Experts create ‘UK Regeneration Hotspot’ ranking Study unveils Westminster as the UK’s top regeneration hotspot With the last two years presenting many challenges for businesses in hospitality and changes to how their customers behave, many have had to look at ways to upgrade and invest in their commercial spaces. Following
HBD and the Barnfield Group have submitted outline planning permission for a 25ha employment scheme at Roman Way in Preston which, if approved, has the potential to create circa 1,500 jobs. The proposed development would deliver circa 800,000 sq. ft. of new industrial and warehouse space, helping to ease the
Balfour Beatty announces that it has secured a c. £50 million contract to deliver essential upgrade works to London Underground’s Piccadilly line. The contract is the first of several packages to be let under the new ‘London Underground High Voltage (HV) Power framework’, to which Balfour Beatty was appointed to
Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI), the global leader for smart, healthy, and sustainable buildings, today acquired zero trust cybersecurity provider – Tempered Networks, based in Seattle, Washington. Tempered Networks has created ‘Airwall’ technology, an advanced self-defence system for buildings that enables secure network access across diverse groups of endpoint devices, edge
One of the UK’s leading building services engineering practices, Tate Consulting, has expanded into Belfast, initially creating five jobs in the city. The firm now plans to continue growing the team following a string of high-profile contract wins. Yorkshire headquartered Tate Consulting’s recently opened new Belfast office is located close
The Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) marked this year’s International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) by celebrating the important role played by women in the past, present and future of building services. It featured a series of ‘guest blogs’ during the week of the 9th annual INWED that reflected the
141 apartments will be built over the next three years, 40% of which will be affordable housing Loan marks Puma Property Finance’s first deployment from its £300m funding line with Waterfall Asset Management Puma Property Finance (PPF) today announces it has provided funding to finance a £65m GDV, 26-storey residential
There are so many different types of drills and drills bits on the market that even the most seasoned DIY pro may struggle to name them all. This post will provide you with both the different types and their purposes, so keep reading for the ultimate guide. Types of drills
Experts create ‘UK Regeneration Hotspot’ ranking Study unveils Westminster as the UK’s top regeneration hotspot With the last two years presenting many challenges for businesses in hospitality and changes to how their customers behave, many have had to look at ways to upgrade and invest in their commercial spaces. Following a 100% increase in searches for the term “UK regeneration projects” over the last 12 months¹, leading structural glass manufacturer, Specialist Glass Products issued Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to 423 local councils to discover the number of empty commercial properties across the UK in February 2019 and 2022 in order to identify the areas with the biggest opportunity for regeneration. Analysing the data², the top ten hottest spots for regeneration are: City of Westminster – 8,456 London Borough of Tower Hamlets – 3,784 Leeds City Council – 3,567 Trafford Council – 2,967 City of Glasgow – 2,758 Salford City Council – 2,178 Birmingham City Council – 2,153 Cheshire East – 1,625 London Borough of Hackney – 1,461 North West Leicestershire – 1,160 Altogether, there were 89,371 empty commercial buildings across the UK in February 2022, a 21% increase compared to pre-pandemic (February 2019). Central London has the most prominent opportunity for regeneration as local councils, the City of Westminster and London Borough of Tower Hamlets, take the top two spots. A total of 8,456 commercial properties were empty and available in the City of Westminster and 3,784 in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. According to the UK Regeneration Hotspot list, the northern city of Leeds is the third biggest area of opportunity for regeneration. If you were hoping to relocate your business to God’s Own Country, 3,567 buildings are currently unoccupied in Leeds. Other northern areas to make the top ten include Trafford Council (2967) and the City of Glasgow (2758). The results suggest both councils in the North and South have an equal opportunity for regeneration, with four councils each in the top ten. Two local councils from the Midlands also made the top ten, Birmingham (2153) and North West Leicestershire (1160).` The new study from Specialist Glass Products also revealed which local councils were most impacted by COVID-19 by comparing the number of empty commercial properties in 2022 against 2019. Of the councils which held the information, the following councils saw dramatic increases in empty properties and made the top three: St Albans City & District Council by 855% Inverclyde Council by 700% Comhairle nan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) by 518% Andrew Taylor, managing director at Specialist Glass Products, commented on the study: “It has been a testing couple of years for many businesses with multiple lockdowns and restrictions, Brexit and inflation in energy and cost of living. “Hospitality businesses, in particular, have had to find ways to adapt to the new ways of living by sourcing new commercial space with large external areas that are more sustainable. When searching for an area to invest in, business owners should always be on the lookout for areas pushing regeneration; this is often an indication of future growth and demand. “If you would prefer to stay where you are and simply adapt current space, business owners should seek alternate materials such as glass which has many functional and decorative qualities. Structural glass can be used to create outdoor dining spaces such as roofing and balustrading, glass dining pods and takeaway windows with greater security from severe weather and durability in elevated temperatures. “With July temperatures averaging a daily high of 21 degrees Celsius in the UK, indoor temperatures can get stuffy and uncomfortable, especially if in direct sunlight. By implementing energy-efficient coated glass into commercial design, you can help keep interiors cool in the hotter months and warm in the colder months.” You can find the full results of the study here: https://www.specialistglass.co.uk/the-uks-top-regeneration-hotspots/
HBD and the Barnfield Group have submitted outline planning permission for a 25ha employment scheme at Roman Way in Preston which, if approved, has the potential to create circa 1,500 jobs. The proposed development would deliver circa 800,000 sq. ft. of new industrial and warehouse space, helping to ease the significant shortage of suitable buildings within the region. The site, an allocated employment site within Preston City Council’s Local Plan, sits to the east of the existing Roman Way Industrial Estate; a large and well-established industrial development. Chris Newsome, Senior Development Surveyor at HBD, said: “The site is very well-connected, close to the motorway network and within just 1.2 miles of the M6, making it an ideal location for an industrial scheme of this caliber. It also sits adjacent to the very successful Roman Way Industrial Estate and would help to address the shortage of high-quality industrial space within the region, while providing thousands of new jobs.” If the planning application is successful, infrastructure work would start on site later this year. Tracy Clavell-Bate, Head of Development for Barnfield Group, said: “It is great to get the site to the planning stage; it hasn’t been without its challenges, but we are sure with it being a natural extension to the existing Roman Way site, which is fully occupied, that the development will be extremely successful if planning is granted.” HBD and Barnfield have worked closely with the council since 2020 when initial pre-application discussions began. Since then, a range of technical experts and specialist consultants have been involved in completing comprehensive site assessments, alongside architects Fletcher Rae and Iceni Planning Consultants. Ridge was tasked with assessing flood risk and drainage, Bowland handled ecology and arboriculture, Mode managed highways, Sandy Brown handled acoustics and Applied Geology has considered any geo-environmental factors. Dean Young of Young &Co acted for the landowner. The proposed scheme is the latest of several industrial projects delivered in joint venture by HBD and the Barnfield Group. EAST, an 18-acre strategic development site, is also located in Preston and has proved very successful; its 70,000 sq. ft. first phase was fully let prior to practical completion and the rest of the site under offer. The partnership has also developed an 11.5-acre site in Huyton, Beacon 62, creating around 357 new jobs and transforming an important gateway site.
Balfour Beatty announces that it has secured a c. £50 million contract to deliver essential upgrade works to London Underground’s Piccadilly line. The contract is the first of several packages to be let under the new ‘London Underground High Voltage (HV) Power framework’, to which Balfour Beatty was appointed to earlier this year. The framework will run for a period of six years, with a potential to extend by a further two years. Balfour Beatty will be responsible for the design, supply and installation of new assets along the Piccadilly line to support the increase in ‘Traction Power’ required to run the next generation of trains which will be introduced from 2025. On completion, the scheme will also support a 23 per cent increase in capacity on the Piccadilly line at the busiest times, with new, longer trains scheduled every 135 seconds from 2027. Works will include the renewal and replacement of aging assets such as High Voltage and Low Voltage Switchboards along with new HV Cables at several substations across the Piccadilly line including Cockfosters, Hyde Park Corner, Northfields, Sudbury Hill and Leicester Square. Matthew Steele, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Rail & Utilities business, said: “This latest contract award is a significant achievement, building on our 19-year relationship with London Underground. It is testament to our unrivalled capability and deep domain knowledge in delivering underground rail works.” “Once complete, the programme will transform travel for thousands of passengers each day and ensure that the London Underground can continue to run a reliable and safe service for many more years to come.” Works are due to commence this month, with completion expected in 2025. At construction peak, the company will employ approximately 80 people, with 10% of its workforce made up of apprentices and graduates.
Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI), the global leader for smart, healthy, and sustainable buildings, today acquired zero trust cybersecurity provider – Tempered Networks, based in Seattle, Washington. Tempered Networks has created ‘Airwall’ technology, an advanced self-defence system for buildings that enables secure network access across diverse groups of endpoint devices, edge gateways, cloud platforms and service technicians. It represents a step-change in operational technology built on secure transmission pipelines to ensure buildings data exchanges and service actions can only take place between people and devices that are continuously authenticated. The acquisition gives Johnson Controls the capability to provide zero trust security within the fabric of its OpenBlue secure communications stack, advancing its vision of enabling fully autonomous buildings that are inherently resilient to cyberattack. How Airwall Works Tempered Networks Airwall technology uses the Host Identity Protocol and a cloud-based policy orchestration platform to create new overlay networks built on encrypted and authenticated communication. The policy manager (a.k.a. the conductor) enforces configured digital policies that control connections within the cloaked overlay system. The default position for the policy manager is ‘zero trust’, i.e., only allowing connections between continuously authenticated and authorised entities. Once a communicating device authenticates itself correctly, an encrypted tunnel is created through which data flows. The advantages of this cybersecurity technique are as follows: ▪ The creation of an always-on and software-defined security perimeter protecting device-to-device, device-to-cloud and device-to-user interactions. ▪ Airwall achieves this by using Host Identity Protocol to create a cloaked and micro-segmented network which overlays a building’s existing network infrastructure, making the solution also highly cost-effective. ▪ A new level of authentication for connected building systems is created, allowing for greater system automation of functions such as heating and cooling, lighting, security and airflows. “When it comes to buildings, we must create easily implementable cybersecurity defences as we’re often dealing with critical infrastructure, including assets such as data centres and hospitals,” said Vijay Sankaran, vice president and chief technology officer, Johnson Controls. “Tempered Networks Airwall approach is purpose-built for our sector as it’s designed around principles of zero trust, securing device communications as data moves between devices and the cloud – so enabling remote building optimisation in the most trusted way possible.” Technology Integration Tempered Networks Airwall technology is being integrated into Johnson Controls OpenBlue platform which is increasingly recognised as a leading smart building software platform with advanced AI-enabled building management capabilities[1]. OpenBlue provides a flexible computing approach for converging building technologies and making those technologies more insightful, powerful, and optimised through edge AI and through full machine learning in the cloud. The ultimate goal is to make all buildings smarter, healthier and more sustainable. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. To learn more about Johnson Controls’ approach to cybersecurity, please visit www.johnsoncontrols.com/cybersolutions. See an explanation video for Tempered Networks Airwall technology below…
One of the UK’s leading building services engineering practices, Tate Consulting, has expanded into Belfast, initially creating five jobs in the city. The firm now plans to continue growing the team following a string of high-profile contract wins. Yorkshire headquartered Tate Consulting’s recently opened new Belfast office is located close to Belfast City Airport in the Belmont Office Park on Belmont Road. Belfast born Jim Lee, who has been a director at Tate Consulting for the past nine years, will continue to split his time between Belfast and Harrogate. Aaron Stevenson and Kevin Gallagher have also joined the team as associate director and mechanical associate respectively, with Aaron overseeing the running of the new Belfast office. Aaron has worked for several well-known engineering firms in Northern Ireland for the past 25 years and Kevin brings more than 10 years’ worth of experience to the role working in both Belfast and London. Tate Consulting provides a full range of commercial engineering solutions from MEP concept design to project handover and post-occupancy evaluation, as well as fire engineering services, sustainability and building performance assessments and master planning. Initial contract wins for the company include Belfast Waterside, a development of 500 homes by MODA Living in collaboration with Osborne + Co and focused on the build to rent market, as well as a 450,000 sq ft logistics facility in Dublin for an international retailer. Tate Consulting’s managing director, Shane Tate, said: “Over the past 20 years we have established a nationwide portfolio of clients in both the public and private sectors and a reputation for always adding significant value to projects. Belfast is currently benefitting from substantial amounts of investment and is now home to some of the UK’s most exciting construction projects, so expanding into the city was a natural move andmakes it a very exciting time for us.” Tate Consulting director, Jim Lee said: “This expansion will give us a valuable foothold and added resource in Belfast as well as facilitating further expansion into the Dublin market. We’re already working on several high-profile projects and part of this success is due to us being able to attract a highly skilled team, who want to work on career defining projects. It’s great to be able to utilise the talent that exists in Northern Ireland. “Both Aaron and Kevin have a wealth of industry experience and are well-known in the local construction industry. With a number of imminent appointments, we’re now looking to build on this further and plan to recruit several more electrical and mechanical engineers this year.”
The Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) marked this year’s International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) by celebrating the important role played by women in the past, present and future of building services. It featured a series of ‘guest blogs’ during the week of the 9th annual INWED that reflected the initiative’s 2022 theme of highlighting the inspirational work of women engineers globally to support “lives and livelihoods”. “The profile provided by INWED is as vital as ever because women remain hugely under-represented in many engineering professions – including ours,” said BESA vice president Claire Curran. “As the only platform of its kind, it plays an important role in encouraging more young women and girls to take up engineering careers. “Overall numbers of women coming into engineering are on the up, but progress is still slow. Our work around INWED highlighted the key part played by role models and mentors in the recruitment and retention of women.” BESA also promoted the importance of women in engineering through its special Women in Building Services Award, which was set up to recognise outstanding women working in the sector – with particular emphasis on their contribution to sustainability and innovation. Entries The Association called for entries from across the industry so it could celebrate “a truly inspiring person who champions the sector and drives positive change” at its National Awards event on October 20th in London. That evening will also see the presentation of BESA’s first ever award for Diversity and Inclusion. This has been established to reward those companies who have shown the greatest commitment to recruiting, advancing, and supporting all employees regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, or disability. BESA’s guest blogs for INWED were provided by several prominent women in engineering to help promote the range of exciting careers open to women in building services. Curran provided the first where she encouraged other women to follow in her footsteps. “It is a colourful and varied industry with lots of diverse opportunities; where you can be anything you want to be.” She said it was important for the industry to present a more positive image: “We are not very good at shouting about the great stuff we do, the cool stuff. As a result, many women have a negative image of the sector – yet my career in engineering has allowed me to travel the world and get involved in some amazing, exciting projects.” Andi Connelly Horsley, mechanical engineer and technical publications lead at BESA, said women were good at challenging the status quo and bringing a fresh perspective to engineering challenges. “Why do we engineer things? Why do we do it like that? Is it because we have always done it that way? Why not try this instead?” she wrote. “The client is interested in the outcome so ‘why’ should always be the first question – then you look at the how and the what.” CIBSE Graduate of the Year Award winner Lucy Sherburn also highlighted the importance of mentors who could help young women feel comfortable and reach their full potential. “I love the fact that I am constantly learning and discovering new things,” she wrote. “This means I am making a real difference and having an impact on the decarbonisation of heat, which is one of the biggest challenges we face as a country. “Women have so much to offer to this industry and often they don’t realise that their skills are just what we need,” added Sherburn. “There are amazing opportunities opening up thanks to the net zero agenda and the push to make buildings healthier and more sustainable.” Alexandra Knight, the founder of Stemamazing – the initiative created to promote greater diversity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths – provided the BESA blog on the day of INWED itself. She claimed that people working in STEM were “the hidden heroes of humanity” who get very little credit for “keeping society functioning”. Innovation “As we evolve through the 4th Industrial Revolution and beyond, the need for innovation in STEM will continue to increase at pace. Innovation in STEM is key to solving some of our biggest global challenges – and a key ingredient for innovation is diversity,” she wrote. The week ended with a retrospective blog about how female pioneers had been responsible for many of the innovations that had paved the way for renewables in buildings. Jarne Veronica wrote that people might be surprised that women were so influential in this vital industry because they are so under-represented in careers linked to engineering and building services. “However, this is just more evidence that women have been playing a crucial (and often unsung) role in our sector for decades and, as representation improves, that influence will surely grow.” For more information about INWED click here and to enter for one of the BESA National Awards click here. www.theBESA.com
141 apartments will be built over the next three years, 40% of which will be affordable housing Loan marks Puma Property Finance’s first deployment from its £300m funding line with Waterfall Asset Management Puma Property Finance (PPF) today announces it has provided funding to finance a £65m GDV, 26-storey residential apartment block in Stonebridge Park, North West London. The development will create 141 apartments over the next three years, of which 56 will be affordable housing. The project is being developed by a joint venture featuring Latimer Developments, the development arm of the UK’s largest provider of social housing, Clarion Housing Group, together with developers Londonewcastle and Cervidae, and aims to address the acute housing shortage in the capital. The development will transform currently derelict office site and is part of the wider regeneration of the Stonebridge Park area. The apartments are being developed with sustainability credentials front of mind, including a zero-carbon target and enhancing biodiversity through new habitat creation. Kevin Davidson, Managing Director, who led the deal for Puma Property Finance, comments: “We’re delighted to support this development and to be working alongside such prestigious and experienced residential developers and social housing provider parties. Demand for new affordable housing with high sustainability credentials remains high; we hope this development will help not only to address the ongoing shortage of properties, but also to deliver genuine social value as cost of living increases continue to bite while rents across the capital rise. Working with established partners in the industry, it should be an exciting three years as the development takes shape.” “I would like to thank our valued professional partners on the deal, Hollis (Project Monitors), Charles Russell Speechlys (Lawyers) and Savills (Valuation) for all their support in closing this important transaction.” David Barnett, CEO of Londonewcastle comments: “Argenta House is an incredibly exciting project for us in a key regeneration area of Brent. The planning permission that we have secured is unique within the London market and will deliver over 141 private and affordable homes adding to the already dynamic transformation of North West London. We and our JV partners have enjoyed working with Puma to secure the funding for the development and we have been impressed with their pragmatic, can-do attitude. We look forward to working with them in the future and seeing this project come to life in the built environment.” Richard Cook, Group Development Director of Clarion Housing Group, said: “We are delighted to enter into this exciting joint venture with Londonewcastle and funders Cervidae to deliver a sustainable residential scheme which will kickstart the wider regeneration of the Stonebridge Park area. “We are passionate about providing homes for those who need them most and last year we built nearly 2,000 affordable homes across the country. This scheme will provide vital affordable homes for local people in area of acute housing need.” Alex Hamilton, CFO of Cervidae comments: “Puma’s new funding line offers us the flexibility and deliverability to be confident of a successful financing and a positive relationship throughout the loan. We are pleased to continue our relationship with Puma.” Puma Property Finance offers capital and expertise to experienced property professionals across all sectors and locations. In addition to financing residential and commercial developments, Puma Property Finance has a strong track record funding essential social infrastructure from care homes to retirement living and student accommodation. The alternative lender offers fixed rate loans, providing long-term certainty amid rising interest rates. The development also marks Puma Property Finance’s first loan from its funding line with Waterfall Asset Management – a £300 million facility secured earlier this year. The funding is attractively priced, allowing Puma Property Finance to provide increasingly competitive rates to prospective borrowers.
There are so many different types of drills and drills bits on the market that even the most seasoned DIY pro may struggle to name them all. This post will provide you with both the different types and their purposes, so keep reading for the ultimate guide. Types of drills Drill driver A drill driver is definitely the most popular type of drill amongst the average homeowner. The reason behind that? Drill drivers are a really versatile type of power tool that help users perform a whole range of different tasks like drilling holes and driving screws into surfaces. This type of driver is typically powered through a battery. Since these drills double up as a driver, you can easily tighten or loosen screws of different sizes and thicknesses. Impact driver This type of driver is designed for loosening bolts and driving screws into surfaces. The difference between an impact drill and a regular drill is that the first doesn’t use a forward chipping gear. Instead, it consists of a rotating hammer and anvil mechanism. The motor inside an impact driver spins the drill bit while the hammer and anvil force it down into the surface and strike it sideways at the same time. Hammer drill As you might have guessed from the name, a hammer drill combines the purposes of a hammer and a drill. A hammer drill works by driving the drill bit in and out of an object at high speed. As the motor spins, pushing the bit back and forth, it chips away at the material as you would with a regular hammer. Cordless drills A cordless drill is any power drill that doesn’t contain any cords or electric wires and instead uses rechargeable batteries to drive the drill’s motor. The majority of these offer the same functions as the corded drills mentioned above. Types of drill bits Twist bit This drill bit will go through sheet metals and can also be used for rough drilling in wood and other materials. Twist bits are available in a wider range of diameters than any other bit type. Brad-point bit These bits look very similar to twist bits, but they have a central spur and side spurs to keep it from travelling. These bits are used to make clean cuts in wood and softer materials, not including metal. Auger bit An auger bit will cut deep, straight holes into timber or thick softwood. The threaded bit point helps keep the cutting bit in place while the spiral cutting head carries wood shavings to the surface. These types are best used with hand-powered brace-and-bit or a power right-angle drill. Counterboring bit These drill bits create a pilot hole and countersink hole to accommodate a screwhead and wood plug. Some of these bits are fully adjustable as to their depth but the most common sizes are for #5, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 14 wood screws and ¼, 3/8 (most common) or ½ inch wood plugs. And there you have it – the ultimate guide to the different types of drills and drill bits, to make sure you kill it (or, drill it!) every time.
