Balfour Beatty partnered with the Supply Chain Sustainability School to survey supply chain partners, aiming to understand how to achieve net zero in the industry
Balfour Beatty and the Supply Chain Sustainability School have partnered on a joint survey exploring obstacles to achieving net zero in the industry, with hundreds of UK based supply chain partners taking part.
Recognising the important role that the construction and infrastructure sector has to play in achieving Net Zero, the company has set out its findings and recommendations for policy makers, customers, and the industry more widely in its latest thought paper – “2022 Greening the Supply Chain”.
The skills shortage and lack of industry preparation were major concerns amongst respondents
An overwhelming 96% of respondents said that they are experiencing a shortfall in access to skilled people, specifically relating to carbon, sustainability, digital and other related roles, which risks holding back efforts to decarbonise the sector.
Despite efforts already taken across the industry, the paper warns that achieving net zero is not a foregone conclusion.
68% of respondents said that the sector is not well enough prepared, 53% said that the development pipeline for low-carbon materials is not sufficient to meet demand and 81% indicated that construction practices are changing too slowly.
The investigation suggested tightening reporting standards
An area that also requires more focus is the creation of robust measurement and up-to-date reporting standards – these are key for consistency and driving forward progress.
Balfour Beatty will now take the learnings from the survey to understand what more can be done to support the industry in tackling the barriers it currently faces, bringing its supply chain on the journey and encouraging other industry partners to do the same.
Achieving net zero in the supply chain must be a collaborative effort
Jo Gilroy, group director of Sustainability at Balfour Beatty, said: “The global climate change emergency is one of the biggest challenges that we have ever faced. It is a challenge requiring us to all pull in the same direction, together.
“With approximately 80% of the sector’s carbon emissions stemming from our supply chain, it is becoming increasingly important to understand the barriers our partners face and where they need more support. By sharing our findings and learnings, we hope that the sector will move forward more quickly – together – in achieving Net Zero.”
Shaun McCarthy OBE, chair of Supply Chain Sustainability School said: “These reports offer a major insight into what the built environment requires to meet our net zero targets by 2045/50 and it is great to see that the sector is invested in the challenge! But there is still a long way to go.
“We must urgently address the skills shortage, as well as the speed in which construction practices are changing to utilise low-carbon technology and methods. Innovation, communication, and collaboration are key!”
