Search Results for: sustainability

March 15, 2023

Office market continues to fail on environmental standards …. say landlords

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News, Property

A new survey that explores the state of sustainability within the UK office market, jointly commissioned by infinitSpace and The Instant Group, claims that the office market is falling behind on environmental policies. The poll of 250 landlords suggests that almost half (47 percent) of landlords believe the office market is lagging behind other areas of the property sector in implementing/adopting environmental policies. The same number say they can’t ‘go it alone’ with 47 percent of landlords agreeing they need help in shaping environmental policies. At the same time, 84 percent of landlords report a vacancy rate of 30 percent and above as average among their office building portfolio. (more…)

March 2, 2023

Best of NeoCon 2023 awards submissions are now open

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Events

The organisers of NeoCon have announced that the submissions portal for the 2023 edition of the Best of NeoCon competition is now open. A NeoCon tradition since 1990, the competition garners hundreds of product entries each year as exhibitors vie for one of the Best of NeoCon awards. Now in its 33rd year, the program will recognise the best new products in 56 categories spanning a range of verticals including workplace, healthcare, hospitality, and education sectors. New for 2023, entries will be considered for a Business Impact Award, in addition to honours for Gold, Silver, Innovation, Sustainability, and the Best of Competition. (more…)

February 22, 2023

FUTURE Designs to showcase carbon careful at Workspace Design Show

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Environment, Lighting

FUTURE Designs will highlight the Carbon Careful Initiative during the upcoming Workspace Design Show, demonstrating its expertise and commitment to the refurbishment and reuse of existing luminaire carcasses to increase the sustainability of commercial premises. Find out more about the FUTURE Designs Carbon Careful Initiative at stand GB45 at the Workspace Design Show 27-28th February at the Business Design Centre, Islington, London. (more…)

February 21, 2023

What to expect at next week’s Workspace Design Show

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Events

With only a few days until The Workspace Design Show returns to London’s Business Design Centre, on 27-28 February 2023, here is a taste of what to expect. The show brings together striking features, a thought-provoking programme of talks featuring a whole host of speakers, from developers to architects and their blue-chip clients, along with accomplished exhibitors showcasing the latest workplace interiors innovations. All of this incredible content aligns perfectly with the show’s theme, Destination Workplace: Places Where People Want To Be. (more…)

February 20, 2023

Unlocking the digital frontier: hiring the next generation of tech talent

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Workplace

Any business that is looking to grow its consumer base or expand into new markets is likely to be relying on digital technology to a greater extent than ever before both in their operations and management. This also means that the world of employment, both for workers and enterprises, is necessarily evolving too. An inevitable consequence of this evolution has been that those for whom technology has been an essential part of their life and education — so-called digital natives — are in growing demand. (more…)

February 17, 2023

BCO specification guide updated to reflect demand for flexible, green, healthier offices

by Neil Franklin • News, Property, Workplace design

Responding to what it claims are challenges emerging from the pandemic and the accelerating need for the built environment to respond to climate change, the British Council for Offices (BCO) has released an early update to its Guide to Specification, which provides expert advice on how designers can create healthier offices that support changing working patterns, while reducing carbon emissions.

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February 15, 2023

Workspace Design Show returns (and so do we)

by Mick Jordan • Events, Features, Flooring, Furniture, Lighting, Workplace design

A few of you may already know this story. It was some 15 months ago and three old friends met up for the first time in quite a while (well, we had been through lockdowns etc). Having caught up with each other’s news, the subject turned to industry journals, what the three friends felt the market was missing and the possibility of collaborating in the not too distant future. That conversation occurred at the inaugural Workspace Design Show – which the three amigos were all hugely impressed by. The result of that conversation (and a few more chats and meets, of course) is Works. So, here we are, all those months later, pulling together a preview of the 2023 edition of WDS, which – we’re delighted to say – we’re very much a part of. And we don’t just partner with any one, you know. (more…)

February 9, 2023

Firms struggle to get a grip on people data despite workplace challenges

by Jayne Smith • News, Technology, Workplace

A new CIPD survey of business leaders claims there is a significant mismatch between the scale of the challenge that workplace issues currently pose to businesses and how often workforce issues and people data are discussed by senior leaders. In response, the CIPD is warning that organisations are unlikely to perform well in the long term unless decisions taken at a board and executive management level are informed by an in-depth and evidence-based understanding of the value and risk their workforce poses. (more…)

February 7, 2023

Evening Standard SME XPO celebrates new, small and growing businesses

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Events

Building on the success of its launch event, the Evening Standard’s SME XPO 25-26 April 2023 at ExCeL London, once again invites founders, entrepreneurs and business leaders to attend an action-filled two-day programme and exhibition connecting the scaleup community, a vital part of the UK economy. SME XPO has established itself as the UK’s leading event dedicated entirely to ambitious SME founders and decision-makers who are looking to scaleup. The event will appeal to a wide variety of industries from micro businesses to medium and large SMEs, welcoming 4000+ owners, showcasing over 60+ speakers. (more…)

February 6, 2023

New book aims to build connections in the building briefing process

by Freddie Steele • Architecture, Company news

Mies van der Rohe once said: “An architect of ability should be able to tell a client what he wants. Most of the time a client never knows what he wants.” Not many clients will agree with these patronising words—nor, for that matter, will many architects. Yet, there is some truth in Mies’s statement in the sense that construction clients often have difficulty expressing what they want. To help solve this conundrum in a new era, Juriaan van Meel and Kjersti Bjørkeng Størdal have published their new book Construction briefing: a practical guide. (more…)

January 26, 2023

The business case for the retrofit of existing buildings keeps getting stronger

by Paul Johnstone • Environment, Facilities management, Features, Property

The news last year that the M&S flagship Orchard House store on Oxford Street in London was to be demolished to make way for a new mixed-use development of shops, offices, restaurants and a gym sparked a very British sort of debate about the pros and cons of retrofit and refurbishment. This is M&S after all. It may not be the cultural touchstone it once was but it remains an institution. But the debate was also about some things you might expect right now, including the ongoing deterioration of Oxford Street, the loss of a landmark building (and an art deco one at that) and the suitability of the ten-storey, mixed-use development that was to replace it. (more…)

January 25, 2023

Firms failing to embed net zero into operations

by Jayne Smith • Environment, News

A survey [registration] of 300 managers at organisations in industrial sectors across the U.K., U.S. and Germany by ESG consulting firm Sphera, claims that while 85 percent of companies now have net zero strategies, the majority are failing to incorporate them into daily business operations. Only 41 percent of operations managers have seen sustainability strategies produce significant changes in daily practices, and 32 percent say their firms do not align with science-based emissions targets. (more…)