The testing capabilities of the British Board of Agrément (BBA) are set to be significantly expanded with the imminent arrival of some new kit. The BBA has invested in a bespoke environmental chamber that can sending temperatures up to 70°C and down to -20°C to put domestic and commercial wall
‘DECC may be no more but our energy commitments remain’ says EUA Published: 19 July, 2016 The Energy & Utilities Alliance (EUA) is calling for clarity and reassurance following the closure of the Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC). Prime Minister Theresa May closed the department under her first
New female ambassadors promote careers in industry Published: 09 May, 2016 Training charity JTL has welcomed three additional young women to its Ambassador programme, which aims to raise awareness of the opportunities that exist for young women in the HVAC industry. Hollie Heffer, Gina Mann and Sarah Dengate have joined
Indeglas has launched a new product. The new DEKO FG Nature is said to feature the latest in glazed screen partitioning technology. The interior glazing solutions specialists has created a new product that uses the latest technology and merges high performance and natural touch. The new DEKO FG Nature allows
The consultants Douglas Wheeler Associates and the architects Austin-Smith:Lord have been appointed to carry out heritage regeneration work in Penicuik. The two companies have been awarded the contract to carry out the regeneration work by Midlothian Council. The work proposed is significant, with the Council appointing Douglas Wheeler Associates and
Hussain Architectural Design Ltd a female led multi award winning Architectural Practice and Planning Consultancy based in Burnley, Blackburn, Manchester and London has won the Most Innovative Woman in Sustainable Design at the Build Magazine 2017 Sustainability awards. Saira Hussain founded Hussain Architectural Design in a small office in Burnley
Proposals to build a new public leisure centre in Egham in Surrey have been approved. The designs for the project were put forward by Watson Batty Architects and they have received full planning approval. The project has been valued at £19 million. Watson Batty Architects worked closely with their client,
The Service Design Fringe Festival in London are calling for entries to a new competition. Arts Thread will be hosting the Fringe Festival in London and are looking for graduate entrants in order to find the world’s best graduate 2017 projects. This competition is a great opportunity for recent graduates
The testing capabilities of the British Board of Agrément (BBA) are set to be significantly expanded with the imminent arrival of some new kit. The BBA has invested in a bespoke environmental chamber that can sending temperatures up to 70°C and down to -20°C to put domestic and commercial wall systems under one of the most onerous test conditions. Described as ‘super-sized and super-stringent’, the new test equipment challenges the performance of externally applied wall systems. Measuring 3 metres in width and 2.8 metres high, the chamber increases the BBA’s capacity to carry out a wide range of hygrothermal tests – thermal cycling with water spray – designed to simulate and accelerate the most extreme conditions a wall system can expect in service. The results can be used as part of a BBA Certification assessment or European Technical Assessment (ETA), leading to an estimate of durability on various externally applied wall systems including external wall insulation, render systems and prefabricated wall panels. The new chamber is currently being built and is expected to be commissioned before the end of June 2016. This article was published on 17 Jun 2016 (last updated on 17 Jun 2016). Source link
‘DECC may be no more but our energy commitments remain’ says EUA Published: 19 July, 2016 The Energy & Utilities Alliance (EUA) is calling for clarity and reassurance following the closure of the Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC). Prime Minister Theresa May closed the department under her first cabinet reshuffle and transferred its responsibilities to the newly named Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, under MP Greg Clark. “The announcement is distracting but we must stay focused,” said Isaac Occhipinti, head of external affairs at the Energy & Utilities Alliance (EUA). “We are disappointed that the DECC has been moved. At a time when industry is looking to the government for some certainty and continuity, this won’t help. However we recognise the links between energy and industrial strategy and so we are looking forward to working with Mr Clark and his new team on decarbonising UK heat and exploring how green gas can help us meet our 2050 climate targets. “I will be calling on the new Minister to clarify, as a matter of urgency, where they stand on existing policies such as ECO. Industry wants reassurance and soon. “Attention needs to be directed at decarbonising heat. All too often politicians use heat and power interchangeably and this needs to stop. The new department needs to embrace green gas as a means of decarbonising heat by utilising the existing grid to deliver low carbon heat to UK buildings with little disruption or expense. EUA will be closely monitoring the performance of the new department.” Source link
New female ambassadors promote careers in industry Published: 09 May, 2016 Training charity JTL has welcomed three additional young women to its Ambassador programme, which aims to raise awareness of the opportunities that exist for young women in the HVAC industry. Hollie Heffer, Gina Mann and Sarah Dengate have joined the group of women from across England and Wales, all undertaking an apprenticeship or already working in the building services engineering sector, to talk to other young women about the pleasures and pitfalls of their chosen careers. “Women are enormously under-represented in the sector – for example, currently less than 1% of new electrical apprentices in the UK are women. But our experience demonstrates very clearly that young females can – and do – achieve great things in this industry,” said JTL’s Ambassador scheme manager, Yasmin Damree-Ralph. “Our aim is, quite simply, to educate young women about the career opportunities that exist for them in building services. The best way for girls currently at school or college to hear our message is via other young women, so back in 2013 we brought together a fantastic group of intelligent and enthusiastic advocates to help us spread the word. “They do a truly fantastic job – speaking in schools, relating their experiences, answering questions, offering advice and dispelling the odd myth or two! What better way for our message to be relayed?” All from Kent, Hollie and Gina are both plumbing and heating apprentices, while Sarah is an electrical apprentice. The JTL Ambassadors can be contacted via JTL’s website or on Facebook. Source link
Indeglas has launched a new product. The new DEKO FG Nature is said to feature the latest in glazed screen partitioning technology. The interior glazing solutions specialists has created a new product that uses the latest technology and merges high performance and natural touch. The new DEKO FG Nature allows for the transfer of light and also offers customers a high degree of acoustic performance in order to blend well with the most up to date and state of the art interior design. The new glazing product is an expansion of the existing DEKO range. Indeglass has recently rebranded and as part of this change is now looking to develop their long term business relationship with DEKO of Denmark, the leading system manufacturing company. Indeglas first started operating as DEKO Scotland, but has recently been rebranded. Under its old name, the company has been operating for 17 years, before rebranding in June this year. The company was founded by Jeanette MacIntyre who is now the Managing Director. Jeanette has said that the new DEKO FG Nature is a great addition to the company’s product portfolio. The new DEKO FG Nature range is a development of the minimal design found in Indeglas’s more classic DEKO FG partition. The interior glazing solutions is available in a range of different thicknesses and is also easy to maintain. The partition is also fully demountable which means that the solutions is completely flexible to the client’s needs. The product ranges and services that are on offer with Indeglas allow architects and designers who are using them to focus on bringing natural light into the centre of a built environment. The glazing solutions allows for more aesthetically divided interior spaces. The use of natural light in built environments has also been found to be beneficial to occupants, whether the building is used for education, healthcare, the local government or anything in between.
The consultants Douglas Wheeler Associates and the architects Austin-Smith:Lord have been appointed to carry out heritage regeneration work in Penicuik. The two companies have been awarded the contract to carry out the regeneration work by Midlothian Council. The work proposed is significant, with the Council appointing Douglas Wheeler Associates and Austin-Smith:Lord to carry out heritage regeneration work to the entire town. The massive scheme of works has been made possible as the Heritage Lottery Fund has awarded a grant that will see the town centre given a new lease of life. The project will include the creation of a range of repair proposals that will restore a number of the old buildings in the town, work to improve the streets and possibly further work that will develop new community activities in the town centre. The consultation part of this project will look into the different ways that a community-led vision can be carried out while working to restore the central historic aspects of the town. Technical information that will be needed before the construction work begins will also be gathered and submitted as a part of a second funding application to the heritage Lottery Fund that will be required to carry out all of the desired work. If this second round of funding get approval it is thought that the project will be awarded upward of £1.69 million that would be delivered over the course of five years to allow the council to carry out the work. The funding would begin from April 2018. It is also believed that this funding would also unlock £725,000 of funding from Historic Environment Scotland. Austin-Smith:Lord architects has been working to deliver the highest quality of creative and practical architecture since 1949. The architects has studios dotted around the UK including in Glasgow, Cardiff, Bristol, Liverpool and London. The company has successfully completed over 5,000 projects since opening in 1949 and over the years has managed to be recognised for their work by receiving more than 150 awards and commendations over these years.
Hussain Architectural Design Ltd a female led multi award winning Architectural Practice and Planning Consultancy based in Burnley, Blackburn, Manchester and London has won the Most Innovative Woman in Sustainable Design at the Build Magazine 2017 Sustainability awards. Saira Hussain founded Hussain Architectural Design in a small office in Burnley in 2011 after working some years in practice and completing her degree at Huddersfield University, she was later joined by Leeds Met University educated Nixie Edwards. Having been nominated for over 25 awards in the last few years, including The Duke of Gloucester Awards, Red Rose Awards, English Asian Business Awards and HAD has recently won the Most influential woman in UK Architecture award. Saira Hussain and Nixie Edwards would like to highlight the importance of women in the construction industry as role models for the next generation and are currently attending fresher’s fayres, schools, colleges and University’s and also participating in a short film about Women in Construction. Saira Hussain: ‘’ Too often we still see women feeling ‘shut out’ of certain careers or routes into work, And we know that this sense of some areas being out of bounds includes the construction industry, with it seen as “something for the boys”, despite the incredible opportunities it can offer.. Stereotypes still persist. For many, a job in construction too often still conjures up an image of a man in a high-vis jacket on a building site. Women make up half our population and so it is right that we see them able to fulfil their potential and thrive in careers across our economy, including construction. To do this we need more to educate young people and recognition from the existing females in the construction/ architecture and engineering industries and we’d like to thank the 2017 Sustainability awards for doing just that.’’ For more information visit: www.hussainarchitecture.co.uk
Proposals to build a new public leisure centre in Egham in Surrey have been approved. The designs for the project were put forward by Watson Batty Architects and they have received full planning approval. The project has been valued at £19 million. Watson Batty Architects worked closely with their client, Places for People, in order to come up with plans that would transform the 23,400 sq ft facility already on the proposed site, into a purpose built 41,000 sq. ft. space with state of the art facilities. The proposal is to demolish the existing building and before creating the new leisure centre on the same site. This project will create the town’s first public swimming pool which will feature eight 25 metre lanes as well as a moveable floor and spectator seating. There will also be a 10 meter x 10 meter learner pool that will also have a moveable floor. The leisure facilities will also include a 4-court sports hall and a fitness suite with 110 different stations and an indoor cycling studio. As part of the designs there is also four flexible studios indoor health studio with a sauna, steam rooms, wet and dry treatment rooms. Watson Batty has been working to devise the project with Places for People, Runnymede Borough Council and Active Lifestyle which is the centre’s operators. Also involved in the drafting of the proposal were a number of other consultants in order to make the most out of the developments. The consultation took over a year and a public consultation was also held in order to make sure that they deliver facilities for the local communities and make sure that they receive the optimum capital investment for the project. There are also a range of external facilities included as part of the leisure centre plans, including six 3G five-a-side football pitches and a full sized synthetic turf pitch and a full-sized football grass pitch.
The Service Design Fringe Festival in London are calling for entries to a new competition. Arts Thread will be hosting the Fringe Festival in London and are looking for graduate entrants in order to find the world’s best graduate 2017 projects. This competition is a great opportunity for recent graduates to use the skills that they have been developing in order to compete with people from all over the world. The competition will also be a great experience for those wanting to test their design skills in the industry. The Student Service Design Awards is brand new and open to design students and recent graduates. The competition has been put on in collaboration with Arts Thread. The focus of the competition is to uncover design talent with the showcasing of the best student projects from around the world. The deadline for entrants is in two weeks, August the 11th, and application needs to meet a criteria to be judged and progress through the competition. The judges are looking for a demonstration of new and existing service design methods, user research and insight, communication of any problem areas and of the proposed service. The entry must also be original and have an innovative thinking and approach. The guidance for the competition also says that credit will be given for inclusion and diversity shown in the project. Services that are successfully up and running due to a design project are also applicable for the competition as are applicant who have not been on a service design course, or those in a group that have had little or no experience of other service design projects. The Student Service Design Awards are open to all undergraduate and postgraduate students worldwide as well as those who have graduated or will graduate in 2017. The industry leading judges will select three winners, who will speak at the 2017 Service Design Fringe Festival.
