LHT Integral To Contractor Efficiency

Maintenance contractors on Merseyside are ‘feeling the pinch’ in a positive way. Liverpool Housing Trust (LHT), part of Vicinity Group, is helping contractors to audit their businesses to improve efficiency and increase profitability. Working with companies who provide a range of services, from specialist maintenance through to decorating and heating and plumbing, LHT’s Property Services Team are assisting contractors with efficiency audits to reduce their operational costs.

The audits are being carried out as part of LHT’s Second Generation Partnering initiative which allows a detailed analysis of the supply chain processes linking LHT and contractors in the service they provide to LHT customers.

This is the second phase of auditing, the first phase of which resulted in contractors achieving efficiencies in a number of areas including purchasing, telecommunications, insurances and working practices.

The benefits to LHT include cost-capping and achieving savings of over £100,000 in some areas of work. The second phase of audits is expected to yield additional savings.

Working in partnership with Just Housing and employing external consultants such as Cirrus Purchasing Ltd, a team of professionals assess business strategy, processes, management information systems and procurement strategy for contractors who would not otherwise have the opportunity to access this level of expertise.

Barry Callow, contracts/office manager of contractor Smiths SD said: “Our company has really benefitted from working with LHT in this kind of partnership. We have increased productivity and saved time and money in areas we wouldn’t have considered before undertaking this audit.”

Simon Reed, procurement consultant, Cirrus Purchasing Ltd added: “Working directly with contractors to identify efficiency opportunities improves profitability for the contractors while simultaneously reducing costs for the client. This is truly a practical and sustainable approach to supply chain management.”

The audits are also focused on training and developing employee skills. LHT works closely with ConstructionSkills, the industry’s Sector Skills Council. Julie Lawrenson of ConstructionSkills, described LHT’s approach as ‘exemplar’ and commented:

“LHT’s approach to continuous improvement in working with their contractors not only satisfies the standards that we wish to promote but actually goes beyond this standard in terms of their early adoption of some of the approaches to best practice.

“One example would be LHT’s achievement of 100% CSCS card accreditation of their contractor workforce in early 2008. LHT were the first social landlord to achieve mandatory CSCS accreditation for all their contractors.”

Liverpool Housing Trust, in conjunction with ConstructionSkills and their NW Building the Foundations Project, continues to focus on delivering a quality service and new contractor targets such as achieving ISO 14001 and Investors in People by 2010 have already been set.