Construction
Construction is a major area of public spending, and one that has always involved the use of private sector suppliers in one capacity or another. It is also a sector where procurement and contract management have long been fraught with difficulty, and it has acquired greater significance for the public service sector as a result of the 'Private Finance Initiative'.
In 1999, the UK government launched the 'Achieving Excellence in Construction' initiative with the aim of improving the success of construction projects by reducing procurement and construction times and, above all, achieving value for money - an approach to public sector construction procurement that looked at quality as well as price.