The Real Cost of Value Engineering for Suppliers - Andrew Smith - EP 40

Andrew Smith is UK MD of OWA, a ceiling and acoustics manufacturer supplying main contractors and distributors across the country.   Andrew has spent 40 years in construction, 20 of them at OWA, watching the industry from every angle a supplier can sit in. He has built his career on a straightforward view of the industry, one that has little patience for a specification process that still isn't fit for purpose and even less for a business culture that reaches for blame before accountability.   In this episode, Andrew talks honestly about what he has seen from the supplier's side of construction, an industry he describes bluntly as one that always looks to suppliers first when a budget needs cutting.   He explains why value engineering almost always lands on suppliers, why specification still isn't good enough despite the changes forced through since Grenfell, and why the industry leans on blame culture instead of taking real accountability.   We explore: Why the squeeze on budgets always seems to land on suppliers first How the specification process has changed since Grenfell and why it still isn't good enough Why construction leans on blame culture instead of accountability when things go wrong How OWA has evolved its products and adapted to what the market actually wants Why the skills shortage won't be solved until the industry becomes somewhere people want to work The collaboration and brotherhood Andrew has seen onsite, and why staying nimble is what keeps a supplier relevant   Andrew is not interested in sugar coating any of it. He wants suppliers treated as partners rather than the easiest place to cut, and he is direct about calling out what isn't working across construction.   If you think the squeeze always lands somewhere else, this episode will change your mind.