Title: Cooperation for further development. Changes to come
Abstract: The road sector is considered internationally to be run inefficiently and to be characterised by a low rate of innovation. Those commissioning road works in Sweden are critical of poor creativity and little technological advance among contractors and consultants. Contractors for their part argue that a system in which contactors operate under detailed constraints offers neither scope nor incentive for progress, a view which is supported by researchers in the field. The expertise and creativity of contractors must be engaged at an early stage while there is good scope for influencing the total cost outcome. During the past ten years, great changes along similar lines have been going on in the public roads sectors of the Scandinavian countries. The primary task of each respective national road authority is now to be a roads provider meeting the needs of customers, i.e. road users. The production of road-building services is conducted under conditions of competition between private and publicly-owned companies or organisations. New forms of financing and cooperation are being tested and evolved. However, further development is needed, partly to make the branch more efficient and partly to encourage the interest of well-educated young people in joining this industry and nurturing its expertise for future generations. But such further development requires other working methods, new skills, new roles: in other words, there is a need for changing attitudes. In TC 31 Sweden, new forms of contract which facilitates development both of technology and personnel have been studied, enhancing the expertise of all parties engaged in the branch. It is also the form of contract which enables the customer's/road user's requirements to be passed directly over to the producer/contractor, which ought to result in lower social costs and increased customer satisfaction. Partnership is considered to be an effective form of cooperation in which the partners strive towards common objectives by collaborative effort and trust, the partners' individual interests being subordinated to the joint task, thus reducing the risk of conflict. In the projects studied, loyal collaboration and high commitment have been found, with excellent results for the project and a good atmosphere between those participating in the work. It is believed that the two forms of cooperation which have been studied are in tune with the future and can help the road-building industry to move towards greater efficiency while offering a more attractive career choice to the young people of today. But more continuous application of these new forms of cooperation is needed. Developmental work may also be necessary so as to clarify the modes of working by devising a framework of rules accepted by the market.
Publication Year: 2004
Publication Date: 2004-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
Access and Citation
AI Researcher Chatbot
Get quick answers to your questions about the article from our AI researcher chatbot