With the provocative title: Does the contractor still exist in 2025?  we received a mixed group of frontrunners in De Bilt. This time 3 inspiring visionary speakers were invited who speak not only about progress, but are well known for doing it:

• Jan Willem van de Groep from Factory Zero
• Stan Roestenberg from Bohemen and KYP
• Bas Maingay from Change =.

In all three presentations it became clear that the current role of contractor is going to die.

• CO2 emissions must be lowered and prices must be reduced by at least 50%. Sustainability must be affordable for alle households, which means that it must not cost more than the energy bill.
• A system change is needed to work together differently, to understand each other’s language and to deliver new added value with fewer parties. Suppliers will add more value and deliver packages and components, with the result that ‘playmobilization’ of the construction sector will arise.
• Robotization and digitization facilitate the change. To organize less dependence on construction workers and to improve labour productivity. Use the learning curve theory to scale up numbers and halve the prices.
• To renew you need to know what desired solutions are. Following the example of Disney, Jobs and Ford. They did not make what the customer asked. If you make what the customer asks, you make yesterday’s solutions. The construction sector is sometimes too customer-oriented and is following instead of leading.

Some of the morning’s conclusions were that construction industry would be better without a traditional contractor. Why? Because a construction site manager solves problems that arise because parties do not comply with agreements. You will not have these problems without a site manager.

Clients must have the guts to do things differently. No more tendering with purchases at the lowest price, but genuine collaboration and trust in added value. Without specifications, but investing in development with detailed BIM models.

Companies that evolve with technological developments will continue to exist. The construction does not change by people in the industry itself, but most likely by other crazy people, probably from outside the sector. The developer of the future is data- and IT-driven.

Anyone who does not add value will not receive a margin.
Whoever does not make progress will be overtaken.
Whoever does not change disappears.
The entrepreneur innovates.

It was a nice start to the day again. The program for 2020 will soon appear on this website, make sure you are there!

Report by Sabine Schoorl.