Price and Cost Indices
The quarterly BIS Construction Price and Cost Indices (PCIs) are a basic 'tool of trade' to anyone involved in estimating, cost checking and fee negotiation on public sector construction works. The PCIs are published as an online service by the Building Cost Information Service (BCIS) under contract to BIS.
The publication provides comprehensive public sector construction price and cost information in Great Britain, comprising the following indices:
- Tender Price Index (TPI) of Public Sector Building Non-housing, Social Housing Building and Road Construction.
- Resource Cost Indices for Buildings, Roads, Infrastructure, and Building Maintenance.
- Output price indices (OPIs) for construction sectors.
- Output price indices for direct labour.
- Location and function studies.
The latest Quarterly Price and Cost Indices are available through the BCIS website at a charge of £109 + VAT (annual subscription).
The All New Construction Output Price Index is available quarterly in Table 3.7 of the Monthly Digest of Statistics while the Tender Price Indices, Output Price Indices and Resource Cost Indices are available annually in chapters 4 and 5 of the Construction Statistics Annual.
The Construction Price and Cost Indices were recently assessed by the United Kingdom Statistics Authority, who concluded:
“The Authority judges that Construction Price and Cost Indices do not sufficiently comply with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics to be published as National Statistics; that substantial further work is required for them to be fully compliant with the Code; and that it is in the public interest that these matters be indicated clearly to users by the temporary removal of the existing designation as National Statistics.
A programme of work led by BIS is underway to address the requirements made in this Assessment Report, and that BIS expects to report on their implementation to the Authority in July 2011. After considering BIS' report, the Authority will review the designation of this set of statistics."
As part of this programme of work BIS and BCIS have published:
In 2008 BIS commissioned Davis Langdon LLP to undertake a review of the PCIs (DOC, 637 Kb) in order to provide an assessment of the reasons for government funding of the indices.
The Branch previously published the following related publications:
- Price Adjustment Formulae Indices Online
- MTC Updating Percentages Online
These publications are no longer under contract to BIS, but continue to be available through subscription from the BCIS website
For more information about the BIS Price and Cost Indices please contact BCIS.
