Time to bury the hatchet

here just aren't enough sparks to go around. Research by the T&G union shows the construction industry needs to recruit 33 000 more sparks by the end of 2003. This is a concern for the construction managers of the gently growing markets of Newcastle and Belfast, but a crisis for those managing sites in booming London and the south-east.

Sparks have construction managers over a barrel. Managers constantly complain that electrical contractors and other trades in short supply threaten their carefully scheduled programmes: "They threaten not to turn up or arrive with spotty kids while the experienced guys go off to start other jobs," said one manager.

It would be easy to say that construction managers deserve all they get. After all, during the bad times didn't they do all the threatening? "There's plenty who'd beg to be on this job," was a common refrain.

And despite the good intentions and kind words of partnering, don't the majority of site managers still bash the negotiating table and hold back cash at every opportunity? I can understand why electricians want to use their scarcity to maximise profits, but it really is a short-term game plan. Sure, you can get the site manager to reschedule the works around your plans, increase profit margins in bids, and raise call-out rates, but it is not just the main contractor who suffers. Ultimately the client suffers.

Main contractors already struggle to bring projects in on tight budgets and schedules, and with too much pressure from subcontractors they have no chance. Electricians have an especially crucial role in projects. Working in cramped conditions and reliant on the goodwill and planning of other trades, electricians can make or break a project.

But late and over budget projects do not inspire confidence in those who vote to spend the money on a new office or refurbishment. Indeed, the result of putting too much pressure on the main contractor is that construction continues to compete with used-car sales as the most despised sector of UK industry. And ultimately, it is your reputation that suffers.

I can understand why electricians want to use their scarcity to maximise profits, but it really is a short-term game plan

I'm tired of having to argue with friends and colleagues that construction is exciting, rewarding and even cutting edge – there are not many industries as far ahead with electronic data management systems or e-procurement as construction.

We have a lot to be proud of. The millennium projects proved that UK construction can build great architecture on time and to budget. But if electricians are not happy, then projects can go off the rails all too quickly, as Balfour Kilpatrick's run-in at the Royal Opera House showed.

That's why I would like to see electricians bury the hatchet – but preferably not in the neck of the site manager.

There is no reason why we all can't make a bit of hay while the sun shines, but perhaps there is also scope for a bit of altruism. Some main contractors are learning not to push too hard, and that generating goodwill from clients will pay off in the long term. Those who have worked with Mansell or Galliford in the last couple of years will understand this.

So is there room in electrical contracting to take a long-term view too? Undoubtedly those who are working their way onto preferred lists of suppliers for MoD prime contracting or NHS Estates' Procure 21 must see the benefits of long-term partnerships where you don't push too hard. And Drake & Scull's Martin Davis has been instrumental in creating new ways of working, where electrical contractors, main contractors and clients act as a virtual company on a specific project. But there is still a long way to go for most of the electrical contracting trade.