Weak product data and inconsistent identification are putting safety, compliance and delivery at risk.
Across the sector, product data is still too often difficult to find, out of date, held in disconnected formats and maintained without clear ownership.
When issues arise, audit trails can be limited. When products are substituted, the evidence that alternatives meet the same performance requirements is not always easy to prove. And when projects are completed, the record of what was actually built is often incomplete.
There is now a growing gap between where construction is and where it needs to be. Regulation, safety expectations and delivery pressures are all increasing, but many organisations are still working with product information that is fragmented, inconsistent and hard to verify.
To understand the scale of the challenge, GS1 UK commissioned independent research with Barbour ABI, gathering insight from more than 300 construction professionals and 15 senior industry figures.
The findings show a sector that recognises the need for change but is still struggling to turn awareness into consistent action.
The issue is not a lack of technology. The tools already exist. The challenge is consistency: how products are identified, how information is structured and how data is shared and maintained across organisations and systems.
Without that consistency, the golden thread risks becoming a static document store rather than a reliable, usable record. Accountability weakens, compliance becomes harder to demonstrate and the industry misses an opportunity to reduce waste, avoid rework and improve productivity.
Key insights
could be lost each year through inefficient product data management
say they are ready to meet Building Safety Act requirements
say inefficiencies in managing construction product information are hampering progress
see value in using product identifiers such as GTINs
Most people in the industry, in their hearts must know that we’ve been taking risks. But a lack of effective systems and policies has too often left those on the ground feeling powerless to push back against the constant pressure to hit time and cost targets and call out issues."
Brian Green
Industry analyst
