In praise of contractors

Our building industry has traditionally been subject to criticism, whether for shoddy work, high costs or that old line of being ‘a bunch of cowboys’. This has become a standard cliché. But it is an old school view, as in truth the business of construction has today become far more modern, much better regulated and required at every scale to build to high standards.

Indeed, the Building The Future Commission conference on 27^th September, organised by BD’s sister publication Building, drew out just how much the industry is changing. It is surely now in a better state than at any time in the recent past and is finally aware of just how much responsibility it carries. This of course has largely been due to the Grenfell tragedy. To boot, there is a raft of new and heavyweight regulation arriving right now around safety and sustainability.

I have always admired building contractors and loved witnessing the process of construction. Over the years I’ve seen the full range, from the little rear extension to large housing schemes and anything in between. Indeed, one of the rewards of being an architect is visiting construction sites week on week. This is where we see the fruits of our labours, but mercifully made by somebody else.

I am excited to see a site’s evolution, over at least a year, from the cleared ground, through the slow ground works, the quick arrival of the frame, the external cladding wrapping up raw internal spaces. And then the finale of lovely, finished interiors. For all the frustrations about our profession, the buzz of a building site remains addictive.

Building to me is a magical process. I often joke with site managers to ask: when you arrive the first day where do you actually start? I have further questions about the mysteries of construction: how do builders set a pitched roof to be absolutely plumb; how does a messy poured screed come out so perfectly clean; out there on the site itself, why do I so rarely see any drawings being followed? It’s still not at all obvious to me, even after all these years.

Construction is science but also a complex art. Building is binary, it isn’t variable or open to interpretation. You don’t argue or question your task. A builder is not a designer, but a doer. To add to this, contractors need to work to fixed programmes and fixed costs. We certainly can’t say that about every industry! And a building project is a one off, every site bringing unique complexities.

Today the building industry is very different than in even the recent past.

The building process is high risk, with mistakes possibly running into the millions. It holds people’s lives in its hands, due to poor construction or wrong materials. There is clear and present danger always lurking in the mud and the dust. It is true to say that architectural drawings do not look anything like construction itself: building is far messier, more rugged. This apparent chaos can only be unravelled by the honed skills of builders.

Today the building industry is very different than in even the recent past. Site compounds are little cities of order, immaculately clean, perfectly organised. Far gone are the days of red-top pin-ups on site hut walls, of wandering around without hard hats, blaring music, cigarettes in mouths.

There is a sense of intense discipline among site operatives nowadays and yet this doesn’t seem to make for unhappy workplaces. I’m forever amazed at the cheerfulness I encounter, a seemingly happy banter. Of course, all this depends on a fine site manager, ruling the roost with skill and firmness, but always mixed in with a certain positivity, somehow ensuring everyone is playing their part.

And I notice a new breed of managers on site. Young people. How often do we hear nowadays that the young sit at home on computers or that old fashioned adage that they just can’t get out of bed. I think this is nonsense and an invention made out of lazy observation. Time and again in the past few years I have met highly trained and motivated people in their 20s, up very early, often travelling long distances to get to site by 8am.

So next time we have a moan about a ‘cowboy’ industry, let’s try to appreciate what it actually takes to make a building and how many challenges stand in the way to getting this done

Most often these are apprentices, who start their training in colleges and universities, interspersed with practical experience on site. Large contractors often support educational places, sometimes sponsoring particular courses year on year. In this way there is a sense of camaraderie at each firm, as rotating site-based students learn from each other as they come and go.

None of these young people, when I meet them, seem ill-motivated or tired or depressed (although of course they will be from time to time!). For they have a job to do, a skill to attain. And construction is so complex and increasingly technical: there is much to learn. To add to this, there is a clear progression in the industry from basic skills, to being a foreman, an assistant site manager, full site manager, contracts manager and so on.

I once met a stonemason on one of our jobs, working high up on scaffolding, replacing damaged stone sections around a church tower. It was January, and I was cold as an icy wind whistled around us; I recall longing to get down to the cozy site office. But he was cheerful and conversational: this was a three-month job he said, stretching over the winter.

I remember he was wrapped up in several layers under his hi-viz jacket. His worked was very skilled and he seemed happy. As I walked away along the scaffolding, I had nothing but admiration for him and thought the lot of an architect is actually quite a comfortable one.

So next time we have a moan about a ‘cowboy’ industry, let’s try to appreciate what it actually takes to make a building and how many challenges stand in the way to getting this done. Yes, there are some failures, even a few crooks or less than good contractors – as there are in all sectors. But from my experience this is an increasingly impressive industry, well regulated, well managed – and most certainly now a respectable one.