Doing a job well is all about preparation. But to prepare efficiently and to be able to respond to a situation it is useful to know what might happen – in many situations you can make an informed guess, but in construction being prepared depends on knowing what is in the pipeline i.e. what the client has in mind and when they need it.  Welsh construction has been demanding more clarity, particularly from Welsh Government and other public sector clients for some time now and more forcefully since the No Turning Back report of 2010. Finally we are seeing changes.

The Welsh Government has published its Wales Infrastructure Investment Plan (WIIP) along with a number of updates to maintain its currency. This morning, however, CEW and its South West Wales Best Practice Club held an event in Swansea to launch the 2013-2017 Forward Programme for Welsh Local Authorities.  This is a piece of work that CEW have been working on for about 18 months which draws together the 3 year capital programmes of all Welsh local authorities so that the industry in Wales has a clear view of what is in the “pipeline”, allowing them to plan ahead, to view the programme please click here. At long last we have greater clarity at an all-Wales level as well as at a regional level. But we’d like to know your views on this, how useful you find this information and what you would like improved. That’s why we’d like you to complete our short survey. The survey will remain live until January as we will be holding a number of events across Wales to explain the “pipeline”. Once we have your feedback we will use this to review and refine the “pipeline” so that it better meets your needs. So please take a few minutes out to view the programme and complete the short survey.

We are also seeing more transparency and detail on future programmes at a UK government level too – we saw more clarity around £100bn worth of work revealed this summer ranging from urgent flooding engineering and nuclear decommissioning works to housing projects across the country. But encouragingly we are also seeing independent reports of more work. Both RICS and RIBA published reports recently indicating that the mood in our industry is picking up. Indeed, the recent RIBA Future Trends Survey is the most positive workload forecast since it began in January 2009, and represents a welcome continuation of the upward trend we have witnessed from the beginning of 2013. RIBA Director of Practice Adrian Dobson said: “Activity in the private housing sector seems to be increasing, and there is a clear sense from a number of our members that the overall market for architects’ services is beginning to turn in a more positive direction.” Let’s hope this increased optimism feeds right through the whole of the construction sector – not just in Wales but throughout the UK – because a feel good factor will build momentum.

The key to success though remains good preparation. It is all very well being positive and knowing what is around the corner – but having the intelligence and flexibility to respond and act accordingly is something altogether different. So, let’s be positive!