Search Results for: construction

BIM adoption in UK rises as awareness of competitive advantage grows

BIM adoption in UK rises as awareness of competitive advantage grows70 per cent of those using Building Information Management believe it has given them a competitive advantage and (at 95%) awareness of BIM is now almost universal. According to the fourth annual NBS National BIM Survey, adoption rates are accelerating with more than half of respondents (54%) using it and 93 per cent predicting adoption by 2016, the Government’s deadline for BIM use on publicly funded projects. Improvements in productivity, increased efficiencies, better coordination of construction information and higher profitability are among the benefits cited by adopters of BIM, with a mere 4 per cent wishing they hadn’t begun the journey. The construction industry feels more confident in its own knowledge of BIM (up from 35% in 2012 to 46% in 2013), there is still scepticism regarding the wealth of information on the subject, with only 27 per cent of respondents saying they “trusted what they hear about BIM”. More →

UK unemployment down & wages up, but regional differences widen

Mind the gapUnemployment dropped below 7 per cent for the first time since the recession, according to figures published yesterday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Jobless figures fell by 77,000 to 2.24 million in the three months to February 2014, taking the unemployment rate to 6.9 per cent for the first time since 2009. The figures also show a small growth in regular weekly pay, which, excluding bonuses was up by 1.4 per cent on the year. However, the recovery appears to remain regionally unbalanced, with London and the Greater South East powering ahead of the rest of the country. Said Ian Brinkley, chief economist at The Work Foundation: “Employment levels in the North East are lower today than they were at the end of the recession, measured by the workforce jobs indicator. Gaps in regional employment performance are also widening rather than narrowing.” More →

New BIM guidance published for operational phase of a building

Fresh BIM guidance publishedGuidance on the use of BIM (Building Information Modelling) in the operational phase of a building has been issued by the business standards Institution (BSI). PAS 1192-3, Specification for information management for the operational phase of assets using building information modelling (BIM) is a companion document to PAS 1192-2, which specified an information management process to support building information modelling (BIM) Level 2 in the capital/delivery phase of projects. In contrast, PAS 1192-3 focuses on the operational phase of assets irrespective of whether these were commissioned, acquired through transfer of ownership or are part of an existing asset portfolio. The new specification recognizes that the cost of operating and maintaining buildings and facilities can represent up to 85 per cent of the whole-life cost and savings can pay back any upfront premium in construction expenses in a few years. More →

Database of green buildings to help designers reduce carbon emissions

Carbon-database

The first free and publicly available resource for building professionals to access detailed comparative data on carbon in buildings has been launched today. Commissioned by resource efficiency experts WRAP in collaboration with the UK Green Building Council; the Embodied Carbon Database will allow building professionals to benchmark their designs to a far greater extent and help assist them in identifying where carbon reductions can be made. The database has been created in the context of the joint government and industry ambition to reduce emissions associated with the construction industry by 50 per cent by 2025. It’s intended to help organisations meet this ambition by providing a source of data which people from across the whole supply chain, including engineers, architects and quantity surveyors, can use it to benchmark green building designs and as a result, assist in identifying where carbon reductions can be made.

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RICS’ operational headquarters to relocate to Coventry Friargate Development

Friargate CoventryThe Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has announced that it will be relocating its Coventry operational headquarters to a new building in the 37 acre sustainable, mixed-use Friargate development in the city. From 2017, RICS plans to lease 36,000 sq. ft. of space in the second building on the site, adjacent to Coventry railway station. The district will showcase cutting edge low carbon building design and regeneration policies by using local businesses throughout the construction phase to provide improved public transport links, affordable housing and public parks. RICS claims that ‘through a connection to an ultra-efficient combined heat and power generator, Friargate will be at the forefront of sustainable commercial accommodation, reducing both RICS’ carbon footprint and operating costs and offering RICS employees a much better work environment and surrounding area than they currently have.’

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BCO report claims to reveal link between green offices and business performance

Switch

A new report from the British Council for Offices claims that building owners could enjoy significant savings in their operating costs of up to £50 per square metre as well as improved staff productivity  and wellbeing by investing in environmentally friendly offices and work practices. The research, Improving the Environmental Performance of Offices claims to illustrate the benefits of energy efficient offices and highlight the positive impact they can have on employee productivity. The report calls on building occupiers to focus on key areas such as benchmarking and monitoring their energy usage. The BCO believes there is already a shift in attitudes towards a greater understanding of how offices actually perform environmentally rather than simply how they are designed and that more and more businesses are waking up to specific issues such as how much energy their buildings use outside of office hours. More →

Nine essays from UK-GBC on transforming the built environment

Leaders_newsThe UK Green Building Council has published its annual collection of essays from its prestigious Leaders’ Network. The nine essays, entitled A defining decade – radically transforming the built environment by 2025, reflect upon the Government’s industrial strategy Construction 2025 and its vision for the UK’s built environment over the next 10 years. It includes contributions from Nicholas Pollard of Balfour Beatty, Bill Hughes of Legal & General Property, Paul Hinkin of Black Architecture and Climate Change Capital’s James Cameron. In his foreword, UK-GBC Chief Executive Paul King writes: “The essays included in this year’s collection come from a hugely influential and diverse group of leaders from across the built environment who all share a sense of the scale of the challenges ahead.” To view the essays click here.

UK Government urged to push ahead with zero carbon commercial buildings

light bulb turbine croppedThe UK’s Green Building Council has fired off its latest salvo in an ongoing battle with the Government over the implementation of environmental legislation for commercial buildings. A new report from the organisation’s Task Group urges the Government to push ahead with plans to ensure that by 2019 all new non domestic buildings will be built to zero carbon standards. The report claims that the implementation of appropriate regulations is hampered by a lack of clarity, including confusion over what zero carbon actually means as well as the government’s own stop-start  approach to the environment. The current 2019 commitment to zero carbon buildings falls a year ahead of the deadline specified in European Law, but a recent focus from the coalition on reducing relevant legislation has added to confusion about the overall approach.

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City of London grants planning permission for ‘Gotham City’

Leadenhall1-MakePlanning permission has been granted from the City of London for a £12.7 billion scheme at 40 Leadenhall Street. The building – dubbed ‘Gotham City’ – is located beside the Gherkin at the heart of the City’s eastern cluster of tall buildings and will vary in height between 7 and 34 office storeys. It will feature two additional basement levels, a roof level plant (total height 170m AOD), a flexible retail/café and restaurant uses at ground floor level and café/restaurant with roof terrace overlooking Fenchurch Street.  The total size of the building is 910,000 sq ft, split between 890,000 sq ft office and c. 20,000 sq ft retail. As part of the design by Make architects; a grade II listed building at 19-21 Billiter Street, built in 1865, will be restored and integrated into the proposed scheme. More →

Employment is on the rise but pay not matching the rate of inflation

employmentThe latest labour market statistics shows employment has continued to rise, but at a slower rate than seen last month. However, at 67.2 per cent, record-breaking numbers of women are now in work, the highest since records began. The figures published today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show the employment rate in the three months to December 2013 rose to 72.1 per cent, lower than the previous three months and with just a small rise in total pay of 1.1 per cent. This slower pace of growth in employment and pay is reflected in the latest CIPD/ SuccessFactors quarterly Labour Market Outlook survey, which reveals that, although recruitment intentions remain positive, the rate of increase has slowed significantly and the vast majority of organisations expect to give pay awards below the current rate of inflation. More →

Latest issue of Insight now available to view online

 

General Motors Technical Center designed by Eero Saarinen in 1956

General Motors Technical Center designed by Eero Saarinen in 1956

In this week’s issue of Insight: we question why so many people still bother going to work given that the costs associated with it keep rising dramatically at a time when pay is standing still; Sara Bean reports from the Workplace Futures conference; we discover why so many construction industry leaders feel the UK Government will fail to meet one of its key targets for the uptake of BIM; Mark Eltringham applauds a Silicon Valley office that takes its design cues from the Jetsons and modernism (and not a slide to be seen); how Google Glass is making its mark at work; and we report on the BIFM’s latest attempts to carve out a more significant role with the launch of new professional standards.

Fin solution for Walkie Scorchie melting problem submitted by developers

CheesegrateretcThe 37-storey tower at 20 Fenchurch Street – dubbed the Walkie Scorchie last summer, after its sloped design was found to be melting cars in the area, will be fitted with a brise soleil shading system to stop it reflecting damaging sun rays reports the Construction Enquirer.  Joint development partners Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group have just submitted a planning application to the City of London to fit horizontal light diffusing aluminium fins from the third floor to the 34th floor on the south-facing façade. The fins have been designed by the building’s architect Rafael Vinoly Architects alongside solar glare experts Loisos + Ubbelohde. Once planning consent is granted, the refit project, expected to cost less than £10m, should take around six months to complete.