A leading housebuilder raised money for a much-loved charity at a launch event at its Houghton Conquest development. Kier Living Eastern welcomed guests to Meadow Croft to enjoy cupcakes and other treats in aid of its new charity partner, The British Heart Foundation (BHF). The housebuilder raised more than £700
A significant area comprising ponds, scrub, logpile and grassland have been created and fenced off to protect a population of great crested newts at Kier Living Eastern’s housing development in Fenstanton. The species was discovered at The Park housing development ahead of construction. Working with CSA Environmental, Kier Living Eastern
Construction work is underway at a new sustainable student accommodation for King’s College, University of Cambridge, the first of its kind in the city. The development, situated in existing College grounds on Cranmer Road, will provide 59 graduate rooms built across two new accommodation buildings to create a unified campus
When we think of all the technology advancements that were introduced through the innovative and futuristic thinking of architects, engineers and surveyors, it’s perhaps ironic that the industry itself has been a slow adopter of strategic digitalisation. According to KPMG’s 2017 global survey, 72% of engineering and construction executives stated
The windows supplied by the leading UK architectural glazing systems supplier, Kawneer, have helped meet a host of complex criteria for the UK’s first dedicated healthcare facility for adults with autism. The Mitford unit at Northgate Hospital in Morpeth, Northumberland, where fenestration was led by architectural glazing specialists Polar NE,
On site work on the £117 million Campbell Wharf development in Milton Keynes has commenced. The residential-led mixed use scheme includes 383 new homes, a narrowboat marina, public house, nursery and a mix of retail units and is set to transform and revitalise a much-underutilised part of Central Milton Keynes.
Kingsmere, Countryside Properties (Bicester) Limited’s development in Bicester, will be welcoming a first-class line up of retailers to its Village Centre in Spring 2019. Brands and retailers which have secured units at the commercial centre include Mid-Counties Co-op, Starfish (Fish and Chips), Domino’s Pizza, Haart Estate agents, Bicester Hairdressers and
Manhattan Associates Inc. (NASDAQ: MANH) announced that it has been named a Strong Performer in The Forrester Wave™: Point of Service (POS), Q3 2018 report by Forrester Research. The new research, which evaluated 13 vendors across 25 criteria in the areas of current offering, strategy and market presence, gave Manhattan
Kier has celebrated the completion of the first phase of the University of Wales Trinity Saint David’s (UWTSD) pioneering SA1 development by providing tours of the site to industry experts as well as teachers and lecturers. In partnership with the Forum for the Built Environment (FBE), the tours took place
Passengers have been urged by Network Rail to plan their journeys in advance as the rail company delivers more than 400 projects, part of a £84 million investment across the country. A 9,600-strong workforce will work around the clock over the bank holiday weekend to deliver more reliable infrastructure, improved
A leading housebuilder raised money for a much-loved charity at a launch event at its Houghton Conquest development. Kier Living Eastern welcomed guests to Meadow Croft to enjoy cupcakes and other treats in aid of its new charity partner, The British Heart Foundation (BHF). The housebuilder raised more than £700 for the charity, with more money pledged from its supply chain. “It was wonderful to welcome everyone to Meadow Croft and raise money for such an amazing charity at the same time. We will be supporting the BHF for the next two years and we have many more fundraising and awareness events planned,” said David Thomas, sales and marketing director at Kier Living Eastern. “We’ve worked extremely hard to create an outstanding new community for Houghton Conquest and visitors were just as enamoured with it as we are,” he continued. Meadow Croft is a collection of two, three, four and five bedroom homes, currently with prices starting at £325,000 for a two-bedroom bungalow, £450,000 for a four-bedroom home and £600,000 for a five-bedroom detached home. Show homes and the sales office are open at Meadow Croft on Chapel End Road, Houghton Conquest, Thursday to Monday between 10am and 5pm. Kier Living Eastern ensures the highest possible standards of quality, value and presentation from design through to construction and after sales care. It offers a wide range of new homes from one-bedroom apartments to luxury five-bedroom homes. Kier Living Eastern is renowned for its quality and attention to detail. Innovative and forward thinking, the company has more than 70 years’ experience in new homes construction.
A significant area comprising ponds, scrub, logpile and grassland have been created and fenced off to protect a population of great crested newts at Kier Living Eastern’s housing development in Fenstanton. The species was discovered at The Park housing development ahead of construction. Working with CSA Environmental, Kier Living Eastern secured a mitigation licence from Natural England and began work to protect the existing pond while creating new habitats where the newts can take refuge nearby. “Kier Living Eastern has ensured that the great crested newts are protected and has been dedicated to creating habitats for their long-term conservation. The newts now have a combination of aquatic and terrestrial habitats, as well as log piles and places to hibernate, which they can use to breed, take refuge and hibernate year-round. Great crested newts really are a key part of this development,” said Joanne Makin, senior ecologist at CSA Environmental, who was also involved in the project. Measures to protect the 40 newts found were put in place before construction started, including fencing off areas of long grassland and scrub which are ideal habitats for newts. To ensure these areas were not accidentally disturbed, Kier Living Eastern erected fencing and signs to inform the public not to enter for the safety of the newts. Further work to enhance the existing pond, grassland and orchard habitats was undertaken and a new wildlife pond created, that is linked to the existing pond via a ‘newt corridor’. A small number of newts were moved to the new habitat. “We were thrilled to work with CSA Environmental on this important project. Kier Living Eastern takes its responsibilities as a housebuilder very seriously, and that includes protecting the local environment we become a part of. We are happy to say the great crested newts are very much a part of The Park development and thanks to the work of CSA Environmental, the newts will continue to thrive,” commented David Thomas, sales and marketing director for Kier Living Eastern. The Park is a development of 3, 4 and 5 bedroom homes perfect for first-time buyers, expanding families searching for larger homes and couples looking to downsize. The new homes will benefit from this outstanding location being close to the A14 and its links to Cambridge and Huntingdon, and within easy walking distance of the centre of Fenstanton with its pubs, eateries and shops.
Construction work is underway at a new sustainable student accommodation for King’s College, University of Cambridge, the first of its kind in the city. The development, situated in existing College grounds on Cranmer Road, will provide 59 graduate rooms built across two new accommodation buildings to create a unified campus around a shared garden, which is also a short walk from the College’s historic courts. The student housing will be built to a Passivhaus standard, a sustainable housing initiative, resulting in ultra-low energy buildings which require very little fuel for heating or cooling. “We are delighted to have been given permission to develop this sustainable building on College land. It will provide much-needed accommodation for our graduates and foster the growth of a community spirit on the site,” said Philip Isaac, the Domus Bursar at King’s College. R G Carter will be building the student accommodation, having become one of the UK’s leading Passivhaus homebuilders, through continued investment, upskilling of its workforce and expertise demonstrated across a number of award winning developments. “We are delighted to collaborate with King’s College on this exciting innovative scheme. Our focus is on delivering a successful project and providing quality sustainable accommodation that will serve students for many years to come,” said John Ford, R G Carter Director and General Manager. Each accommodation block will reflect the surroundings in a contemporary way. Cranmer Villa will incorporate red brick walls, clay roof tiles and stone windows that reflects a style with neighbouring buildings, while The Garden building has been designed to blend into the conservation of the area, with a glazed terracotta cladding and a sustainable ‘green’ roof. It is expected that students will take up occupation in Autumn 2019.
When we think of all the technology advancements that were introduced through the innovative and futuristic thinking of architects, engineers and surveyors, it’s perhaps ironic that the industry itself has been a slow adopter of strategic digitalisation. According to KPMG’s 2017 global survey, 72% of engineering and construction executives stated that technological innovation has a role in their vision. However, with less than half integrating a strategy, planning and the implementation of tech is certainly an area that needs more thought. While firms are undoubtedly optimistic about the potential of technology – with a greater push towards new approaches such as drones, 3-D printing and autonomous vehicles – some players in the industry are yet to make use of those tools which streamline or completely automate processes. This is something which I feel needs to be addressed in light of recent data from Mckinsey which revealed that large projects across sectors and asset classes are running behind schedule and up to 80% over budget. Tight and timely financial management may not be helped by the fact that many site offices rely on manual, paper-based procedures. Indeed, my conversations with clients suggests that a lack of information digitalisation can lead to inaccurate project cost forecasting with unaccounted contract labour fees arguably creating the greatest challenge. In fact, the KPMG survey revealed that out of all the technologies, project management information systems (PMIS) were considered to hold the greatest potential in delivering value, yet just one-fifth (20%) of firms have implemented a PMIS. So while high profile advanced technologies are taking centre stage – and admittedly serving their purpose – firms must also ensure that they are taking advantage of data analytics and implementing systems that can streamline processes, add value, and condense budgets. As Mckinsey’s research shows, a strong assortment of digital tools can reduce project costs by up to 45%. In particular, with the rapid rise of a contingent workforce on site, failing to ensure real-time visibility of project costs can have a significant impact on project performance that is only recognised after its conclusion. This all suggests that technology focussed construction firms can gain more immediate and substantive benefits from the digitalisation of project cost control before they look to the operational advantages of drones and robotics. By getting to grips with the key functionalities which harness a successful project from start to finish, rather than focusing solely on the latest advancements in high-tech machinery, companies will reap long-term rewards. As construction projects continue to grow in scale and inevitably become more complex, the need to integrate technology across the entire construction management remit is arguably more important than ever. Drey Francis is Director at VMS and Recruitment Agency Back Office supplier, Engage.
The windows supplied by the leading UK architectural glazing systems supplier, Kawneer, have helped meet a host of complex criteria for the UK’s first dedicated healthcare facility for adults with autism. The Mitford unit at Northgate Hospital in Morpeth, Northumberland, where fenestration was led by architectural glazing specialists Polar NE, uses a variety of Kawneer window and framing systems including a bespoke secure healthcare window specially fabricated for the £10 million project. This specialist window – based on the Kawneer AA®3110HW horizontal slider – has been used in the bedrooms and some communal areas alongside Kawneer’s AA®540 fixed casements in corridors, AA®541 top-hung casements in offices and reception, and 451PT framing in communal areas and corridors. Supplied in moss grey (RAL 7003), they were specified by Medical Architecture in conjunction with Kawneer dealer Polar who had a team of two specialist installers on site for 11 months. “Mental health inpatient windows are a very specialist product and we have developed designs with one of the few manufacturers/fabricators over a period of 11 years. Polar chose Kawneer’s AA®3110HW system components as a basis and we adapted the successful design to the particular needs of the autism unit,” said Medical Architecture director Paul Yeomans. The new BREEAM “Excellent” Mitford unit for Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust provides 24-hour inpatient support and treatment for up to 15 adults with severely complex autistic spectrum disorders. Built by Kier under ProCure21+, the accommodation comprises eight single-person and two and three-person shared flats within four fingers of accommodation linked at their southern end by a band of shared spaces interspersed with staff facilities. Patients typically stay 18 months to two years, during which time individual stimuli and appropriate therapies are used before they return to the community. The trust’s key objectives included incorporating best practice from around the world and becoming a leading-edge national autism service, enhancing the facilities for research and development to provide a national centre of excellence, and building a sustainable commercial model to ensure the capital costs of the building were recuperated over an eight-year period.
On site work on the £117 million Campbell Wharf development in Milton Keynes has commenced. The residential-led mixed use scheme includes 383 new homes, a narrowboat marina, public house, nursery and a mix of retail units and is set to transform and revitalise a much-underutilised part of Central Milton Keynes. Once it approaches completion, the development will deliver 332 one and two-bedroom apartments and 51 three, four and five-bedroom houses. Moreover, 30% of the properties on site have been reserved for shared ownership and affordable housing, in order to meet local housing needs in the community. “We are pleased to have cemented our agreement with the Milton Keynes Development Partnership and look forward to working together on this significant development. Once complete the scheme will provide a new gateway from the Canal to Central Milton Keynes and deliver much needed new homes to the area,” said Scott Black, Managing Director at Crest Nicholson. Located on the eastern edge of Central Milton Keynes with easy access to both Milton Keynes Central Station and the M1, the site is divided into two distinct areas by the Grand Union Canal. The 8.15 ha site will also include a new marina on the Grand Union Canal, providing 111 berths, a canal-side pub, café, restaurant and a new footbridge linking the two sides of the canal. “As our city continues to grow, MKDP is committed to playing its part in helping to create well-designed, vibrant & affordable new communities in partnership with a range of local developers. As part of the Campbell Wharf development, MKDP and the developer Crest Nicholson will be creating 115 affordable new homes, a new 111 berth marina alongside the city’s renowned Grand Union Canal, and importantly, will be contributing towards the cost of upgrading the infrastructure of our city centre,” commented Councillor Rob Middleton, Cabinet Member responsible for Resources and Innovation. The new marina is expected to open in April 2019, while the first residential dwellings on site will be occupied in October 2019. The development is expected to be fully completed by 2023.
Kingsmere, Countryside Properties (Bicester) Limited’s development in Bicester, will be welcoming a first-class line up of retailers to its Village Centre in Spring 2019. Brands and retailers which have secured units at the commercial centre include Mid-Counties Co-op, Starfish (Fish and Chips), Domino’s Pizza, Haart Estate agents, Bicester Hairdressers and Busy Bees Nursery. “The Village Centre at Kingsmere has a high quality, contemporary design, which will enhance the area and create a place for the local community to shop, eat and meet. The prominence, accessibility and car parking that are already included made it easy for us to find interested parties who will do very well from being centrally located in Kingsmere,” said Ed Sutton, Managing Director of LSP Developments. The Village Centre is situated on Whitelands Way, where the commercial units are currently under construction, adjacent to the new Community and Youth Centres, which were recently handed over to Cherwell District Council and will officially open this September. “We have taken great care to design a Village Centre that will serve as the ‘heart of Kingsmere’, and we are delighted there will be such a tremendous line up of occupants for the use of our residents and the wider community. For a project of this scale, providing first-class amenities and a central point for residents to come together is crucial to its long-term success and vital to ensure the new community can flourish,” commented Andrew Carrington, Director of Countryside Properties (Bicester) Limited. “The Village Centre sits centrally within Kingsmere, alongside the community and youth centres and St Edburg’s primary school. The selection of retailers will ensure that people can not only stock up on their daily essentials but also spend time socialising, relaxing and making the most of the new facilities and surroundings,” he continued. Kingsmere is served by excellent transport connections and the development is home to a selection of house styles which have proved hugely popular for a range of home buyers.
Manhattan Associates Inc. (NASDAQ: MANH) announced that it has been named a Strong Performer in The Forrester Wave™: Point of Service (POS), Q3 2018 report by Forrester Research. The new research, which evaluated 13 vendors across 25 criteria in the areas of current offering, strategy and market presence, gave Manhattan the highest rating possible in the architecture, endless aisle, pickup and delivery, returns and social networking criteria. In its report, Forrester states that omnichannel fulfillment is more operationally demanding for retailers and notes that they appreciate Manhattan’s distinctive order management integration. Manhattan POS was identified as a “best fit for retailers in categories… where order management and unified commerce converge.” “Given the omnichannel challenges faced by retailers today, Manhattan saw the need to develop a next generation point of sale solution. With its seamless fusion of order management and point of sale functionality, Manhattan’s POS is uniquely capable of helping retailers provide superior customer experiences,” said Kevin Swanwick, senior director, Retail Solutions, Manhattan Associates. “We believe being named a strong performer in this Wave evaluation confirms our product’s ability to support the complex omnichannel demands of modern retailers,” he continued. Part of the Manhattan Active™ Omni platform, Manhattan’s POS solution is designed to help retailers deliver superior customer experiences with a single, responsive user interface for cross-channel selling and a single system of record for all transaction types. The offering supports deployments anywhere – in store, on traditional Windows terminals or on mobile iOS and Android devices – and delivers real-time access to global network availability to ensure the aisle is always endless. Built on a cloud-native, microservices architecture, Manhattan’s POS solution is the first to offer Resilient Cloud technology to ensure that high-speed checkout is available even if the network connection is disrupted. According to the Forrester report, highly effective POS applications “drive online sales,” “deliver brand consistency across the empowered customer’s path to purchase,” “increase customer loyalty” and “boost associate productivity.” Manhattan’s POS solution delivers rich functionality across these areas and promotes unified commerce via a wide range of customer-centric capabilities.
Kier has celebrated the completion of the first phase of the University of Wales Trinity Saint David’s (UWTSD) pioneering SA1 development by providing tours of the site to industry experts as well as teachers and lecturers. In partnership with the Forum for the Built Environment (FBE), the tours took place earlier this month to showcase the project and all that has been achieved so far. The SA1 Swansea Waterfront Development, consists of IQ, the new home for UWTSD’s Yr Athrofa: Institute of Education and the Faculty of Architecture, Computing and Engineering, as well as the Construction Wales Innovation Centre. It also consists of Y Fforwm, the University’s library and learning resources centre. SA1 Swansea Waterfront represents an exciting new chapter for the University as it relocates from the Townhill and Mount Pleasant campuses into state-of-the-art facilities in the heart of Swansea’s waterfront. “This event provided a perfect opportunity to discuss our innovative learning approaches at IQ with industry peers. I would like to thank the Forum for the Built Environment (FBE) West Wales branch and their members for this opportunity. Several of the FBE members were integral in the new SA1 development, it was my pleasure to present to them how this new build will shape the learning and teaching environment within the Faculty of Architecture, Computing and Engineering (FACE),” said Professor Mike Fernando, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Computing and Engineering. IQ offers 10,000 sq m of flexible teaching space, computer labs, recreational space, and specialist engineering labs over four floors. Y Fforwm, consists of three floors, providing study space, learning commons, and book collections. Both buildings are fitted out with the latest Sony technology, and contemporary furniture installed by local companies Momentum and Bridgend Office Furniture. “These tours mark an important milestone for the SA1 development and it was brilliant to be able to showcase what we have achieved. Phase 1 has been completed on time and with a fantastic team who have shown care and passion throughout the two years that we have been on site,” said Howard Monsen, senior project manager for the site was on hand to answer questions. “The University, as a client, has been working very closely with Kier on the project, which is an incredibly large and complex scheme. Whilst much of their day to day attention, and certainly most of mine is focused on delivering on time and to a high standard, I have been overwhelmed by the commitment to a whole range of other initiatives from the diverse Kier team,” added Mike Bessell, UWTSD senior estates manager, who also provided a speech to all attendees.
Passengers have been urged by Network Rail to plan their journeys in advance as the rail company delivers more than 400 projects, part of a £84 million investment across the country. A 9,600-strong workforce will work around the clock over the bank holiday weekend to deliver more reliable infrastructure, improved facilities and better services for passengers, all part of Network Rail’s Railway Upgrade Plan. The major investment projects this August include: The replacement of a vital junction outside of London Euston station at North Wembley to improve reliability of services. This will see London Euston station closed not only over the bank holiday weekend (25 – 27 August), but also the 18 – 19 August and 01 – 02 September. The £200 million investment to transform the track and signalling through the Derby station area will continue over the bank holiday weekend. The 79 days of engineering began on Sunday 22 July and runs until Sunday 07 October. The investment is a key part of the biggest upgrade of the Midland Main Line, which will support better journeys between Sheffield, Derby, Nottingham and London. The replacement of track near Coventry to improve the reliability of services through the area. Passengers travelling to Birmingham International Airport are advised to plan their journeys in advance as buses will replace trains between Birmingham International and Rugby. “This bank holiday weekend, thousands of rail workers across Britain will be delivering essential improvements that will lead to faster, better services and help relieve overcrowding to respond to the huge growth on Britain’s railways. While it will be business as usual on most of the network, we urge all passengers to check before they travel,” said Andy Thomas, Network Rail managing director of England and Wales. Some routes will see significant changes to normal services; therefore passengers should plan ahead of travelling this August bank holiday weekend.