Researchers at the University of Cambridge have developed a framework intended to give construction teams a more consistent way to measure, benchmark and improve productivity.
Developed by the Cambridge Laing O’Rourke Centre, the Cambridge Framework for Construction Productivity: Measure · Benchmark · Improve is based on data gathered from more than 25 UK projects over the past three years.
Data-led project interventions
The research examines production rates, labour productivity, production flow, variability and the factors influencing delivery. The authors say combining these measures can help identify where inefficiencies arise and where interventions are most likely to improve project outcomes.
The framework was tested on live projects in collaboration with industry partners, which provided project data and hosted demonstrator trials. According to the research team, this work helped refine the methodology so it could be used by project teams and clients rather than remaining an academic proposal.
The research was authored by Danny Murguia, Ashan Asmone, Asitha Rathnayake and the late Campbell Middleton.
The team is also developing companion software, Camentis, which is being piloted on live sites. The tool is designed to support project controls and more advanced benchmarking analysis, with plans to add artificial intelligence capabilities to help guide productivity interventions.
Alignment with forthcoming standard
The framework has been launched as the industry prepares for PAS 4010:2026, a forthcoming specification covering productivity improvement in infrastructure development and delivery.
PAS 4010:2026 is expected to require organisations to have a productivity management strategy. The Cambridge team says its methodology could provide the consistent measurement and benchmarking capability needed to support those strategies.
The framework and Camentis pilot were presented at a pre-launch event at the University of Cambridge attended by senior executives from construction companies involved in the research. The work has also drawn interest from the UK Construction Productivity Taskforce and members of the World Construction Leadership Forum, founded at Cambridge.
Middleton said: “To really shift the dial, we believe that this framework should be embedded within the procurement process, with clients requiring the collection of productivity data as a matter of course during project delivery. This could be one of the most consequential shifts the industry can make.”
Murguia said: “The framework is about using data when it can make a difference: during project delivery, when teams still have an opportunity to intervene and improve outcomes.
“But it is also about learning from every project, building an organisational evidence base so that the next one can be planned, scheduled, priced and risk-assessed using better information than the last.”