Harmonise, digitise and rationalise demand

Contracting authorities should seek opportunities to collaborate in order to develop and adopt shared requirements and common standards. This should be done to enable standardised and interoperable components from a variety of suppliers to be used across a range of public works. This will create a more resilient pipeline and drive efficiencies, innovation and productivity in the sector.

Aggregating and standardising demand can have positive impacts throughout the project lifecycle, including:

•  Improved on-site safety and efficiency as a result of optimised and repeatable processes across shared solutions.

•  Efficiencies in the design process, for example as a result of automation, the repeated use of designs and sharing of requirements and associated solutions.

•  Buying efficiencies through improved category management and manufacturers leveraging consistency in the component pipeline.

•  Greener solutions as a result of an increase in manufacturing approaches.

•  Greater predictability and lower maintenance costs from the use of shared manufactured components and assemblies, and the associated opportunities to share methods.

In practice, contracting authorities can achieve these benefits by:

•  Supporting the development and use of consistent structure, rules and language in standards and specifications to facilitate shared understanding and the use of digital and automated solutions.

•  Digitising standards and specifications so that requirements are both human and machine readable. This will help to facilitate cross-referencing with other standards and process workflows.

•  Sharing design content across portfolios and sectors using digital object libraries and common approaches to reducing differences.

In setting standards and specifications, contracting authorities should consider sustainability and options that support the government's wider priorities, including achieving net zero by 2050 and the UK's commitment to the UN SDGs.