Alan Wilson, the Head of Membership and Communications at SELECT, the campaigning body trade for Scotland’s electrical sector, delivered a presentation at the end of March to the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group for Construction. This was the latest initiative in SELECT and the SEC Group’s long-running campaign to improve
Castle Building Services Organisation (Castle), one of the UK’s leading privately-owned building services design and installation contractors, has announced a recent contract win for its North East office on a new £9.8 million state-of-the-art healthcare facility in York. Working on behalf of principal contractor, Kier Construction, Castle has been
R G Carter has been selected by the University of East Anglia to deliver its new £30m teaching building. The construction company recently began work on the four-storey building which will be open to students at its Norwich campus in September 2019. Paul Hamilton, Senior Project Manager at R G
SimScale, the world’s first provider of cloud-based engineering simulation solutions, has announced an upcoming webinar to teach HVAC system designers and mechanical engineers how to predict and improve thermal comfort, energy efficiency and performance of their designs. The webinar will be presented on March 27, 2018 at 5:00 PM CET
Pod Point has completed the installation of 67 electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints for Skanska UK, one of the country’s leading contractors, at its Hertfordshire head office. The installation is believed to be one of the largest to date in Europe. The company, which employs 6,000 people in the UK, worked
The employees from engineering solutions provider, Boulting Group, have worked really hard and managed to raise £14,683.31 for cancer centre The Christie, the largest single-site cancer centre in Europe, treating more than 44,000 patients a year. The money raised will help fund the important work and support the facilities provided
A spate of security breaches related to internet connected devices has been welcomed by the UK government with new guidelines that seek to ensure the software is automatically updated, the passwords can’t be reset to factory defaults and that any sensitive data transmitted by apps is encrypted. However, James Fenner,
A team of engineers from Cardiff University are looking into microscopic bacteria that could help create ‘self-healing’ buildings, offering the perfect protection against cracks and other deterioration. The two-year study has been exploring how damage could trigger the release of bacteria and a few other helping chemicals that will allow
AEI Cables has committed to a further prestige standard as it continues to fight against non-approved cables, proving its commitment to quality and service delivery across its markets. The cable leader is demonstrating its dedication in all aspects of the ISO 9001-2015 standard for management systems, which addresses customer focus,
RCM has announced its latest acquisition – the Rockpanel exterior cladding, part of the Rockwool group, the world leader in stone wall solutions. Rockpanel is now part of RCM’s extensive portfolio of façades offerings. The façade is quick and easy to install, easy to maintain, highly cost-effective, and virtually waste-free.
Alan Wilson, the Head of Membership and Communications at SELECT, the campaigning body trade for Scotland’s electrical sector, delivered a presentation at the end of March to the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group for Construction. This was the latest initiative in SELECT and the SEC Group’s long-running campaign to improve how the business community interacts with the public sector, which buys £10 billion of goods, works and services each year. “My presentation was made to a group of MSPs as well as interested parties from throughout the construction sector to give our organisations’ views on how procurement could be improved. I wanted to draw to the attention of our elected representatives a number of issues including the payment cycle, retentions, large packaging of contracts and lack of accountability,” explained Alan. Alan pointed out that Scottish SMEs are acknowledged as the backbone of the economy and that a smoothly-running procurement environment was a vitally important issue for them. On payment, he suggested the more stringent enforcement of Section 15 of the Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 as well as the extension of, and reduction of limits for, Project Bank Accounts. In addition, he also proposed placing all retentions into a trust-based deposit scheme and greater implementation of the Act’s provisions which allow public bodies to package contracts into smaller lots for which small firms can more realistically bid. On accountability, he supported the introduction of a yellow/red card scheme and the appointment of a Construction Regulator. “In the wake of the Carillion crisis, now is the time to act. People need to be accountable, and they need to pay on time. Retentions should not be used as bargaining chips and we should try to get away from the fixation of large scale contracts,” said Alan. The SEC Group represents around 3,000 firms in Scotland that employ more than 30,000 people and more than 5,000 apprentices, while SELECT has 1,250 member companies that have a collective turnover of around £1 billion and provide employment for 15,000 people. “Scotland’s legislators and its parliamentary committees have come some way on procurement and with some sensible additions to the current regulations which cover the operation of the Bill, we could have a procurement regime with which everyone could work and which will deliver for Scotland,” said Newell McGuiness, SELECT Managing Director.
Castle Building Services Organisation (Castle), one of the UK’s leading privately-owned building services design and installation contractors, has announced a recent contract win for its North East office on a new £9.8 million state-of-the-art healthcare facility in York. Working on behalf of principal contractor, Kier Construction, Castle has been appointed to provide a full range of mechanical, electrical and plumbing services on a new seven-suite endoscopy facility for York Teaching Hospital NHS Trust Foundation under the NHS P21Framework. The facility will also include recovery areas, interview-discharge rooms, offices and a plant room as well as ancillary spaces. The two-storey endoscopy facility is currently being constructed on top of an existing physio therapy unit and adjacent to the neuro sciences and renal departments. For that reason, it is a logistically challenging scheme to deliver. While working on the project, Castle will face several challenges, not least those associated with working on a live hospital site. To overcome this, the contractor will work closely with the Trust, its stakeholders and Kier Construction’s site team to ensure minimum disruption to patients, clinical staff and visitors. Further to the general building services, the unit requires specialised services to support its clinical function including uninterruptible power supplies and isolated power supplies as well as medical gas installations. Castle is currently working at pre-construction stage and will commence on site in July. The schedule of works is expected to last approximately 40 weeks, with the contractor expected to handover in the second quarter of 2019. Speaking about this latest contract win, Castle’s commercial director, Andrew Dawson said: “I’m delighted to announce the news of our appointment to such a prestigious scheme for York Hospital. Our previous experience of working in a clinical environment will stand us in good stead on this project. “We will be working closely with Kier’s team and other project partners to ensure we achieve all our key milestones on the project to bring it in on time and budget, ready to serve the people of York and the surrounding areas who need the vital services provided by the Endoscopy Unit.” With demand for endoscopy services set to rise on the back of the expansion of the NHS Bowel screening programme, the new unit will give York Hospital the extra capacity to meet that demand. It will also enhance the design of the department and provide patients with an improved experience when attending appointments. Kier Construction’s Senior Project Manager, Andrew Clarkson, added: “We’re looking forward to delivering this scheme and we’ll be working closely with the Trust to carry out these works whilst ensuring the hospital can continue to operate effectively on a daily basis. This will ensure that everyone involved is working towards the same goals to bring the scheme to a successful conclusion.” Patrick Crowley, Chief Executive, York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust said: “This is the biggest capital investment for many years and will allow the Trust to provide clinical services to a growing number of patients needing endoscopy. “This is an exciting development for the Trust and it will transform our service into a centre of excellence for endoscopy, providing an enhanced high quality care to our patients.”
R G Carter has been selected by the University of East Anglia to deliver its new £30m teaching building. The construction company recently began work on the four-storey building which will be open to students at its Norwich campus in September 2019. Paul Hamilton, Senior Project Manager at R G Carter said: “We are delighted to be collaborating with the University of East Anglia on another great project. Working together, we are committed to delivering a brilliant new state-of-the-art building that will spur UEA staff and students ever closer to brilliant new discoveries.” The new development will provide a comprehensive range of lecture rooms and seminar rooms for students across all disciplines including science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects. The top three floors will comprise teaching laboratories and the ground floor will house social and teaching space for more than 500 students. The building, currently named Building 60 until the official opening, is part of the university ’s 2030 vision which includes further investment on the campus. R G Carter completed the university ’s 500 room accommodation block, Barton and Hickling House, in 2017.
SimScale, the world’s first provider of cloud-based engineering simulation solutions, has announced an upcoming webinar to teach HVAC system designers and mechanical engineers how to predict and improve thermal comfort, energy efficiency and performance of their designs. The webinar will be presented on March 27, 2018 at 5:00 PM CET (11:00 AM ET). Diverse building codes and strict sustainability and energy efficiency requirements are driving the need for new innovative air conditioning strategies. Traditional design methods—such as hand calculations—involve many simplifications and assumptions, limiting the accuracy of the results. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations, on the other hand, enable engineers to virtually analyze multiple HVAC system design configurations, visualizing the differences in flow velocity, density, and thermal impact, making it easier to accurately identify the best solutions. Nonetheless, until recently many engineering companies have been slow to adopt the technology, citing restrictions such as cost, unreliability, and inaccessibility. Although it can save weeks of design time and thousands of dollars in costs, engineering simulation has been expensive to use itself, requiring investments of over $40k in hardware and licenses of on-premises software. The emergence of easy-to-use cloud-based solutions have challenged the status-quo in recent years. Based in Germany, SimScale makes very complex simulations easily accessible via a standard web browser. With a free Community account, anyone in the world can set up and run multiple simulations, then post-process the results using a basic laptop or PC with an Internet connection. Today, more and more engineers are integrating cloud-based CFD into their design validation process which enables them to design comfortable environments at a reasonable cost. “We are moving forward from times when it was enough to calculate air volume in-out balance to ensure comfort in an office space,” said Dr. Pawel Sosnowski, Customer Success Engineer at SimScale. “With CAE tools provided by SimScale you can bring your ventilation design to the new era of engineering.” In this 30-minute webinar on March 27th, participants will learn how CFD simulation in the cloud can help air conditioning system designers ensure compliance with energy efficiency and thermal comfort standards, such as ASHRAE 90.2 and ASHRAE 55, and obtain a detailed overview of the air circulation within a building, essential for optimizing their designs. No prior simulation knowledge is required to participate, and SimScale provides free access to its CFD software via the Community account. Register here for this free webinar taking place on March 27th, at 11:00 AM ET / 5:00 PM CET. If you cannot participate in the live session, the organizers will be sending the recording to all registrants by email.
Pod Point has completed the installation of 67 electric vehicle (EV) chargepoints for Skanska UK, one of the country’s leading contractors, at its Hertfordshire head office. The installation is believed to be one of the largest to date in Europe. The company, which employs 6,000 people in the UK, worked with EV charging specialist Pod Point to install the 7kW chargepoints, along with the infrastructure for the solution to be scaled up to 243 chargepoints in the future. The chargepoints enable Skanska employees to charge their vehicles while they work, before returning to a fully powered battery at the end of the day. The installation is part of Skanska’s commitment to decarbonise its company fleet as fast as technology allows, and to have the lowest emissions fleet in the industry. The solution enables Skanska to control access to EV charging centrally, monitor usage and set custom electricity tariffs. Pod Point was selected following a competitive procurement process and the installation was completed within two weeks. Skanska’s Senior Project Manager Paul Jarvis said: “The installation of the EV chargepoints was a credit to all concerned. All site work was done efficiently, on time and to budget with minimal impact on a busy, occupied site.” Pod Point CEO Erik Fairbairn said: “This is the largest single site chargepoint installation that we’re aware of in the UK, but also a sign of a larger shift over the past six months, as more businesses wake up to the benefits of EVs. We’ve certainly seen a big increase in enquiries from companies wanting futureproof chargepoint installations that can be scaled up as their fleets make the switch to electric.” Along with zero carbon emissions, electric vehicles have lower maintenance costs than their petrol or diesel equivalents due to a smaller number of moving parts. There are also tax advantages, with no benefit in kind rates for charging company cars, while the BIK rate for purchases of new EVs will fall to 2 per cent in 2020/2021 compared to up to 20 per cent for petrol or diesel vehicles.
The employees from engineering solutions provider, Boulting Group, have worked really hard and managed to raise £14,683.31 for cancer centre The Christie, the largest single-site cancer centre in Europe, treating more than 44,000 patients a year. The money raised will help fund the important work and support the facilities provided for cancer patients and their families. “Cancer is one of the few remaining human diseases that scientists are yet to cure. Recent breakthroughs in stem cell research in particular means that we are closer than ever to overcoming cancer,” said Josh Groarke, deputy group managing director at Boulting Group, “This is why we’re proud of the determination of our staff and it means that, this year, we have presented The Christie with our biggest charitable donation to date.” Dave Jackson, Billy Ramsay, Matt Hemsworth and Kevin O’Hara took part in a 60 mile Manchester to Blackpool bike ride, while Victoria McWhirter competed in her first Pretty Muddy event and Sam Blair entered the Tough Mudder event. Staff who did not fancy getting muddy participated in a number of additional fundraising events throughout the year, including Boulting’s inaugural Summer Ball, which took place at the Principal Hotel in Manchester raising £7,400 as well as Easter and summer raffles and various dress-down days. “It has been an absolute pleasure being in partnership with Boulting Group over the past year. It has gone over and above to raise an incredible amount of money and we really appreciate its dedication and efforts,” said Danielle Carney, Corporate Fundraising Manager at The Christie. Located in Warrington, with additional sites across the UK, Boulting Group is a multi- disciplined engineering solutions provider, operating in a diverse range of industry sectors in the UK and internationally. Boulting provides a wide scope of project services from project management, design, fabrication and installation to commissioning and ongoing maintenance services and has strong in-house resources in all the major engineering construction disciplines, including mechanical, electrical and instrumentation, technology, HVAC/sophisticated environments.
A spate of security breaches related to internet connected devices has been welcomed by the UK government with new guidelines that seek to ensure the software is automatically updated, the passwords can’t be reset to factory defaults and that any sensitive data transmitted by apps is encrypted. However, James Fenner, founder and managing director at Silk Road, argued that by only issuing guidelines, and not making them legally binding, the government has fallen short in its care of vulnerable homeowners. “The Internet of Things is expanding at an incredible pace and there is much that smart tech can do to enhance home life. However, the pace of introduction means that the government has been left scrabbling to keep up and has been left wanting when it comes to matters of security,” said James. “Where vulnerable groups such as the elderly are using this technology in their homes in order to boost their independence, it is particularly important that security concerns are addressed swiftly and robustly.” Instead of using locks and burglar alarms to protect their homes, people have started turning to technology to achieve that. In the US, 73% of millennial women see smart home technology as a way to keep their homes safe. But despite the proliferation of these technologies, many consumers are concerned about their smart home data being hacked by cybercriminals. For this reason, many companies have started developing security devices to protect the connected homes. But it is the government that should be doing more about the possible cyber-attacks because if it doesn’t, then it will be those with money to spend who will benefit from the best protection. “Smart tech has an important role to play in the way that we live in and enjoy our homes. We just need to ensure that security matters are addressed at the same pace as innovations are achieved,” concluded James Fenner.
A team of engineers from Cardiff University are looking into microscopic bacteria that could help create ‘self-healing’ buildings, offering the perfect protection against cracks and other deterioration. The two-year study has been exploring how damage could trigger the release of bacteria and a few other helping chemicals that will allow buildings to repair themselves freely. When mixed with precursor chemicals, these microorganisms can produce mineral deposits such as calcium carbonate, which is a key component in rocks and other masonry materials. The study’s principal investigator, Dr Mike Harbottle, said bacteria could be “entombed” within spores of the mineral, alongside the precursor chemical. “When damage occurs to the masonry, the deposits within the mineral are also damaged, exposing both the bacteria and the chemicals, which react with each other again to produce even more mineral, thus healing the damage.” Buildings are constantly damaged by weathering. “These could be physical, chemical or biological changes which can all slowly attack the masonry structure,” said research fellow Magdalini Theodoridou. “Over time, usually many years, this damage builds up until fractures arise. Whilst these may not compromise the integrity of a structure immediately, if allowed to develop then damage may become critical.” During the study, the team will be developing ways of introducing the substances into the masonry either during the material production or after the buildings have gone up. A possible solution is thought to be the spraying of the building with a liquid containing the bacteria and other chemicals. The research is funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship scheme.
AEI Cables has committed to a further prestige standard as it continues to fight against non-approved cables, proving its commitment to quality and service delivery across its markets. The cable leader is demonstrating its dedication in all aspects of the ISO 9001-2015 standard for management systems, which addresses customer focus, motivation of senior management, processes and continual improvement awarded by the cable industry body, the British Approvals Service Cables (BASEC). This accreditation is complemented further by AEI Cables’ approvals from organisations such as Lloyds, the MoD, Network Rail and LUL, as well as American and Canadian approval systems and others worldwide. The management system ISO 9001-2015 scheme assesses a company’s ability to produce and supply goods and services constantly to specification and customer requirements in a safe manner and taking into consideration the environmental needs. “AEI Cables stands for quality across all of its business dealings and this is another sign of our commitment to it. We have a proven track record but we will not rest on our laurels,” said Stuart Dover, commercial manager for AEI Cables. “With the rising issue of non-approved cabling, we bring reassurance and peace of when it comes to product performance, and we look forward to supporting our customers in the UK and worldwide.” The markets that AEI Cables operates in include construction, industrial, fire protection, defence, mining, and rail. All of the company’s products for these markets are supplied with approvals from independent industry bodies such as BASEC and LPCB covering design, manufacture and supply. AEI Cables is one of the most respected cable experts worldwide, being committed to quality, safety and service with no compromise. The company has been in use for more than 170 years and it has delivered cables for prestige projects such as Manchester Airport, the White City complex, and Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.
RCM has announced its latest acquisition – the Rockpanel exterior cladding, part of the Rockwool group, the world leader in stone wall solutions. Rockpanel is now part of RCM’s extensive portfolio of façades offerings. The façade is quick and easy to install, easy to maintain, highly cost-effective, and virtually waste-free. The boards could be used as exterior cladding, for applications along the roofline and for building detailing. Each one of them is made from compressed mineral wool from basalt, which is then mixed with a small quantity of organic binder, resulting in a unique board that combines the strength and durability of stone with the workability of wood. The full range contains eleven products for different applications and finishes: Rockpanel Uni, Rockpanel Ply, Rockpanel Colours, Rockpanel Metallics, Rockpanel Chameleon, Rockpanel Brilliant, Rockpanel Woods, Rockpanel Natural, Rockpanel Stones, Rockpanel Lines 2 and Rockpanel Premium. In addition, all boards are available in various colours and are treated with a 4-layer water-based high quality coating that locks in their appearance, colour and finish for years to come. “RCM are delighted to be able to offer Rockpanel façades to our customers. It has added a new dimension to our façade portfolio and compliments the already existing range on offer. Rockpanel is made from natural volcanic rock-basalt and offers many benefits. It is as easy to process as wood, the colours remain stable and the material does not delaminate or rot. We look forward to increasing demand for this exceptional façade,” said Ian Quinton, Managing Director at RCM. RCM has already started supplying the Rockpanel range to various UK based project and is looking forward to expanding its façade range over the coming months. RCM is a major supplier of wall solutions for the UK construction industry, offering building boards, façades, breather membranes, and airtightness solutions. It is a market leader in providing innovative products and solutions designed and tested to meet the demands of the industry.
