Morgan Sindall Construction has started work on the Royal Parade Bus Improvement Scheme in Plymouth city centre, a major project designed to upgrade public transport infrastructure and improve the pedestrian experience along one of the city’s busiest routes. Commissioned by Plymouth City Council and procured through the SCAPE Construction Framework,
A significant milestone has been reached in St Helens with the completion of Indurent 420, Omega West, a major 421,249 sq. ft. industrial and logistics development delivered by McLaren Construction Midlands and North. To celebrate the achievement, stakeholders and project partners gathered on site alongside the Mayor and Leader of
Mace has been appointed as construction manager for the £1.1 billion redevelopment of the British Library’s iconic St Pancras site in London. The major cultural and commercial scheme will see the library expanded and modernised to meet growing public demand while providing extensive new facilities. The appointment was made by
Aldi has announced ambitious plans to open an average of one store every week for the remainder of 2025, alongside a major refurbishment programme aimed at modernising its existing estate. The German-owned discount supermarket, which has been steadily increasing its footprint in the UK, will also revamp 35 of its
Maintaining site safety is a core responsibility for the construction manager. As part of this duty, understanding the regulatory framework for confined space rescue is absolutely essential so, in this article we explore the key legal requirements, the practical implications for busy sites, and best-practice how-to steps. What Counts as
Partnership has already delivered multi million-pound savings through faster customer issue resolution, reduced ODI penalties, and smarter asset lifecycle management Vyntelligence (Vyn®), the market-leading Agentic Video Intelligence platform, today announces a major expansion of its partnership with Northumbrian Water (NWG), one of the UK’s largest holding companies for water supply,
Off the back of Storm Floris, energy solutions and temperature control specialist Aggreko is urging site managers to adopt more robust dehumidification and heating strategies in the face of high-risk weather in order to minimise damage to materials. Storm Floris recently brought 90mph winds and torrential rain to the UK,
Morgan Sindall Construction has started work on the Royal Parade Bus Improvement Scheme in Plymouth city centre, a major project designed to upgrade public transport infrastructure and improve the pedestrian experience along one of the city’s busiest routes. Commissioned by Plymouth City Council and procured through the SCAPE Construction Framework, the scheme will run until spring 2026. It will deliver a series of upgrades to Royal Parade, enhancing accessibility while maintaining access for businesses and residents throughout the works. The contract follows Morgan Sindall’s successful delivery of city centre projects at Old Town Street, New George Street, and Armada Way. Key features of the scheme include kerb realignment on the north side of Royal Parade, full carriageway resurfacing, and strengthening of the footway. High-quality modular granite paving will be installed in a consistent civic pattern to create a more attractive public realm. Public transport efficiency and safety will be improved with reconfigured bus bays in a new sawtooth layout, the addition of average speed cameras, and updated road markings and signage. The pedestrian crossing at Armada Way will also be upgraded to a toucan, improving connectivity for cyclists along this busy corridor. To minimise disruption, Morgan Sindall will use pre-cast concrete slabs and ramps to shop doorways, helping local businesses remain open during the works. The company will also offer work placements, work experience opportunities, and work taster days to support local skills development. Graham Kingdon, Area Director for Morgan Sindall in the South West, said: “Royal Parade is a central part of Plymouth’s civic and commercial identity, and this scheme will make it safer, more accessible, and better suited to modern public transport needs. “Drawing on our experience delivering similar improvements, we’re using tried-and-tested methods to keep disruption to a minimum – helping shops stay open and the city stay connected while work progresses. “We’re proud to play a part in creating a more vibrant, sustainable city centre and look forward to delivering lasting benefits for residents, businesses and visitors alike.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
A significant milestone has been reached in St Helens with the completion of Indurent 420, Omega West, a major 421,249 sq. ft. industrial and logistics development delivered by McLaren Construction Midlands and North. To celebrate the achievement, stakeholders and project partners gathered on site alongside the Mayor and Leader of St Helens Borough Council for a formal handover ceremony. The event marked the successful delivery of the final phase of the wider Omega West scheme. Developed by Miller Developments and forward funded by Indurent, the new facility combines high-specification warehousing with office space and has been built to the highest operational and environmental standards. Indurent 420 features a two-storey main office, hub office, extensive warehouse space, car parking, and landscaped green areas. It has achieved a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating and EPC A+, underlining its strong sustainability credentials. Throughout construction, sustainability remained a priority. All machinery on site operated using alternative fuels, construction waste was managed using the Smartwaste platform, and the site achieved a full cut-and-fill balance by reusing all excavated cohesive materials. The facility includes enhanced photovoltaic panels, natural roof lighting to reduce energy use, and infrastructure to support future EV charging. Surrounding the building is a newly created wildflower meadow and other green spaces designed to promote biodiversity. McLaren also prioritised health and safety, delivering more than 139,299 working hours with over 750 personnel on site—without a single reportable incident (RIDDOR). Community engagement played a key role in the project’s success. McLaren’s team maintained regular communication with local stakeholders through newsletters and council updates and organised school outreach events to promote careers in construction. The company also contributed to the community through social value initiatives, including timber donations to local charities, career events at area schools and colleges, and sponsorship of the Woolton Santos U9 football team. Laptops were also donated to Martin Murray’s local boxing academy. Efforts to boost local employment included hiring a Senior Site Manager from the St Helens area and offering work experience placements, including a student from Warrington College. The project also prioritised the use of local suppliers and materials. Gary Cramp, Managing Director of McLaren Construction Midlands and North, said: “We’re very proud to have marked the completion of Indurent 420, Omega West with our partners and stakeholders on site. This development continues McLaren’s strong legacy at Omega and reflects the power of collaboration, sustainability, and a commitment to delivering high-performance logistics infrastructure.” David Milloy, Managing Director of Miller Developments, added: “This celebration marks not just the end of a successful build but the continuation of our long-term vision for Omega. McLaren has once again delivered a best-in-class development, and we thank the team for their professionalism, collaboration, and shared ambition.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Mace has been appointed as construction manager for the £1.1 billion redevelopment of the British Library’s iconic St Pancras site in London. The major cultural and commercial scheme will see the library expanded and modernised to meet growing public demand while providing extensive new facilities. The appointment was made by the British Library’s development partner SMBL, a subsidiary of Japanese property group Mitsui Fudosan. Working under the direction of development manager Stanhope, Mace will bring its construction expertise to the procurement and delivery stages of the ambitious project. At the heart of the scheme is a 100,000 sq ft (9,290 sq m) extension designed to enhance the library’s public services. The plans include new exhibition galleries, learning facilities, and events spaces, alongside more than 600,000 sq ft (55,742 sq m) of commercial space. The development has been designed by leading architects RSHP, with engineering input from Arup. Construction is expected to commence in 2026 once the detailed design process is complete and all planning conditions are met. The build programme is anticipated to take around six years. Jason Millett, chief executive of Mace Group, expressed his enthusiasm for the appointment, describing the British Library scheme as a high-profile project of international significance. “Our long-standing experience in delivering major and complex developments places us in a strong position to ensure this transformation meets the highest standards,” he said. The redevelopment marks a significant step in the library’s ongoing evolution, aiming to deliver improved public access, better facilities for research and education, and enhanced opportunities for cultural engagement. The addition of large-scale commercial space is also expected to boost the local economy and support the long-term sustainability of the institution. With its combination of cultural ambition and commercial opportunity, the British Library’s St Pancras transformation is set to become one of London’s most significant construction projects of the decade. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Aldi has announced ambitious plans to open an average of one store every week for the remainder of 2025, alongside a major refurbishment programme aimed at modernising its existing estate. The German-owned discount supermarket, which has been steadily increasing its footprint in the UK, will also revamp 35 of its current stores before the end of the year. The dual strategy forms part of a £650 million nationwide investment to enhance accessibility, customer experience, and the overall quality of its retail spaces. Planned new store locations include Deeside in Wales, Market Harborough in Leicestershire, Fulham Broadway in London, Eastbourne in East Sussex, Treharris in Wales, Waterbrook in Kent, Shoreditch in London, Houghton le Spring in Tyne and Wear, Meadowfield in Durham, Litherland in Liverpool, and Brimington in Chesterfield. Jonathan Neale, managing director of national real estate at Aldi UK, said the strategy is about more than simply expanding geographically. “At Aldi, our goal is to make sure people across the UK have access to affordable, high-quality food, and opening new stores is key to making that happen. We’re now opening an average of one new store a week for the rest of 2025, showing just how ambitious our plans are to build a store network that will help us reach millions of new customers. But it’s not just about openings – it’s also about making sure we have the best-paid teams in place to run them.” The expansion drive comes amid a highly competitive grocery market, where discount retailers continue to gain market share as shoppers seek better value in the face of ongoing cost-of-living pressures. Aldi’s focus on frequent openings is expected to increase its presence in both urban and rural locations, making its low-price, quality-focused offer accessible to more communities. The refurbishment element of the programme will see older stores upgraded to meet modern retail standards, with improved layouts, updated interiors, and more energy-efficient lighting and refrigeration systems. This reflects Aldi’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and reducing operational energy consumption. With its latest investment, Aldi is positioning itself for sustained growth while reinforcing its reputation as one of the UK’s fastest-growing supermarket brands. For shoppers, the promise is clear – more stores, better facilities, and the same commitment to value that has underpinned the retailer’s success. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Maintaining site safety is a core responsibility for the construction manager. As part of this duty, understanding the regulatory framework for confined space rescue is absolutely essential so, in this article we explore the key legal requirements, the practical implications for busy sites, and best-practice how-to steps. What Counts as a Confined Space? According to the UK’s Confined Spaces Regulations 1997, a confined space is any enclosed or partially enclosed area not designed for continuous human occupancy, where there is a foreseeable risk of serious harm such as lack of oxygen, toxic gas exposure, drowning, or explosion. Examples include tanks, silos, manholes, tunnels, sewers, boiler interiors, shafts, vaults, and basements. Key Legislation Construction Managers Must Know 1. Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 2. Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 & Management Regulations 1999 These set the wider framework requiring competent risk assessment, supervision, planning, and provision of safe systems including training, PPE, and emergency planning. Why Delegation and Preparedness Matter HSE guidance makes clear that relying on external emergency services is inadequate in confined space incidents as response times are often too slow, and access for uniformed crews may be difficult. A dedicated rescue team needs to be immediately available on‑site or nearby. Safe rescue starts well before need arises through hazard assessments, drills, equipment maintenance, and clear communication protocols. Supervisors and rescuers alike must hold appropriate certification including City & Guilds qualifications such as 6160‑03 for high‑risk spaces and 6160‑08 for rescue team members. Look for experienced training providers that offer a wide range of confined space training courses. Practical Checklist for Construction Managers Step Action Risk Assessment Identify confined spaces on your site. Use the HSE-approved Code of Practice L101 to guide assessment. Avoid Entry if Possible Wherever feasible, carry out work from outside. If entry is unavoidable, ensure it follows a robust system of work. Develop Rescue Plan Prepare rescue arrangements before entry (Regulation 5). This must include whether self-rescue, non-entry rescue, or entry rescue is viable. Appoint Competent Personnel Ensure site leaders and safety supervisor are trained in confined space oversight and rescue protocols. Ensure Equipment Readiness Confirm ventilation, atmospheric monitoring, breathing apparatus, harnesses, tripods, winches, lighting, communication tools are all functional. Train & Drill Regularly Ensure entrants, attendants and responders regularly rehearse rescue procedures. Consider mobile training units or experienced third‑party providers for practice scenarios. Audit and Review Conduct periodic reviews of confined space plans, equipment servicing, rescue performance and incident lessons. Real Consequences When Preparedness Lapses Numerous real-world incidents have underlined the danger and according to various studies, about two‑thirds of confined space fatalities occur not to the initial victim but to would-be rescuers entering without proper planning or equipment. By contrast, companies that embed trained rescue teams, regular drills and documented rescue systems improve outcomes significantly, and reduce liability, downtime and risk exposure. Final Thought For construction managers, confined space regulations aren’t just administrative burdens, they’re life-critical frameworks. Understanding Regulations 1997 (especially Regulations 4 & 5), taking proactive steps to minimise entry, appointing competent teams, and establishing ready rescue arrangements are essential. It’s not about promotion it’s about responsibility and informed leadership. Setting a high bar for rescue readiness, training and compliant systems ensures safer worksites, fewer incidents and peace of mind when high-risk jobs arise.
Partnership has already delivered multi million-pound savings through faster customer issue resolution, reduced ODI penalties, and smarter asset lifecycle management Vyntelligence (Vyn®), the market-leading Agentic Video Intelligence platform, today announces a major expansion of its partnership with Northumbrian Water (NWG), one of the UK’s largest holding companies for water supply, sewerage, and wastewater industries. The collaboration will scale across NWG’s North East Network operations, achieving total asset optimisation with video intelligence. This comes at a time when the UK water industry prepares for its most fundamental regulatory period in decades. The AMP8 cycle, supported by Ofwat’s £104bn investment framework, presents the water sector with the challenge to push innovation across environmental standards, water supply security, asset resilience, and customer service, all while maintaining cost efficiency and regulatory compliance. Success in this ambitious period hinges on addressing two key opportunities: people and data. The industry is facing workforce challenges from an aging population and skills shortages, plus fragmented data systems continue to force reactive rather than predictive asset management. Resolving these challenges can unlock millions in operational inefficiencies and optimise existing asset lifecycles. By incorporating Vyntelligence into its workflows, NWG will be positioned to synergise people and data, pushing innovation across the AMP8 period. Vyntelligence replaces complex data interfaces with the most natural one: video. Field teams and customers document issues, asset maintenance needs and conditions through simple “show and tell” videos. These videos are processed using Agentic AI to extract actionable insights, trigger appropriate responses, and track resolution in near real-time. Vyntelligence and NWG will work together to achieve total asset optimisation with a focus on predictive maintenance, enhanced safety protocols, and intelligent resource allocation. Together, they have already demonstrated transformative impact over the last five years, achieving multimillion-pound savings through faster customer issue resolution, reduced ODI penalties, and smarter asset lifecycle management. “Vyntelligence are a valued partner who have helped us to transform the digital capabilities used daily by our field colleagues. Vyn assists our front-line teams to easily capture high-quality information in the field through their intelligent video workflow tool. Vyn’s embedded AI converts these video workflows into insights, and combined with data in our asset management systems, it creates a deeper understanding of our work and assets. Using video to capture to produce insights in this way has enabled field teams more time to focus on delivering the work for our customers, created opportunities for more innovative ways of working, and helped to ensure the safety of our colleagues. We are looking forward to continuing our successful partnership with Vyntelligence into AMP8 and expanding the use of the platform to support our ambitious asset investment programme,” said Martin Jackson, CIO at the Northumbrian Water Group. “Our long-standing partnership with Northumbrian Water is a testament to the transformative impact of Video Intelligence in solving the critical people and data challenges facing the UK water industry. We are proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with innovators like NWG, enabling total asset optimisation, empowering frontline teams to drive smarter decisions, faster fixes, and superior outcomes for AMP8 and beyond,” said Kapil Singhal, CEO at Vyntelligence. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Off the back of Storm Floris, energy solutions and temperature control specialist Aggreko is urging site managers to adopt more robust dehumidification and heating strategies in the face of high-risk weather in order to minimise damage to materials. Storm Floris recently brought 90mph winds and torrential rain to the UK, posing significant disruption to operations across the north of England and Scotland.[1] Chiming with this, Aggreko’s latest report, Building in Resilience: Weather-Proofing European Construction in a Changing Climate, found that damage to materials was the top concern regarding high-risk weather among UK construction managers, with almost 40% also stating that they had faced major delays, missed deadlines, and financial penalties as a result of high-risk weather. Chris Smith, Head of Temperature Control at Aggreko, is emphasising the need for site managers to bolster their approach to dehumidification and heating in order to minimise the financial impact of both Floris and future storms. He said: “As last year’s storm season evidenced, extreme weather is becoming all the more common in the UK, though volatile supply chains and rising material costs mean that the potential financial impact is greater than ever. As such, there is a renewed need for construction managers to deploy effective dehumidification and heating solutions to minimise damage to materials and ensure that sites are able to weather the storm.” ‘Storm season’ saw a record-breaking 12 named storms hit the UK between September 2023 and August 2024,[2] with the Met Office also forecasting that winters will be up to 30% wetter by 2070.[3] More recently, a report from QBE Insurance Group, developed in collaboration with Control Risks, found that the construction sector is already facing surging material costs due to geopolitical developments, with copper, steel, aluminium, and timber all spiking, and some reaching all-time highs.[4] Chris concluded: “With material costs on the rise, site managers must do all they can to safeguard their stocks against water damage, or pay the price. Copper, steel, aluminium, and timber – as well as wider materials such as concrete and insulation – are all susceptible to the effects of water ingress and damp, so an all-encompassing dehumidification and heating strategy is key. “Bringing in solutions from a temperature control specialist can help materials to dry out quicker, allowing damage that may otherwise render them unusable to be avoided. While the worst of Storm Floris may have passed, it is certainly not the last of the UK’s wet weather, particularly as we approach the autumn and winter months, so I urge site managers to engage with these contacts ahead of time to get wet weather ready.” Read Aggreko’s full report, Building in Resilience: Weather-Proofing European Construction in a Changing Climate. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals