< Previous Page

Better Data, Safer Building

Author: James Ellis CIMCIG

As chair of the Chartered Institute of Marketing Construction Industry Group (CIMCIG) and a Marketing Professional who has worked in the Construction Industry for nearly 14 years, I waited with anticipation for the release of the industry consultation on the Code for Construction Product Information.

Those working within the industry will recognise the clarity of construction product information has been challenged following Dame Judith Hackett’s report. The CCPI is designed to transform and improve the way in which construction product information is communicated, ensuring a robust and consistent approach.  Some may argue that change is long overdue and after the Grenfell disaster and subsequent reports and findings, it is an industry that is moving slowly but in my opinion a positive way.

I actually believe the Code may radically transform the Construction Industry, if embraced by all. In simplistic terms, the Construction Sector follows this process:

At the centre of the simplified process, you have the potential to hold data and integrate systems which should provide a consistent view of a product at a specific moment in time, that should allow anyone involved in the project to know what products were installed, how the project was developed and how they are maintained.

Taking the step back as Marketing Professional, if you are working for a manufacturing business you need to understand four key questions:

  1. How does your business operate managing product information and the information used to develop integrated marketing campaigns?
  2. Who are your customers when it comes to the products your manufacture?
    (You may have multiple customers for the same product)
  3. How do you promote your products and supply them to you customer(s)?
  4. What additional Technical / After Sales Support do you provide your customers / your customers’ customer?

As a Marketing Professional, you may have a number of considerations to the Code for Construction Product Information and how this will impact on your business and its operations. This may depend on the size of your organisation, the organisational culture and whether departments collaborate or operate in silo. You may have to consider how the marketing department fits within your organisation currently and what is needed for your team to transform to support the CCPI.

Yet ultimately your role as a Marketing Professional will be about developing activities that support the promotion and purchasing of your business’s products and services. However to deliver such activities a greater internal focus may be required across departments to collaborate with Product Development, Quality Control, Technical Support, Sales, Customer Services etc.

The Code for Construction Product Information is ultimately about transparency from product information and testing, making sure the installation process is by someone competent to install the right product in the right application with traceability.  This provides a great opportunity to marketing professionals as if implemented right a business should have consistent communications about products, across all areas of the business, with supply chain partners and your customers.

Linked closely to the code is competence and the Chartered Institutes of Marketing (CIM) Professional Marketing Competences (see picture below). The Professional Marketing Competencies are a framework of marketing abilities which provide a guide to the skills and behaviours that are expected of professional marketers at varying levels of proficiency.

The CIM and CIMCIG are working the with Construction Products Associations, Marketing Integrity Group to bring these competences to the forefront of the Construction Industry over the coming months so professional marketeers can understand how they can develop their skills to help make the code a success.

Finally if you would like to review the Code for Construction Product Information and provide your thoughts to the consultation, please visit https://buildingsafely.co.uk/the-code/ and provide your thoughts by the 31st March