Burn the Script: Collaboration in Construction That Actually Delivers
- Rebecca Heald
- Jul 22
- 4 min read
How EH Smith Builders Merchants, Vandersanden, and Lyons & Annoot are rewriting the rules of sustainable construction leadership
In an industry known for tradition, hierarchy, and playing it safe, true collaboration in construction is rare. But when it happens, it delivers.
That’s exactly what unfolds in the latest episode of The Heald Approach Podcast, where Rebecca Heald brings together Andy Oram from EH Smith Builders Merchants, Mat Davies from Vandersanden, and Dave Mills from Lyons & Annoot for an unfiltered roundtable on leadership, legacy, and low-carbon construction.
This isn’t corporate fluff. It’s real talk, from three industry leaders who’ve burned the script and built something better through practical, unapologetic collaboration.
“Stop. Collaborate. Listen.”
Forget buzzwords. Collaboration only works when you’re willing to pause and actually listen. As Andy Oram put it in the episode’s opening moment:
“Stop. Collaborate. Listen. It sounds like a joke but it’s a strategy that changed everything.”
That mindset shift, from broadcasting to listening, is what brought these three leaders together. Each represents a different part of the supply chain, from manufacturer to merchant to contractor. But they all realised that to deliver real change, they had to break out of their silos and start having honest, sometimes uncomfortable conversations.
Whether it’s hosting CPDs with structural engineers, putting sustainability front and centre at events, or simply picking up the phone, this group has proven that open dialogue can drive serious results.
The Long Game: Collaboration Without a Payoff (Yet)
Dave Mills doesn’t sugar-coat it:
“We did this for four years with zero benefit. Zero commercial return. But we kept going because it was the right thing to do.”
That’s not something you hear often in the construction world where short-term ROI usually dominates the conversation. But it’s a defining feature of values-led leadership. Lyons & Annoot didn’t wait for the market to demand sustainability; they took action before it was trendy, before it made financial sense and before most of their peers even cared.
This long-game approach is something all three guests have embraced. And crucially, it’s only possible because of one common thread: private ownership.
Why Private Ownership = Freedom to Lead Differently
All three companies featured in this episode, EH Smith, Vandersanden, and Lyons & Annoot, are privately owned. That’s not a coincidence.
Without the pressure of external shareholders, they’ve had the freedom to take risks, test ideas, and invest in innovation without needing immediate returns.
“You wouldn’t own a builders merchant just to make money,” Andy explains. “You do it because you care about the company, the people, and the legacy.”
It’s this long-term thinking that has allowed them to move ahead of the curve on sustainability and leadership, while many competitors are still stuck chasing quarterly wins.
Burning the Echo Chamber
One of the boldest moments in the episode comes when the group talks about how change often gets stuck inside echo chambers, even the good kind.
From sustainability panels to women-in-construction forums, there’s a growing need to break out of safe spaces and engage more widely.
“We need diversity of thought, not just diversity of people,” says Rebecca. “And that only happens when you stop curating who’s in the room.”
The episode shares how the team’s January sustainability event brought together competitors like Porotherm, Ibstock, and Plasmor Blocks to share a stage and a message. It wasn’t easy but it worked.
And it marked a moment where the industry started paying attention differently.
Apprenticeship as Innovation
A powerful thread running through the conversation is how collaboration creates space for new voices. One standout moment? Dave describing how Lyons & Annoot puts new products in the hands of apprentices first.
“They get the confidence, the feedback, and sometimes, they teach the bricklayers.”
This flip on traditional hierarchy is more than inclusive, it’s effective. And it’s a quiet revolution in how the business develops future leaders and keeps sustainability grounded in real-world use.
Why Builders Are Still Afraid of Innovation
One of the most eye-opening lines of the episode comes from Andy:
“I was showing someone Porotherm and he said, ‘I’d rather retire than do something different.’”
That’s bias, plain and simple. It’s fear of change disguised as pride. And it’s everywhere in construction, slowing down innovation and shutting out new ideas before they’ve had a chance to prove themselves.
But what this episode makes clear is that this mindset is starting to crack. Clients are asking tougher questions. Teams are demanding better. And collaboration across companies, not just within them, is what’s unlocking the solutions.
Collaboration as a Competitive Advantage
Let’s kill the myth: collaboration does not mean losing your edge. If anything, it’s a power move.
When Vandersanden, Lyons & Anoot and EH Smith started working together, they didn’t lose their identity, they levelled up. They opened doors to new sectors, reached engineers and clients they wouldn’t have reached alone, and pushed each other to think bigger.
“You can’t move the industry forward in isolation,” Mat says.“It only happens when you link arms, even with your competitors.”
The Future Is Being Built Differently
At its core, this episode is a call to lead with intent, not ego. And it shows what’s possible when you stop asking what’s in it for you, and start asking who you can bring with you.
If the future of construction is going to be sustainable, inclusive, and innovative, it won’t be because we had more meetings. It’ll be because people like Andy, Mat, and Dave decided to burn the script and build a new one.
📢 Listen Now
📍 Featuring: EH Smith Builders Merchants, Vandersanden, and Lyons & Annoot
📚 Related Resources:
Leadership Rewired: The programme helping construction leaders rethink culture
The Heald Method: Your blueprint for sustainable leadership in the built environment
The Heald Approach Podcast: Bold conversations that challenge the status quo
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