Guiding our way on quality

We know quality is a problem. Nobody in the industry needs the CIOB to state that, rework can cost as much as 2% of the job value.  Productivity declines and waste levels rise. Quality is about reputation and it is reflected in every firm’s balance sheet.

So, it is with that mindset that we retool some of the work we have done on quality to make it unique, and valuable, and to reflect a wide range of changes in the industry like digitisation, zero carbon and off-site pre-fabrication.

The original Code we produced reflected the work the CIOB Commission on Quality had undertaken, it was almost a review. But where we can influence, guide and support the industry best is in site production.

As a result, the work we are now undertaking takes the form of a Guide. It includes a unique CIOB quality framework which has been developed based upon the ideas in the ISO 9000 family of standards. The Chartered Quality Institute Competency Framework has also been taken into account, as has the recommendations of the Advanced Quality Planning System used in the automotive sector. 

This CIOB guide addresses these key issues:

•Information management, transparency and communication, also referred to as the Golden Thread

•The need for better production quality planning and using systems taken from other industry sectors, such as failure mode effects analysis (FMEA)

•Efficient and appropriate metrics for measuring quality on-site production

•Importance of culture, training, and education in creating quality 

•Impact of the work environment on quality performance

•Understanding the link between design and construction

•Embracing new technology to deliver quality assurance and control

We recognise that at the site production level people want things quickly and understandable. Not tomes of knowledge. That is why alongside the guide we are producing a suite of training vignettes for CIOB members across a full range of site activity to improve access to this content.

All of this work to improve quality is not to just improve the UK experience, but to go further. So that what we do here can be applied internationally, recognising that the UK can learn a lot from overseas too. Before the end of this year we look forward to sharing with CIOB members this new unique contribution to improve quality in the built environment.