News Archives | Page 17 of 18

Glass blocks could soon see buildings generating their own power

September 8, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

According to the energy harvesting journal, renewable energy experts from the University of Exeter are developing a pioneering new technique using glass blocks that could accelerate the widespread introduction of net-zero energy buildings through the latest Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV).

Simply put, they have created an innovative glass block that can be incorporated into a building and by turning the suns energy into electricity without the use of solar panels, can generate electricity.

It is thought that buildings consume more than forty percent of the electricity produced across the globe. This new technology would allow electricity to be produced at the site of use, whilst being seamlessly integrated into the building.

The blocks, called Solar Squared, are designed to fit seamlessly into either new buildings, or as part of renovations in existing properties. They are similar to existing glass blocks by allowing daylight to resonate around a property by replacing traditional bricks and mortar with transparent glass bricks. Crucially, however, the Solar Squared blocks have intelligent optics that focus the incoming solar radiation onto small solar cells, enhancing the overall energy generated by each solar cell. The electricity generated will then be available to power the building, be stored or used to charge electric vehicles.

Dr Hasan Baig, founder of Build Solar and Research Fellow from the University of Exeter’s Environment and Sustainability Institute said: “BIPV is a growing industry with a 16% annual growth rate. Setting up a company, which can cater to this growing market shall prove beneficial for the UK economy in the long term.We are aiming to build integrated, affordable, efficient and attractive solar technologies, which have the smallest impact on the local landscape. It’s an exciting venture and one that should capture the imagination of the construction industry, when looking to develop new office blocks and public buildings or infrastructure projects such as train stations and carparks,” said Professor Tapas Mallick, chief scientific advisor for Build Solar.

They hope that the blocks will be cheaper than conventional glass blocks, and can be easily used in conjunction with traditional building materials.

According to Solar Squared, they aim to build integrated, affordable, efficient, and attractive solar technologies as part of the building’s architecture, in places where energy demand is highest, whilst having minimal impact on the landscape and on quality of life. They are at present actively seeking sites to demonstrate their technology.

To read more about solar squared please go here

Source: Energy Harvesting Journal

Storing credentials in your helmet!

August 30, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

A Croydon civil engineering contractor have developed a pioneering new hard hat which contains their qualifications and credentials.

Scanning the QR (quick response) code with a smart phone gives access to personnel files with proof of identity, training history, medical details and emergency next-of-kin contract details.

Civil engineering and utilities specialist Blu-3 (UK) believes that the quick response (QR) code-based identification system, developed with Olive Media, improves site safety.

Access to data is restricted to those who have downloaded the bespoke Blu-3 app, but those with the app can access a company-wide database of employees and subcontractors.

Sarah Persad of Blu-3, who has led the development of the system, said: “This really is a breakthrough solution for ensuring staff are appropriately trained and certified for the roles they carry out on a site. Previously, if an employee was observed carrying out hot works one day and then driving a forward tipping dumper the following, the observer (potentially a client or site manager) could only assume that he or she had the appropriate training for both roles. They can now simply scan the worker’s hat and check that the appropriate training and accreditations are in place, resulting in real time, quick and easy competence checks.”

She added: “The beauty of the system is that the complete training record of a worker is held alongside their medical and emergency contact details, which is in full compliance with current data protection requirements. This system enables us to ensure that our ‘boots on the ground’ are competent to do the task and we know exactly who is on site, which is particularly critical in today’s security conscious environment.”

Preconstruction director Lee Lawrence added: “The training identification system stores records of an employee’s training history from CSCS and First Aider to Asbestos Awareness, Confined Space Training and PPE Awareness.
“We are continuing to develop the system adding more capability to support managers and supervisors on site and will be rolling the app out across its sites in the UK and Europe. We’re excited by the potential of the technology and know that it increases a contractor’s ability to manage its workers and maximise its health and safety awareness – a key must for all responsible companies.”

Source: The Construction Index

New builds could now become part of ‘healthy towns’

August 23, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

NHS England is proposing 10 new healthy towns, with 76,00 new homes, where residents can win cinema tickets, low cost gym membership and money off their shopping bills if they hit their exercise targets, under plans by the NHS to promote healthy living.

Bikes, running tracks on pavements and community gyms could also become perks of a house sale to encourage residents to become more active.

Citiesmode, an urban planning company who have beat stiff competition to begin designing one of the towns in Runcorn, are offering an urban obstacle course linking public gym equipment and sprinting tracks as well as free bikes, a community kitchen and universal wifi to help access healthy apps and virtual access to GP services.

Simon Stevens, NHS England Chief Executive said that “the much-needed push to kick-start affordable housing across England creates a golden opportunity for the NHS to help promote health and keep people independent.

As these new neighbourhoods and towns are built, we’ll kick ourselves if in ten years time we look back having missed the opportunity to ‘design out’ the obesogenic environment, and ‘design in’ health and wellbeing.

We want children to have places where they want to play with friends and can safely walk or cycle to school – rather than just exercising their fingers on video games.

We want to see neighbourhoods and adaptable home designs that make it easier for older people to continue to live independently wherever possible.

And we want new ways of providing new types of digitally-enabled local health services that share physical infrastructure and staff with schools and community groups.”

The first 10 sites have now been chosen and are:

Whitehill and Bordon, Hampshire – 3,350 new homes on a former army barracks. A new care campus will co-locate ‘care-ready homes’ specially designed to be adaptable to the needs of people with long term conditions with a nurse-led treatment centre, pharmacy and integrated care hub.

Cranbrook, Devon – 8,000 new residential units. Data suggests that Cranbrook has three times the national average of 0-4 year olds and will look at how prevention and healthy lifestyles can be taught in schools from a young age.

Darlington – 2,500 residential units across three linked sites in the Eastern Growth Zone. Darlington is developing a ‘virtual care home’ offer where a group of homes with shared facilities are configured to link directly into a digital care hub, avoiding institutionalisation in nursing homes.

Barking Riverside – 10,800 residential units on London’s largest brownfield site.

Whyndyke Farm in Fylde, Lancashire – 1,400 residential units.

Halton Lea, Runcorn – 800 residential units.

Bicester, Oxon – 393 houses in the Elmsbrook project, part of 1300 new homes planned.

Northstowe, Cambridgeshire – 10,000 homes on former military land.

Ebbsfleet Garden City, Kent – up to 15,000 new homes in the first garden city for 100 years.

Barton Park, Oxford – 885 residential units.

According to the NHS, options to be tested at some of these sites include fast food-free zones near schools, designing safe and appealing green spaces, building dementia-friendly streets and ensuring people can access new GP services using digital technology. The developments will reflect the needs of their local populations when working up their plans. Design questions being asked include: Why are children happy to walk all day round a theme park but often get bored on every-day journeys? Could adventure areas be designed into streets to encourage walking and play? And for the aging population, how far away are we from a town where more older people live independently and safely in their own home, backed by better technology and social support?

The key facts presented by the NHS include:

Britain loses over 130 million working days to ill-health each year.

19% of children aged 10-11 were obese and a further 14 per cent were overweight in 2014/15. The figures for 4-5 year olds were 9% obese and 13% overweight. In other words, the proportion of children who are obese doubles during primary school – from one in ten five year olds, to one in five eleven year olds.

Today only 21% of children play outdoors, compared to 71% of their parents when they were children, Design Council figures show.

A Design Council guide also estimates that a quarter of British adults now walk for less than nine minutes a day.

Physical inactivity is a direct factor in 1 in 6 deaths, and has an overall economic impact of £7.4 billion.

The Building Research Establishment has published a report on the cost of poor quality housing to the NHS. It estimates that the 3.5m homes in England that have serious hazards such as damp and pests has led to health problems that cost the NHS at least £1.4bn every year.

Professor Kevin Fenton from Public Health England stated that “Some of the UK’s most pressing health challenges – such as obesity, mental health issues, physical inactivity and the needs of an ageing population – can all be influenced by the quality of our built and natural environment.

The considerate design of spaces and places is critical to promote good health. This innovative programme will inform our thinking and planning of everyday environments to improve health for generations to come.”

Can construction lead the way in closing the gender pay gap?

August 16, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

According to a new survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) nearly half of construction workers predict the pay gap between male and female employees will be less than 15% by April 2018.

With the national average pay gap recorded at 18.1% in 2016, today’s findings suggest the construction sector could lead the way in closing the gap, if the employees’ predictions are correct. Indeed, more than one in ten respondents (12%) think that there will be no gender pay gap at all by April 2018, which marks the end of the UK Government’s mandatory gender pay reporting period. However, this positive sentiment is markedly absent in the nation’s capital, with Londoners in the construction sector predicting an average pay gap of 21%.

Sean Tompkins, RICS Chief Executive Officer says that although it’s great to see the sector expects the gender pay gap to be lower than the national average, today’s findings highlight that achieving gender equality in the construction sector requires significant commitment from organisations.

Encouragingly, there is a collective agreement from over a third of both men and women across the industry that companies are not doing enough to attract females into the sector. The findings reveal that it is primarily the responsibility of individual organisations, to invest in schemes and nuture more inclusive cultures that support women to hold more senior roles in the construction industry.

People often tackle diversity from the perspective that it is an issue to be addressed. RICS believes it should be approached from the other way round; diversity and an inclusive culture where you feel entirely comfortable being yourself in the workplace. This must be embedded as part of your business strategy and DNA because you simply cannot afford to not have a diverse workforce today and for the future. Increasingly, clients will expect it and to win the war for talent, you will need a diversity of visible role models.

In addition to tackling gender stereotyping and investing in training to upskill female colleagues, our findings confirm that flexible working is key, with over a third of women identifying more flexible hours as a means to encourage them to stay in the sector. RICS’s Inclusion and Diversity conference last month focused on the importance of building a diverse workforce and some of the steps that businesses can take. We also set up the RICS Inclusive Employer Quality Mark (IEQM) to set an example to organisations within our industry and have already seen 150 organisations sign up and learn from each other since its launch in June 2015.

Leasehold ban for new builds

August 7, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

The government this week announced plans to ban leasehold on future new-build homes, and cut ground rents on new flats to as low as zero. Flats can be continued to be sold as leasehold, but ground rents will be restricted.

New legislation will close legal loopholes to protect buyers, some of whom have faced repossession orders after failing to keep up with the ground rent. The government will also change the rules on help-to-buy equity loans so that the scheme “can only be used to support new build houses on acceptable terms”.

Traditionally, houses have been sold as freehold, and the buyer has complete control over their property. When a house is sold as leasehold, the buyer is effectively only a tenant with a very long term rental, with the ground the home is built on remaining in the hands of the freeholder. The home buyer has to pay an annual “ground rent” to the freeholder, and has to ask the freeholder for consent if they want to make any changes to the property, such as building a conservatory or changing the windows. Ground rents can double every decade, crippling home owners and in some cases making a property impossible to sell.

About 21% of private housing in England is owned by leaseholders, with 30% of those properties houses rather than flats, according to figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government. A recent government report also found that 4million private homes in England, or one in five, are leasehold.

The proposals are subject to an 8 week consultation.

A human free construction site?

July 28, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

In a recently published paper entitled Innovation 2050 – A digital Future for the Infrastructure Industry – Balfour Beatty have predicted that the construction site of 2050 will be human-free.

Robots will work in teams to build complex structures using dynamic new materials. Elements of the build will self-assemble. Drones flying overhead will scan the site constantly, inspecting the work and using the data collected to predict and solve problems before they arise, sending instructions to robotic cranes and diggers and automated builders with no need for human involvement. The role of the human overseer will be to remotely manage multiple projects simultaneously, accessing 3D and 4D visuals and data from the on-site machines, ensuring the build is proceeding to specification. The very few people accessing the site itself will wear robotically enhanced exoskeletons and will use neural-control technology to move and control machinery and other robots on site.

They also noted 10 predictions for 2050:

1. The industry will become increasingly focused on innovation and both contractors and customers will become less risk-averse.

2. The shape and offer of the infrastructure industry will change significantly, with new business models, products and services.

3. Infrastructure will move on from concrete and steel to include new materials which respond to their surroundings.

4. New jobs and industries will be created – and some will disappear, especially low or zero skill roles and those relying on repetition of tasks.

5. Thinking only about design and construction will become an outdated concept as infrastructure becomes multi-functional.

6. Robots will become more prevalent in construction.

7. Construction will get faster, using 3D and 4D printing, and self-transforming objects which self-assemble.

8. New, disruptive ideas will emerge, for making mass transit faster, safer and less damaging to the environment.

9. We will increasingly use wearable technology such as exoskeletons.

10. Direct neural control over devices and vehicles will be accessible to the industry.

They continue by stating that the infrastructure and construction industry is at a crossroads. It faces a number of existing and emerging challenges. By contrast with other industries, which have successfully harnessed technological advances to improve and reshape their products and services, the infrastructure sector has not yet embraced the full potential of the latest techniques and tools. Indeed, it remains surprisingly low-tech, with relatively low levels of automation. Meanwhile, productivity in the global infrastructure sector is among the worst of any industry, having remained static at 1% for the past 20 years. Profit margins are often wafer thin, and the industry is facing a critical skills shortage in many countries, due in part to its ‘old-fashioned’ image.

They conclude that no one knows for certain where the Digital Revolution will take us, but it holds massive potential to transform both the industry and the built environment. The infrastructure and construction industry has not yet seen the same rate of transformation as some other industries, but that is beginning to change – and the change will be both significant and unstoppable. “Big data” will facilitate more evidence-based decisions and a better understanding of the customer, while technologies currently in their infancy will mature and new technologies will enable us to deliver faster, better and safer. The rapid pace of digital change is only set to increase. It will redefine infrastructure and construction and the industry will need to anticipate that change and adapt quickly, becoming more innovative and less risk-averse, in response. We must be ready to embrace new technologies, new business models, and new possibilities and ideas as they emerge. But we must be prepared to balance the benefits with the risks.

They also believe that the infrastructure industry must modernise in order to secure its own future. Those companies at the forefront of the digital revolution, which integrate new technologies most effectively, updating their business capabilities and their offer, will reap the biggest rewards.

A copy of the full report can be seen here

Its well worth a read!

Construction activity shifts across the UK

July 21, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

According to a report by industry analysts Barbour ABI and the Construction Products Association, construction hotspots and coldspots have been identified by regional activity and a forward looking indication of growth by region and sector. These hot spots and cold spots seek to identify regions where contract awards in 2016 were significantly above or below previous years, which highlights pockets of activity of contraction in construction over the near term horizon.

The report states that there are clear hotspots for upcoming construction activity over the next 6-12 months in Great Britain. There is only one broad hotspot in this year’s report – Birmingham – where contract awards in each of the three main construction sectors of residential, commercial and infrastructure restricted to a single construction sector, but spread across the regions of Great Britain.

Analysis has been expanded in the 2017 edition of Regional Construction Hotspots to cover coldspots. Coldspots are clustered in the residential sector, with this weakness replicated across the country as contract awards values fell from the highs registered in 2015 and below long-term averages . In the South East and Yorkshire & Humber and the East Midlands, one-third of sub-regions were residential coldspots. London was the sole region where there were no residential coldspots, with contract awards for large developments keeping values relatively unchanged from 2014 and 2015.

In past years, London dominated the ‘hotspot’ pockets of construction activity, however the report for 2016 indicates a spread across Great Britain, with London only holding six of the 61 hotspots. Scotland was the leading region with nine hotspots after doubling its contracts awarded value for infrastructure to £3.8 billion.

The South East region accounts for 15.0% of total UK GVA (Construction gross value added) Key sectors of economic activity in the region are distribution and transport, information and communications, real estate activities, business services and public administration. Construction accounted for 6.3% of regional GVA in 2015 and declined 1.5% in that year. The value of contract awarded in the region totalled £8.6 billion in 2016, a decrease of 15.8% from the previous year. In terms of overall contract awards, hotspots were in East Kent, Mid Kent, Milton Keynes and North Hampshire.

Commenting on the figures, Michael Dall, Lead Economist at Barbour ABI, said: “The Government is focused on raising the levels of major infrastructure projects, in particular public sector schemes such as offshore wind farms, energy plants and motorway upgrades have considerably boosted construction value in more rural regions”.

A copy of the report can be seen here

A sharp decline in construction inspections isn’t good news

July 14, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

According to Unite, the UKs principal construction union, there has been a large drop in the number of construction inspections carried out. Unite is seeking urgent meetings with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after asking for a freedom of information act. (FOI)

The FOI response from the HSE revealed that the number of unannounced inspections occurring in the construction industry fell by 14 per cent in just 12 months. In 2015/16 there were 9,219 inspections and this reduced to 7,912 in 2016/17. The reduction in inspections follows a trend as there was also a 4 per cent decrease in the previous 12 months.

Unite continue by explaining that construction is the most dangerous industry in the UK. Several academic studies have revealed a clear correlation between the frequency of inspections and compliance with safety laws.

Since receiving the FOI response Unite has written to the HSE and David Gauke the new work and pensions secretary, seeking meetings. Unite are seeking information from Mr Gauke about the government’s future plans for the HSE and safety laws. The HSE’s funding is set to be cut by 46 per cent, compared to what the organisation received in 2010, by 2020. Successive Conservative governments have scrapped safety laws and there are concerns this could increase as part of the Brexit process.

Unite are seeking a meeting with the HSE to ascertain exactly what caused the latest decrease in construction inspections and what strategies are being put in place to reverse the trend.

The regional breakdown also revealed marked differences in inspection activity with just one region recording an increase in the past 12 months. The figures were as follows, Eastern -22 per cent, East Midlands -26 per cent, London -14 per cent, North East -39 per cent, North West -5 per cent, Scotland +9 per cent, South East -8 per cent, South West -32 per cent, Wales -15 per cent, West Midlands -13 per cent, Yorkshire -4 per cent.

Unite assistant general secretary Gail Cartmail, said: “These figures are alarming as they demonstrate a huge decrease in vital lifesaving inspections. Sadly there remain far too many employers who are all too willing to cut safety regulations and it is only the genuine prospect of an unannounced inspection which keeps them in check.

Accidents on building sites are not that rare of an occurrence, and sometimes this simply could be because of human error. Inspections give piece of mind to both workers and contractors, and the more inspections there are the safer our building sites. Health and safety are of paramount importance, and cutting corners will only lead to more accidents and ultimately deaths.

We look forward to finding out what Unite manage to glean from the HSA.

What is a smart building?

July 10, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

Fundamentally, Smart buildings strive to maintain the lowest costs whilst being the most productive and having the lowest environmental impact. Important building operations in smart builds include ventilation, heating, air conditioning, lighting and security. The building uses sensors to collect data and manage it accordingly, therefore reducing energy use and optimising the space.

Navigant research estimates that the smart building technology market will generate global revenue of $8.5 billion in 2020, up from $4.7 billion in 2016, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 15.9% over the forecast period.

Smart building technology is expected to grow by 34 percent annually over the next five years, with a prediction of reaching a total market value of nearly $25 billion by the year 2021.

Energy savings and sustainability are the main benefits. Reducing energy costs, increasing productivity of staff and improving building operations are also important.

If a building is not performing to its design standard, this means a smart building should be able to gather information as to why, and adapt accordingly. Interconnected technologies make the building more responsive and ultimately improve its performance.

The fundamentals on construction have not changed significantly for many years. Concrete, timber, glass and brick are still the materials of choice for most contractors. Construction is continually criticised for not being innovative or inventive enough, and advances in other industries have outstripped it. These relatively new technologies could bring about real change.

However, there is a downside. Soon smart buildings and structures will become so automated, they’ll be able to diagnose and make structural and system repairs on their own without the need for humans.

There are always risks with new technology. The advantages are obvious, but there could be additional risks related to cost, delays and materials. The smart building gold standard is moving faster than conventional construction, and the ability to keep up remains to be seen. Its an exciting period on construction, and one that is becoming ever more important in the society that we live in. Going green as much as possible and reducing the carbon footprint as we discussed last month are construction buzz words that investors and designers are interested in.

For further information on smart buildings, The Crystal in London is a great example.

2017 UK Construction Week is launched

June 27, 2017/0 Comments/in Home Page news feed, News /by joannevickers

Billed as the largest gathering of the UK’s built environment community, UK Construction Week will make its return to Birmingham NEC from the 10th – 12th October 2017. It is free to attend for trade visitors and consists of 9 shows: Build Show, Timber Expo, Civils Expo, Plant & Machinery Live, Energy 2017, Smart Buildings 2017, Surface & Materials Show (featuring Kitchens & Bathrooms Live), HVAC 2017 and Grand Designs Live.

The main stage speakers and seminars include welcomes and introductions from George Clark (Restoration Man), Steph McGovern (BBC Breakfast Business Presenter) and Tom Dyckhoff (broadcaster and historian on architecture, design and cities)

Offsite Construction will be a major theme this year. The industry has embraced the latest technologies that have enabled us to build quicker, more efficiently and at a quality not achievable before. One of the main aims of the event is to showcase innovation in the industry, and to that end the Innovation Trail will show visitors the latest products which are paving a new way of building that hasn’t been seen before.

There will also be some new, specialist awards granted which include Low Carbon Vehicles Awards, BIM Awards, Offsite Awards and the WAN Transport, Concrete in Architecture and Adaptive Reuse Awards. The UK’s best companies in the industry will also be recognised at the Construction Enquirer Awards on the opening night of the show.

Evening entertainment will include a casino night, dodgeball tournament and the popular Beer and Ale festival. The Beer Festival was a big hit with exhibitors and clients in 2016. With over 30 beers on offer and a selection of hot food available, live music and entertainment this area will be the perfect way to unwind after a busy day and a chance to network with clients and colleagues. The Beer festival will be at full capacity both nights and open all day and promises to be the centre of festivities at UK Construction Week.

Nathan Garnett, event director at Media 10, which runs the show, said: “The UK’s construction industry is more topical than ever. Not only is it at the forefront of political debate and public opinion, it’s also clear that we’re moving towards a new age of innovation and change with topics such as off-site construction, modular and BIM driving so many conversations. This will be our biggest event to date, and we’re looking forward to bringing the industry together to debate, learn and do business, as well as showcase a diverse range of products and services.” UK Construction Week 2017 says it will deliver its ‘most comprehensive and diverse’ show to date with support from associations including The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB), Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), Construction Products Association (CPA) and Builders Merchants Federation (BMF).

For more information please visit the UK construction week website here.