Published: 14/08/2023
Construction cost management
From concept to construction, the use of reliable cost data is critical at every project stage. Get it wrong and you can leave yourself open to financial and reputational risk.
Calculating construction costs is much more difficult when facing a seemingly endless barrage of challenges to the industry. Inflation, supply chain disruption, labour shortages, geopolitical discord, volatile energy costs, changes in legislation, the list goes on.
Covered in the webinar:
• How cost data is used in project estimates
• External forces on and significant variations in construction costs
• The pitfalls of using inappropriate cost data
• How to ensure cost data reflects your specific project requirements
• How you can reap the benefits of using reliable cost data
The webinar
The Q&A
Q: In ‘sources of cost data, there’s no mention of outturn costs (although tenders are included). Why is this?
A: The webinar illustrated some of the different sources of data that are available and was not designed to be a comprehensive list. Other sources of data exist, such as outturn costs. However, BCIS uses tendered data to provide its data and benchmarks because the scope of work is defined at that point – at outturn the project has faced delays / claims and other factors that may or may not be a fair reflection of the cost of a future similar project.
Q: Have the BCIS including the impact of the changes in the ULEZ zones in rates and regional adjustment factors?
A: Our rates (in both Schedule of Rates and Price Books) are based on a UK mean location. Our regional adjustment factors are derived from analysis of cost data provided within each region and will account for ULEZ if the projects are located in those zones.
Q: What’s the difference between TPI and GBCI?
A: Cost Indices, such as the GBCI, measure the cost of resources purchased by constructors at one point or another in the chain. The BCIS GBCI measures costs for a basket of labour, materials and plant based on an average of buildings from examples that were submitted to BCIS. The TPI is a measure of the agreed price for the works at commit to construct (i.e. it takes into account market conditions) and the TPI is therefore ideal for updating cost analyses or cost plans. Refer to our previous webinar called ‘Are you using the right index‘.
The presentation
Download a copy of the slides here
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