Construction Management: Industry Development, Structures, and Ethos

This report provides a comprehensive overview of construction management, exploring the industry's evolution and the importance of professionalism. It examines how the construction industry has incorporated professionalism, including the impact of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, and the role of various parties within a construction organization, such as design, commercial, and site teams. The report also identifies different types of contractual work tendered by contractors, including industrial, commercial, institutional, infrastructure, and residential buildings. Furthermore, it analyzes the development of construction company structures, highlighting the hierarchical system and the importance of a strong business ethos. The report emphasizes the need for continuous improvement in company structures, relationships, and environmental practices to enhance efficiency, productivity, and profitability.

Unit 4 – Construction Management and Principles
Joshua Crossley - 650321
Holistic understanding of Construction
practice & Management
Introduction: The purpose of this report is to research construction organisation management and how
management is implemented through structures and professionalism. The report's primary sections focus on
the relationships between construction companies, the various tendering processes, and different kinds of
contractual work.
P1 - Explain how the construction industry has developed and encompassed professionalism within its
structures.
Professional responsibility or professionalism in construction is defined by codes of ethics, accepted within a company
(Steele, 2015). Construction is an industry where quality is such an important part of every project. To achieve the
desired quality of a client’s request, professionalism is required especially with the challenges presented in the
construction industry (Shirhatti, 2021). These challenges include strong winds, rainfall, frost, underground water, lack
of skilled personnel, lack of funds, site restrictions, etc. Professional responsibilities are what keep a project’s quality
in check. These responsibilities include constant checks, following legislation and regulations, surveys, audits and
inspections. With a lack of skill or knowledge and a bad attitude, there is every chance that an increase on cost, deaths
or injuries and a non-optimum use of materials can occur, which is why the construction industry has encompassed
professionalism in its structure over the years.
Part of the construction industry’s encompassing of professionalism in its structure over the years would be the
introduction of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. This Act laid out ‘general responsibilities’ for employers,
employees and the self-employed aiming to improve the work environment in construction. (Liptrot, 2021) states that
‘the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 was created in response to several serious workplace incidents which
occurred over the years and led to the exposure of the need for this primary piece of health and safety legislation.’
Since the act was introduced, there has been a notable decrease in the number of workplace incidents as well as a large
reduction in the number of non-fatal injuries too. This reduction demonstrates the impact of having professionalism in
a company or industry and its why the construction industry has encompassed it over the years.
This led to the introduction of the Health and Safety Executive a year on in 1975. In order to regulate and control
coherence with the Health and Safety at Work Act, a professional was needed. Ultimately, having someone in the
industry who understands the legislations in place to protect employees and employers, will benefit a company in
many ways. It will save on cost, reduce risks, injuries and deaths, create a good image for the company and win
contracts. Therefore, today we see companies across the industry, nationwide, investing in their employees by paying
for their education to make sure they have competent professionals within their company who will benefit them and
improve their company in the long run.
P2 – Demonstrate the scope and linkage between all parties within a construction organisation
Typically, within a construction organisation, there will be three parties working together from different
organisations. The design team (design managers and architects), commercial team (quantity surveyors) and
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Unit 4 – Construction Management and Principles
Joshua Crossley - 650321
site team (managers/supervisors and tradesmen). A large contracting organisation will have their own design
managers who liaise with architects from a different organisation, a commercial team who manage the costs,
packages and tendering process and a site team who manage the site itself working closely with the
supervisors and operatives of the sub-contractors. In an industry like construction where changes are
happening constantly, professionals are needed. For example, with BIM being such a huge part in
construction, having someone who has earned the correct skills and knowledge to use BIM earned through
college or university is required. Likewise with the management of a construction site/project, Health and
Safety, engineering and surveying, professionals who have earned qualifications through university or
college are required to fill these roles. On the other hand, skilled workers may have spent at least a year at
college but overall a skilled worker will gain their knowledge and skills through work experience. To start
with, this is usually done through an apprenticeship for new beginners. Trades that require experience would
include plumbers, electricians, carpenters, bricklayers, plasterers and decorators.
If all three parties work together it removes the need for one person to manage all the different aspects alone.
Effectively, this boosts efficiency and quality by ensuring the job is always done properly by the right
person and it saves time which boosts the company’s productivity. Boosted productivity means an increase
in profits allowing the company to expand and grow. Although having more than one party creates the
requirement for structure within an organisation. This means construction organisations follow a ‘hierarchy’
system similar to most organisations in other industries.
P3 - Identify the type of contractual work tendered by contractors
Tendering is the process of inviting bids for large projects, it is usually practiced by government institutions
or main contractors. When tendering is in progress, contractors will create and follow a tender
schedule/programme. The main objective of the Tendering Process in Construction is to eliminate
favouritism and corruption in awarding works to construction companies (Mahajan, 2021). The main type of
contractual work that contractors tender for is construction works. Under construction works each sub-
contractor on the project will have its own contract. In the contract will be pricing, ordering, a notice to
commence, warranties and instructions. The order section of a contract will sometimes consist of a SHEQ
(Safety, Health, Environmental and Quality) plan right, pricing documents and drawings for the sub-
contractor’s reference. Instructions are set out to ensure the sub-contractor complies with the architect’s
drawings and follows any amendments made to the design of their planned work. Construction works
contracts are used for five different building types:
 Industrial buildings – These are large and mostly open buildings which are used for manufacturing,
storage, telecom/data hosting and research/developing. The best examples would be warehouses,
manufacturing factories, data hosting centres, power plants and steel mills.
 Commercial buildings – The intent of commercial buildings is for them to be used for the purpose of
business and retail. This includes shopping centres, shops and retail stores.
 Institutional buildings – The purpose of institutional buildings is public use. Buildings used by the
public are buildings such as emergency services stations, hospitals, educational buildings,
headquarters and military bases.
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Figure 1, (Scalisi, 2021)
Unit 4 – Construction Management and Principles
Joshua Crossley - 650321
 Infrastructure – The term infrastructure refers to the structures and facilities that are required for a
civilisation to function and operate. The buildings that make up an infrastructure are dams, bridges,
railways, roads, sewers and transportation systems. These are always heavy investments, but they
greatly benefit communities and improve societies for the long term.
 Residential Buildings – The purpose of residential buildings is for people to live in. Residential
buildings can be very small contracts like bungalows and cottages, but they can also be very large
like contracts for huge scale apartment blocks.
M1 – Analyse how the construction industry has developed overall in terms of company structures, its
employees and contracted work
Due to the growing need for professionals in construction, the structure of construction companies has been
evolving for years and still is today. Below is a chart representing the hierarchy within a construction
company:
The hierarchy follows a system which shows how each tier of the hierarchy manages and controls different
aspects of a construction project. This is important so that the different parts making up a project can be
managed by the correct skilled person specialised in that field. At executive level, finances, operations, legal
requirements, marketing/sales and human resources are all managed. The professionals in charge of these
departments usually manage each aspect over a whole region. Below the executives are directors who
manage the same departments but rather than manage them across a whole region, directors focus on a
single project. Then there is manager level where things are managed on a relatively smaller scale such as
the site, costs, preconstruction, design, health and safety and quality. They are also the ones in charge of the
on-site operatives/field staff who are at the bottom of the hierarchy. The operatives are responsible for doing
the actual hands-on construction work of the project.
D1 - Critically evaluate how construction companies have developed their structures and business
ethos.
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Unit 4 – Construction Management and Principles
Joshua Crossley - 650321
In the UK construction contractors are one of the highest-ranking industries for revenue. Construction is one
of the largest and most important industries too, which is why creating a strong business ethos is so vital.
With a strong corporate mindset, departments such as human resources may be established to handle
employee demands. It keeps employees engaged and helps them feel safe and secure in their work since
someone is speaking directly to them about their requirements. More and more construction companies are
attempting to be more environmentally friendly, as this is what the modern workforce want. Organisations
are always comparing themselves to one another to try and improve in order to be better than the other. This
persuades companies to invest largely in things like training, mental health and well-being, more staff
holidays, charity projects and being environmentally friendly. This is all part of the culture of an
organisation which improves the image and word of the company making it look a more desirable company
to work for.
Conclusion: This report emphasises the importance of a company's growth and development. Improving the
company's structure and relationships will lead to several opportunities in the business. It will increase
efficiency, production, and earnings overall. As a result, I encourage you to think about the points made in
this report since they provide major benefits for the company and are critical to the company's success.
Bibliography
Liptrot, H. (2021, May 4). What is the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and what does this legislation cover?
Retrieved from wirehouse-es.com: https://wirehouse-es.com/wirehouse/what-is-the-health-and-safety-at-
work-act/#:~:text=Why%20was%20the%20Health%20and,of%20health%20and%20safety%20legislation.
Mahajan, B. (2021). Tendering Process | Tendering Process Steps In Construction | Types of Tender | Tender Meaning
| Tender Procedure. Retrieved from civiconcepts.com: https://civiconcepts.com/blog/tendering-process-in-
construction
Relationship management in construction. (2021, Oct 18). Retrieved from Designing Buildings:
https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Relationship_management_in_construction
Scalisi, T. (2021, September 23). Construction Company Hierarchy: The Making of an Organizational Chart. Retrieved
from levelest.com: https://www.levelset.com/blog/construction-company-hierarchy-org-chart/
Shirhatti, A. D. (2021, June 25). Professionalism in construction. Retrieved from constructionhorizon.com:
https://constructionhorizon.com/professionalism-in-construction/
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