The construction sector is changing. From procurement requirements to supply chain expectations, sustainability is increasingly influencing how businesses win work, meet customer requirements and deliver projects.
Following our Construction Sustainability Breakfast at our Manchester HQ on 16th September, we’re looking at some of the key sustainability challenges facing the sector and what they mean for construction businesses looking to remain competitive.
The event brought together 30 construction professionals for a morning of discussion around carbon reduction, procurement, social value, supply chain expectations and the growing need for credible sustainability credentials.
One thing was clear: sustainability is becoming increasingly connected to the commercial side of construction.
For many businesses, it is no longer simply about setting environmental targets. It is about having the data, evidence and practical actions in place to meet customer requirements, respond to tenders and strengthen relationships across the supply chain.
Sustainability is becoming part of winning work
For construction businesses, sustainability is increasingly making its way into procurement and tendering processes.
Clients and contractors may ask for information on carbon emissions, waste, environmental policies, supply chain practices and wider sustainability performance. Social value can also form an important part of procurement requirements, alongside price, quality and technical capability.
Having a sustainability policy or a set of commitments is therefore only part of the picture. Businesses increasingly need to be able to demonstrate what they are doing with credible data and evidence.
That evidence also needs to be readily available. When a tender opportunity comes in, there may not be time to start pulling together carbon data or sustainability credentials from scratch.
Building the right foundations now can make it much easier to respond when those requirements arise.
The pressure extends across the supply chain
Expectations around sustainability are not just coming from clients.
Construction businesses are also facing greater scrutiny across their own supply chains, particularly as organisations look to understand and reduce their Scope 3 emissions.
This can mean gathering information from suppliers about the products and materials they provide, how they are manufactured and their associated environmental impacts.
For many businesses, one of the biggest challenges is simply getting access to reliable supplier data.
Starting those conversations early can help businesses understand what information is available, identify gaps and work with suppliers to improve the quality of their data over time.
It can also put businesses in a stronger position when customers begin asking for more detailed information about their own supply chain.
Regulation and expectations are evolving
Alongside customer and procurement requirements, the regulatory landscape is continuing to develop.
Changes affecting the built environment, including developments around the Future Homes Standard and evolving social value requirements, mean construction businesses need to keep pace with what is changing and understand how it could affect their projects and operations.
The challenge is not simply knowing that requirements are changing. Businesses need to understand what those changes mean in practice and where they may create new risks, requirements or opportunities.
Taking a proactive approach can make it easier to adapt as expectations continue to develop.
What does this mean for construction businesses?
Sustainability can sometimes feel like a long list of requirements to work through. But putting the right foundations in place does not need to be complicated.
The starting point is understanding where your business is today, what your customers and supply chain are asking for, and where the biggest gaps and opportunities sit.
For some businesses, that could mean measuring their carbon footprint for the first time. For others, it might involve improving the sustainability data they hold, working more closely with suppliers, identifying opportunities to reduce emissions from operations or strengthening their approach to social value.
The important thing is having a clear understanding of what matters to your business and being able to back up your sustainability claims with evidence.
Five sustainable construction trends reshaping the built environment
The themes discussed at our Construction Sustainability Breakfast reflect some of the wider changes taking place across the sector.
Our new Five Sustainable Construction Trends Reshaping the Built Environment White Paper explores these developments in more detail, with practical insight into what they could mean for construction businesses.
Inside the report, you’ll find:
- How regulation is changing across the built environment
- The growing role of sustainability in winning work
- Increasing scrutiny of construction supply chains
- Opportunities to reduce emissions from plant and machinery
- Why social value is becoming an increasingly important consideration
Download the White Paper to explore the five trends shaping the future of sustainable construction and what your business can do to prepare.