After a period of intensive trialling the University of Portsmouth Enginuity 2025 Competition is underway, with a competitive field of teams all battling for supremacy against their peers.

And so to the action, and all the teams made excellent starts, with the early pacesetters after 41% growth being "BuildCore Company" with 1,414 pts, but they cannot rest on their laurels with the chasing pack close behind led by "Hive Builders" and "Crew 5 Constructions". However, it is early days, and there are sure to be plenty of twists ahead as the journey through the Early Years unfolds.

The early signs are that the competition will be very competitive, with all the teams improving their overall position in period 5. However, this was not unexpected. After being formed at the beginning of period 1, overhead costs were incurred whilst the companies were being established, without any profits being generated. The companies were now in a position to generate profits against a more stable overhead base, and this was reflected in improved operating profits. Of course, growth will be impossible without an effective strategy, and all the management teams have had time to think about this carefully, and come up with a set of objectives to deliver business success for their stakeholders.

2024 proved to be another turbulent year for the UK. Politically there was a change of government in July with the first Labour government since 2010, and Prime Minister Kier Starmer promising a 5-year plan of growth. In the economy growth figures were better than expected with GDP growth of around 1%, helped by the Cost Of Living crisis easing as inflation fell, and the Bank of England were able to cut the base rate from 5.25% to 4.75% between August and November, and the green shoots of recovery are expected to continue in 2025 with projected GDP growth of 1.6%, but continuing conflicts around the world add some uncertainty to these projections.

Further afield global real GDP grew by around 3.2 percent in 2024, and is expected to continue at this rate during 2025. India remains the strongest performer among major emerging economies, with robust growth driven by domestic reforms and foreign investment. However geopolitical factors, including changes in tariffs and industrial policies in the United States when President Trump takes office in January 2025 could alter global forecasts with the potential for trade wars, and continued conflict in the Middle East and Russia's war in Ukraine could trigger broader inflationary pressures.

League table at the end of period 5

After the impressive growth figures posted in period 5, not unexpectedly period 6 proved to be a much tougher quarter. This was largely driven by the companies being unable to win as much work as they had previously, with the corresponding reduction in forward workload and margin KPIs. However, impressively the majority of teams were still able to post positive growth figures.

At the top of the table 5% growth from "BuildCore Company" moved them onto 1,490 pts, and extend their lead from "Hive Builders", who remain second, with the chasing pack close behind led by "The Builder" who moved up 3 places to 3rd.

The best performance in the round was an 8% improvement from "The Executive Crew" that moved them from 9th to 5th. At the wrong end of the table previous high flyers "Crew 5 Constructions" fell to the bottom of the table after losing out on a key bid to the Chota Nagpur Group, and their bidding team will be regretting not having a PLan B wih their bidding strategy in case they lost the 2 jobs they bid.

With KPI points hard earned it will become increasingly important that the management teams look very carefully at every aspect of their business for potential improvements, and those that are most successful in doing so should prosper the most. Two areas that the teams need particular attention are Marketing strategy and Procurement (rival bidders), which are discussed in more detail below.

Marketing is possibly the area of the business that requires the most thought, as there are numerous strategies that could be adopted. The market trend can only be gauged for one year ahead, and not always accurately, and as marketing departments are expanded, the choices of where to direct the marketing effort are wide ranging, by sector, country and job size. The task is not an easy one, but has a major impact upon procurement options, and the future work undertaken, and ultimately on the long term prosperity of the company.

Another important consideration is that rival bidders do not necessarily stick with the same bidding strategy, and as time goes by they can change their strategy according to market conditions. This makes it imperative that teams keep a close eye on the margins rival bidders are applying, and how they may be changing. Evaluating these strategies could make the key difference between success in securing work, or not. To complicate matters even further there may be UNKNOWN rival bidders, and the only clues to these may be in the ENGINUITY NEWS NETWORK (ENN) for the period.

League table at the end of period 6
Improvements, or otherwise, during period 6

Period 7, proved to be one of impressive growth figures for nearly every team, and none more so than for "Crew 5 Constructions" who hauled themselves away from the foot of the table with an astonishing 15% improvement to move up 3 places, with the "TITANS" moving in the opposite direction after a slight decline.

At the top of the table 2% growth from "BuildCore Company" enabled them to retain top spot with 1,517 pts, but they will now be looking nervously over their shoulders after their lead was drastically cut by "Tango Ltd", who moved within 8 points after an impressive 10% growth that saw them climb 4 places, a rise matched by "Sync Lab", who moved up to 3rd. With 2 rounds to go it is now all to play for with most of the teams still in with a realistic chance of the becoming the 2025 University of Portsmouth Champions.

IEWP = SUCCESS

A leading industry think tank have come up with a simple formula for running a successful construction business.

1. IDENTIFY new work
2. EXPAND the infrastructure (capital base) of the company to take on more work
3. WIN new work through competitive bidding
4. PROFITABLY PROGRESS of the jobs won

Another essential part of running a successful business is being able to form an effective Risk Management Strategy to keep the business as profitable as possible. This can take a number of forms, firstly by building sensible risk contingencies into the original bids based upon the likelihood and cost of the risks occurring. Secondly, and just as importantly is mitigating the affects of any risks that strike through targeted investment into risk management companies, using a BIM model if available, and employing the most suitable project managers to jobs in progress.

League table at the end of period 7
Improvements, or otherwise, during period 7

The penultimate round of the Competition saw a major turnaround at the top of the table, and largely growth across the board. "Buildcore Company" had led since the beginning, but a period of zero growth saw surprisingly them slip back to fourth. This opened the door for "Hive Builders" to storm 5 places up the table and into pole position after 8% growth, the best posted in the round, and onto 1,562 pts. "Tango Ltd" and "Sync Lab" remain 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Amazingly there is just 65 points separating the top 6 teams going into the final round, and it is going to be a tense finsh before the 2025 Champions are revealed, and each of the teams will now be looking to finish strongly, with every decision counting in the final reckoning.

League table at the end of period 8
Improvements, or otherwise, during period 8

The final round of the Competition proved to be the most dramatic in recent memory. "The Executive Crew" had never been higher than 4th, but during period 9 they secured some major contracts to boost their forward workload and margin that ultimately proved decisive as they stormed 7 places up the field with a stunning 26% improvement to become the University of Portsmouth Enginuity 2025 Champions with an impressive finishing score of 1,748 pts. Congratulations to Ali and the team.

Behind the Champions all the way through the league table period 9 proved to be one of growth. "Sync Lab" moved up one place to finish Runners Up after 13% growth, and only 32 points adrift of the Champions. Previous leaders "Hive Builders" dropped 2 places but still finished a creditable 3rd, narrowly ahead of "The Builder" in 4th.

In the final analysis all 10 teams finished with far stronger, more sustainable companies than when they took over in period 5, a testament to the skill and application shown by the management teams in what was a roller coaster of a journey through one and a quarter simulated years of management.

League table at the end of period 9
Improvements, or otherwise, during period 9