A strategic reinvention of how infrastructure is delivered is needed to drive a successful infrastructure-led recovery from Covid-19 but the fundamental challenges of dealing with population growth and the climate emergency remain unchanged by the pandemic, according to a new report.
The Infrastructure Client Group and Institution of Civil Engineers produced the Covid-19 and the new normal for infrastructure systems – next steps white paper following a comprehensive consultation with infrastructure professionals.
ICE president Paul Sheffield said: “Thanks to the strong response to our call for evidence, we’ve been able to highlight an expectation that there will be no drastic shift as a result of Covid-19. Instead it has merely shone a light on priorities we have always known about; regional inequalities, the pressing challenge of decarbonisation and the need to improve productivity particularly through digital adoption.
“There are real opportunities to become more intelligent and outcomes-focused in how we deliver infrastructure, in order to unlock better value for money and reduce carbon. We will be driving forward the four strategic enablers identified by this work to capitalise on the unique opportunity to reshape how infrastructure is delivered in the public’s name.”
Infrastructure Client Group management board chair Nirmal Kotecha said: “It was imperative we conduct this project, to ensure we start off on the correct footing as we plan the recovery. As infrastructure owners and operators, we have a duty to ensure the infrastructure system is managed and developed with clear societal outcomes in mind. These recommendations provide a framework to ensure that happens in a way that is focused, aligned across supply chains and strategic in the end goal.”
The white paper sets out a series of recommendations (see box) to maximise the value of infrastructure investment and ensure challenges such as decarbonisation, regional inequalities and economy-wide productivity are tackled.
Population growth, the 2050 net zero emissions target and the UN Sustainable Development Goals also feature prominently as key issues that remain unchanged as a result of the pandemic. The report concludes that to deliver these interventions better, faster and greener will require better alignment of construction initiatives. The report identifies four key enablers – investment in digitalisation; embedding client-led enterprise-based delivery models; shifting to intelligent outcome-based procurement models; and fostering new leadership based on a systems integration skillset – which will be essential to shift towards more strategic reinvention in how infrastructure is delivered.
However, the report also found that while progress has been made in terms of procurement, leadership and digitalisation, the tools and approaches that have been developed are not being used with the level of consistency needed to make a tangible and sustained impact. “If we are to achieve true reinvention, that needs to change,” states the report. “What is needed is a move away from tactical solutions towards a strategic system-level shift in infrastructure performance.”
Changes brought about by the pandemic as a result of a major rise in homeworking and subsequent reductions in public transport usage were also identified in the report. These societal changes led to a recommendation for focus on accelerating the roll-out of both full-fibre and 5G communications infrastructure, as well as greater active travel provision for cycling and walking.
Recommendations outlined in the paper will now be taken forward by the Infrastructure Client Group and the Institution through their relevant workstreams. Action on delivery will be primarily driven through the Construction Leadership Council’s Infrastructure Working Group, which will be chaired by Sheffield. Other actions, particularly on infrastructure investment priorities, will form the basis of work by the Institution in the run-up to the Spending Review.
The ICE has also said that the wider responses to the call for evidence presented in the white paper will continue to be used to inform future work.
The recommendations in detail
- Recommendation 1: Long-term planning should still be driven by the UK’s existing long-term challenges, including population growth, meeting the 2050 net zero emissions target and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
- Recommendation 2: To improve approaches to long-term planning, corresponding investment should be made in digitalisation of new and existing infrastructure assets alongside growing the digital skills necessary for that transition. Future infrastructure forecasting should use scenarios to navigate the current period of uncertainty.
- Recommendation 3: New infrastructure investments in the short and medium term, particularly as part of any stimulus, should focus on accelerating the roll-out of both full-fibre and 5G communications infrastructure, and greater active travel (cycling and walking) provision.
- Recommendation 4: Increased funding should be made available for the National Digital Twin Programme and the creation of digital twins should be mandated for all major projects and programmes.
- Recommendation 5: To support increased use of more productive, enterprise-based delivery models, a standardised scorecard should be developed to prioritise, identify and weight non-financial outcomes for major projects and should-cost modelling should be encouraged to inform procurement, with the potential for this to be mandated.
- Recommendation 6: Public procurement and funding models should become more intelligent and outcomes-based, so that communities and businesses get the infrastructure that will deliver the greatest social, economic and environmental benefits.
- Recommendation 7: To support a shift towards leadership based on a systems-integration skillset, further study should be conducted to identify the strategies, structures and people needed to deliver major infrastructure systems interventions in the future, learning lessons from recent projects.
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