Anticipating tomorrow: the future of the European construction industry

Executive summary: Exploring alternative feasible futures through engaging in a collaborative futures scenario development process has identified and prioritized a series of Key Actions for the ECI and its member organisations over the next 10 to 20 years. The very real challenges of how to most effectively address uncertain futures and rapidly changing working environments catalysed this work. The ECI Futures Task Force worked alongside the Big Ideas research team at Loughborough University to investigate and debate the range of issues and factors that might impact upon the European construction industry in the next couple of decades. This resulted in a set of four possible future scenarios for the industry and a series of five key characteristics for ECI’s preferred future for the industry. The work from the Task Force has identified two priority areas concerning the future of the European construction industry which are perceived to warrant further proactive intervention. Consequently the creation of two new Task Forces has been proposed – on ‘people’ and ‘collaboration’. These topics were chosen as being key areas in which ECI and its members could instigate proactive change and that would have a significant positive effect on the future of the European construction industry. The ‘collaboration’ topic also aligns closely with the vertical scenario axis. The horizontal scenario axis of energy scarcity and stabilised supply reflects more the wider background in which the construction industry operates, and which we therefore have less tangible control, and was therefore not chosen as an ECI Task Force. The focus of these proposed Task Forces would involve additional ECI members in further investigating future issues and taking a lead in implementing some of the Key Actions to help ECI and its members prepare for the future challenges ahead. It was agreed that the Industry Futures Task Force would produce the following outputs: • Final report highlighting methodology • ECI preferred future action Fact Sheet • Key actions from Fact Sheet • Recommendations for potential New Task Forces It was agreed that the Industry Futures Task Force would continue with its existing members plus the Chair persons of the newly created Task Forces, meeting twice per annum. It would provide a futures overview to ECI and the other Task Forces, engaging in horizon scanning, highlighting new issues as they emerge, and providing futures advice and expertise to ECI and the other Task Forces as they require.