With memories of last winter still fresh in the mind and public sector spending under pressure, highway construction companies at all levels should be planning their service programmes for 2010 as early as possible, writes Grant Nisbet, Head of Construction at Jonathan Lee Recruitment.

As 2009 draws to a close, companies in the civil engineering market have to contemplate two factors may conspire to make 2010 an especially crucial yet difficult to manage year for road builders.

The first factor is the recession. Highway and byway construction has already suffered from significant cutbacks and with both the government and opposition talking about cuts to public spending with ever increasing zeal, it is highly likely that infrastructure spending will be hit further. This is of course notwithstanding some of the higher profile road widening schemes which are providing some much needed solace for some of the industry.

The second factor is the cold winter of 2008 which left our roads in a poor state of repair and the public demanding a better response to future heavy snowfall.

Dealing with the cold weather is the first priority. Last year’s winter saw the heaviest snowfall for 18 years in the UK with the authorities caught out by the severity of the conditions. To avoid similarly chaotic scenes in the next few months we will need to prepare and plan for all eventualities and follow the guidance of the UK Roads Liaison Group and focus on three areas: planning ahead, improving procurement, and communicating effectively.

To avoid a repeat performance and minimise costs, logistics planning will be vital and all stakeholders will need to work closely together - starting from now!

It makes business sense for the industry to focus on these maintenance projects in the short term, with new build schemes unlikely to move forward in the near future. Local authority roads have been especially hard hit by budget cuts but road conditions will dictate that some work will have to take place. However, with budgets under pressure, effective planning and management of these projects is going to be needed to ensure the work gets off the ground.

Preparing in advance for both maintenance projects and the ‘on the day’ response to cold weather will also help make procurement more effective and help minimise high ‘last minute’ recruitment costs when labour is suddenly needed. One benefit of the recession that constructors need to make the most of is the abundance of skilled staff available. They should also put staffing needs high up the agenda and include it earlier in the planning cycle. This can cut costs and help projects to be more effectively managed.

At Jonathan Lee Recruitment we always advise companies to bring recruiters into the planning process as early as possible. Doing this helps us forecast staffing needs and get the best people for each position. This is likely to be especially crucial this year as a result of budget cuts and the short-term nature of the work.

 grant.nisbet@jonlee.co.uk