NFB promises to raise supply chain awareness

The National Federation of Builders (NFB) has pledged to raise awareness of the principles and practicalities of supply chain management following mounting concern from its members over new procurement routes.

A training programme has been developed with the help of Mark Smalley, a member of the team that worked on the Defence Estates' Building Down Barriers pilot projects at Wattisham and Aldershot. These tested the application of supply chain management in construction and quantified the benefits of single-point delivery to the client and participating companies.

The 15-week NFB programme, due to be rolled out later this year, highlights what member contractors need to do to win prime contracts and other single-point delivery projects.

Introductory seminars are being piloted in three UK regions this week.

NFB chief executive Tony Maynard said: "As new procurement routes and models come on stream, government agencies and large private-sector clients will be looking for ready-made, well-integrated supply chains capable of delivering predictable results, time after time.

"The prime contractor's supply chain will be heavily scrutinised when clients are making their selections."

Maynard added that contractors also need to understand the implications of this now and learn how they can capitalise on their position within the supply chain.