtogainaninsightintowhatconstructionprofessionalsfeltabouttheissuesofinnovationandresearchanddevelopment(R&D).Thestudysoughtspecificopinionaboutthecurrentstateofinnovationwithinconstructionincludingtheclimateoffinancialinvestmentcomparedtoturnover.

Thesurveyalsoexaminedtheimpactofcurrentinnovationsandwheretheyweremostlikelytocomefromintermsofsectorandgeography.Inadditionthestudyexaminedtherespondent’saspirationsandideasastowhatissuestheyfeltwouldrequireaninnovativeresponsefromtheindustry.TherespondentswheregiventheopportunitytoexpresswhatareastheywoulddevelopwithamillionpoundR&Dbudget.Theaimofthiswasnotonlytogivetherespondentsacreativeopportunitytoexpresstheirideasbutalsotocreatesomeinterestingdiscussionideasthatcouldpossiblyleadtofutureinnovationswithintheindustry.

what is Innovation in the Construction industry?

TheDepartmentofTradeandIndustry(DTI)statesthatinnovationis“Thesuccessfulexploitationofnewideas”andthat“itisthekeybusinessprocessthatenablesUKbusinessestocompeteeffectivelyintheincreasinglycompetitiveglobalenvironment.”Innovationwithinbusinessisnotalwaysprofitdrivenandtheconstructionindustryinparticularhastofindwaysofchangingitsproceduresandtechnologyinordertoadapttoincreasinggovernmentalandpublicconcernfortheenvironment.

Forthepurposeofthissurveyinnovationwillbedefinedasthesuccessfulintroductionofnewtechnologiesorproceduresintoindustry.ResearchandDevelopment(R&D)willbedefinedastheprocessthatisundertakentointroduceinnovationintoindustry.InnovationisnottobeconfusedwithR&Dwithwhichitisoftenlinked.InnovationisaproductofR&DanditmustberememberedthatR&Dexpenditure,whichhasbeenextensivelyexaminedinreportssuchasTheOfficeofNationalStatistics-ResearchandDevelopmentinUKBusinesses2005;doesnotindicatethelevelsofinnovationortechnologicaldevelopmentwithinacompany;itmerelyshowsacompanieseffortsanddesiretointroduceinnovations.

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Background Research

“Itisestimatedthatbuildingsandtheirconsumptionrepresentmorethan40%ofenergyusewithintheEuropeanUnion.Thismeansthatbuildings,incontrasttopopularbelief,contributemoregreenhousegasesthantraffic(31%)andindustry(28%)Europeandtheconstructionindustryshouldtaketheleadintheglobalfightagainstthethreattoourclimate.”Claes Björk, President and CEO, Skanska, December 2001

Withconcernovercarbonemissionsatahistoricpeak,theconstructionindustryhasneverbeeningreaterneedofinnovativetechnologiesandprocesses.RecentchangestothebuildingregulationssuchastheApril2006revisiontoPartsF(ventilation)andL(fuelandenergyconservation)haveenforcedmaximumcarbonemissionsfornewbuildsandrenovationsofexistingbuilding.Thesechangestothelawcoupledwithgrowingpublicandacademicconcernovertheconstructionindustry’scontributiontocarbonemissionshaslefttheindustryingreatneedofinnovationwithinthebuiltenvironment.

Asidefromapublicandacademicoutcryforanew‘green’approachtoconstruction,theindustryitselfhasbeenshowninrecentsurveysasoneoftheindustriesleastlikelytoinvestinR&Dandinnovation.InJanuary2007aNationalStatisticspaperentitledResearchandDevelopmentinUKbusinesses2005,foundthattheconstructionindustryspent£33monR&Dcomparedto£3308mspentinthepharmaceuticalindustryand£127mspentinagriculture.TheUK’sconstructionsectoristhelargestindustryintheUK,employingaround2.2millionpeopleandaccountingfor8%oftheUK’sGDPincomparisontothepharmaceuticalindustrythatcontributes0.6%totheUK’sGDP.

Itcouldbestatedthatthisisanunfaircomparisonasthepharmaceuticalindustryisaverydifferenttypeofindustryandreliesheavilyonscientificinnovationtokeepupwithpublicdemandswhichisdeliveredfromproductinnovation;whilsttheconstructionindustryismainlyprojectbasedinnovation.However,theconstructionindustry’sinvestmentinR&Ddoesfallbehindcloserandfellowtraditionalindustriessuchasagriculture.Theconstructionindustry’sannualturnoverin2005wasvaluedat£169,248mwithonly£33mofthatspentonR&Dwhereastheagriculturalindustry’sturnoverwassignificantlylessat£1,084mandyet£127mwasspentonR&D.

InthementionedNationalStatisticspaper,theconstructionindustryisalsoseenasoneoftheonlyindustriesdecreasingitsannualspendsonR&D.TheIndustry’s2005annualspend,asstatedinthispaper,isan£8mreductionfromitsexpenditureofR&Din1999.FurtherstudiessuchasInnovationintheUK:IndicatorsandInsights,(DTIOccasionalPaper,Number6,July2006)statesthatonly6%ofconstructionenterprisesintroducednewprocessinnovationsin2005.

TheOECD(OrganisationforEconomicCo-operationandDevelopment)OslopapersetsdownstrictguidelinesastowhatanR&DInnovationsurveyshouldconsistof,yettherehasbeenverylittleresearchconductedwithintheUKregardingtheconstructionindustry’sopinionsontheneedforinnovationandR&D.Thelackofresearchwithintheindustryregardinginnovationhasmadeitverydifficulttodeterminewhytheconstructionindustryisbehindotherindustriessuchasagriculturewhenitcomestoinvestmentinresearchanddevelopment.

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METHODOLOGY

Thesurveywasconductedusingaweb-basedquestionnairewhichrespondentscouldaccessthroughtheCIOBwebsite(www.ciob.org.uk).

Respondentswereaskedgeneraldemographicquestionsregardingtheiremploymentstatus,theircompanyandtheirprofessionwithintheindustryinordertoexplorethediversityofthesamplewithintheconstructionindustry.

AnemailwassenttoallthemembersoftheCIOBinformingthemthatthesurveywasonlinebutthesurveywasopentothegeneralpublic.

Threeopenanswerquestionswereincludedtogivepeoplethechancetoexpressthefollowing:whatinnovationshavebenefitedtheminthepast;howtheircompanyencouragescreativeproblemsolving,andachancetoexplainanyinnovativeideasthattheywouldliketoseeintroducedintheconstructionindustrywithabudgetofonemillionpounds.

The sample

Thesampleconsistedof459constructionindustryprofessionals,themajorityofwhomwerecompanydirectorsormanagement(433respondents).ThevastmajorityweremembersoftheCIOB(93.3%).89%ofrespondentswereeitheremployedorselfemployed.0.9%oftherespondentswereunemployedwhilst7%wereownersorproprietorsoftheircompanies.

Therespondentscamefromvaryingsizesoforganisationswith36.3%ofthesampleworkingforlargeorganisationswithover500employeesand40.3%workingforcompanieswhoseannualturnoverexceeded£100mannually.Therewerealso17.5%ofrespondentsfromcompaniesthatemployedlessthat20people.

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FINDINGS4

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ThesurveywasadvertisedtomembersoftheCIOBandaccessedthroughtheCIOBwebsitebutwasavailabletothegeneralpublic.

nYes (442)

nNo (17) 3.7%

96.3%

Otheranswersincluded:‘retired’,‘freelance’,and‘shareholder’.

nEmployed (382)

nSelf-employed (27)

nOwner/Proprietor (32)

nUnemployed (4)

nOther,pleasespecify (14)

3.1%

83.2%

7.0%

5.8%

0.9%

1. Are you a member?

2. what is your employment status?

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94.8%oftherespondentswerecompanydirectorsormanagers.

nCompanydirector/Seniormanagement (210)

nMiddle/juniormanagement (225)

nSupervisor (15)

nClerical/administrative (7)

nSkilledmanual (2)

nUnskilledmanual (0)

0.4%

49.0%

Thisquestionaimedtodiscovertheareasoftheconstructionindustrythattheanswerstothesurveywerecomingfrom.Theresponsesshowedthat,asexpected,thevastmajorityworkedcloselywithconstruction,butothertrendscouldbefound.Forexample,100%ofrespondentswhostatedthattheyworkedcloselywiththelegalsectorforthisquestionanswered‘CostEfficiency’asthemaindriveofinnovationinquestion8.

nConstruction (264)

nEngineering (17)

nSurveying (59)

nArchitectureanddesign (35)

nFacilitiesmanagement (25)

nLegal (2)

nEducation (27)

nConsultancy (30)

6.6%

57.5%

5.9%

5.4%

0.4%

3. what description best suits your profession?

4. which of the following sectors are you most closely involved with?

1.5%

3.3%

45.8%

3.7%

12.9%

7.6%

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63.4%ofrespondentswerefromcompanieswhoemployedmorethan100people,showingthattheresponsewasmainlyfromlargecompanies.The17.5%ofrespondentsareinvaluabletothebalanceofthesurveyastheyallowedustoseehowmuchsmallercompaniesinvestedininnovation.

nLessthan20 (80)

n20to50 (45)

n50to100 (44)

n100to200 (53)

n200to500 (71)

nMorethan500 (166) 36.1%

40.3%ofrespondentsworkedforcompaniesthatturnovermorethan£100mperannum.Oftherespondentswhoworkforcompaniesturningover£500,000orunder,38.7%ofthembelievethattheircompanyinvestsnothingintoresearchanddevelopmentand49.2%ofthemstatedthattheircompanyonlyinvestsupto£5,000perannumintoR&D.

nUpto£500,000 (63)

n£500,000to£10m (89)

n£10mto£100m (122)

n£100mto£250m (45)

n£250mto£500m (36)

nAbove£500m (104)

13.7%

19.4%

22.7%

5. How many people are employed at your organisation?

6. How much does your company turn over per annum?

17.5%

15.6%

26.6%

9.8%

7.8%

11.5%

9.6%

9.7%

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99.8%ofrespondentsfeltthatR&Dwasimportantorveryimportanttotheconstructionindustry.

nVeryimportant (377)

n Important (81)

nNotimportant (1)

0.2%

82.1%

Inthe‘other,pleasespecify’category,healthandsafetywasthemostcommonanswer,followedbylegislationandtheenvironment.Otheranswersincluded‘curiosity’,‘makingmoney’and‘man’sinherentobsessionwithprogress’.

nCostefficiency (193)

nSustainability (83)

nClientdemands (73)

nTimeconstraints (22)

nTechnology (45)

nGlobalcompetition (16)

nEnduser (10)

nOther,pleasespecify (17)

3.7%

42.0%

3.5%

9.8%

2.2%

7. How important is research and development in the construction industry?

8. what do you believe is the main driver of innovation?

17.7%

18.1%

15.9%

4.8%

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Although‘consultants’and‘contractors’havealowresponsevalueitmustberememberedthat53.8%ofrespondentsanswered‘Alloftheabove’whichencompassed‘consultants’and‘contractors’.Themostsignificantfigurehereisnotthelowpercentageforcertainbodiesbutthehighpercentagefor‘Alloftheabove’whichshowsclearlythatmajorityoftherespondentsbelievethatallbodiesshouldberesponsibleforR&D.

nProductmanufacturers (115)

nConsultants (4)

nAcademicinstitutions (28)

nProfessionalbodies (31)

nContractors (10)

nGovernmentbodies (20)

nAlltheabove (250)

nOther,pleasespecify (1)

0.2%

25.0%

‘Other’answersspecifiedincluded:‘privatesector’,‘collaborationbetweenmanufacturers’and‘privateindividuals’.

nProductmanufacturers (321)

nConsultants (17)

nAcademicinstitutions (40)

nProfessionalbodies (27)

nContractors (43)

nGovernmentbodies (7)

nOther,pleasespecify (4)

0.9%

69.9%

9.3%

5.9%

1.5%

9. which organisations do you believe hold responsibility for carrying out R&D?

10. which organisations do you believe produce most innovations?

54.4%

3.7%

8.8%

0.9%

6.1%

6.8%

2.2%4.4%

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Oftherespondentswhoanswered‘other,pleasespecify’,55.6%stated‘don’tknow’astheiranswer.Otherresponsesincluded:‘Japan’,‘UnitedKingdom’and‘Iwouldn’tknow,IwouldimagineeachcountryisdevelopingitsownindustryinnovationstosuitthatclimatebutingeneraltermsIwouldimagineAmericaisupthere’.

nAsia (81)

nAfrica (1)

nEurope (255)

nAmerica (108)

nAustralasia (5)

nOther,pleasespecify (9)

2.0%

55.6%

60%ofthosewhogaveanalternativeanswerstatedChinaastheplacewherethemajorityoftheR&Dwillbetakingplaceby2020.TheemphasisonAsiaintheresultsreinforcesthisopinion.

nAsia (238)

nAfrica (6)

nEurope (150)

nAmerica (44)

nAustralasia (6)

nOther,pleasespecify (15)

3.3%

51.9%

9.5%

1.3%

11. Globally, where do you believe most research and development is taking place?

12. By 2020, where do you believe the majority of research and development will take place?

23.3%

1.3%

32.7%

17.8%

1.1%

0.2%

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53%ofrespondentsansweredthatthecarbonemissionissuerequiresthemostR&D.Otheranswersincluded:‘materials’,‘energyefficiency’,‘wastemanagement’,‘alloftheabove’,‘allwiththeslantonsustainableissues’and‘mostoftheabove’.

Itisclearfromtheresponsestothisquestionthatthemajorityofrespondents(60.6%includingthosewhocited‘other’)feltthatcarbonandwasteissuesneedthemostR&D;showingaclearconcernfortheenvironmentfromwithintheconstructionindustry.

nMaterialsandproducts (83)

nCarbonzerobuildings (70)

n ITandcommunications (5)

nEnergyefficiency/carbonreduction (134)

nBuildingmethods (61)

nHealthandsafety (5)

nCarbonneutralpowergeneration (39)

nTrainingandeducation (22)

nWastemanagement (31)

nPolicy (4)

nPlantmachinery (0)

nOther,pleasespecify (5)

1.1%

29.1%

Otheranswersincluded:‘itdoesn’t’;‘profit/costdriven’;‘itisn’tenough’;‘Idon’tthinkitis’;‘Idon’tknow’;‘supplyanddemand’;‘taxincentives’;‘planningrequirements’;‘education’;‘alloftheabove’;and‘commercialprofit’.

nAwards (56)

nGrants/funding (114)

n Innovationprogrammes (59)

nGovernmentscheme (23)

nAccesstonewtechnologies (64)

nCollaboration/partnering (105)

nOther,pleasespecify (38)

12.3%

24.8%22.8%

8.2%

13. which of these issues requires the most R&D?

14. How is creativity/innovation encouraged in the industry?

13.2%

5.0%

14.0%

18.2%

0.9%

15.3%

1.1%

1.1%

8.4%

4.8%

6.8%

12.9%

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Others:sustainableenergysources,heatlosspreventiontechnology.

Thetop5issuesinorderofreoccurrencewere:

85%ofrespondentsfeltthatR&Disimportantorveryimportanttotheircompany.

nVeryimportant (169)

n Important (221)

nNotimportant (69)

36.8%

15.1%

15. what is the most innovative thing that has directly benefited you over the last 5 years?

16. How important is research and development to your company?

48.1%

1: The Internet

2: IT developments

3: PDAs/mobile phones

4: Off-site production/pre-fabricated production

5: Computer Aided Design

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Oftherespondentswhostatedthattheircompanyemployedupto50people(question5)41.6%ofthemansweredthattheircompanyinvestsnothinginR&Dforquestion17.44.9%ofthesecompaniesspent£5,000orunderperannum,meaning86.5%ofthesesmallercompanieswerespendingunder£5,000perannumonR&D.

Oftherespondentswhostatedthattheircompanyhadanannualturnoverofover£500m(question6),9.7%ofthemstatedthattheircompanyspendsnothingonR&Dinthisquestion.ThiswouldsuggestthatthroughouttheindustrythereareagreatnumberofcompaniesspendingeithernothingorverylittleonR&Dcomparedtotheirannualturnover.

nNone (100)

nLessthan£5,000 (106)

n£5,001to£10,000 (42)

n£10,001to£25,000 (31)

n£25,001to£50,000 (38)

n£50,001to£100,000 (49)

n£100,001to£250,000 (19)

n£250,001to£500,000 (14)

n£500,001to£1m (15)

nMorethan£1m (45)

9.6%

74.7%ofmiddle/juniormanagersandsupervisorsfeltthatmoreneededtobeinvestedintoR&D.Ofthe1.1%thatrespondedthattheircompanyshouldspendlessonR&D,100%ofthemwerecompanydirectorsorseniormanagement.

nMore (304)

nSameamount (150)

nLess (5)

32.6%

1.2%

17. How much does your company invest in research and development annually?

18. How much should your company invest?

8.2%

21.7%

23.0%

6.7%

10.6%

4.1%

3.2%

9.8%

66.2%

3.0%

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90.3%ofdirectorsandseniormanagementfeltthattheircompanyencouragedproblemsolving.46.7%ofsupervisorsfeltthattheircompanydidnotencourageproblemsolving.

nYes (397)

nNo (62)

86.4%

Thetop5issuesinorderofreoccurrencewere:

19. Does your company encourage creative problem solving?

20. How?

13.6%

1: Freedom of employees to act as they see fit to overcome problems

2: Reward schemes/bonuses

3: Training

4: Partner collaboration

5: Research/innovation manager or department

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100%ofrespondentsfeltthatinnovationisimportantforthefutureofconstruction

nVeryimportant (381)

n Important (78)

nNotimportant (0)

83.0%

Thetop5issuesinorderofreoccurrencewere:

21. How important is innovation for the future of construction?

22. If you had a £1m budget for innovation, what would you develop?

17.0%

1: Carbon reduction

2: Sustainable energy/energy efficiency

3: Improved off-site fabrication

4: Training

5: Robotics

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DISCUSSION

With66.25%ofrespondentsstatingthattheirowncompanywasnotinvestingenoughinR&Ditisclearthatmoreresearchisrequiredtouncoverhowcompaniescandomoretoinnovatefromwithintheirownorganisation.

Constructionisanenvironmentthatisconstantlyapplyingleadingedgeandinnovativesolutions,asnosingleprojectisthesameasanother.Butwhilsttheindustryinnovatesitisclearfromthissurveythattheknowledgegainedisnotalwaysasharedexperiencethatcanbelearntfrombytheindustryasawhole.ThismanifesteditselfintheCIOBsurveywithsomerespondentsexpressingideasthatalreadyexistedinthemarketplace.

48.25%ofrespondentswoulduseamillionpoundbudgettoinvestin‘green’innovation.Thisshowsthereisclearlynotonlyademandforimproved‘green’technologybutalsoamassofideasfromwithintheindustryofhowtoimplementsuchinnovations.Theamountofvaryingideasexpressedinthefinalquestionofthissurveyisagreatcallforfurtherdiscussionregardingtheopportunitytoinnovatewithintheindustry.

Inaddition60.6%claimedthat‘greenissues’actuallyrequirethemostR&D.However,42%ofrespondentsclaimedthatcostefficiencywasthemaindriverofinnovation.Ifgreeninnovationcanbeshownasaclearbusinessbenefittherewouldbegreaterincentivetodevelopfuturegreentechnologyandtechniques.

With100%ofpeoplestatingthatinnovationwasimportantorveryimportanttothefutureoftheindustrytheremustbefurtherresearchintowheretheseinnovationsaregoingtocomefrom.Withthecurrentconcernofcarbonemissionsthetimetoactisnowandtheseideasneedtobenurturedandsupported.Furtherresearchmustbeconductedintotheideaswithintheindustry.

WhilsttheCIOBrecognisesthevalidityoftheDTIstatistics(withregardtotheconstructionindustriesspendonR&D),amoreaccuratefigurecouldbederivedfromtheR&Dcapitalallowancestaxcreditthatconstructioncompaniesclaim.Unlikeotherindustriestheconstructionindustryofteninnovatesinpractice.Asanexampleworldleadingprojectsincludeinnovativeproblemsolvingandemployleadingedgesolutionsbytheirverynature.ManycompaniesandprofessionalsarenotawareofthebenefitsoftheR&DtaxcreditandareoftennotawarewhentheyarespendinginareasthatwouldqualifyasR&D.

Furtherdiscussionisalsoneededregardinghowinnovationandcreativityisencouragedwithintheindustryasquestion14produceddividedresultsastowherethepeoplebelievetheincentivescomefrom;withanumberofrespondentsstatingthattheydidnotknoworthattherewerenotenoughincentives.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

ThelinkbetweencreativityandrealityisanareathattheCIOBbelievescouldbeimprovedandnotjustthroughgrantsandawards.TheInstitutewouldrecommendthatgreateradviceandinformationonturningideasintopracticalsolutionsshouldbemademorefrequentlyavailable.TheCIOBwouldcallfortheindustrytoencourageandsupportnewideasandplaceahigherfocusoninnovationthaniscurrentlyexpressed.

TheCIOBwouldrecommendthedevelopmentofaplatformtonurtureandprogresscertainideasfromwithintheindustryandtowidenawarenessofwhatactuallyconstitutesasR&D.TheInstitutewouldliketoencouragegreatercommunicationofinnovation,wherepeoplecansharetheirideaswithotherindustryprofessionalsinordertofindoutwhattechnologyisactuallyavailable;manyoftherespondentsinquestion22calledforthedevelopmentoftechnologythatwasalreadyavailable.

TheCIOBwouldalsorecommendthedevelopmentofawebbasedforumwhereconstructionindustryworkerscanfindouthowtodeveloptheirideas,seewhatnewinnovationshavebeenmaderecentlyanddiscusswhethertheirexpenditurequalifiesforR&DTaxCredit.

TheCIOBbelievesthatgreaterpromotionofR&Dtaxcreditsisrequiredfromwithintheindustry.AlthoughthegovernmenthaspromotedR&DtaxcreditthroughitscasestudywithTerrapinInternationalLtditseemsthattherecouldstillbeagreaterawarenessofwhatlargeandsmallcompaniescansaveintaxthroughthetaxcredit.

Educationandtrainingalsohaveaseriousroletoplayasaspringboardforcreativityandinnovation.TheCIOBwouldwelcomeagreateronusoncreativethinkingthroughlifelonglearningandtraining.

TheCIOBalsobelievesthatinvestingininnovationwouldhelptackleotherissueswithinindustrylikeskillsshortages.Iftheindustryinvestsindevelopingnewtechnologiesitcouldincreaseproductivityandcreategreaterefficiencies.

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RESOURCES

www.dtistats.net

www.dti.gov.uk

www.defra.gov.uk

www.sustainable-development.gov.uk

www.statistics.gov.uk

National Statistics, Research and Experimental Development (R & D) Statistics 2000, in 32 ‘Economic Trends’ No. 585 August 2002

DTI OCCASIONAL PAPER NO. 6, July 2006, Innovation in the UK: Indicators and Insights

OECD (1997), OSLO MANUAL:PROPOSED GUIDELINES FOR COLLECTING AND INTERPRETING TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION DATA 2ND Edition

Newport : National Statistics (January 2007), Research and Development in UK Businesses (Business Monitor, MA14)

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The Chartered Institute of BuildingEnglemereKings Ride

AscotBerkshireSL5 7TB

Tel: 01344 630700Fax: 01344 630713

www.ciob.org.uk