Construction and Infrastructure in Numbers: Three Key Takeaways

We’re excited to announce the launch of our latest piece of thought leadership – a detailed infographic on the current state of the construction and infrastructure sectors.  

It is designed to help make sense of the current challenges we all face in these areas, as well as locate a series of actionable insights that will help produce better results. This is based on in-depth research from our team, as well as the knowledge that comes with decades of industry expertise. 

While you can see the full graphic here, we thought it would also be useful to highlight some of the key takeaways from our research: 

THREE KEY TAKEAWAYS 

1. Emphasising wellbeing has real financial benefits 

We all know that mental health concerns greatly affect construction and infrastructure workers. So, it is relatively little surprise that 64% of construction workers state that they want their employers to provide more mental health support. 

It is easy, however, to underestimate the extent to which such wellbeing and mental health initiatives can impact a project’s bottom line.  

As we discovered, projects that emphasise employee experience and wellbeing result in 21% higher profitability. In fact, every £1 spent on wellbeing produces an incredible 500% return

 

2. Going green pays

Another well-established priority for construction and infrastructure projects is environmental sustainability. But once again, our research revealed that there is not just the ethical, social and regulatory importance of becoming eco-friendly – there is also a clear business argument to be made for it.

90% of studies, for example, demonstrate that good Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) scores lower the cost of capital. Not only that: 88% of those studies also show that good ESG practices result in better operational performance. 

Ultimately, our research suggests that companies can expect an average internal rate of return of 27-80% on their carbon saving investments – such as using more eco-efficient vehicles.

3. Low productivity still plagues construction 

Construction is the world’s single largest industry. However, there are strong indications in our research that projects are still struggling to be as productive and efficient as leaders would like. 

Over two-thirds of construction projects run over budget by more than 10%, and larger projects routinely take 20% longer than anticipated. These factors have resulted in productivity in construction growing by less than 1% annually for the last two decades. 

To remedy this, projects must look for gains in productivity and efficiency wherever they can find them – including in the service partners and providers they work with. At Kelling Group, we pride ourselves on providing the most modern and innovative fleet of specialist assets, which optimises onsite productivity. Supported with 24 hour delivery nationwide, as well as dedicated service and maintenance for all hires, this results in an extraordinary 99.1% perfect hire rate.

SEE FULL INFOGRAPHIC HERE