The impact of recession on construction procurement routes

The UK entered recession in Q2 (2008) and exited in Q4 (2009) as a consequence of world recession, creating major repercussions for the construction sector. In response, the government introduced a £81 billion efficiency drive. Procurement is a substantial percentage of government budgets, therefore efficient public procurement can offer substantial savings. The private sector indicates efficiencies are introduced through effective procurement and strong competition. It was hypothesised that recession would result in procurement routes being chosen that ensured closer control of costs. Results indicate expected use of traditional procurement will rise 5% and design and build 6% but that procurement personnel do not expect a major shift in procurement route choice due to recession or post-recession. The paper suggests that government policy should ensure that potential efficiencies through choice of route should not be ignored. Further use of robust and innovative procurement techniques should be adopted to ensure value for money.

由于全球经济衰退，英国在2008年第二季度进入衰退，并在2009年第四季度走出衰退，这对建筑业产生了重大影响。作为回应，政府推出了一项810亿英镑的增效举措。采购在政府预算中占相当大的比例，因此高效的公共采购能够节省大量资金。私营部门表明，通过有效的采购和激烈的竞争可以提高效率。据推测，经济衰退会导致选择能更严格控制成本的采购途径。结果显示，传统采购的预期使用将增加5%，设计施工一体化采购将增加6%，但采购人员预计由于经济衰退或衰退后情况，采购途径的选择不会有重大转变。本文建议政府政策应确保不应忽视通过途径选择可能带来的效率提升。应进一步采用稳健和创新的采购技术以确保物有所值。