Main Programme

Registration & refreshments

Opening comments from the Chair

Client perspective - Managing supply chain risks during tough economic periods

• Ensuring your supply chain partners continue to be aligned with your objectives during difficult market conditions
• Examining how to maintain levels of quality from supply chain partners during an economic downturn
• Managing issues of knowledge transfer and skills reductions from a transient sub contractor base
• Assessing proactive options for assisting suppliers and reducing the risk of your supply chain collapsing
• Understanding your role in improving the financial security of supply chain partners

Contractor perspective - Achieving the right balance between cost and performance in a recession

• Examining the impact of cost reduction pressures on your supply chain strategy
• Evaluating when to look beyond your established supply chain for better value
• Evaluating procurement strategies for low and high risk trades and identifying supply chain areas suitable for cost-cutting
• Assessing how to maintain beneficial long-term relationships with supply chain partners

Question & answer session

Morning refreshments

Getting partner selection right - building robust supply chains to survive the economic downturn

• Determining an appropriate assessment criteria to select first tier partners
• Optimising pre assessment and verification processes to reduce risks in this tier
• Evaluating the sustainability of suppliers’ businesses to ensure robust supply chains

Meeting public sector supply chain requirements

• Assessing the impact reduced public finances will have on construction budgets, tenders and supplier criteria
• Examining different framework agreements in use in the public sector
• Determining how to balance government requirements for local labour sourcing and ethical material souring against cost cutting pressures
• Assessing how best to demonstrate corporate social responsibility and good supplier management to public sector clients
• How much emphasis are public clients putting on integrated and collaborative supply chains?

Inside the Highways Agency’s new procurement strategy

• Outlining the main aspects of the new procurement strategy released in June 09
• Main strategies for implementing the strategy
• Supply Chain management for value and delivery
• How will the Highways Agency procure during lower funding periods

Question & answer session

Networking Lunch

PANEL: Logistics planning: driving efficiency of supply chains and optimising project delivery

• Identifying key areas where holistic logistic planning can drive efficiency through supply chains:
  • Materials / WRAP
  • waste / on site waste plans
  • construction transport / carbon commitment
• Measuring the difference logistics planning can make to the bottom line in terms of:
  • customer satisfaction
  • reduction in timelines for projects
  • safety improvements
  • improved profitability
  • meeting green targets
• Using logistics planning to reduce project costs and maximise competitiveness

Case Study: optimising supply chains using alliance approaches and by developing collaborative working practices

• Using collaboration to extend growth opportunities in a slow market
• Assessing the pros and cons of strategic partnering alliances and project based partnering schemes
• Identifying key supply chain processes where a common approach can enhance project results
• Examining how to establish and maintain collaborative supply chains
• Achieving improved safety, sustainability, cost and efficiency through collaborative approaches
• Achieving best practice in collaborative working initiatives

Question & answer session

Afternoon refreshments

Benchmarking suppler performance and driving continual improvement through supply chains

• Examining important procurement and supply chain processes to benchmark
• Identifying key performance indicators for supply chain benchmarking
• Implementing the first steps to developing an ongoing benchmarking programme
• Developing effective performance frameworks to assess and monitor ongoing performance
• Using benchmarking to identify best practises and translate findings into process improvement metrics
• Tracking industry efforts to develop a construction benchmarking initiative

Reducing your carbon footprint across your supply chains

• Tracking emissions and staying compliant
• Examining the environmental and social issues related to key construction materials and processes
• Using logistics planning throughout the supply chain to meet government targets for carbon and waste
• Developing collaborative approaches to reducing your carbon footprint across supply chains

Closing remarks from the Chair

End of conference