Construction-related spending accounts for: An estimated 13% of the world’s economic output, ~$10 trillion spent annually on the production of construction-related goods and services, and employs 7% of the world’s labour pool However, the industry is reported to be perhaps the least productive sector in the global economy, with meager labour-productivity growth of ~ 1% per year measured over the past two decades, compared with 2.8% for the world economy. The causes of such low productivity growth are systemic, persistent and well recognized – having been the subject of several studies and moreover, are experienced daily by those working in the industry, both in the office and out in the field. At the macro-economic level, causes include: extensive regulation, increasing complexity and geographic dispersion of construction sites, grey market and corruption distortions as well as demand that is highly cyclical and dependent on the public-sector investment. At the industry-level, causes…