Exploring the Contractual Arrangements Associated with the Adoption of the Modern Methods of Construction in the United Kingdom

Abstract

The challenges imposed by the construction industry have, for decades, pressured research and practice to consider the adoption of innovations as means of constructive change. An increasingly emerging technique of construction that shifts key processes offsite is a construction methodology that maximizes control. Such an approach is described as the modern methods of construction (MMC), a term that has been widely utilized as a reference to practices that drive less site labor, fewer on-site activities, and maximum offsite and premanufactured value. Such fundamental change in how construction normally operates is logically accompanied by inconsistencies with the contractual arrangements. However, limited research focuses on how traditional arrangements are shaped and amended to suit the offsite anecdote in terms of contract form, contract type, procurement strategy, common changes, and legislation’s role. A change in traditional processes would reasonably mean a change in the formal agreements, a research gap that motivates this paper to deem this exploration as timely and necessary. A qualitative research method has been utilized to approach forty critical positions of influence in the United Kingdom such as chief executive officers (CEOs), chief operating officers (COOs), managing directors, managers, and other decision-makers in businesses categorized as MMC firms. This is considered the first study to explore leaders’ viewpoints to better understand how contractual arrangements flow to facilitate, or undermine, MMC in the construction industry. Results suggest that joint contracts tribunal (JCT), Design and Build, and bespoke amendments in the payment mechanisms are the preferred contractual arrangements when using MMC. Moreover, the findings indicate that the success of these arrangements is conditioned to early involvement and collaboration between supply and demand.