Integrated supply chain - An example from the UK construction industry

Old concept of working together with new name of integrated supply chain is among one of the hot research topics in the recent years within construction management. Researchers have looked at the traditional ways of procurement within construction and identified the problems, and solutions in terms of better ways of working. Similarly, practitioners have informed the researchers their initiatives within the industry to bring improvements within the industry through construction procurement process. Supply chain integration project at SCRI research centre was one of the projects, which combined both the research and the practice within the UK construction industry in order to look at the effects of the newer ways of procuring construction projects, especially by the public sector clients. This paper will briefly outline the main objectives of the research, followed by understanding the concept and methodology adopted. Second half of the paper will present some of the final findings from one of the four case studies carried out as part of the research within the UK construction industry related to the current practices and its effectiveness within the broader procurement process.