THE NEW NORMAL
The pandemic has left the UK facing higher levels of inequality than ever.
Historic underinvestment in infrastructure, poorer digital connectivity, worse health outcomes, lower economic productivity and fewer opportunities will mean that the UK’s most deprived areas – largely focussed in the North and the Midlands – have suffered more from the impact of COVID-19.
How can we ensure that we ‘build back better’ from the pandemic and address this inequality?
LEVELLING UP HAS NEVER BEEN MORE IMPORTANT
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SOLVING OUR PRODUCTIVITY CHALLENGE
INSIGHTS
2021
How we level-up in a post-COVID world
To build back better, we need to address the productivity challenge. We have to find new ways to create sustainable, high productivity employment in our most disadvantaged areas.
We know that construction is one of the UK’s most important industries. Because of skilled workers and innovative firms, our sector generates huge value all over the UK – whether that’s by delivering hospitals, schools or vital energy and transport infrastructure.
However, too often projects are delivered too slow and overbudget, using traditional methods that generate significant carbon emissions and waste.
By finding better ways to build, we can solve both problems at once – we can deliver our infrastructure pipeline far more quickly, more sustainably and at a lower cost – all while creating regional growth in the areas that need it most.
However, to do so we must be prepared to seek radical solutions that disrupt our current thinking about growth, infrastructure delivery and industrial development.
To make that a reality we must transform our delivery model, driving a ‘construction to production’ approach that will enable us to build back better.
This will mean upgrading how we manage the entire life cycle of a built asset – from design to construction and onto operation.
Digital design and a flexible ‘kit of parts’ approach will allow for scalable manufacturing with product, component and sub-assembly elements procured, manufactured, pre-assembled and compiled at consolidation hubs:
TRANSFORMING HOW WE DELIVER
CONSTRUCTION TO PRODUCTION DELIVERY APPROACH
IMPROVING DELIVERY AND OUTCOMES
LEVELLING UP THROUGH CONSTRUCTION TO PRODUCTION
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To find out more about our latest data and to read our recommendations to help shape the future of the UK’s levelling up agenda, download our full report.
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OTHER REPORTS AND INSIGHTS
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Mace's 2026 Business Strategy
Steps without footprints - Net Zero Carbon
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The New Normal - how we level up in a post-COVID world
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By implementing this model and applying it to our infrastructure and construction pipeline we can improve outcomes for everyone in the UK: faster projects, delivered more cost effectively and with less waste.
But we believe we can go further. By overhauling our industry’s delivery model, we can make a radical contribution to the levelling up agenda, addressing regional imbalances on a whole new scale.
Using our modelling, we've identified six target areas where the creation of a regional construction hub could support levelling up:
1. Ashfield - East Midlands
2. Barnsley - Yorkshire and The Humber
3. Stockton-on-Tees - North East
4. Oldham - North West
5. King’s Lynn and West Norfolk - East
6. Sandwell - West Midlands
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Steps without footprints - Net Zero Carbon
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King’s Lynn and West Norfolk - East
Ashfield -
East Midlands
Barnsley -
Yorkshire and The Humber
Stockon-on-Tees -
North East
Oldham -
North West
Sandwell -
West Midlands
Hover over dots to view location