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Inside our own shores, it鈥檚 often not recognised that we have a hard-earned global reputation for the delivery of world-class architecture, engineering and programme management services.

Despite occasional moans about late projects at home, British firms are in demand from governments and developers all over the world for our work, playing an instrumental role in the delivery of infrastructure and buildings that shape skylines and communities around the world.

This week the , of which I am a member, has launched its second report, 鈥淕lobal Britain: Where next?鈥�. In it, we reveal a new index - The Global Britain Index - which uncovers the UK鈥檚 top future trading partners and sets out which industries the UK should prioritise to maintain its place as one of the largest economies in the world.

Construction is high up that list 鈥� and for good reason.

> Also read: African building boom provides opportunity for UK firms, says Global Britain Commission

The construction industry is among the fastest-growing in the world - set to grow by 47% between 2020-2030. In the UK alone the sector is growing at a rapid annual pace of 3.7% - equivalent to that of China鈥檚 industry at 3.8%. This is largely attributed to its overall competitive advantage globally, growing demand and recent government and industry partnerships which have propelled the industry forward.

There is huge potential for our world-leading services 鈥� programme management, engineering, design 

This doesn鈥檛 mean that we鈥檙e expecting to see UK contractors delivering directly on the ground across the world 鈥� exporting contracting services is a challenging task and few have managed it successfully at scale. We shouldn鈥檛 limit our ambition 鈥� but we should recognise in many countries it鈥檚 a tough market to break.

What it does mean is that there is huge potential for our world-leading services 鈥� programme management, engineering, design 鈥� that we should be reaching out to grab, and a market waiting to be built for MMC-led construction products.

As part of the UK鈥檚 sector deal in 2018, the government committed an initial 拢170m which prioritised the development and commercialisation of offsite manufacturing technology and energy efficiency technology.

Since then, we have seen the funding for construction skills boot camps via the National Skills Fund, the creation of the Construction Leadership Council鈥檚 (CLC) ConstructZero programme, and a commitment in the March 2021 Budget of 拢10m investment in the use of modern methods of construction (MMC).

All of these measures are aimed at ensuring the UK remains a global leader.

We鈥檝e also had fantastic engagement with the UK鈥檚 direct efforts to support trade, including working closely with the Department for International Trade鈥檚 advisory group on investment 鈥� on which I sit 鈥� and Infrastructure Exports: UK, co-chaired by my colleague Mark Holmes.

I believe we are already seeing the fruits of that support now.

Rising populations has caused cities to expand exponentially, requiring more and better infrastructure from road and rail, to housing and office space

At Mace, our international consultancy business has seen a significant uptick over the past few years in the number and scale of international projects 鈥� everywhere from Peru to Greece 鈥� and the adoption of new technologies and approaches, and support from government has enabled us to export more services to key growth regions such as the Middle East and the United States. Yet more needs to be done.

The opportunity on offer is enormous. Rising populations in some parts of the world has caused cities to expand exponentially, requiring more and better infrastructure from road and rail, to housing and office space, increasing the need for construction services.

Our report sets out that Ghana and Botswana - two countries that are rising in the ranks of the Global Britain Index over the last 10 years, are among those expanding populations with some of the highest urbanisation rates in Africa. Similarly, in states like Singapore 鈥� number six on our list 鈥� there鈥檚 huge potential for UK firms to support the delivery of massive construction and infrastructure programmes.

What鈥檚 more, climate change and rapid urbanisation have brought forward many challenges but also opportunities for the UK construction industry, as many countries look beyond their borders for the best ideas to tackle complex projects.

Despite broader global economic uncertainty, at the moment we believe there will likely continue to be a steady rise in international construction procurement that the UK is well-placed to support. However, the playing field is going to become ever more competitive with other countries looking to increase their market share in this rapidly growing industry.

With the result of the upcoming Conversative leadership election due in the next few weeks, our report demonstrates a clear need for the new PM and Cabinet to make our industry a priority for a super-charged post-Brexit trade policy.

It鈥檚 clear there is a huge potential for growth if we can secure further government support and focus to maintain the UK鈥檚 prominence in the market. Negotiating the right trade deals with the right countries is important to not only support the UK industry today but to secure its future as a globally competitive export industry.

But we cannot only look to government. If our home-grown infrastructure delivery expertise is to deliver on its potential, we must all be ambitious and work together to identify opportunities for UK excellence to shine through.

Jason Millett, CEO, Mace Consult