星空传媒

Some years ago the construction industry started undergoing radical modernisation, as demanded by Sir John Egan鈥檚 landmark report in 1998 鈥� Rethinking construction. He called for dramatic improvements: partnering, lean construction and an improved supply chain would all lead to more profit, better efficiency, better buildings and happier clients. And it was all going to happen by the year 2000.

We had the Construction Act with a radical new non-legal framework that would make it so much simpler for people to get their rights. Lawyers wouldn鈥檛 be needed. It was all going to be the start of the brave new world, and this was the Government鈥檚 contribution.

But did anything change other than adjudication? Retentions are still with us, as are onerous terms and unscrupulous practices. Subbie bashing still goes on. Margins are still paper-thin. Companies are undercapitalised. Going bust is a regular occurrence.

And has construction got noticeably more efficient? Well I鈥檓 not a client, but as a specialist subbie it feels just the same as it ever did. The attitude was summed up in a meeting I went to the other week: 鈥淚f you subbies get your act together and do this job properly and on time, we will only reduce your account marginally. On the other hand, if you screw up you can whistle for your money.鈥�

In fact one has to ask how it can ever change when construction consists of work passing from the main contractor down through multiple levels of subcontractors, all of whom are desperately trying to extract a margin while the main contractor tries to deny them the margin? When a main contractor employs quantity surveyors who have to reduce bills to justify their existence, how can it improve? If a qs merely passed the bill, they鈥檇 be sacked.

Egan, and Latham before him, argued that things could change by altering the thought patterns and the way things were done. Lots of people did try, but whether it鈥檚 just cynicism or pure commercial pressures, things don鈥檛 feel that they have changed.

Why then would anyone be insane enough to enter this world of low margins and high risk? Because when you get it right you can make returns on capital employed that would make retailers weep. Because when you get it right you can turn out first class installations of high engineering quality to satisfied customers. When you get it right, it improves the way people live, work and play. No one forces anyone to get into this industry, no one forces anyone to stay in this industry.

We believe there is always room for advancement through working smarter and continued improvement

And it鈥檚 with this passion for the industry when you get it right that has driven Hills to develop The Hills Way 鈥� a standardised, service charter that will provide all our clients with the optimum quality. No company can rest on its laurels, particularly in a sector driven by new innovations and cost-saving methods, coupled with increasing labour and material costs. We believe there is always room for advancement through working smarter and continued improvement. This, along with building long-term client relationships and aggressively controlling costs, will continue to lead our strategy for the future.

Hills delivers total, major m&e installations in buildings from start to finish. A key element to Hills鈥� success in attaining the highest profile jobs and attracting clients back time and time again is its ability to deliver certainty. That鈥檚 achieving a first class, snag-free installation, delivered on time and within budget.

Which is why we are working to amalgamate our successful best practice formulas from throughout the business and make them the minimum standard in all of our installations, delivered by each and every Hills team throughout the UK, to guarantee certainty every time.

The Hills Way is our new service charter that we will implement throughout the business 鈥� and we鈥檙e aiming to be the first m&e contractor to publish its preferred supplier and subcontractor list.

This bespoke project management code of conduct will control installation methods, procurement, risk reduction, product use and product choice to guarantee that our projects are priced, planned, managed and delivered to a consistently high standard, company wide. It will ensure that we are working with world-class people to deliver a superior installation.