Partnering models in Nordic construction:Voluntary integrated buyer-supplier collaboration in building markets

Traditionally, procurement and contractual policies adopted by building and construction clients produce a system in which clients procure design services separately from construction services, while operation and maintenance have been subject to further, separate procurement actions. These fragmented structures have in recent years been criticised for leading to lack of co-ordination and conflict and ensuing litigation among parties to the construction project, and overall inefficiency in delivery. As a consequence there have been moves to promote more integrated collaborative forms of project delivery, often in combination with the introduction of private finance in hitherto publicly funded buildings and infrastructure works (PPP, PFI). Some construction clients have taken this a step further and adopted a much more collaborative approach towards project delivery, often known as partnering. This can involve contractual changes, but is more often primarily founded on agreements and commitments outside the contract framework. The paper presents evidence from an explorative study of partnering and partnerships in five Nordic countries. The study was implemented in a collaborative network of local research and industry partners including major building clients. Data were collected by means of national reviews of partnering policies and practices, thematic analyses, and case studies. The concept partnering was introduced in a Nordic context in the 1990s and has since then been implemented in a large number of projects. Clients sought to establish a culture of openness and trust within the project and tried promoting this with various kinds of incentives. In some countries the move towards voluntary collaboration was, paradoxically, strongly advocated by public authorities. Generally, however, the concept of partnering was used somewhat ambiguously in the Nordic building industries covering roughly any kind of business relation from alliances, consortia, framework agreements to project partnering.