November 23, 2021

Facilities Managers provide the key to unlock the future of work

by Neil Franklin • Facilities management, News

Ricoh UK has published a report called Leading Change at Work: The role of FM in driving the digital workplace (registration), which claims to offer ‘the definitive discussion on the future of work in the UK’. The report follows on from last year’s Conscious Workplace research which set out the behaviours, mindsets and influences shaping the new world of work in a post-pandemic world. After hosting a roundtable with five Facilities Managers from various businesses, Ricoh has gathered insight into the ongoing challenges being faced by organisations. More →

November 23, 2021

An emerging crisis of trust at work fuelled by remote work

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Working lives

Qatalog has published a survey of 2,000 knowledge workers which uncovers a crisis of trust within the modern workplace, fuelled by a chronic lack of visibility within companies. The study claims that remote work is feeding a chronic visibility problem within the modern workplace. When working remotely, two-thirds (66 percent) of respondents reported that they lack visibility of what colleagues are working on and how it fits into the bigger picture. More →

November 22, 2021

Real estate players join forces with Urban Land Institute to fast-track decarbonisation

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

The Urban Land Institute (ULI) has kicked off a new project in partnership with several major real estate organisations – including Allianz Real Estate, Catella, Hines, Redevco and Schroders Capital – that will support the built environment in Europe on its urgent journey to carbon neutrality. More →

November 19, 2021

Workplace data proves that the devil is in the detail for the new era of work

by Steve Morren • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace design

Predicting the future is a fool’s errand. History is littered with examples of people who got it horribly wrong. In 1876, William Orten, the president of then telegraphy pioneer Western Union, claimed that the telephone was an idiotic, ungainly and impractical idea that would never catch on. Almost a century later, Microsoft’s Bill Gates said that nobody would ever need more than 640KB of memory in a computer. Today’s home computers and laptops can store up to 32GB of memory. More →

November 18, 2021

Time to stop playing around with the issue of workplace sustainability

by Joanna Knight • Environment, Facilities management, Features, JK, Workplace design

The so-called green agenda, sustainability and climate change have finally hit centre stage. Various announcements are being made by UK Government and numerous high profile figures are crying a call to action to implement carbon reduction plans now. Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman William Russell, stated at the Annual Lord Mayor Gresham Lecture early in 2021: “Climate change is a bigger threat to the world than COVID-19.” He called on the financial and professional services sector to take urgent action to tackle climate change and ensure sustainability is at the heart of every financial decision. More →

November 18, 2021

EDGE delivers iconic Valley development to RJB Group of Companies

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Workplace design

EDGE is proud to announce the successful delivery of its eye-catching 75,000 sq m mixed-use development Valley, designed by MVRDV, to owner RJB Group of Companies. EDGE has won the tender in 2015 and started construction in 2017 with the ambitious goal to bring a new dynamism to Amsterdam’s Zuidas. More →

November 17, 2021

‘A New Space Race’ to transform infrastructure

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News, Technology

A new research report released by Siemens Smart Infrastructure, titled ‘A New Space Race,’ has highlighted the increasingly urgent need to transform global infrastructure to focus on adaptability, resiliency and decarbonisation. Data from the report claims infrastructure leaders worldwide recognise the need for digitalisation to tackle challenges in energy systems and the built environment. More →

November 17, 2021

Five million UK employees considering ditching home-working due to rising energy bills

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Working lives

Despite having to get up earlier, commute, and the heightened risk of Covid-19 transmission in the office, almost five million UK employees are considering ditching working from home this winter, due to concerns around rising energy costs. More →

November 17, 2021

Post-pandemic surge in demand for sustainable business travel

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

New research from Trainline Partner Solutions (TPS) claims Covid-19 will usher in a new era of sustainable business travel. The vast majority of business travellers (75 percent) want to reduce their reliance on air travel for business because of the impact it has on the environment. More →

November 16, 2021

Powell Software launches Together to allow SMEs to connect and collaborate with ease

by Freddie Steele • Company news

As SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) grapple with a myriad of challenges to keep their companies running successfully, Powell Software introduces Together, the small business intranet accessible from Microsoft Teams that helps meet their productivity, communication and collaboration needs. More →

November 15, 2021

Smart cities infrastructure investment to top US$375 billion in 2030

by Neil Franklin • Cities, News, Technology

According to technology intelligence firm ABI Research, investments in urban infrastructure aimed at implementing new visions for smart cities will reach US$375 billion by 2030 as cities invest in brownfield and greenfield projects. Drivers behind urban innovation are numerous but both the digitalisation of lifestyles, accelerated by Covid-19, and the increasingly pressing need to address climate change are powerful engines for metropolitan transformation. Additional agents of change include the call for more equity and inclusiveness, scalable economic development, and more affordable living. More →

November 15, 2021

Upmo – the new easy-to-use platform for seekers of office space

by Freddie Steele • Company news

The brains behind Upmo are two of the equity partners at Devono – the UK’s leading commercial occupier-only advisory practice. Described by Forbes in 2015 as disrupters of the status-quo, Luke Philpott and Robert Leigh have once again come together, with the addition of technologist Alastair Bishop, to found Upmo. More →