My colleagues and I who are involved in the Wood for Gold initiative have been working hard on behalf of the industry to help the Olympic Delivery Authority get their timber procurement right. So far that has meant helping to ensure their procurement policy struck the right balance between stretching targets for the industry and our ability to deliver. Shifting them, and indeed more recently the Greater London Authority, away from an FSC-only approach was an early successful outcome of our work.
But the industry should be in no doubt that much work still needs to be done by the supply chain to make sure that the wood that is delivered to our customers for Olympic projects is from sustainable sources. The ODA has said as far as timber is concerned, responsible sourcing is the single most important issue. It is therefore aiming for 100% sustainable material for the Games. We at Wood for Gold are now working out ways in which we can help them achieve that. Although still not finalised, I expect suppliers will have to get themselves on an approved list. The criteria will be exacting. To stay there they will have to continually demonstrate the highest level of commitment to responsible sourcing.
Beyond that the ODA will have very strictly controlled entry points to the site. There is no way anything that is not what it should be will get onto site. Again, we at Wood for Gold are working with the ODA to make sure the systems they have in place work for them and for the industry.
Some in the industry have suggested that the Olympics Games and construction for it are just for Londoners. Rubbish. Everything that goes on in delivering the Olympics is being studied by governments and businesses up and down the country and even abroad.
What happens here in the run-up to 2012 will reappear time and time again as standard practice on other construction projects wherever they are located. Just this week Network Rail announced it is to use an ODA-style procurement strategy for its £550m revamp of Birmingham New Street station. Need I say more?
This type of activity shows why you should join your industry trade association. Your weight, your commitment to act responsibly and indeed your subscription, enable the industry to deliver these successes. And that, without a shadow of a doubt, means your bottom line benefits.
