We cannot just keep doing what we have always done or following over-simplistic thinking.

The key principles of our master planning approach are: to adopt a common language that can be understood by all involved; to use clear visualisations rather than words as much as possible, as this aids general understanding; to be clear and explicit about any and all assumptions, and; to capture as much data and information as possible from as many sources as possible, so that no knowledge goes to waste..The first step is to gather that information.

We use a number of strategies – including questionnaires and in-depth workshops with client teams – to gather as much qualitative and quantitative data as we can.We then review the data, organise, consolidate and present it back to the client, to check our understanding and its validity and accuracy.. Then we identify and agree a number of potential scenarios with the client, which describe a hypothetical future – for example, a change in market direction – from a number of different perspectives; commercial, operational etc.We then look to identify potential solutions or options and evaluate how these perform against the problem statement and value drivers in the agreed scenarios.. We combine a number of clear strategic directions with a systematic exploration of potential improvements at different levels of detail, using the ‘5S method’ as guidance.

This is an established methodology for handling workplace organisation, which breaks the master planning process down into five steps: sort, set in order, shine, standardise and sustain.. At each stage we determine the appropriate level of detail (resolution) at which to visualise and model, depending on whether we are looking at the whole site or a single unit or process, for example.. We present the options or solutions and our evaluation back to the client and agree whether there are further options to be considered or whether the existing options need to be adjusted.Once an agreed set of options has been identified and developed, we finalise our evaluation, develop recommendations and an output which is a clear and compelling presentation of the findings, and possible next steps.

We focus on ensuring that the output: meets the business’s needs; is cost effective and robust, but also flexible and adaptable, and; is practical to implement (for example: along with the usual constraints of time and budget, we may well need to work around keeping current processes fully operational while we effect any changes).. It’s important to state that this is not Bryden Wood dictating the master planning solution to the client.

This remains a collaborative process.As soon as things move into the realm of creating international standards, the issues surrounding language become even wider, and political and cultural issues also come into play, so it’s incredibly challenging.

Furthermore, there are also important documents like.The Construction Playbook.

, which came out in December 2020, but is neither a standard nor a piece of legislation.Ultimately, the industry would benefit from some clarity in understanding where information sits and the relative authority and legitimacy it has regardless of whether one is a business, client or someone studying the sector..