The Institution of Structural Engineers The Institution of Structural Engineers
Productivity
Back to Previous

Productivity

Tag
Author
Date published
Price

Improving productivity is essential to structural engineering, whether in terms of enhancing construction speed, lowering costs or reducing material use.

Productivity within construction has not improved at the rates seen in other industries, such as manufacturing or agriculture. Inefficiencies in construction can lead to unnecessary and excessive carbon emissions, wasted material and human resources, and increased costs. In some respects, structural engineering is difficult to compare to other manufacturing industries as construction projects are frequently bespoke – each project can almost be seen as prototype in itself.

However, MMC, lean design and other design and construction processes can offer ways to make structural engineering more efficient.

The resources on this page can help you make your projects more efficient, potentially reducing costs, time and/ or material use.
 

Featured resources

Guidance
<h4>Construction productivity: improving the way we build today and tomorrow</h4>

Construction productivity: improving the way we build today and tomorrow

Hear from Bill Baker, Consulting Partner from SOM, on why enhancing construction productivity is crucial to the industry.

Date – 14 August 2025
Author – Bill Baker
Price – Free
Guidance
<h4>Purposeful productivity: going beyond cost and carbon</h4>

Purposeful productivity: going beyond cost and carbon

Expedition Engineering talk about productivity in the construction sector means much more than costs and programme optimisation.

Date – 14 August 2025
Author – Expedition Engineering
Price – Free
Blog
The image shows a presenter pointing at a whiteboard whilst looking at an audience around a table. The image is overlapped by a blue layer containing app-like symbols hinting at digital tools. Copyri

Optimisation in structural engineering: enhancing efficiency and performance

Ashley Kacha, Senior Engineer at the Institution, explores the diverse applications of optimisation techniques in structural engineering for smarter designs and better outcomes.

Date – 1 September 2023
Author – Ashley Kacha
Price – Free
Training
The image shows a presenter pointing at a whiteboard whilst looking at an audience around a table. The image is overlapped by a blue layer containing app-like symbols hinting at digital tools. Copyri

Achieving material and economic efficiency through digital optimisation

This webinar on digital optimisation showcases strategies to optimise designs and explores how to apply available techniques to achieve material and cost savings.

Date – 19 September 2023
Author – Various
Price – £26 - £40 + VAT
Guidance
glass structure

Resource efficiency

This brief guidance details resource efficient design strategies including reducing the amount and waste of materials in design, prolonging the service of materials and designing in a resource efficient end of life. 

Date – 17 September 2019
Author – Various (Sustainability Panel)
Price – Free
The Structural Engineer
Measuring Construction Site Productivity cover

Construction productivity: improving the way we build today and tomorrow

Bill Baker introduces two initiatives that aim to help address the long-standing challenge of low growth in construction productivity.

Date – 9 August 2022
Author – Bill Baker
Price – £9.95

Related Resources & Events