Achieving design quality is essentially about getting quality on the agenda at the outset, writing it into specifications and working with the supply chain to ensure that the design objectives are shared, owned and achieved.
ProCure21 supports the delivery and modernisation of fit-for-purpose healthcare buildings and ensures that Principal Supply Chain Partners (PSCP) are constantly looking to innovate to deliver better design for the NHS.
Each PSCP has a board level director who takes responsibility for the delivery of design quality on all their schemes. This is in line with the requirement that NHS Trust and Primary Care Trust appoint their own design champions, announced by the Secretary of State in 2001.
Widespread use of the Achieving Excellence in Design Evaluation Toolkit (AEDET Evolution) within ProCure21 schemes helps project teams ensure that their preferred design is up to standard. When used in conjunction with the P21 Risk Toolkit this will ensure that associated risks are identified and allocated as appropriate.
Innovation and Best Practice
Incentivisation is the main motivator to the overall ProCure21 process and is the key driver behind the innovative approaches ProCure21 encourages. Innovation falls out naturally from the empowerment that the process brings and occurs as the project teams seek to adopt both current best practices and where required, develop innovative solutions to challenges posed.
There are many examples on innovation and best practice throughout the ProCure21 programme. Supply chains make use of standardisation, off-site construction and modularisation. Innovation starts by using proven innovative methods perfected elsewhere. Not only is ProCure21 looking internally for these methods but from other sectors and in other countries also. Best practice is then shared across the supply chains through a series of working groups, and on the ProCure21 Best Practice Database.