Balfour Beatty Vinci (BBV) has completed a major weekend of engineering works on HS2, installing the final two 1,000-tonne viaduct spans over the M42 near Birmingham while simultaneously completing the roof structure of another major motorway crossing. The operation marked the culmination of four weekends of intensive construction activity and
A battery can reduce evening electricity purchases without making a house independent of the grid. It can also provide backup, but only through the right equipment and installation. Understanding those limits is part of choosing well, not a reason to dismiss storage. For UK households, solar battery storage involves an
McLaren Living has secured planning permission for a £65 million co-living and affordable housing development at Fish Island in Hackney Wick, paving the way for 324 new homes in east London. The Wansbeck Road scheme will deliver 280 co-living studios alongside 44 affordable homes across two buildings rising to 10
Developers expected to fund new school places across all nine English regions despite pupil numbers falling by 722,000 by 2030 Councils in England should assess demand for school places across local school networks rather than considering each housing development in isolation, according to new analysis by national planning and development
Building performance and M&E engineering specialist Mesh has appointed Jen Wallace as Managing Director to lead the business in the next phase of its growth. Jen joined Mesh in 2019 as one of the company’s first employees, progressing from a junior renewable energy consultant to Team Lead, before being appointed
Downing has secured a £249.2 million refinancing package for two major residential towers at its £400 million Square Gardens development in Manchester, marking another significant milestone for one of the city’s largest new living schemes. The financing, provided by Bank of Ireland, covers Acer and The Fernley, the two completed
Karen Carter, public sector director at public procurement specialist Pagabo, has shared her thoughts following the government’s announcement on its intention to review plans for local government reorganisation (LGR) and ensure alignment with its wider plan to rewire the state. Karen said: “This week’s announcement adds another layer of uncertainty for councils that have
Cardo Group has rapidly expanded its position in the UK building maintenance market, creating a business with full-year revenues of £314 million following a sustained programme of acquisitions and organic growth. The Cardiff-based group, which specialises in repairs, maintenance and improvement services for the social housing sector, reported statutory turnover
Some of the UK’s biggest facilities management and building services contractors have secured positions on a new government framework valued at up to £120 billion, opening the door to a major pipeline of public estate work over the next eight years. The Government Commercial Agency framework, RM6378, is set to
Pre-engineered steel is taking share in low-rise commercial development because it moves structural engineering, fabrication and quality control off the site and into a factory, which shortens the critical path and puts a code-ready, stamped drawing set in the developer’s hands earlier than conventional construction usually manages. Metal building systems
Balfour Beatty Vinci (BBV) has completed a major weekend of engineering works on HS2, installing the final two 1,000-tonne viaduct spans over the M42 near Birmingham while simultaneously completing the roof structure of another major motorway crossing. The operation marked the culmination of four weekends of intensive construction activity and represents another significant milestone for HS2 infrastructure around Birmingham. At Water Orton, a 75-strong construction team installed two 45-metre-long viaduct spans, completing all six crossings required to carry the new high-speed railway over the M42. Each enormous span was assembled from 18 precast concrete segments manufactured at BBV’s Kingsbury facility. Once assembled, the structures were transported into position using self-propelled modular transporters before being secured together using internal tensioning cables. The two Water Orton viaducts form part of HS2’s complex triangular delta junction, which will connect Birmingham with the main high-speed route heading north. While work progressed at Water Orton, another 150-strong BBV team was completing the final stage of a separate 300-metre-long twin box structure close to the NEC. A 300-tonne crawler crane was used to lift the final 44 precast beams into position. Measuring approximately 23 metres in length and weighing as much as 92 tonnes each, the beams form part of the structure’s substantial 9,800-tonne roof. In total, 175 beams have now been installed across the twin box. The completed structure stands approximately 10 metres high and is supported by two 145-metre-long walls and 46 internal columns. Careful programming allowed both major operations to take place during the same weekend motorway closure, minimising disruption to road users. The M42 reopened at approximately 4am on Monday, around an hour ahead of schedule. BBV project director Oliver Shore described the works as a “huge engineering challenge” and praised the teams involved in delivering the complex programme. Work at Water Orton will now move into its next phase, with BBV extending the Water Orton 2 viaduct by a further 40 metres to close the remaining gap above Gilson Road. Further activity over the motorway is already planned, with another M42 closure scheduled from 23 to 26 October to enable parapets to be installed above the carriageway. The latest milestone demonstrates the scale of temporary works, heavy lifting, off-site manufacturing and logistical coordination involved in constructing HS2 around existing strategic highways, with BBV continuing to progress some of the programme’s most technically demanding structures across the West Midlands. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
A battery can reduce evening electricity purchases without making a house independent of the grid. It can also provide backup, but only through the right equipment and installation. Understanding those limits is part of choosing well, not a reason to dismiss storage. For UK households, solar battery storage involves an upfront cost, conversion losses and decisions about where equipment belongs. A useful home battery storage assessment weighs those drawbacks against measurable benefits, with safety features examined as part of the complete installation rather than as isolated claims. Put the drawbacks beside the intended benefit The value of solar battery storage depends on what the household needs to shift from one time of day to another. If little surplus is available, or most electricity is already used during solar hours, the battery may have less useful work to do. Upfront expenditure The Energy Saving Trust describes battery costs as dependent on type and size, with a broad range from £1,500 to £10,000. That range is context, not an OCEAN 2 Plus quotation. Obtain a property-specific installed price and compare identical scopes. Losses during operation Charging and discharging do not return every unit of input energy to appliances. The financial calculation should include those losses, plus any export income given up when solar is stored. Otherwise, the model exaggerates the value of each unit moved into the evening. A finite energy budget Storage shifts energy; it does not create it. A battery that empties on a dark winter evening needs another charging opportunity. Increasing capacity alone cannot compensate for a persistent shortage of solar input or an operating plan that leaves no suitable charging period. Examine the protection around the battery EcoFlow’s home battery storage product page describes ten protection layers for OCEAN 2 Plus, divided into six passive and four active layers. Read that alongside the operating instructions. A protection architecture is useful evidence about design, but it does not make every installation location appropriate. Cell chemistry The product uses lithium iron phosphate, commonly abbreviated LFP. Chemistry is one part of the safety design, alongside monitoring, protective devices and installation. Avoid describing any rechargeable battery as risk-free merely because its cell chemistry differs from that of another product. Fire detection and alarms PAS 63100:2024 includes fire-detection provisions for certain indoor battery locations, including requirements that may apply to infrequently visited areas such as store cupboards. Battery-app alerts should not be treated as a substitute for any fire detection or alarm measures required by the applicable design. The installer should confirm the requirements for the proposed location. Siting and fire separation Within its scope, PAS 63100:2024 gives preference to outdoor installation where reasonably practicable and places restrictions on certain indoor locations, including areas associated with sleeping accommodation and escape routes. Indoor installations may require additional assessment and protective measures depending on the proposed location. It is a technical specification, not a substitute for applicable law; verify its scope and the project’s design basis. Environmental protection EcoFlow specifies IP66 protection and indoor or outdoor options. Those statements do not remove temperature, access or siting requirements. The bottom-module immersion claim also has specified test conditions; it should not be interpreted as permission to install the whole system in a flood-prone position. Understand what backup does and does not promise For home battery storage, backup requires an agreed circuit arrangement and sufficient output. EcoFlow describes integrated backup and conditional 0 ms load-side switching under specified operating conditions. Those conditions and the applicable backup output limits should remain alongside the claim when comparing backup performance. Transfer speed does not establish how long appliances will run. Duration depends on available energy and demand. Nor does a rapid transfer prove that every appliance can start together. Ask the installer to demonstrate the actual protected circuits rather than relying on a general whole-home description. Compare trade-offs with explicit assumptions Use a small decision table to separate different benefits. Financial savings, outage support and future flexibility answer different questions. Combining them into one percentage hides the compromises, particularly when the same stored energy is reserved for backup and also counted as daily bill reduction. Reserve versus everyday use A larger reserve can improve outage readiness while leaving less energy for normal evening demand. Choose the reserve deliberately. Ask the supplier to model the setting you intend to use, rather than assuming the entire usable capacity is discharged for savings every day. Choice Potential benefit Trade-off Larger reserve Outage readiness Less daily use More capacity Longer supply Higher cost More automation Better scheduling Setup and monitoring Capacity versus utilisation Solar battery storage should be sized around recurring demand and charging opportunity. A larger battery may support a future appliance, but unused capacity still costs money. Compare today’s design with a clearly defined future scenario instead of assuming every possible household change will occur. Modularity can make expansion possible, subject to the supported configuration. Obtain the applicable limits for the UK equipment. Expansion should be a documented option with compatibility conditions, not a vague assurance that any additional battery can be fitted whenever convenient. Match efficiency assumptions to the charging route With AC-coupled solar, panel DC becomes AC before conversion back to DC for battery charging, then AC again for household use. DC-coupled solar can avoid that intermediate AC stage, although DC conversion and battery losses remain. Count the actual energy path rather than assuming lossless solar charging. Price assumptions matter As an illustration, buying at 10p/kWh and delivering energy with 90% round-trip efficiency gives an input cost of about 11.1p per delivered kWh. Avoiding a 30p import would leave roughly 18.9p before other costs. These are assumed rates, not a tariff offer. Grid charging requires AC-to-DC conversion and subsequent DC-to-AC supply to household appliances, including in a hybrid system with DC-coupled solar. Coupling architecture alone therefore cannot establish grid-charging efficiency. Losses depend on equipment, load, temperature and standby consumption, rather than a universal figure above 10%. For home battery storage, use an efficiency figure whose measurement boundary matches the calculation:
McLaren Living has secured planning permission for a £65 million co-living and affordable housing development at Fish Island in Hackney Wick, paving the way for 324 new homes in east London. The Wansbeck Road scheme will deliver 280 co-living studios alongside 44 affordable homes across two buildings rising to 10 and seven storeys. Occupying the final development plot within the wider Neptune Wharf masterplan, the project will complete a key part of the regeneration of Fish Island and establish a new residential gateway at the junction of Wansbeck Road and Monier Road. Designed by HTA Design, the development has been conceived as a residential-led community combining private accommodation with an extensive range of shared amenities. Residents of the co-living building will have access to a gym, library, cinema and creative studios, together with communal kitchens and dedicated dining and social spaces. At ground-floor level, plans also include a social co-working café and flexible pop-up event space, helping to create greater activity and interaction between the development and surrounding neighbourhood. A landscaped central courtyard will sit between the two buildings, providing shared outdoor space while creating new connections through the site. Sustainability has also been embedded within the design. The car-free development will provide extensive cycle facilities alongside rain gardens and sustainable drainage measures, while rooftop solar panels will contribute towards reducing operational energy requirements. The scheme is targeting a BREEAM Excellent rating, further strengthening its environmental credentials as McLaren Living looks to deliver a high-density residential development designed around sustainable urban living. The combination of co-living and affordable housing also reflects the increasing diversification of London’s residential market, with purpose-designed shared living emerging alongside more established housing models as developers respond to demand for well-connected homes with greater communal and amenity provision. Ed Court, divisional managing director at McLaren Living, said the developer was excited to progress its plans for Wansbeck Road and complete an important remaining part of the Neptune Wharf masterplan. He added that the location represented a significant co-living investment opportunity, supported by a diverse professional population and strong connections to employment, education and leisure destinations across the capital. With planning permission now secured, the £65 million development represents another significant addition to Hackney Wick’s evolving residential landscape and the continuing regeneration of Fish Island. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Developers expected to fund new school places across all nine English regions despite pupil numbers falling by 722,000 by 2030 Councils in England should assess demand for school places across local school networks rather than considering each housing development in isolation, according to new analysis by national planning and development consultancy Lichfields. Department for Education forecasts show that nursery and primary pupil numbers are expected to fall by 473,000 by 2030, alongside a reduction of 249,000 secondary pupils. The analysis found that places funded through Housing Developer Contributions are forecast to increase across all nine English regions over the same period. In the North East, for example, pupil numbers are projected to fall by 2.9% while developer-funded places rise by 300%. It recommends that councils consider existing capacity, access to schools and longer-term population changes before deciding whether new provision is required. This should take account of children who move locally but remain at their current school, as they would not create demand for an additional place. Mainstream schools could also introduce SEND units where appropriate, while developer contributions could fund improved walking and cycling routes, crossings or bus services. New schools would still be needed where local provision could not accommodate the number of pupils expected. The findings come as councils plan for further housing growth under the government’s target to deliver 1.5m homes by 2029. Large developments are often planned on the edges of towns and villages, where nearby schools might have spare capacity but are too far away or cannot be reached safely on foot. Councils estimate the number of school-age children a development is expected to generate. Where existing schools cannot accommodate them or are not accessible, developers can be required to contribute towards new provision. Assessing demand across the wider area would help councils provide schools for new communities while making better use of places already available. Housing growth could also support established schools in areas where pupil numbers are falling. Robert Curtis-Haigh, Planner at Lichfields and co-author of the analysis, said: “Our analysis highlights a growing contradiction when planning for housing and education. “The current system places significant emphasis on the pupil yield of individual developments, meaning new school places are often still being planned even as pupil numbers decline and existing schools face falling rolls. “The solution isn’t to stop building new schools or new homes, but to take a more strategic view of how the education system will function over the coming decades. “New schools will still be essential in some locations, particularly where major growth is planned. However, in many cases there may be opportunities to improve accessibility and make better use of existing school capacity, while also recognising that housing growth actually supports those schools that are facing declining pupil numbers.” Read the full analysis here: https://lichfields.uk/blog/2026/august/24/catchment-22-the-education-planning-paradox-nobody-is-talking-about Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Building performance and M&E engineering specialist Mesh has appointed Jen Wallace as Managing Director to lead the business in the next phase of its growth. Jen joined Mesh in 2019 as one of the company’s first employees, progressing from a junior renewable energy consultant to Team Lead, before being appointed Operations Director in 2022. Over the past seven years, she has played a pivotal role in developing the systems, processes and culture that underpin all of Mesh’s services in the construction sector. Her appointment comes as Mesh continues to broaden its work across the built environment, combining building physics analysis with building services design to help clients and developers to improve the energy efficiency of new housing, public and commercial buildings. In her new role as Managing Director, Jen now takes responsibility for leading operations, people and culture, sales and marketing, and the day-to-day running of the business. Commenting on this appointment, Jen said: “This is an incredibly exciting time to be working in building engineering and the opportunities for Mesh across the built environment are considerable. Developers need to respond to increasingly demanding legislative requirements around energy performance, carbon emissions and overheating caused by a changing climate. Building owners are facing similar challenges which require improving and decarbonising existing facilities to drive down energy costs, transition away from fossil fuels, and maintain occupier comfort. Digital technology and automation continue to advance apace. We are developing and applying multiple tools to automate the more repeatable data processes to enable our engineers to focus their expertise where it adds the most value to our customers. Mesh has evolved enormously since I joined the business. However, what has remained consistent is our focus on understanding what clients are trying to achieve and using data-led evidence to help them make better decisions. Our approach is to bring together building physics and M&E engineering rather than looking at individual issues in isolation. This means we can quantify the impact of different energy strategies and assess the implications on running costs and carbon emissions to achieve the right balance of what is practical and deliverable for every project. I am extremely proud of the people and culture we have built at Mesh. There is a genuinely shared commitment to improving the sustainability of buildings and the wider environment that we live and work in. I am looking forward to leading the next stage of the business.” Doug Johnson, Founding Director of Mesh: “The opportunities ahead are significant. Whether we are working with architects to create better-performing buildings, pushing the boundaries of sustainable design and engineering, or helping organisations develop practical strategies to decarbonise existing facilities, property managers, architects and developers increasingly need joined-up engineering advice backed by robust analysis to inform decision making. Jen has had a very positive impact on Mesh’s growth. She joined us at a very early stage having worked in the charitable and local authority sectors. She has helped to build much of the operational infrastructure that has enabled Mesh to develop its customer base and services – and maintain a high level of repeat business. Jen understands the commercial and operational realities and challenges our clients face. Her progression from energy consultant to Managing Director reflects her talent as a business leader in the built environment. I am delighted that she has accepted this role to lead Mesh through its next phase.” Mesh’s services have continued to broaden as Building Regulations have become more stringent and renewable energy technologies have advanced. Its work now ranges from energy strategies and overheating analysis, operational and embodied carbon assessments, compliance and planning support, through to M&E design, tender specifications and strategies for decarbonising existing buildings. Mesh also has a number of niche specialisms – working with architects and planning consultants on National Planning Policy Framework HO11 projects that demand innovation and excellence in sustainability and design; developing energy strategies for complex estates and building portfolios needing to reduce energy consumption and accelerate decarbonisation, and embodied carbon analysis such as for M5 planning policy for replacement buildings. A key priority under Jen’s leadership will be the continued development of digital systems and automation for repetitive tasks and data collection to allow Mesh’s engineers to maximise their time on strategic analysis, problem solving, and developing practical, evidence-based solutions for clients. For more information, see www.mesh-energy.com or email info@mesh-energy.com. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Downing has secured a £249.2 million refinancing package for two major residential towers at its £400 million Square Gardens development in Manchester, marking another significant milestone for one of the city’s largest new living schemes. The financing, provided by Bank of Ireland, covers Acer and The Fernley, the two completed co-living buildings within the wider Square Gardens development in Manchester’s First Street district. Together, the buildings provide a major concentration of new rental accommodation, with the 25-storey Acer and 45-storey Fernley forming the first two phases of the development. Both buildings are now operational, demonstrating the scale of demand for professionally managed, amenity-led rental accommodation in Manchester. Designed by Manchester-based SimpsonHaugh Architects, Square Gardens represents a substantial addition to the city’s evolving residential landscape. The wider £400 million development has been conceived as a new urban neighbourhood combining high-density living with extensive shared amenities, landscaped spaces and public realm. Residents have access to facilities including a gym and wellness centre, co-working and meeting areas, social lounges, private dining spaces and extensive landscaped gardens and terraces. Sustainability has also formed an important part of the development, with measures including air source heat pumps, while the scheme has targeted BREEAM Excellent and EPC A ratings. The refinancing represents an important financial milestone following the completion and occupation of the two buildings. Savills Capital Advisors advised Downing on the transaction. Bay Downing, joint chief executive of Downing, described the deal as a landmark transaction for the business, highlighting the strength of the company’s portfolio and growing opportunities across the living sector. The deal is also significant for the wider UK residential market. Large-scale co-living and Build to Rent developments are becoming an increasingly established component of regeneration in major regional cities, combining new housing supply with extensive shared facilities and professionally managed environments. Square Gardens has been created using Downing’s vertically integrated approach, with development, construction and ongoing management delivered by the business. This has enabled the company to take the scheme from construction through to operation within the wider group. With Acer and The Fernley now completed and backed by £249.2 million of refinancing, Square Gardens is moving firmly from major construction project to established residential destination, reinforcing Manchester’s position as one of the UK’s leading markets for large-scale rental and co-living development. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Karen Carter, public sector director at public procurement specialist Pagabo, has shared her thoughts following the government’s announcement on its intention to review plans for local government reorganisation (LGR) and ensure alignment with its wider plan to rewire the state. Karen said: “This week’s announcement adds another layer of uncertainty for councils that have already spent months planning for reorganisation. Four areas have had their plans withdrawn, another 14 are paused pending review, and the 2027 elections will now be fought on existing boundaries. “For the teams involved, that’s a lot more work suddenly required without a clear landing point. But the fundamentals haven’t changed. Schools still need building, homes still need delivering, and estates still need maintaining. None of that waits for a structural decision in Whitehall. The risk in moments like this is that authorities press pause on everything, not just reorganisation, and lose a year of delivery to a decision that isn’t theirs to make. It’s vital that local authorities remember that successful transition will depend not only on the governance design, but on collective leadership and the ability to maintain shared action while navigating the road ahead. “Our advice remains the same as prior to this latest government announcement. That is to keep statutory service delivery moving and focus on decisions that will be unaffected by reorganisation. This means procuring through compliant, flexible routes that transfer cleanly to whatever structure eventually emerges. Similarly, ensure contract, asset and supplier data is in order because that is the groundwork every future authority will need regardless of how new boundaries are formed. Finally, keep the relationships with your supply chain warm so that you can move quickly when clarity comes. “Uncertainty is not the same as standstill. The authorities that come through this best will be the ones that use the pause to get their house in order – rather than waiting to be told what shape they’ll be.” For more information and guidance, check out Navigating Local Government Reorganisation – which was recently published by Pagabo. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Cardo Group has rapidly expanded its position in the UK building maintenance market, creating a business with full-year revenues of £314 million following a sustained programme of acquisitions and organic growth. The Cardiff-based group, which specialises in repairs, maintenance and improvement services for the social housing sector, reported statutory turnover of £239 million for the year to February 2026, representing a 65% increase. Growth was supported by seven acquisitions during the period alongside expansion across Cardo’s existing operations, as the business continues to build greater regional coverage and broaden the specialist services it can provide to housing clients. Operating profit more than doubled from £6 million to £14 million, with the operating margin increasing from 4.3% to 5.8%. However, the scale of the enlarged group is better reflected by full-year trading figures incorporating 12 months of revenue from the acquired businesses, which put turnover at £314 million and adjusted EBITDA at almost £32 million. Cardo’s acquisition programme has brought a diverse range of building maintenance capabilities into the group. Deals have included Breyer’s roofing division, energy specialist SERS operations in Scotland and Wales, CTS Projects, Scottish roofing contractor Faskin Group, passive fire protection specialist Gunfire and Trident Maintenance Services. Expansion has continued since the financial year-end. Welsh electrical maintenance specialist EFS Systems (UK) joined Cardo in May, followed in July by R Lewis & Co (UK) Holdings and subsidiary R Lewis & Co (UK), strengthening the group’s passive fire safety capabilities. In August, Cardo added Andover-based plumbing and heating specialist Correct Contract Services, further expanding its building services offering and geographical reach. The acquisition strategy has been accompanied by significant workforce growth. Average employee numbers increased from approximately 780 to 1,276, with much of the expansion concentrated within operational roles. Cardo’s balance sheet also reflects the pace of investment. Cash increased from £9.9 million to £15.1 million, while long-term creditors rose from £30.5 million to £81.6 million as acquisition financing was deployed to support the group’s expansion. The business is now looking to combine further strategic acquisitions with organic growth secured through long-term repairs and maintenance contracts. Its strategy is particularly focused on strengthening regional delivery capabilities across the social housing market while bringing together complementary services including roofing, electrical works, heating, energy efficiency and passive fire protection. Further consolidation is also planned within Scotland, where Heatcare Oil and Gas and Rodgers & Johnston are set to be integrated into Cardo Scotland. With a strong forward order book and growing pipeline of opportunities, Cardo is positioning the enlarged group for further expansion as investment in housing maintenance, building safety, energy efficiency and asset improvement continues across the UK. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Some of the UK’s biggest facilities management and building services contractors have secured positions on a new government framework valued at up to £120 billion, opening the door to a major pipeline of public estate work over the next eight years. The Government Commercial Agency framework, RM6378, is set to become a recommended procurement route for facilities management services across central government. It will also be available to local authorities, NHS organisations, police forces, fire and rescue services, education bodies and devolved administrations. Competition for the largest Total Facilities Management contracts has attracted many of the sector’s leading names. Eighteen businesses have been appointed to the highest-value lot, covering individual contracts worth more than £15 million annually. The successful firms include Amey, CBRE, Compass, Dalkia, Equans, G4S Facilities Management, ISS, JLL, Kier, Mitie, OCS, Robertson Facilities Management, Serco, Skanska, Sodexo, Vinci Facilities, Vivo Defence Services and Wates. For the construction and built environment industry, the framework also represents a substantial opportunity for contractors delivering hard FM, engineering, maintenance and asset management services across the public estate. Forty businesses have secured positions on the major Hard FM lot for contracts valued above £2 million per year. Among those appointed are Amey, BAM FM, CBRE, Dalkia, Equans, Galliford Try, Graham Asset Management, Kier, Mears, Mitie, NG Bailey, OCS, Robertson, Serco, Skanska, Vinci Facilities, Vivo and Wates. The framework has been structured to accommodate public sector estates and contracts of significantly different scales. Total FM is divided into three bands covering contracts worth up to £2 million annually, between £2 million and £15 million, and more than £15 million. Hard FM is split between contracts below and above £2 million a year. A core group of contractors has achieved particularly strong coverage across the framework. Fifteen firms secured places across all five Total FM and Hard FM lots: Amey, CBRE, Equans, ISS, JLL, Kier, Mitie, OCS, Robertson, Serco, Skanska, Sodexo, Vinci Facilities, Vivo Defence Services and Wates Property Services. A further group, including BAM FM, Dalkia Facilities, Galliford Try Facilities Management, Graham Asset Management and Mears FM, secured positions across four lots. The scale and duration of the framework make it an important development for the management and maintenance of the UK’s public buildings and infrastructure. Alongside day-to-day FM provision, major hard services contracts can encompass the engineering, maintenance and long-term performance of complex property portfolios. With public bodies continuing to face pressure to improve building efficiency, modernise ageing estates and manage assets more effectively, the framework provides a long-term procurement platform through which significant programmes of FM and building services work can be commissioned. The agreement is scheduled to operate for eight years, running through to August 2034, giving successful contractors access to what could become one of the most significant public sector facilities management pipelines in the UK. Main Total FM and Hard FM winners Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Pre-engineered steel is taking share in low-rise commercial development because it moves structural engineering, fabrication and quality control off the site and into a factory, which shortens the critical path and puts a code-ready, stamped drawing set in the developer’s hands earlier than conventional construction usually manages. Metal building systems account for a substantial share of new low-rise, nonresidential floor area in the United States, a position the Metal Building Manufacturers Association follows through its industry trends reporting, and that share was built up over decades on warehouses, light industrial units, retail shells, offices and mixed-use blocks of two or three storeys. The model is less familiar to UK developers, but the reasoning behind it travels, and so does the main procurement trap inside it. Most published comparisons of pre-engineered steel lead with cost. That framing is the least useful one for a developer, because price is the output of a specification that has not been written yet. The four things worth examining before that point are schedule sequencing, the engineering documents, how expansion gets designed in, and who you are actually buying from. The schedule argument is a sequencing argument The schedule gain in a pre-engineered steel building comes from parallel work, not from fast erection. While the primary frames, secondary framing and cladding are being fabricated in a plant, the site is doing groundworks, drainage and foundations, so two long-lead activities run side by side instead of end to end. Erection is quick once the steel lands, but erection was never the part of the programme that hurt. That parallel sequence only holds if the design is frozen early. A pre-engineered system prices and fabricates against a fixed geometry, load case and opening schedule, so a decision to move a roller door or add a mezzanine after release to fabrication costs far more programme time than the same change would in a steel-frame build detailed on site. Developers who do well out of the format tend to be the ones who run their tenant conversations before release, not after. Weather exposure is the other schedule variable that changes shape. Factory fabrication in controlled conditions removes a large block of field labour from the programme, which matters more in a wet winter than any theoretical erection rate does. The site crew is bolting together finished members rather than cutting, fitting and welding in the open. Stamped drawings are the part developers underestimate Engineering documentation is the quiet reason pre-engineered systems clear approvals faster. A genuine manufacturer produces the anchor bolt plan, reactions, frame cross-sections and erection drawings as part of the order, sealed by a professional engineer licensed in the project’s jurisdiction, so the building official and the developer’s own structural consultant are reviewing a coordinated set rather than assembling one. The practical value shows up at two moments. The first is permitting, where a complete stamped package tends to attract fewer requests for information. The second is foundation design, because the manufacturer’s reaction data is what the geotechnical and foundation engineers need before anyone pours anything, and late reactions stall the site while the steel sits in a plant yard. Ask at tender stage when the stamped drawings arrive, who seals them, and whether design changes after approval trigger a re-seal. The answers differentiate suppliers more sharply than any brochure claim about steel grade. Expansion has to be engineered before the first bolt goes in Expansion in a pre-engineered steel building is cheap if it was planned and awkward if it was not. A frame ordered as expandable gets a rigid endwall rather than a bearing endwall, with the foundations, bracing and reactions sized for the future bays, so adding 60 or 80 feet later means unbolting the sheeting and continuing the line. A frame ordered without that provision needs the endwall rebuilt and the foundations reworked, which is a different project. Developers holding land for phased delivery, or letting to tenants with growth clauses, should specify the expansion case in the original enquiry even if they never use it. The design cost of an expandable endwall is modest at order stage and effectively unrecoverable afterwards. Bolted steel frames also come apart, which matters for exit strategy and for planning arguments about circularity. UK guidance on recycling and reuse of structural steel records recovery rates for structural sections at the top end of construction materials, and a bolted, documented frame is considerably easier to demount and reuse than a welded or composite one. Manufacturer or broker is the question that decides the rest Much of the pre-engineered steel market is sold by brokers, dealers and kit resellers who do not own a plant, do not employ engineers and pass the order to whichever fabricator quotes best that month. The distinction is invisible in marketing and very visible in a dispute, because a reseller cannot reseal a drawing, cannot reschedule a fabrication slot and cannot answer a technical query without relaying it. Developers who buy on schedule certainty should be establishing, in writing, whether the counterparty manufactures. Buying manufacturer-direct compresses the chain to one accountable party for engineering, fabrication and delivery. Universal Steel of America, a Peachtree Corners company founded in 1995 that manufactures pre-engineered systems for low-rise projects only, runs that model across its commercial steel buildings work, with in-house engineering, PE-stamped drawings, and a stated plant network covering every region of the United States that ships directly to site from the closest plant. The point for a developer is not the brand but the structure of the relationship: when the engineer, the fabricator and the shipper answer to the same company, a mid-project change has one owner rather than three. Third-party accreditation helps test the claim. IAS AC472 accredits a metal building manufacturer’s design, fabrication and inspection programme, and a building official may accept that accreditation as evidence that the manufacturer qualifies as an approved fabricator under Chapter 17 of the International Building Code, which can remove duplicate in-shop inspections. One detail gets misread often: AC472