The University of Cambridge has published a new framework to help construction organisations turn the large volumes of data their projects generate into practical productivity improvements. Productivity in the sector remains variable and poorly understood, despite the data available.
The Cambridge Framework for Construction Productivity: Measure · Benchmark · Improve was developed by a research team at the University of Cambridge Laing O’Rourke Centre.
It draws on data from more than 25 projects, gathered over three years from leading companies in the UK construction sector.
The Framework gives industry a consistent approach to understanding and improving productivity at project, work-package and activity levels.
By linking production rates, labour productivity, production flow, variability and the factors affecting delivery, the Framework helps teams see where inefficiencies arise and identify blockers.
It also shows where intervention is likely to have the greatest impact.
For clients, it offers access to more consistent, evidence-based benchmarks across projects, which can build confidence in programmes and outcomes.
The Framework was developed by Dr Danny Murguia, Dr Ashan Asmone, Dr Asitha Rathnayake and the late Professor Campbell Middleton.
The team believes productivity measurement should become far more widely embedded across the industry.
The Framework’s authors, Dr Danny Murguia, Dr Ashan Asmone, Dr Asitha Rathnayake and the late Professor Campbell Middleton, argue that the approach should be built into the procurement process.
They want clients to require productivity data collection as standard during project delivery, and they describe this as potentially one of the most consequential shifts the industry could make.
The work follows a collaboration between academia and industry that began in 2021.
The Cambridge team worked closely with industry partners to collect and analyse data, and to test and refine the methodology through live demonstrator projects.
Partners shared real project data, opened live projects to the researchers and challenged the methodology as it developed.
Dr Murguia, Assistant Research Professor at the Laing O’Rourke Centre and lead author of the Framework, said the emphasis is on timing.
“The framework is about using data when it can make a difference: during project delivery, when teams still have an opportunity to intervene and improve outcomes,” said Murguia.
The Framework arrives ahead of PAS 4010:2026, Improving productivity in infrastructure development and delivery.
The standard sets out requirements for a productivity management strategy to manage, assure and continuously improve productivity.
The Cambridge Framework supports that ambition by providing a consistent way to measure key productivity metrics, identify blockers and turn project data into actionable insights.
The research team is also developing Camentis, a software tool designed to put the Framework into practice on live construction projects.
The tool is currently being piloted, marking the next stage of the research and supporting its development towards wider implementation.
Over the longer term, the aim is for Camentis to support better project controls, benchmarking and more advanced analytics, including AI, helping teams make more evidence-based interventions.
The publication and Camentis were presented at an exclusive pre-launch at the University of Cambridge on 22 September 2026.
The event brought together senior executives from leading construction organisations that contributed to the research and helped shape the Framework.
The work has also drawn significant interest and support from the UK Construction Productivity Taskforce and members of the World Construction Leadership Forum.
