PLANNING
& TODAY
BUILDING CONTROL
Supported by
IN THIS ISSUE
We provide a focus on how the Housing and Planning Bill will affect councils struggling
IMAGINE.
to provide affordable housing, and also address the adoption of BIM Level 2 now the RELIABLE INFORMATION
UK government mandate for its use is in effect
Naomi Luhde-Thompson – Planning Campaigner at Friends of the Earth
ON DEMAND.
Dale Sinclair – CIC BIM Champion and Director of Technical Practice at AECOM
Jean Hewitt – Director of the Centre for Accessible Environments
Deadline for
BIM Level 2
Read our BIM section to ensure you’re
up-to-speed with the requirements
Supported by
Introduction
W
Editor
Lisa Carnwell
elcome to the April edition it’s time that we could have a BIM
Production Coordinator
of PBC Today where we Golden Handover Award as we move
Nick Wilde
lead with the challenges into an era where we can now judge a
Designers
Andrew Bosworth
surrounding the Housing and Planning successful BIM handover. Richard
Ben Green Bill for councils, which the Local Gov- Petrie, CEO of buildingSMART Interna-
Sales ernment Association argue, is placing tional explains that adopting the open
Glyn Jackson extreme pressure in the delivery of standards approach to BIM will mean
affordable homes. They believe that you are always a winner, and Nick
The editor does not necessarily agree measures within the Bill risk combining Tune, CEO of coBuilder UK defines
with or endorse any of the views or
contents of the articles and features to reduce the number of existing coun- the meaning of BIM Level 2 now the
cil homes, which local authorities will April deadline is here. He justifies the
within this document. All articles and
editorials remain the copyright of the
authors, organisations and other be forced to sell and will then struggle importance of structured data for a
relevant authorities by whose kind
permission they are reproduced. All to replace. These concerns, echoed by seamless BIM operation.
Naomi-Luhde Thompson of Friends of
information has been checked and is
correct at the time of going to press.
The publisher will not be liable for
any loss suffered directly or indirectly
the Earth, say that councils will “have There has also been sad news
as a result of the use of or reliance on one shot at getting the decision right – delivered recently. The Zero Carbon
through the local plan site allocation Hub announced they would cease
the information contained herein.
20 | Brownfield sites:
still our greatest
untapped resource?
Tom Shaw, Director at
Ramboll argues that
developing brownfield
sites for housing can
contribute to the
quality of existing
urban areas and the
wellbeing of its
inhabitants
86 | Implementing BIM? Engage with your staff
Andy Radley, Group BIM Director at Kier Group examines how to incorporate
BIM into an organisation, and celebrates the benefits that collaborative
working can bring
48 | The EU Urban Agenda for 74 | The BIM Golden Handover 100 | The 5 pillars of Product
our cities of tomorrow Award? Data Templates
European Parliament MEP, Lambert As we move into an era where we can In an interview with Nick Tune, CEO
van Nistelrooij outlines why cities are judge a successful BIM handover, of coBuilder UK, he details the 5
the engine for economic growth and Nick Nisbet, Technical Coordinator for Product Data Templates issues that
are integral for the EU Urban Agenda buildingSMART UKI asks whether it’s manufacturers must consider if they
time that we could actually have a BIM are to become a BIM partner
Golden Handover Award
Neighbourly Matters
C
meet local need, alongside other affordable homes for rent…
ouncils share the Government’s ambition to The LGA also strongly opposes the proposal to
increase house building and enable home require councils to charge mandatory market-based
ownership. rents for higher income tenants and to take a sum of
money from councils based on a national estimate of
Measures within the Housing and Planning Bill – the additional income from higher rents. Many social
currently being debated in the House of Lords – risk housing tenants across the country will be unable to
combining to reduce the number of existing council afford market rents or take up the offer to buy their
homes, which local authorities will be forced to sell council home under this policy.
and will then struggle to replace.
This ‘pay to stay’ policy needs to be voluntary for
This could lead to an increase in the housing benefit councils – as it will be for housing associations to pro-
bill as more people are forced to move into the more tect social housing tenants – and avoid hard-working
expensive private rented sector. This will do nothing families being penalised, people being disincentivised
to help councils reduce homelessness and the use to work and earn more, and key workers, such as
of temporary accommodation. nurses, teachers or social workers, having to move
out of their local area. Councils must also retain any
It has been a priority for the Local Government additional income generated from rents to reinvest in
Association (LGA) to try and mitigate any of the new and existing homes.
unintended consequences of government housing
reforms, opposing plans to force councils to sell off The LGA insists the extension of Right to Buy to hous-
homes to fund the Right to Buy extension to social ing association tenants must not be funded by forcing
housing, and raising concerns around a mandatory councils to sell off homes. As a minimum, the LGA
‘pay to stay’ policy for councils and the provision of forecasts councils would be forced to sell 22,000 ‘high
starter homes, at the expense of affordable homes value’ homes in order to fund the extension.
to rent.
This number could be much higher depending on
Government plans for more starter homes, for how government chooses to define ‘high value’.
example, will help support home ownership in some Councils should always be free to manage their
areas, but will be out of reach for all people in need assets to meet the needs of local communities and
of affordable housing in 220 council areas, according must retain 100 per cent of all receipts to reinvest in
to a report titled ‘The Impact of New Housing new and existing housing.
Measures on Development’ by real estate services
provider Savills. We have argued that councils must Analysis: impact of the Housing and
have the flexibilities to shape the number, location, Planning Bill
types and quality of starter homes to ensure that Savills and the LGA project that 66,000 council homes
they meet local need, alongside other affordable will be sold to tenants under the existing Right to Buy
homes for rent. scheme by 2020.
Planning and Development | 9
Local authorities could then be forced to sell a Discounted starter homes will be out of reach for all
further 22,000 ‘high value’ homes by the end of the people in need of affordable housing – who would
decade to fund plans to extend the scheme to have to spend 30 per cent of their household income
housing association tenants. This could vary depend- to buy or rent a home – in 220 council areas (67 per
ing on how the Government defines ‘high value’ for cent) and for more than 90 per cent of people in a
different areas further 80 (25 per cent) council areas.
Required rent reductions, of 1 per cent a year for Should the ‘pay to stay’ policy be mandatory for all
the next four years, take out £2.2 billion from council social tenants, around 50 per cent of tenants deemed
housing budgets by 2020 – making building replace- high income in the South East, East of England and
ments extremely difficult. There is a risk that of the London would not be able to afford to pay market
88,000 homes sold up to 2020, 80,000 will not be rents or take up Right to Buy and would need to
replaced. This will add £210 million to the housing move out of the area to find a similar property. ■
benefit bill.
B
By Kim Vernau, CEO, BLP Insurance
Kim Vernau
CEO
BLP Insurance
Tel: 020 3813 5447
info@blpinsurance.com
www.blpinsurance.com
12 | Planning and Development
I
in delivering new homes. He outlines the challenges they face…
f there is one thing we can all agree on, it’s that the demand for new homes. This means infill and
solving the housing crisis is no mean feat. The smaller scale brownfield sites – the sort of sites that
root causes behind the lack of housing go back are less contentious when it comes to seeking plan-
decades, and there’s certainly no single solution that ning permission. SME business models also demand
will bring this crisis to an end. What’s clear is that it a quick turnaround of projects, leading to shorter
won’t be possible to significantly increase the delivery land acquisition to completion times. These strengths
of new homes without significantly increasing the mean that SMEs could, and should, play a crucial role
capacity of the house building sector. In other words, in delivering the new homes we so desperately need.
we need more small house building firms to enter
the market. But how do we empower the small local builder?
First and foremost, we must improve access to devel-
The SME house building sector has been in long-term opment finance for SME house buildings. The plum-
decline for decades now, but this decline was greatly meting housing market in the late 2000s left many of
accelerated in the years following the financial crisis the major banks exposed and most of these lenders
as demand for new homes plummeted. The number will still refuse to consider loaning to small house
of SME developers fell by more than half in the years building firms, no matter how healthy their order
2008 to 2014 – a startling statistic that underlines books may be. It means that the costs of borrowing
the challenging environment smaller firms were for SMEs are now enormous. What finance is available
forced to operate in. Even with the resurgence in the will come at the cost of substantial fees that can
housing market, the businesses that survived are still damage a projects viability, and the shared lack of
finding things difficult and conditions are particularly appetite amongst those major banks that are willing
tough for any new entrants. to lend will only provide finance of around 60% of a
project’s value. Moreover, a lack of access to rolling
The decline of the SME house builder isn’t just a hard capital makes maintaining multiple sites a real struggle,
luck story – it’s done enormous damage to this coun- as firms can only borrow on a project-specific basis.
try’s ability to deliver enough homes. In the 1980s, it
was SMEs who built two thirds of the country’s new The government has attempted to address this
housing stock. The 1980s were also the last time problem through a variety of funding schemes for
England’s house building figures exceeded 200,000. SMEs and in January, they announced a ‘direct
This is no coincidence. Large developers won’t ever commissioning pilot’ which will see the direct
be able to increase their output to a significant enough employment of smaller firms to build over 10,000
degree without a strong supporting cast of small new homes on publically-held land. One innovation
local builders. they could introduce to further support the sector
would be for the government to provide guarantees
Smaller developers are versatile, with an appetite to on private loans for small developments.
build out the smaller sites that bigger companies
aren’t always interested in. Cumulatively, these small Improving the availability of suitable small sites is also
sites have huge potential when it comes to meeting vital if we are to empower SME builders. Currently,
Planning and Development | 13
there is an excessive focus on the provision of large Whitehall has made some progress on addressing
sites within Local Plans for the delivery of housing these issues and Ministers have employed some
numbers. This trend is very concerning because with- pretty creative thinking in their attempts to reduce
out the provision of smaller sites, SME housebuilders costs and speed up planning applications. However,
have nowhere to build. In addition, cutbacks to local given that we are still only building 140,000 homes
authority planning departments have also had a per year and are aiming for upwards of 200,000,
detrimental impact on services to developers. there is much more that needs to be done. ■
A
t a Green Belt seminar in Oxford in homes built each year, this against the back- housing units. The right to grow would not
2015, faced with a tricky question from drop of an annual rate of 25,000 p.a. since be confined to existing houses, but could
the floor regarding where new housing 2008. Given that the Green Belt is a no-go include shops and offices.
in rural Surrey might go, if not in the Green area and brownfield sites just don’t seem to
Belt, a CPRE delegate, without the hint of a come up with the goods, the answer is to An alternative option, with the same objec-
smug grin, suggested “upwards”. There was build tall. This is not specifically targeted at tive, would be for London Boroughs to bring
no recorded presence of a DCLG or Mayoral new builds, but by changing Permitted forward local development orders, permitting
mole in the audience, but who knows Development (PD) rights to allow additional upward expansion in specific areas, perhaps
because, a few months later, (February storeys to be added to existing buildings. around transport hubs or in town centres
2016) DCLG/Mayor of London have issued First reaction must be that creating taller and high streets. The third option sees the
a consultation paper “Upward Extensions homes does not automatically equate to London Plan introducing new planning
in London”. more homes, but let’s look at the options put policies to support additional storeys.
forward in the consultation.
Answers, not on a seaside postcard referring “Why not just have a sensible
to erections or mine being bigger than yours, PD rights, with prior approval, are, supposedly review of this country’s out-
are requested by 15 April 2016, online to “a light touch approach to granting consent”, dated Green Belt policy and
www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Z6SGGNB . The though anyone going down that route may leave the Permitted Develop-
consultation is not to be confused with the be forgiven for sniggering. The consultation ment Order alone for a while,
ongoing debate, especially in Westminster paper suggests that there might be a new PD to recover from trauma of
and Ken & Chel, about the propensity of right in London that provides for one or two last year!!”
wealthy householders to seek even more additional storeys on an existing building,
indoor pools and home cinemas by building where the roofline of the adjoining premises There are provisions in the consultation for
under their existing houses and gardens. is at least one or two storeys taller already, multiple PD spurts, so that two or more
conditional upon the additional space being neighbours, sitting next to and/or close to
The London Plan seeks to have 49,000 new used to provide self-contained additional the big boy on the end of the block, could
Example 1 Example 2
A B C D A B C D E F
PROFILE 15
grow together, but only the immediate in the Attic” is truly self-contained not to say definite from either of the London Mayoral
neighbour could grow on its own. The illus- safe? Are there enough lop-sided street candidates who seem only to rely on rhetoric.
tration, see below, rather suggests that if you scenes to make a difference and do we want
press down on the tall building, one of building heights to be all the same? Why not just have a sensible review of this
the others may pop up, like the valves on a country’s outdated Green Belt policy and
trumpet or a bump on a cartoon character’s “The London Plan seeks to leave the Permitted Development Order
head when whacked with a frying pan, but you have 49,000 new homes built alone for a while, to recover from trauma of
get the gist. A and C in Example 1 can grow each year, this against the last year!!
when they like and D can join in with C. B and backdrop of an annual rate of
E are good to go in Example 2 and could take 25,000 p.a. since 2008. Given Who knows, a review of Green Belt policy
C and D with them. It’s a good game. that the Green Belt is a no-go might also help to address housing difficul-
area and brownfield sites just ties in locations other than London. On the
If the consultation period did not run passed don’t seem to come up with other hand, perhaps we should be grateful
April Fool’s Day, you might think that this was the goods, the answer is to for any distraction from the prospect of months
such a wheeze. Is it not one of the dafter build tall.” of political talking heads “debating” Brexit!
ideas to come out of the DCLG and the
Greater London Authority? A lot of government initiatives to promote
new housing without trespassing into the
Are Londoners going to rush to build extra green belt smack of desperation. This one
floors on their houses to provide self-con- has an element of comedy about it, even
tained flats on the roof? Where would the more so than recent escapades such as
servants live? Are the foundations of “Escape to the Industrial Estate” and a PD
London’s houses and shops built to take right to demolish an office block and rebuild
additional floors and do we have enough it, bigger, as housing. Someone at the DCLG Mark Thackeray BSc DipTP MRTPI
structural engineers to give us the answer. has an oversupply of imagination or maybe Principal Consultant
Granny can’t live up there in order to free up needs to cut down on the caffeine. Walsingham Planning,
her one person, four-bedder, not with all Tel: +44 1628 532244
those stairs, and, talking of stairs, will the PD The ideas may be desperate, you might even mark.thackeray@walsingplan.co.uk
rights include provision for a new stair tower, say daft – but at least they are suggestions, www.walsinghamplanning.co.uk
fire escape or lift to make sure that the “Crash there does not seem to be anything as
16 | Planning and Development
S
and Planning Bill will spell more confusion and delay…
privatisation of planning providers. This is where the There was also no consultation on the Housing and
proposal is to allow private companies to take on the Planning Bill proposals before the draft was intro-
service that a planning officer provides either for a duced to the House of Commons in autumn last year
delegated officer decision or for members to take a – no public debate or discussion was invited. Before
decision. This is, in my view, unworkable. The impact it is too late, the government needs to consider the
assessment on these late provisions suggested that broader impacts of such radical deregulatory reform,
the report by the private provider may in fact be or risk losing public trust in the longer term. ■
binding on the officer or member. A whole host of
questions arise: Who pays for the planning officer’s 1
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/02/22/record-profits-for-
time after the report is submitted? How does all the bovis-homes-as-housing-demand-continues-to-cl/
information for decision-making make it onto the
planning authority’s register? How will the private 2
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachme-
company bring a public service ethos to bear on the nt_data/file/259999/Affordable_Housing_Supply_2012-13.pdf
decision-making process? How will the public be
consulted? What will happen in the event of an
appeal or challenge? How will the authority recoup
its costs where a private provider is involved? How
will it look to the public if this is Arup processing
Tesco’s planning application?
I
dox, a leading supplier of software, services developing a Local Government Digital Plat-
and digital engagement to the public form to provide a suite of interchangeable
sector and increasingly to highly regulated tools and services that, when combined
asset intensive industries around the world together, offer an all-encompassing solution.
in the wider corporate sector, launched
iApply at the end of last year (December The idea of the Digital Platform is to make
2015). The launch follows months of intense easily accessible the components needed to
development and design work, along with offer a single source for all local government
extensive field testing. The new service, online applications with the aim of helping
which aims to facilitate and simplify the people interact with their local authority.
process of submitting planning and building
control applications, is already receiving iApply is the first product developed for this
acclaim from its early adopters. We spoke new platform. Although offering the planning
with Chris Kendall, Digital Strategy Lead at and building control sectors a decisive step-
Idox, about iApply, its introduction and the change, it is also the first stop on a journey
benefits it can bring to the planning and to achieving a much larger vision across all Chris Kendall
What input have users had in Building Control Partnership • a cloud-based and mobile-friendly solution;
the development of iApply? adopts iApply
We’ve been working closely with many local North Yorkshire Building Control Partnership • time and efficiency savings;
authorities and private businesses, testing (NYBCP) was the first Local Authority Building
iApply to ensure a fit-for-purpose, robust Control Partnership in the UK. The partnership • unrestricted file sizes;
system. By running a pilot project to test the provides a flexible and modern building
system and engaging with stakeholders, control service on behalf of Hambleton, • improved validation and transparency;
we’ve been able to gather feedback and Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and
input from both sides, to ensure that we Selby councils. • access to submission details;
introduced an end product that has tangible
benefits for every user. And since Idox NYBCP was one of the local authorities • enhanced application tracking
already has a technical relationship with involved in the iApply pilot project and has and notification;
almost every UK local authority, it makes the since become one of iApply’s early adopters.
implementation of iApply straightforward Les Chapman, Head of Building Control at • opportunities to collaborate;
and seamless. For the ‘submitters’, it is NYBCP explains why: “We have been working
simply a case of visiting the website and with Idox since 2012 and the company has • a national register of planning applications.
using the tools, which will guide them already helped us streamline our online
through the application process. service. The introduction of iApply seemed
like an obvious next step and we were keen
Why has iApply been positioned to be involved in the initial pilot, as it gave
as providing the industry with a us the opportunity to ensure that it would
step-change? work effectively for our customers.
Local authorities have welcomed the launch
of iApply, as it comes at a time when plan- One of the things that has made iApply such
ning and building control departments are an attractive proposition is how simple and
under increasing pressure to reduce spend- intuitive the product is to use. The fact that
ing. iApply not only benefits the applicant, our applicants can use iApply to collaborate Chris Kendall
but also the planning and building control with others involved in the project – from the Digital Strategy Lead
departments from the improved efficiencies architect to the client – is also a major ben- Idox
generated by the service. Long term, it’s to efit, as is the ability to pay online. In addition, chris.kendall@idoxgroup.com
everyone’s advantage to adopt this new iApply will help us become more efficient www.idoxgroup.com
technology, as we all have the devices and and our aim is to be able to turn building www.iapply.co.uk
tools required to use iApply at our disposal. notices around within one day.”
20 | Planning and Development
N
wellbeing of its inhabitants…
early every week we see media reports on and willing to build on constrained sites. Therefore,
the UK housing crisis, and meeting the this year’s release of a register of publicly-owned
country’s needs during its current growth land in London, which highlights 40,000 sites said
spurt is creating widespread pressure on our to be capable of delivering a minimum of 130,000
resources. The London Mayor’s Design Advisory homes, should be central in driving better utilisation
Group recently launched a report entitled the ‘Good of brownfield land. The land is there, we just need to
Growth Agenda’, highlighting both a requirement for work out how best to build on it.
densification and the fact that, since 2006, 90% of
London’s annual housing development has been The challenge of smaller brownfield sites
on brownfield land. With figures like this it’s not Relaxed planning requirements, priority over other
surprising that brownfield sites are not only getting developments, and reduced S106 requirements and
smaller, but they are getting increasingly complex to levies, are all measures adopted to encourage small
build on as there are a limited number of firms able and medium developers to pick up these smaller
Planning and Development | 21
Image: © Sisk
timber, steel volumetric pods or precast concrete proprietary systems could be developed to allow for
solutions. Developers are provided with a simple kit flexibility, enabling residents to easily adapt layouts
of parts that allow faster construction and delivery or expand as needs change.
of projects.
Smaller brownfield sites should not be consigned to
“Development of brownfield sites brings the ‘too difficult’ box, as the recent register shows
back to use derelict and underused land, they have incredible potential to aid the UK in
contributes to the quality of existing tackling the housing crisis – without running the
urban areas and the wellbeing of its gauntlet of out of town relocation. By adopting
inhabitants and minimises requirements alternative solutions and methods of construction,
for construction on green field or and encouraging small and medium developers and
greenbelt sites.” contractors to take on this challenge, we can unlock
the value of these sites and tap into the vital
Often DfMA options are overlooked as like-for-like community resource that brownfield sites offer. ■
material costs can sometimes be more than traditional
forms of construction. However, these materials 1
London Development Database 2004/5 to 2014/15, London,
and approaches need to be assessed in the round, Greater London Authority, 2015
since savings are often possible when assessing the
bigger picture. Significant reduction in programme
overheads can save on contractor costs, reduce site ...............................................
waste, and enable other elements to be incorporated Tom Shaw
into the prefabricated components. DfMA structural Director
systems are also often more lightweight than Ramboll
traditional forms of construction, which can reduce Tel: +44 (0)20 7631 5291
foundation size and minimise the amount of work in london@ramboll.co.uk
the ground – reducing risks of ground obstructions www.ramboll.co.uk
and contamination for brownfield sites. These www.twitter.com/ramboll_uk
24 | Planning and Development
I
offsite construction can bring huge benefits to the construction industry…
have worked in the construction industry for failure in the prices we pay whether as construction
almost 50 years with many roles including client clients or as downstream customers and consumers.
and supplier. In that time, I have picked up two
abiding thoughts. Firstly – the industry employs My journey of discovery into offsite construction
some fantastic people who work really hard and are methods started more than 20 years ago when I
committed to great work. Secondly – for the most was responsible for transforming the delivery of
part – the way the industry works and the processes McDonalds Restaurants from traditional construction
it uses combine to ensure that the industry is to rapid, cost effective delivery using offsite construc-
incapable of delivering the consistent quality and tion methods. At that time, the economy was booming
increasing value that we routinely expect from all and traditional construction had become so expensive
other industries. Closely coupled to this is the that for us, the business case for investment just
inability of the industry as a whole to make any didn’t stack up. I suspect that in some parts of the
serious inroads into improving the stubbornly low country we are once again rapidly approaching much
levels of productivity, the inability to reduce the the same situation. As a business, we had no choice
levels of waste (of all types), and the inability to but to find new ways to deliver our restaurants if we
raise standards, or even in some cases to meet the wanted to grow our business. That harsh reality
performance standards required by contract, or in made us think afresh about our relationship with the
some cases, by Building Regulations. The inevitable traditional construction industry, and despite the
consequence is that all of us pick up the costs of this siren voices telling us that there was no alternative,
Planning and Development | 25
• Showcasing and sharing the learning from Just for the record, let me stress that Buildoffsite is in
exemplar projects; no way opposed to traditional methods of construc-
tion. There is, and no doubt will always be, a place
• Being completely agnostic about the materials for building onsite from a set of basic products. How-
used in offsite construction; ever, let me suggest that the market for traditional
26 | Planning and Development
I
and improve the quality of life of older people…
’ve often heard it said that we are facing ‘a third and health benefits soar in its housing with
tsunami of ageing’ – and you only need to take a care and support developments.
cursory glance at the latest statistics to see that’s
no exaggeration. What we really need, however, is a significant increase
in housing options, including specialised housing,
We’re not building enough homes to keep up with our tailored to meet older people’s very different needs
growing population in general – in England 135,050 and aspirations. But it looks like recent policy devel-
new homes were built in the year to September 1, opments are going to make that very hard to achieve.
compared to the 240,000 experts estimate are
needed. But we are particularly underprepared for The Care Act 2014 is a laudable piece of legislation –
future changes in demographics 2 – between 2015 its stated aim is to promote independence, control
and 2020 the UK population is expected to increase and choice. But this vision is not reflected in recent
by 3%, while the number of over 65s, over 85s and housing policy announcements.
centenarians are expected to grow by 12%, 18% and
40% respectively. Where is the housing that will help The new Housing and Planning Bill, for example,
these people live independently and well, with access does focus on delivering more homes – but mostly
to the care and support they need? for younger people who cannot afford to buy. Most
elderly people already own their homes so are
Long-term conditions already account for 70% of potentially seen as ‘lower priority’, with an assumption
health and social care spend 3. Housing ‘hazards’ that high levels of housing equity are available to all.
such as excess cold and damp cost the NHS more The bill is largely silent on older people’s housing
than £600m a year according to a recent BRE study 4. issues. Some of the measures it includes, however –
There is clearly huge potential for the right kind of alongside those in the summer budget, spending
housing and support to reduce this burden and review and autumn statement – are likely to have a
improve the quality of life of older people. significant impact on older people, on our existing
supply of specialised homes and our ability to build
A scheme piloted by North Tyneside Homes, focusing new specialised housing.
on preventing ill health and promoting wellbeing,
saved the local NHS Trust £11,000 in 3 months, for Pay to stay, for example – which will see social
example. Housing association Gentoo has launched housing tenants with a household income of
a pilot with the NHS in Sunderland to ‘prescribe’ new £30,000 (or £40,000 in London) paying higher rents –
boilers and insulation for tenants suffering from is likely to affect some older people, and we are still
respiratory problems likely to be exacerbated by waiting to hear whether the policy will include sup-
cold and damp. In the first 6 months alone 5 GP ported housing, which generally commands higher
appointments had been reduced by 28% among the rents and service charges because it is more expen-
pilot group and outpatient appointments by 33%. sive to build and maintain. If older households are
Research commissioned by the ExtraCare Charitable suddenly expected to pay closer to market rents, will
Trust 6 found that costs are slashed by more than a they be able to afford it?
Planning and Development | 29
1
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/house-building-in-
Domini Gunn, Director of Health and Wellbeing
england-july-to-september-2015
2
http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/key-
In the spending review, the chancellor announced issues-parliament-2015/social-change/ageing-population/
that housing benefit for social housing tenants will 3
http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/research/key-
be capped at the same rate as Local Housing issues-parliament-2015/social-change/ageing-population/
Allowance (LHA) – the amount that claimants living in 4
https://www.bre.co.uk/news/BRE-briefing-paper-shows-simple-
the private rented sector are entitled to. Again we are changes-to-the-homes-of-older-people-could-save-the-NHS-over-
waiting to hear whether this will apply to supported, 600million-a-year-1125.html
sheltered and extra care housing for vulnerable, 5
http://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2015/dec/03/
homeless, disabled and older people – but Inside sunderland-gps-prescribing-boilers-pills-warm-homes
Housing has reported 7 that government officials 6
http://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2015/dec/03/sund-
have privately said that it will. Our concern is that erland-gps-prescribing-boilers-pills-warm-homes
current models will become unaffordable for new 7
http://www.insidehousing.co.uk/policy/health-and-care/
tenants and developers will see specialist housing care-and-support/calls-to-protect-supported-housing-from-lha-
schemes as unviable as a result. cap/7013004.article
8
http://www.insidehousing.co.uk/policy/health-and-care/
Mick Sweeney, chief executive of One Housing Group, care-and-support/calls-to-protect-supported-housing-from-lha-
told Inside Housing 8 that a number of schemes under cap/7013004.article
development, including 300 extra care properties,
were now under threat due to the change.
www.planningandbuildingcontroltoday.co.uk PLANNING
& TODAY
BUILDING CONTROL
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Latest courses of interest:
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sustainable workforce…
Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE), Industry wide, the current emphasis regarding
a long standing industry voice, has addressed this diversity and inclusion is to achieve gender balance.
need for industry guidance, conducting one-on-one While many companies believe that finding tools to
interviews with over 30 industry leaders to isolate balance gender in the workforce may then help to
key business strategies for successful improvement increase the representation of other underrepresented
of diversity and inclusivity in the workforce. groups in the workforce, concentration on the needs
of any specific underrepresented group also has
Launched on 21 January, the report ‘Diversity & its risks.
Planning and Development | 33
Identified through the experiences of industry leaders, new report, featuring topical explanations, case studies,
focussing on specific diversity groups without also further best practice tips, as well as a wide range of
fostering a sense of inclusivity in the workforce risks external resources that will provide all businesses
fractioning the workforce. Through addressing solely regardless of size with the necessary guidance to
the needs of those in a specific diversity category, with significantly improve the industry over time.
these groups defined differently by each firm, there
will likely be individuals left who do not have access to Dr. Ogunshakin believes that all companies should
this support, which can cultivate discontentment ensure that diversity and inclusion is made a priority
leading to increased turnover or employees directing in order to make businesses fully prepared for the
animosity to those receiving support. upcoming hurdles, including but not limited to the
skills and retention gap; “I invite all within our industry
Inclusivity, through all employees receiving needed to start their journey towards better diversity and
attention, allows the individual talents of all employees inclusion in partnership with ACE, because all of us
to be improved upon, thus bettering team efficiencies have positive contributions that can be made, and
as a whole. This fostered in combination with separate results that can be achieved to move the agenda on.”
diversity resources improves team cohesion, retention,
and will yield the positive benefits seen in the business No longer are there excuses for firms to not
case for diversity and inclusion. seriously consider diversity, as well as inclusion, a
business priority, and it is through sharing successful
As stated by Dr. Nelson Ogunshakin OBE, chief strategies that as an industry a prosperous future
executive of ACE: will be achievable.
“Our industry can, and must embed a diverse as To download the report, ‘Diversity & Inclusion –
well as an inclusive culture for positive, sustainable marginal or mandatory’ or to utilise the many forms
change within our workforce. Otherwise the industry of guidance on ACE’s Diversity & Inclusion online
will falter under the magnitude of challenges ahead. hub, please visit: acenet.co.uk/d&I . ■
‘Diversity & Inclusion – marginal or mandatory?’
provides companies from micro-businesses to large
corporates with guidance to successfully improve
their current performance in this area.” ...............................................
Natasha Levanti
With eight remaining business strategies for the Group Communications Executive
improvement of a diverse and inclusive workforce, Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE)
the Association for Consultancy and Engineering Tel: 020 7222 6557
commits to positive progress by also creating a new consult@acenet.co.uk
diversity and inclusion hub available online. This www.acenet.co.uk
online resource enables an expansion of the concise www.twitter.com/ACE_Updates
34 | Planning and Development
E
checks and balances are in place to tackle illegal working…
E
are hoping to inspire engineers of the future…
ngineers changed the world and turned ing the Clifton Suspension Bridge – and, of course,
imagination into reality. There isn’t a facet of the Great Western Railway.
the modern world that hasn’t been touched by
engineering. Engineers – and indeed those who take Julia Evans, Chief Executive, BSRIA, said: “We are
up the STEM subjects – are the wealth creators of delighted Brunel received the most votes. He is
the world. clearly one of the most ingenious and prolific figures
in engineering history, one of the 19th century engi-
In this respect, BSRIA was very excited that Isambard neering giants and one of the greatest figures of the
Kingdom Brunel came out top in BSRIA’s chance to Industrial Revolution who changed the face of the
‘vote for your favourite and most influential engineer’ English landscape with his groundbreaking designs
competition. Brunel is a fine example of how engi- and ingenious constructions. His designs revolu-
neering (or STEM) makes working in the 21st century tionised public transport and modern engineering.
possible. Without his glorious work, there would be
no Paddington station, no Thames Valley knowledge Though Brunel’s projects were not always successful,
economy – the Powerhouse of the UK – trains to the they often contained innovative solutions to long-
tourist hotspot of Bath or to south Wales would not standing engineering problems. During his career,
be possible. Reading station’s recent £850m upgrade Brunel achieved many engineering ‘firsts’, including
– where you can take a train to virtually the whole of assisting in the building of the first tunnel under a
the UK – wouldn’t exist. navigable river and development of SS Great Britain,
the first propeller-driven ocean-going iron ship, which
To coincide with last year’s 60th anniversary, BSRIA was at the time (1843) also the largest ship ever built.
launched its INSPIRE commemorative publication
which looks at 120 engineers of the past and present Brunel set the standard for a well-built railway, using
to show their achievements and the great impact careful surveys to minimise grades and curves. This
they’ve had on the industry and the world. BSRIA necessitated expensive construction techniques and
narrowed down the engineers to a list of 15. new bridges and viaducts, and the 2 mile-long Box
Tunnel between Chippenham and Bath. Brunel is a
Brunel was the outstanding winner with 35% of the fantastic advocate for engineering and, indeed, the
vote. Leonardo Da Vinci came second with just under nature of STEM which is about pushing boundaries
17% and joint third were Tim Berners-Lee, Bill Gates and making the impossible possible. STEM has
and Alan Turing. Voting closed on New Year’s Eve. changed the way we work, travel, heal and enjoy
life. The advancing of the human race has always
Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806 – 1859) was a depended on the bright minds willing to focus their
British civil and mechanical engineer who is consid- energy on engineering ideas.
ered by many to be one of the greatest figures of the
Industrial Revolution. He undertook many projects, Engineering and scientific experimentation is an
building things such as dockyards, a series of invaluable skill, alongside the robust nature of an
steamships, numerous tunnels and bridges – includ- investigative style which tolerates and builds on both
Planning and Development | 37
Some of his designs, such as giant crossbows and a BSRIA’s INSPIRE publication, researched and designed
parachute, have actually been constructed and tested by sixth form student Jason Finch, commemorates
with a degree of success. the achievements of STEM and celebrates the impact
it’s had on the world. By featuring 120 of notable past
INSPIRE raised the question of why are STEM subjects and present engineers BSRIA hopes the book
important? What does engineering mean for you? inspires the next generation by showing them what
Why does technology matter? There is one answer they’re capable of.
to those three questions which is quite simply ‘every-
thing’. History has shown that those who pursue Engineering is an incredibly flexible profession and
science arguably make the biggest impact to the has an entry route to suit everyone. BSRIA – and
world; incredible minds provide us with incredible many other engineering organisations – take on
ideas we once might have thought of as unbelievable students for work experience every year. ■
but are now ingrained in our society.
If you want to get involved, visit:
The BSRIA INSPIRE project is working with local
schools, national and local politicians and the media www.gov.uk/topic/further-education-
to promote STEM and change its perceptions. skills/apprenticeships
• Katherine Blodgett
• Willis Carter
• Marie Curie
A celebration of apprentices
in Scotland
Natasha Levanti, ACE Group Communications Executive celebrates the rising
T
number of apprentices in Scotland which has reached a five-year high…
Wellbeing Dynamics
www.wellbeingdynamics.com Tel: +44 (0)20 8213 5898
NRM2 – detailed
measurement for
building works
An understanding of NRM2, which has replaced
SMM7 as the industry standard, is essential for
practitioners involved in tendering for capital
projects.
I
investment in infrastructure to help tackle climate change…
n December, 195 nations reached a landmark As an economic expert, Henrik Stener Pederson,
agreement ‘to keep a global temperature rise this Ramboll Management Consulting is helping cities
century well below 2°C and to drive efforts to limit analyse climate investments which must serve more
the temperature increase even further to 1.5°C than one purpose to be attractive:
above pre-industrial levels’ (UNFCC, Paris COP21). To
support developing nations, governments committed ‘Investments must be directed at energy and
to $100bn of climate finance by 2020 with a new transport infrastructure, climate adaptation,
goal from 2025. cloudburst mitigation and blue-green infrastructure
that reduce CO2 emissions and enhance quality of
How does this translate at a local level? The effects life. Only by designing multipurpose solutions can
of Storms Desmond, Eva and Frank are predicted to we support long-term, sustainable development.’
cost the UK £1.3bn according to the ABI and this is in
a country with formal flood planning. Internationally, Copenhagen has developed an ambitious climate plan,
the cost of doing nothing is even more daunting. for which it was named European Green Capital 2014.
From a public sector perspective, the potential value Jorgen Abildgaard, Executive Climate Project Director
of losses of a future with 6°C warming are projected of the City of Copenhagen, argues that a city needs a
at $43 trillion in present value, or 30% of current system that allows knowledge sharing between cities
assets, according to a 2015 report from The Economist and companies, and a new financial vehicle.
Intelligence Unit.
‘Finding financing for this transformation is running
A clear message from COP21 was that commitments into a lot of problems. We need financial systems
at city and corporation level are critical in ensuring a that invite cities to invest massively in infrastructure
collective response to tackling climate change. and other climate solutions. In Copenhagen, we look
However, financing at a city level can still prove at the secondary benefits. For instance, if you can
elusive and increasingly, city decision makers are pinpoint the health benefits of a project, you have an
turning to alternative financing methods, such as argument to bring to the negotiation table.’
foundations, city networks, the private sector and
more recently, green bonds. From 2010 to 2011, Copenhagen was hit by 3
destructive cloudbursts, the last causing $1.18bn in
In principle, green bonds are designed to address a damage. Economic analysis estimated that inaction
wide variety of environmental matters but are backed would result in such costs tripling in 100 years, so
by the issuer’s entire balance sheet resulting in flat Copenhagen included cloudburst mitigation in its
pricing. That is, the bond price is the same as climate plan aiming to protect the City and use water
ordinary bonds but it funds projects that have as a recreational urban resource.
positive environmental and/or climate benefits. The
market is growing exponentially with $37bn in green In the Middle East, the megacity of Jeddah, Saudi
bonds issued worldwide in 2014. Arabia, has also found the cost of doing nothing to
Planning and Development | 43
be an incentive for investment. An environmental To date, the initiative has resulted in a range of
degradation study by Ramboll shows that Jeddah studies within such priority areas as electrical systems
will lose 2-4% of its annual GDP unless something risks, critical infrastructure interdependencies and
is done to address the rapid population growth, engineering vulnerabilities within roads, drainage and
water scarcity and pollution. To meet the challenges housing. Preliminary results have led to tangible
and improve public life, Ramboll developed an resilience actions including instalment of basement
environmental and social masterplan, including backflow preventers and window well guards to
environmental impact assessments and cost-benefit reduce flood risks, as well as the use of cool, reflective
analyses, to help resolve current and future materials on roofs to reduce urban heat island effects.
environmental and socio-economic problems and
serve as a decision maker’s guide. As Pedersen states, ‘Cities need to understand the
full costs and benefits of action and inaction. The cost
Back in the UK, the cost of the Christmas floods of doing nothing is measured not only in material
could trigger stakeholders to consider the approach damages but also in lost investments, competencies
taken in Canada’s largest city, Toronto. and – in the worst case – lives.’ ■
P
etrol and diesel-engined motor vehi- In July 2014 the GLA published “The Control of increase to Stage IIIB and Stage IV for Greater
cles emit a wide variety of pollutants, Dust and Emissions During Construction and London and CAZ / Canary Wharf respectively.
principally carbon monoxide (CO), Demolition - Supplementary Planning Guid-
oxides of nitrogen (NOX), volatile organic ance”. This SPG seeks to reduce emissions of To demonstrate conformance to these
compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter dust, PM10 and PM2.5 from construction and requirements, projects will need to
(PM10), which have an increasing impact on demolition activities in London. It also aims to maintain a list on the GLA website:
urban air quality. In addition, pollutants from manage emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) https://nrmm.london of all NRMM they
these sources may not only prove a problem from construction and demolition machinery are using. In recognising that it may not be
in the immediate vicinity of these sources, by means of a new non-road mobile machin- possible to comply with these requirements
but can be transported long distances. ery (NRRM) Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ). in every instance, the GLA has published an
exemption policy. In some cases, plant with
Photochemical reactions resulting from the Reducing pollution from Non- the required engine rating may not be
action of sunlight on nitrogen dioxide (NO2) Road Mobile Machinery (NRRM) available or manufactured or available in the
and VOCs, typically emitted from road vehi- From the 1st September 2015, the SPG, volumes of units required.
cles, lead to the formation of ozone. Ozone through planning permissions, requires that
is a secondary pollutant, which often impacts all major developments and also any other Guidance on the exemptions policy can be
areas far from the original emission site. development within two defined zones of found at: https://nrmm.london/nrmm/
Greater London using non-road mobile about/nrmm-exemption-policy
In order to combat the increasing problems machinery with power ratings of between 37
from vehicle emissions in the UK, a number and 560kW must confirm to set engine Application for exemption has to be made
of cities have introduced Low Emission Zones emissions standards (or exemptions). via the https://nrmm.london website.
(LEZ) for buses but only one, London has an
LEZ for both buses and all commercial From 1st September 2020, tighter standards For more Construction Environmental Guid-
vehicles entering its area. London has also will be enforced. ance consult the CIP Construction Environ-
gone further with the introduction of controls mental Manual – www.cip-greenbook.com
on the use of non-road mobile machinery on The NRMM LEZ comprises an area including
construction projects. Greater London, the Central Activity Zone and
parts of Canary Wharf. ‘Major developments’
Legislation and Guidance are defined as those with residential devel-
The Greater London Authority Act 1999, gives opments with 10 or more dwellings, or 0.5ha
Transport for London the power to create road site area or more, and for all other uses, floor
user charging schemes in Greater London and, space of 1000m2 or site area of 1ha or more.
in consequence, The Greater London Low
Emissions Zone Charging Order 2006 was Any NRMM used in Greater London on Sarah Kenny
made and came into force on 03 May 2007. major developments will be required to Sales and Marketing Manager
This requires the payment of a charge for each meet Stage IIIA of the EU directive. Any Construction Industry Publications Ltd
day that a commercial vehicle with a diesel development within the central activity zone Tel: 0870 078 4400
engine that is not either compliant with speci- (CAZ) or Canary Wharf will be required to skenny@cip-books.com
fied emission standards or is exempt if driven meet stage IIIB of the Directive requirements. www.cip-books.com
within the boundary of Greater London. From 1st September 2020, the requirements
Build a stronger Need
foundation for your ad
on dea vice
with comling
business and the p
Waste any
?
environment.
T
and why it is an opportunity not to be missed…
oday’s linear economy – in which resources markets, yet the long-term upward trend seems to
are extracted, made into products, sold and be widely acknowledged. What might be even more
ultimately thrown away – arguably faces its problematic is the rising volatility of prices, another
biggest challenges, on a number of fronts. A range feature of today’s business landscape. The inability to
of global trends suggest that the future economy predict resource and energy prices around the corner
could be circular, with opportunity awaiting those can be devastating to companies with high fixed
progressive enough make an early shift. costs, who rely on economies of scale. In that context,
gradual efficiency gains will not suffice, and it looks as
In a context of cheap and accessible energy and though “business as usual” is seriously questioned by
materials, the linear model inherited from the the reality in which it operates.
Industrial Revolution proved hugely successful and
fuelled the unprecedented economic development It would seem that the ‘rules of the game’ for our
seen throughout the 20th century. With new economy are changing, and business leaders,
discoveries, increased efficiency and new technologies innovators, academics, students and scientists are
of the 1900s, commodity prices steadily declined looking for a positive way out; a new model through
over the course of the century. However, and as first which we can re-think progress in the 21st Century.
observed by investment expert Jeremy Grantham, One option is the circular economy, a model that has
an inflection point in this trend occurred in 2002, been gaining traction around the world in recent
when prices started to rise. This has to be nuanced years. Such a system is regenerative by design, and
somewhat given today’s depressed commodity primarily relies on optimising 2 distinct material
Planning and Development | 47
flows, biological and technical. Products and services of net material savings can be achieved per year
in this model are designed to enable efficient through improvements in design, business models,
circulation, with biological materials returning to the reverse cycles and system conditions such as
food and farming system, and technical materials education and policy.
being kept in production and use loops without loss
of quality. A circular model generates new revenue Launched in June 2015 at the European Commission’s
streams, reveals overcapacity and maximises asset stakeholder conference on the circular economy, our
utilisation whilst ensuring, as leading Performance latest publication produced with the McKinsey Center
Economy thinker Walter Stahel puts it, that the for Business and Environment and supported by
“goods of today become the resources of tomorrow, SUN1 reveals that by adopting circular economy
at yesterday’s prices”. principles, Europe can take advantage of the
impending technology revolution to create a net
As well as the decline of cheap materials, energy and benefit of €1.8 trillion by 2030, or twice the benefits
credit, there are other changes underway that are seen on the current development path (€0.9 trillion).
supporting the transition towards a circular economy. This would be accompanied by better societal
Testament to this is the momentum behind the outcomes including an increase of €3,000 in income
‘sharing economy’, and the huge number of new for EU households. This would further translate
businesses founded on creating visibility of idling into an 11% GDP increase by 2030 versus today,
capacity of a range of assets. Empty rooms can be compared with 4% in the current development path.
booked through AirBnB, journeys through Lyft (who The circular economy would also have significant
recently struck a deal with General Motors), and even impacts on the environment for Europe: carbon
musical instruments through Sparkplug. Clothing dioxide emissions would halve by 2030, relative to
Company Le Tote provides access to women’s fashion today’s levels (48% by 2030 across the three basic
for a flat monthly fee, in the same way people use needs studied, or 83% by 2050). Primary material
streaming platforms instead of owning physical media. consumption measured by car and construction
Technological advances are facilitating these business materials, real estate land, synthetic fertiliser,
models – finding and booking the nearest communal pesticides, agricultural water use, fuels, and
car or bike has only been made convenient with non-renewable electricity could drop 32% by 2030
smartphones and mobile networking. Product tagging and 53% by 2050, compared with today.
and tracking and the growing ‘Internet of Things’ are
also enabling manufacturers or service providers to In a world of uncertainty, many are asking what the
keep an eye on their products; how much they’re future economy will look like in the context of
being used, if they’re performing properly and when population growth and resource constraints. Our
they’re about to go wrong. This makes product research and analysis tends to indicate that a
recovery feasible, and opens up new customer service circular economy framework could offer guiding
or aftermarket opportunities. principles for re-thinking and redesigning our
futures. There are promising signs of a shift taking
Global trends are providing a fertile environment for place, but reaching this goal will require pioneering
a shift in the economy. In addition to being a new ambition, combined with varied collaboration to
lens for innovation, increasing circularity could offer deliver the benefits of a system that rebuilds
a significant economic advantage too. In 2012, the economic, social and natural capital. ■
Ellen MacArthur Foundation published the first in a
series of reports entitled Towards the Circular 1
Siftungsfonds für Umweltökonomie und Nachhaltigkeit
Economy. These reports have concluded that a
circular economy would not only help decouple
economic development from finite resource inputs, ...............................................
but also represent an opportunity in excess of Ellen MacArthur Foundation
$1trillion. As our first report shows, for Europe the info@ellenmacarthurfoundation.org
greatest potential offered by circular processes lies www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org
precisely in the Union’s strongest points – the high- www.facebook.com/EllenMacArthurFoundation
value manufacturing sector, where up to $630bn www.twitter.com/circulareconomy
48 | Smart Cities and BIM
C
the engine for economic growth and are integral for the EU Urban Agenda...
ities have the future. While the regions in business. We simply cannot create Smart Cities
Europe always had the ‘first’ attention from without Smart Specialisation and vice versa. To really
Brussels, the spotlights nowadays have to be fulfil the potential of cities in Europe and to meet the
on the cities as well. For Europe, cities are engines EU 2020 goals, like sustainable growth and more
for economic growth and employment, the breeding jobs, the 2 smart concepts have to become a
grounds for art, culture and creativity and the perfect combined and excellent one.
platform for innovation and start-ups. Therefore,
urban areas also play an important role in achieving The priorities of Smart Cities
the EU 2020 goals due to their concentration of That’s the gap in Europe we have to close. The EU
people and economic activity. To fulfil this potential Urban Agenda can deliver new possibilities to make
of urban areas, coordinated action at all levels of this happen. There are eleven priorities set up so far
government is needed. This year, during the Dutch by the European Commission to develop Smart Cities.
Presidency of the Council of the European Union, we I will highlight some of them. Above all, citizens have
will intensively integrate the cities in Brussels policy. to come first. They are at the heart of the challenges
We have to come to an EU Urban Agenda in which cities daily face and have therefore a say in the
cities take the lead. creation of a city as an enjoyable and user-friendly
place. With a better understanding of their behaviour,
For years, European policy for the cities has been cities could make effective policy and adopt citizens
fragmented. Instead of fully including cities in the in their smart strategies. Cities could also be more
mainstream policies, the European Commission, for attractive and competitive when inhabitants as well
example, has come up with initiatives to realise the as business people can travel in an easy and sustain-
so called “Smart Cities”, at the same time “Smart able way. An improved and well-connected public
Specialisation” has been adopted for regional policies. transport system is needed. This will help to meet
Those region policies apply to the cities in Europe the EU 2020 goals. With ‘greener’ public transport
as well. For this reason, better coordination of EU systems they improve air quality and tackle congestion.
policies is important. Smart Cities as well as Smart
Specialisation have been quickly adopted by policy In line with this, cities need to create new and innova-
makers and now translated into specific EU polices tive infrastructure networks in their own area, but also
or initiatives. Both are of relevant importance for the across different urban areas. This will include road
cities in Europe and have to take into account together. systems, energy-infrastructures (new ways of lightning)
and communication and information networks. A city
Smart Specialisation is all about making the right therefore needs technological improvement to be that
choice: a region chooses its priority, uses the benefits innovative frontrunner in Europe. This encompasses
and shares the acquired knowledge with other regions the use of ICT and the use of collected data. These
in the EU. A Smart City is logically doing something new techniques are part of new solutions. They could
similar. A city that uses its possibilities, that is driven for example help to create a more interactive and
by the strengths of its inhabitants and is reaching an responsive city administration, but also to create safer
enjoyable and user-friendly place, is doing a smart public spaces through security cameras on demand.
Smart Cities and BIM | 49
By collecting data, we need to find a way to use this and their fears. They have also the possibility to
information effectively and wisely. Switching to smart bring up their events and initiatives in the EU 2020
cities requires thus investments and coherent policy. framework. Cities in the end will be affected by the
legislation and do understand best the impact that
For creating this coherent policy, a link to the regional this legislation will have.
strategy for Smart Specialisation is needed. We often
do speak about cities self-contained, but in fact we Together we will build a strong European framework
have to speak about urban areas. Cities are not for sustainable and intelligent cities. This will be the
operating alone. Cooperation with their neighbour EU Urban Agenda for the cities of tomorrow with the
surroundings will help cities to be successful. By shar- possibility to agree on “City Deals”: for the moment
ing their acquired knowledge, they will create smart, there is €371m available from the European Regional
or even excellent, areas together. Therefore, we do Development Fund. ■
not need more policy regarding urban development. It
is about time to start this kind of fruitful cooperation. Last autumn I have published a booklet about the importance of the
The focus of the EU Urban Agenda has to be on finally EU Urban Agenda. Please find an online version of the publication
creating one policy for this cooperation. here: http://issuu.com/eppgroup/docs/schijnwerpers_op_de_stad_
B
IM objects of manufactured building able is that people find new and innovative BOPC’s data set to the geometric object.
products typically consist of three ways to use this which in itself generates the And so if a contractor needs additional data
things: intelligent geometric represen- need for additional or different data. This from a product manufacturer this new data
tation of the product; data about the product can lead to data bloat where a geometric requirement can either be added to an
(specification, sustainability, etc., details) object is (over)loaded with all its possible existing BOPC or a new BOPC created.
presented in a structured format; and refer- structured data making BIM models hard or
ence information (service manual, spares list, impossible to use. So providing more So we’ve cracked the problems of both having
etc.) held in electronic form, usually as PDFs. structured data can be a virtuous circle of great flexibility in what structured data is
delivering better information and especially available and also reducing data bloat
Today many manufacturers are having BIM if the data is available only when it’s because data is only attached when it is
objects developed, mainly through paid-for required. But for the manufacturer this needed. But what about the updating cost
services from specialist companies. These comes at the recurring cost of paying to borne by manufacturers? Again BIMobject
geometric objects have data embedded and update the data embedded in their BIM has a unique solution. Where data is embed-
structured for COBie purposes. But what hap- objects or worse still paying for multiple ded in objects it is typically file based so
pens when there’s a change in the scope of geometric objects for the same product but adding one piece of data to 100 geometric
this structured data? The simple answer is with different embedded data sets! objects means updating 100 files whereas
that each object will have to be changed. This BOPCs is a database and one change to the
is good news for the specialist companies and At BIMobject we recognised this data conun- database means this can be applied to any
rather less good news for the product manu- drum: the need for structured data growing number of geometric objects. It’s really quick
facturers as they pay for the changes. So is the substantially, and in unpredictable ways, but and simple to either add new data or change
scope of structured data likely to change? with the current embed of this data into the the values of existing data. And better still
geometric object being both inflexible and there is no direct cost to the manufacturer to
An outcome of the Government’s BIM Level costly to maintain. There had to be a better make these data changes. BIMobject provides
2 initiative is to provide data in a structured way! BIMobject has taken the very pragmatic the software tools so that manufacturers can
format, including links to reference informa- approach of separating the geometric object make these changes themselves. In the same
tion, to create COBie input for CAFM (Com- from the data set by creating BIMobject Open way that manufacturers now control the data
puter Aided Facilities Management) systems. Property Clouds (BOPCs). Sounds simple but on their products in the real world so BOPCs
This is a very specific requirement with a single actually it’s technically quite hard to do. A provides them with the means to do the
purpose – creating structured data for the BOPC contains a set of data and any one same in the virtual world of BIM.
purposes of maintaining the building’s assets. geometric object can have multiple BOPCs
associated with it. As an example, BIM Level For more information and to view a movie
As using BIM models becomes more 2 describes 5 Levels of Information (LOI) with on BOPCs, a revolutionary technology from
pervasive it seems certain contractors and each level containing a bit more data about BIMobject, click here.
sub-contractors will want more structured the product than the previous level. So LOI 1
data. The COBie data set doesn’t help a is a minimum set of data used at early design
contractor match a product to their own whereas LOI 5 data is the COBie compliant
internal systems, or how the product is data needed at building handover. At early
packaged and delivered; or how it should be design the architect/ designer does not need
handled on-site, or what performance tests or want to have the full LOI 5 data set. With
need to be done, etc. Right now much of this BOPCs it is easy to have 5 data sets each Alan Baikie
detail does exist in PDFs but as structured corresponding to a Level of Information. Managing Director
data it would become so much easier to find When the designer/ contractor needs a BIMobject UK
and use. A truism of making better data avail- specific LOI they simply attach the appropriate
52 | Smart Cities and BIM
W
of leading market professionals, Stephan Jones, Segment Manager at
Trimble company, Amtech, outlines the benefits of concurrency for BIM…
ith the UK government BIM level 2 model object, a property of that object, an associated
mandate deadline now here, the AEC cost or other BIM information facet.
sector continues to register mixed opinions
as to its benefit on cost. According to Stephan Jones, “Likely you’ll probably be exclaiming that such a
Segment Manager at Trimble company, Amtech, proposition is inherently chaotic and completely
the government BIM level 2 definition has partially undesirable in the construction delivery context, but
contributed to these differing perceptions by not bear with me,” he says.
promoting the central pillar of the standards as
originally developed by the IAI (International “If you have been exposed to systems such as
Alliance for Interoperability) now rebranded as Google docs or slides and have collaborated in the
BuildingSMART . development of a presentation or commercial
proposal then you may never wish to go back to a
A firm believer that the biggest prize in the BIM text editor on your isolated machine. I can attest it’s
sweepstakes is concurrent working, Jones explains happened to me and I wouldn’t go back!
that were concurrency as a principle taken to an
extreme, it would allow users to simultaneously “Using Google’s collaboration tools you will notice
manipulate the same information; perhaps a CAD that you no longer send files to each other, you don’t
Smart Cities and BIM | 53
or a work rate from a window, this becomes a problem “Concurrency also plays an important part in enabling
as illustrated earlier (semantics). Classification systems change management, or ‘value engineering’ as it is
are being used to circumvent the problem but they commonly described. In simplistic terms, the greater
cannot substitute the need for more complete the cost of operating a design iteration the less
ontologies or semantic definitions that are inherent benefit and therefore inclination there is to engage
in the IFC schema. in the process. If the costs in undertaking design
iterations can be reduced, by, for instance, generating
“Whilst concurrency can positively impact the whole quantity revisions from a model rather than manually
construction delivery process, it is design production recalculating them, time is saved not just within the
and management where concurrency is perhaps the cycle but more widely across the supply chain and a
biggest practical benefit”. projects’ mobilisation costs.”
“A firm believer that the biggest prize in “The final benefit of concurrency is that information
the BIM sweepstakes is concurrent working, is always up to date, you can trust it, you don’t have
Jones explains that were concurrency as a to search for it, what you need is there, what you see
principle taken to an extreme, it would is the same as everyone else. Whether you are a
allow users to simultaneously manipulate designer, a client, a cost estimator, or a planner
the same information; perhaps a CAD your calculations and views can be kept up to date
model object, a property of that object, an enabling you to identify issues and react to change”,
associated cost or other BIM information he concludes. ■
facet.”
Download a free copy of Amtech’s BIM Digest
He adds: “Presently (within the context of PAS1192-1)
designers are advised to adopt information
segregation strategies, creating innumerable files to
logically divide space and disciplines such that teams
can function properly, of course it’s not limited to file
names, depending on the system used careful
control of layer names also exist. Design managers
actually need to consider and manage file names
using multi-part codes that are hugely obscure for all
but the most frequent of project participants.
2025 vision
– a digital future for the
construction industry
Dale Sinclair, AECOM’s Director of Technical Practice, the CIC BIM Champion
and the RIBA’s Ambassador for Industry Collaboration and Technical Innovation
W
sets out the challenges for the industry as we move to a new digital future…
hen considering how to develop planning New survey tools and techniques, including point
and building control digital strategies in cloud surveys, already enable accurate 3D, data
response to the Government’s 2025 loaded surveys. Ordnance Survey has 28 million
Construction Strategy, it is easy to use current geocoded addresses in the UK and is increasingly
methodologies or the Level 2 suite of documents as a moving towards a 3D, data driven environment. A shift
starting point. This approach has limitations. Creating from the 1:1250 site plans submitted with Planning
a visionary digital strategy requires a leap towards Applications to models integrated into verified OS
2025 and consideration of how digital tools might be models with intelligent geospatial information is not
successfully harnessed in the future. far away. Predictive analytics linking to data that has
geospatial context (demographics, environmental,
Although Level 2 is predicated on 2D information, land ownership, etc.) will not be far behind.
driven from structured models created in a common
data environment, the design team, contractors, and 2016 is the year of virtual reality with new acquisitions
increasingly clients, already exist in a wholly digital by global companies such as Google driving innovation
3D world. In a few years’ time, 2D information will and accelerating the development of this technology.
cease to exist. In this context, the critical question, Before long every city will have a 3D model with
therefore, is: when will planning applications or planning applications requiring 3D models to be
building control submissions cease to require 2D submitted and configured in a manner that enables
information and instead require the uploading of a integration into the city’s model. Planning applications
3D model and/or connected data? will be viewable in immersive formats on handheld
Smart Cities and BIM | 57
T
he UK Government’s deadline for the require. In recognition of the added value normally comprises one to a maximum of
construction sector to prequalify for expectation, LR have introduced into the two days, is to identify at a high level, any
participation in public sector construction scope of assessment, a risk based approach major gaps against the applicable standards
programmes, by being ‘BIM Ready’ by April supporting business best practice . This more and scheme principles and report any such
2016, is nearly upon us. rounded and comprehensive BIM assessment gaps /identified weaknesses.
process, is particularly relevant for the supply
But what does ‘BIM Ready’ mean and how chain scopes of certification and provide “Lloyd’s Register (LR) will ‘dip
can the construction sector demonstrate that assurance to the tier 1 BIM Project Providers check’ your BIM processes, pro-
they are BIM Ready? of the competence, interoperability of software cedures and competencies by
platforms as well as process compliance of way of a one day gap analysis,
It could be argued that a tier 1 contractor the supply chain. at your offices, to bench mark
could demonstrate ‘BIM Readiness’ through where you are relative to the
effective BIM to Build to FM processes that The LR BIM Level 2 Accreditation Scheme was LR BIM Level 2 Scheme require-
are adhered to throughout his supply chain, developed with the intent of achieving a ments. This gap analysis can be
which meets the client needs and are balance between rigour of assessment and a ‘one off’ process or it can be
compliant with relevant standards. pragmatism. We require no documentation an iterative process to provide
to be provided in advance of the assessment, ongoing direction towards BIM
But to whom can the BIM Provider demon- as we have found both the collation of data Level 2 accreditation.”
strate that level of compliance? by the client and the desk top review , by the
assessor, to be too time consuming for both The Gap Analysis concludes with a report which
Independent Third Party validation of BIM parties and not cost effective. initially takes the form of verbal feedback and
Readiness through accreditation to BIM Level whilst the ensuing discussion may gravitate
2 Business Systems, is currently the most The initial stage of the assessment is the around issues requiring improvement, the
credible means of providing assurance to Gap Analysis. During this phase one to one principal focus will be on how the organisation
both UK Government and the private sector. interviews with key staff, with responsibilities can introduce changes which will take them
across the full spectrum of the required BIM closer to a BIM level 2 compliant system.
Lloyd’s Register (LR) will ‘dip check’ your BIM scope of accreditation, will be undertaken.
processes, procedures and competencies by We have found this to be the most effective The Gap Analysis feedback is followed by a
way of a one day gap analysis, at your offices, and efficient means of understanding the detailed report of the findings and the agreed
to bench mark where you are relative to the BIM processes adopted by the BIM provider measures to address the identified gaps.
LR BIM Level 2 Scheme requirements. This under assessment.
gap analysis can be a ‘one off’ process or it When the BIM Provider under assessment is
can be an iterative process to provide ongoing The benefit of this approach is that it provides satisfied that he has closed the reported
direction towards BIM Level 2 accreditation. the freedom of the auditee to explain their BIM gaps/weaknesses in his BIM system, the next
management processes without concerning stage is the implementation assessment.
At the core of BIM level 2 accreditation is themselves with how the described system
compliance with PAS 1192 but to evaluate an meets PAS 1192, it is the responsibility of the The implementation assessment will initially
organisation exclusively against the PAS 1192 auditor to map across the described processes focus on the findings of the Gap Analysis and
series, represents a rather narrow scope and to the applicable standards. the associated closure of such identified gaps
does not provide for the added value that but will additionally seek evidence that the
organisations, looking beyond the ‘badge,’ The objective of the Gap Analysis, which BIM Management system fully conforms to
PROFILE 59
scheme requirements and this assessment The validity of the awarded accreditation continuous improvement milestones, set
is undertaken against a live BIM project. In the spans a three year term during which a over the three year accreditation term. A
event that a live BIM project is not available surveillance programme will be undertaken. confirmation delivered by a brand with
to be assessed then, subject to confirmation global recognition.
of a compliant system, Partial Accreditation The surveillance programme serves to not
would be awarded, with Full Accreditation only verify the maintenance of the standards,
being awarded once effective implementation competencies and processes, against which
of the assessed systems could be verified accreditation was originally awarded, but
against the live BIM project. also to verify management commitment to
continuous improvement as measured against
An important area to be examined at this stage adherence to the action plan to close out the
is the relationship of the BIM Provider with his minor deficiencies, agreed prior to award.
supply chain. This is to ensure that the cultural
shift from the traditional contractual adversarial Failure to demonstrate such ongoing
relationship to one of collaboration has been commitment may result in accreditation
achieved. suspension or withdrawal, a preparedness
to withdraw accreditation being a measure
Provided that, upon the conclusion of the of the effectiveness of the scheme. Terry Mundy
implementation assessment against a live Lloyd’s Register
BIM project, no major deficiencies are out- Lloyd’s Register BIM Level 2 Business Sys- terry.mundy@lr.org
standing and that an action plan has been tems Accreditation represents independent www.lr.org/en
established to address any outstanding minor confirmation of BIM Management systems
deficiencies, then BIM Level 2 Business conformity to recognised good practice
Systems Accreditation can be awarded. leading to best practice through defined
60 | Smart Cities and BIM
Digitising healthcare:
The future for the NHS
T
Karl Redmond, member of BIM4HEALTH and Director of BIM4SME details how the IoT,
big data and the BIM agenda can help shape a digital NHS that is fit for the future…
he NHS has the potential to be a world leader The NHS’s track-record in handling big IT, let alone
in healthcare big data – it possesses largely big data projects, is hardly an exemplary one but
centralised records dating back to the organi- there is enormous potential for the NHS to save
sation’s inception in the 1940s. There is clearly a money in its day-to-day operations and in areas that
greater demand for it (NHS) to capitalise on the don’t necessarily involve any encroachment of patient
opportunities the digital information revolution privacy. Procurement is one area where NHS Estates
presents. As Lord Carter points out in his Interim and facilities managers must achieve financial
Review of Operational Productivity in the NHS, the improvements and structured, uniformly provided
ability to analyse data appropriately can pinpoint data can not only provide cost savings but help
waste and thus hopefully help slow the accelerating plan and run services more efficiently as well as help
cost of healthcare across the organisation. This is a meet increasing compliance requirements. Without
start, but why not use the Internet of Things (IoT), consistent and reliable data, facilities managers and
the digital revolution and the data to identify estate heads will forever be reacting and playing
existing provisions, inefficiencies, and optimise catch up in terms of efficiency and effectiveness of
under-utilised opportunities and the potential the operation.
leverage points for Trusts to create capital and
revenue for new facilities, existing estates and Official ERIC (Estates Return Information Collection)
reconfiguration solutions? figures, providing data about estates and facilities in
Smart Cities and BIM | 61
NHS trusts, which collectively costs an annual £7.3bn toring actively and passively can provide insights into
to run and extends back to 1999 – are sometimes the activity and operation of healthcare estates. The
viewed with skepticism by some, but the volume of data collected can feed a myriad of solutions such as
data is being analysed to help identify potential savings. predictive analytics regarding an asset or component,
as well as estates. Privacy of patients is, of course, of
Trusts have been traditionally guarded about their paramount importance, and safeguards and security
data, apart from that which they must statutorily can be built in to services. Together, the Digital Health
provide, something that is increasing exponentially Revolution and the IoT offer a dynamic interplay to
under new compliance requirements. Developing revolutionise our healthcare environments, reduce
projects to capture data, both in terms of size costs and improve quality, with the BIM agenda
and complexity, to then to map and interpret it is playing a minor but critical link on-going.
problematic, but not unachievable. Most NHS
Trusts have recognised the considerable and rapid The NHS has most of the data required to achieve
advances in hardware and software technologies great things as well as having the desire and the will-
coupled with ‘Big Data’ and IoT agendas. However, ingness, from some, to drive this agenda. All organi-
using the data intelligently is more complex and must sations need to be able to share data, despite the
be coupled with the issue of security, which is ever ever-present need to hold on to intellectual property,
present and won’t stop progress, but will need the promotion of best practice will increasingly rely
careful monitoring. on organisations sharing big data. However, it is
important to ensure uniformity and accuracy. It is all
Health departments and organisations, whether very well pushing data at each other but if that data
public or private, need partners that can cover end- is rubbish, then what is the point? The culture has to
to-end solutions from Government Soft Landings, change and action taken before the issue is taken
post occupancy evaluation, and asset connectivity, to out of the hands of those who want to deliver the
IoT cloud, big-data, Building Information Modelling right patient outcomes and given to those whose
(BIM – see BIM4Health, http://www.bim4health.org/ primary objective is not healthcare.
for further information) & analytical expertise. This is
essential if we are to apply the right level of intelli- Can we work towards smarter and intelligent
gence that will improve asset longevity, performance, NHS buildings?
compliance, cost benefit efficiency targets, and max- Yes. An example of how the IoT can help towards the
imise usage. We also need it to reduce maintenance, development of intelligent buildings is the rapid
repair, operations (MRO) costs, inventory costs and development seen in the private sector. A number of
procurement costs. There is no single entity able to large global entities from the UK, Germany and USA
deliver such a significant ask alone, but steps have have come together with a view to creating a high
been taken to develop groups, public and private, volume asset data hub designed to provide clients
which will be encouraged to continue to collaborate, with information on specific aims and objectives
share expertise and grow throughout 2016 and relating to the NHS estate that align with those of the
beyond. The IoT, big data and BIM agenda will not clinical healthcare offering. The collaborative group
stop, but it must be moulded for the benefit of with their combined expertise and technological
clients before it is hijacked by short-term thinking. offering will enable facilities managers and others to
The healthcare sector needs to fully engage or face stay connected to their assets, wherever they are.
being left behind, leaving us all, along with future The latest ‘App’ technology brings relevant metrics
generations, worse off. and tools to resolve issues directly to mobile devices,
helping to improve efficiency and safety on a number
Can the IoT drive innovation in the healthcare of fronts. Big data analytics gives managers the
estate? ability to receive alerts, monitor performance, create
Yes. As an extension of the Digital Revolution, the IoT cost benefit reports, assess compliance and refine
offers particular relevance to health providers. Moni- operations proactively. It will also enable estate and
62 | Smart Cities and BIM
facilities managers to respond faster to situations, accurate assessment of when, how, why and what is
whether planned or unplanned. needed to support specific healthcare economies
requirements, IoT, with industrialisation techniques
Can we rationalise the healthcare estate? will increase sustainability, optimise operations,
Yes. With the UK Government BIM Task Group and lower costs and improve compliance. The complexity
associated BIM4 sector groups looking to develop of facilities management and estates procurement
BIM Level 3 in 2016, it would seem that a more means that organisations can spend a dispropor-
client focused approach will emerge, finally, hopefully, tionate amount of time sourcing and purchasing
fingers crossed, from the initiative. The claim (I hope items or services that may be of relatively small
it becomes reality) is that BIM Level 3 will be the value, both individually and in total. These procure-
approach that connects the data from start to finish, ment process costs are largely invisible, and, there-
which in turn will help to create end-to-end efficien- fore, tend to be underestimated or even ignored, but
cies. The process at BIM Level 3 along with its data can be significant. Through the development of a
will be seen as a single source of the truth, stored in transparent ‘end-to-end’ processes, supported by
a database in the cloud and accessible by all the billions of smart devices in the IoT, delivering
involved, especially clients. If this process can be valuable insights as a result of the data they capture,
perfected it can offer everyone the opportunity to will give facilities and estates managers the ability to
collaborate openly and enable real building life-cycle rapidly change and optimise the service they provide.
management to take off, which will also require
product life-cycle management understanding. The Can we maximise use of facilities & evidence-
process will help break down the current silos seen based design in healthcare facilities?
in the sector and within healthcare organisations Yes. If you can begin to imagine the massive amount
and provide facilities teams and estates managers of data that is available via IoT, alongside the cloud-
with true as-built models (inclusive of all ‘value based analytical expertise that exists, coupled with
engineering’ changes throughout the process) from the ability to develop end-to-end data processes as
which to work with. outline above, then learning lessons from the holistic
data reporting should be easier to achieve. This
The volume of data within the process, supported holistic process and thinking does not have a start or
by IoT, which can be captured, monitored, examined, an end, it is continuous, therefore, where you start
analysed and reported, can be fed back into board should not matter. It will enable facilities and estates
level strategies for outline and full business case managers to tackle existing facilities as well as new
plans. This all aides in the key decision making build programs. Continuous lessons, refinements,
regarding the entire estates planning process, benchmarking through data analyses and reporting
specific asset optimisation, utilisation and possible will highlight the availability and suitability (supply) of
rationalisation, and objectives for improved patient physical assets needed to house clinical care delivery
care. NB: Don’t sell your asset unless you really have that will ultimately benefit unique, local, regional and
to, it must be the right course of action for your national healthcare demographic (demand) groupings.
growing patient demands – try reconfiguring. Once an understanding of the ‘supply and demand’
is achieved, facilities and estates managers will be
Could we optimise how services are being better placed to help (re)design healthcare facilities
provided as a result of IoT? and support associated clinical services (gap). All of
Yes. Industrialisation and standardisation is common which will be based on data that will increase in its
in most other sectors and only relatively recently accuracy, relevance and effective pin pointing of
has this been seen in the construction and built resources/money (demand – supply = gap). It may
environment sector. With further understanding lead to more facilities and estates managers having
from the client around the BIM agenda, including a seat at the boardroom table as a result of the sig-
Smart Cities and BIM | 63
OBJECTS
nificant impact their evidenced based solutions can can be incorporated or utilised to support gradual
bring if understood by all. intelligent smart building development.
Can we improve the staff/patient environment The aim would be to develop cost, compliance, dura-
and building automation? bility, life cycle, benchmarking data and reports that
Yes. The introduction of cost effective devices giving can help to reduce costs whilst increasing perform-
and receiving information via IoT from the cloud will ance and quality. There are existing groups, public
not only improve clinical team/providers’ experience, and private, involved in current projects wanting to
it will make them more efficient when analysing the offer facilities and estates managers – who demand
utilisation of the space in which they operate. The quality, performance, longevity, transparency, adapt-
same devices delivering intelligent building informa- ability (especially with existing systems) – the ability
tion will also aid and benefit the growing and to deliver more with less. Developing a holistic
demanding expectations of patients and their expe- approach, aided by the above, will enable facilities
rience whilst in hospital. Privacy of patients is, of and estates managers with their primary suppliers
course, of paramount importance, safeguards and and supply chains to collaborate and promote trans-
security can be built into systems to ensure the data parent engagement throughout the entire asset life
is there to serve, without encroaching into strictly cycle for the betterment of staff and patients.
regulated information zones. The connectivity of all
the above to a range of additional options including, Can this be achieved by embracing public,
activity data bases, premises assurance and compli- private & people partnerships for NHS estates
ance models should be achievable when possible. and facilities?
Existing healthcare operational ‘dash board systems’ Yes. However, this comes with a word of caution. The
with various options, not just estates and facilities, technology is available and is rapidly improving and
64 | Smart Cities and BIM
advancing, seemingly daily. The data offering is involving IoT, BIM, big data and the digital revolution
massive, instant, more reliable, robust and effective. that are already producing results, but leadership
It can also be refined and analysed faster to produce regarding data sharing across the NHS is generally
results and conclusions for those who need it. fragmented in approach. A less siloed, more joined-up
Evidence, transparency, collaboration and culture approach is urgently needed.
change are just some of the considerations and
watch-words to keep in mind…now the caution…. Finally, the people, again including politicians, will
hopefully see reform, efficiencies, improved quality,
“The IoT, big data and BIM agenda will better clinical services, modern effective facilities and
not stop, but it must be moulded for the all on a financially viable footing with transparency
benefit of clients before it is hijacked by running through the whole collaborative system.
short-term thinking. The healthcare By combining the strengths, knowledge, skills and
sector needs to fully engage or face being expertise of multiple partners and stakeholders –
left behind, leaving us all, along with across both private and public sector – the ingredients
future generations, worse off.” for an effective and robust strategy to improve our
healthcare systems can be created.
Not all involved in the public sector want change,
some fear it may expose what gaps exist in long- Is this too much to ask of those involved in our
standing systems and processes, but change is precious National Health Service? I hope not. ■
needed. Some of those involved in the private sector
can ‘sell snow to an Eskimo’, and don’t always have
the interests of the patient at the centre of their Karl Redmond MSc, has over 20 years of property
aims and objectives. Lastly, people – and I include experience ranging from estate rationalisation,
politicians in this definition – are fickle, lack under- finance, strategic/commercial planning and analysis.
standing of the issues within the massive NHS struc- He is a Director of the UK BIM4SME and member of
ture (does anyone?), and are only really interested in UK BIM4HEALTH group, endorsed by Cabinet Office.
scoring political points off each other rather than He is also a Fellow of the Leeds Sustainability Institute
fully engaging to help a service which we all rely upon. and is pursuing a Ph.D. with Leeds Beckett University
with a focus on NHS Estates and Patient Pathways
Finding the right partner and partnership is key – via the digitisation of the built environment, BIM and
with the relevant structure, right governance, fair the ‘big data’ agenda. Karl is a member of the NHS
outputs arrangements, based on deliverable and Estates and Facilities Management specialist ‘Think
manageable programs that tackle both short-term Tank’ providing professional input and advice to the
and long-term agendas – with one ultimately dove- Department of Health (DH) on efficiencies as input
tailing with the other. The public sector does have a to the Carter Efficiency programme.
choice on how it engages in the unstoppable IoT,
BIM, Digital Revolution agenda – it either, does or it
doesn’t. Those who don’t will see the ‘Sword of
Damocles’ – alternatively known as ‘austerity’ – with
the imminent and ever-present peril being faced by
those in all positions in the NHS. The private sector ...............................................
will benefit from ‘sitting on the same side of the Karl Redmond
negotiating table as the client’ – these benefits come Director of BIM4SME and member of BIM4HEALTH
in the form of long term, trusted commercial rela- Bowman Riley Healthcare Ltd (soon to be renamed
tionships, de-risking returns for the business and its Enabled by Design Ltd)
shareholders. There are many promising initiatives karl.redmond@bowmanriley.com
Visualise your Project
from Concept to Completion
The affordable, feature rich BIM collaborative, visual review and communication tool
Invigilatis, operational
standards, BIM and FM
Invigilatis helps NHS Trusts make sense
of BIM from an FM perspective…
BIM: its relationship with other Technology and information standards are key At BIM level 2, essential support is provided
global standards to these changes. All the overarching technology by PAS 1192-2 and PAS 1192: see figure.
The government’s aspirations in respect of is simply labelled as BIM but the many under-
BIM – building information modelling – will pinning standards are equally important. From As BIM develops to its higher levels and
be achieved because there is a growing the strategic management of assets and life parallel developments occur, such as the
consensus about the information which is cycle approach enshrined in ISO 5500 to PAS Internet of Things and the infrastructure
required to deliver the most cost effective 1192-3 which focuses on the operation of assets which will underpin Cities of the Future,
services over the entire life of the a building, and is the companion document to PAS 1192-2 these technology driven opportunities and
often 25 years or more. By enabling all build- specifying the information management will inevitably merge and the standards will
ing data to be shared in a consistent form, processes to support building information mod- cross refer.
services for a “BIM building” will be consid- elling. The link between to technology and data
erably more effective than the current ways is a data schema for holding and transmitting Your starting point?
of work and overall operational efficiency will information – typically this is COBIE – Construc- For Estates and Facilities to derive the full
be improved greatly. tion Operation Building information exchange. benefits of BIM, PAS 1192-3 is an essential
starting point. It describes the Asset informa-
tion management process necessary to
achieve BIM Level 2 in relation to the
operation and maintenance of the building
and associated assets.
transferred automatically to the Asset infor- ing, archiving analyzing and reporting on Planned Maintenance tools.
mation Model – i.e. superseding traditional the information held in the AIM: i.e. all the
manual processes of creating O&M manuals workflows surrounding the asset register; The most challenging aspect of exploiting
which were then rekeyed into the Asset BIM in FM is integrating the new project data
Register, with the associated risk if errors • Defining interfaces for exchanging data into the data that already exists in various
arising through mis-keying. and information between the AIM and other information silos. Invigilatis has con-
other organisational systems. siderable experience of system integration
Once the BIM terminology has become more and data cleansing. However this seemingly
familiar, the underlying asset management Modelling Support simple form of integration – adding new
processes and associated benefits can easily As had often been said, Estates and Facilities data to old data – is unlikely ever to get to
be identified. and Control of Infection teams need to be the root of many Trusts’ problems, i.e. the
engaged from almost day one of every new poor quality of the existing data.
Invigilatis – How can we help? BIM project. Invigilatis can help support
Invigilatis can help in many ways by working those efforts to ensure operational and Integrated System
closely with Trusts to free up managerial time compliance information requirements will be A more robust and future proofed solution
and thereby enabling greater focus on CQC’s satisfied from the model, and either the is to deploy Invigilatis’ integrated solution
goals to improve the overall Patient Safety and model is passed to those teams as part of the which can combine the well defined BIM
Satisfaction by ensuring services are safe, project handover, or relevant space and asset data with sanitised data from the existing
secure, effective, responsive and well-led. information is extracted from the model and silos to encompass all aspects of:
loaded into other operational systems.
Support is available for the key steps in • Property Management;
creating the AIM – i.e. the building model Knowledgeable support will enable opera-
for the building assets and facilities: tional teams to justify their participation in • Estates and Facilities;
the BIM planning process and help them
• Establishing information governance achieve their desired outcome. • Compliance.
processes to direct, control and assure that
asst information is managed effectively as Data Extraction and integration Invigilatis’ integrated solution will facilitate:
an organisational resource with reference Information from the Project model must be
to asset management strategies and plans; extracted and loaded into the operational • Detailed Asset Management which can
teams’ maintenance and compliance manage- also be linked back to the BIM model to
• Establishing the Organisational Information ment systems. Typically space, asset and job plan future refurbishments;
Requirements. While ISO 55000 provides a information needs to be extracted for re-use
good framework for the policies, strategies in these other systems. • Comprehensive compliance planning,
and plan, the requirements need also to combining statutory requirements e.g. full
pay regard to the organisations approach BIM Level 2 collaborative working relies Asbestos and Legionella systems with other
to its statutory and regulatory reporting upon standard formats so information can existing operation inspection regimes to pro-
requirements. CQC, PAM and ERIC all be output into a series of spreadsheets to: vide a full suite of Compliance Dashboards.
impose obligations which impact upon the
Organisation Reporting Requirements; • Define the building’s constituent spaces,
zones and floors;
• Defining the Asset Information Require-
ments which both enable the Organisation • List types of components used in the con-
Reporting Requirements to be met and the struction;
specification of information exchanges
needed to ensure information can be • Detail specification information about each Stephen Bartlett
transferred to and from the model: i.e. component; CEO
agreeing on the COBie subset of data to Invigilatis
deliver the building/asset information; • List associated maintenance jobs. Tel: 07899955658
stephen.bartlett@invigilatis.com
• Defining the mechanisms for creating, These outputs can then be loaded into Space www.invigilatis.com
receiving, validating/verifying, storing, shar- Management systems, Asset Registers and
68 | Smart Cities and BIM
T
the open standards approach to BIM will mean you are always a winner…
he good news on BIM: we’re all converts now. reduced risk and costs, through to greater environ-
The bad news: the road we’re travelling is a bit mental impact control and ease of maintenance with
longer and even trickier than we realised. We’re reduced running costs. So perhaps it’s surprising to
not sure we’ve got the whole map, and there appear learn from that same report that only 20% of clients
to be gaps. Worst of all, we’re treating it a bit like a owned the software they needed to edit BIM files,
race, when actually it’s a team event. and only 60% could even open them. 88% of respon-
dents to an NBS study last year admitted that they
Let’s go back to the good news first, to cheer didn’t pass the model on to building occupiers.
ourselves up. 98% of clients surveyed by McGraw
Hill Construction back in 2014 said they used BIM in Why? It all comes down to communication. And
some projects, with 86% using it in more than a that’s where buildingSMART comes in. As it stands,
quarter of contracts. 78% of UK owners believed BIM BIM is getting increasingly good take-up. Perhaps in
in facilities management would add significant value, part because of organisations’ understandable and
with 98% anticipating its use in FM by 2019. inevitable urge to get ahead of the competition, it
seems people aren’t very good at sharing. As well as
There are few who don’t recognise the range of tools developed in-house within various companies,
benefits on offer, from faster construction and there’s a choice of BIM tools available across the
Smart Cities and BIM | 69
industry, each offering certain functionality and certain that will work on any device. Use the IFCs to define
areas of application. But, they’ve all been written in your software or products, and you ensure compatibil-
different software languages, which creates a com- ity with all other compatible systems and BIM models.
patibility issue. So when architects, contractors and
developers do share, they’re sharing something that Open formats will result in increased collaboration,
needs translating. Except there’s no single tool to communication and universally usable tools. But it is a
translate it all. work in progress. Far-reaching in scope and complex
in nature. Some IFCs are already in use – and to great
It’s somewhat ironic, isn’t it, that the chief benefits of success. Danish civils and construction firm MT Høj-
BIM (aka, enabling collaboration and common under- gaard’s research into projects where it had been using
standing across disciplines and across the entire buildingSMART’s IFCs, revealed an increased design
lifecycle of assets) are being side lined because too quality of 33%. The principles – and the IFCs – work.
many companies are trying to go it alone?
“It will take time, patience, and the
If you want to take advantage of the full range of investment of expertise. And that’s where
benefits of BIM, if you want to be attractive to all this race becomes a team event. For BIM to
potential clients and if you want to know that your achieve its potential and for us all to reap
supply chain is being as accurate and efficient as the benefits, we need to work together.”
possible, you should all be using tools capable of
conversing with each other freely. We’re working with standards organisations ISO,
CEN and OGC to build a common set of international
buildingSMART is taking the initiative. Major BIM soft- standards. Our Strategic Council will consist of archi-
ware houses are now working with us collaboratively tects, contractors, consultants, manufacturers, soft-
to address those key issues of compatibility and ware vendors and building operators and owners,
translation. from Europe, Asia and the Americas, all working
towards a common goal that will benefit the entire
Think about your smartphone. Apps are tools industry. Such influential names as Autodesk, Arup,
developed for a particular operating system. But they HOK, Kajima Corporation and Nemetschek Group are
won’t work on a phone running a different operating already on board and helping to advance the cause.
system without some serious human coding inter-
vention. At buildingSMART we’re creating open data But we’ve heard a plaintive cry of ‘IFC doesn’t work’.
standards. We’re developing our solutions with an The truth is that we are still at the early stages of
‘operating system’ and ‘apps’, just like your phone; developing the capability everybody needs and have
our operating system is the Industry Foundation much more to do. Some tools are complete, while
Classes (IFCs), and our apps are the Model View others are yet to be developed. You can view a list
Definitions (MVDs). The system and apps work inter- of certified compliant and compatible tools at
nationally and universally by accessing our data dic- www.buildingsmart.org/compliance/certified-soft-
tionary, which manages language translations. Unlike ware . The truth is that a certain level of technical
your smartphone, where an Android app won’t run knowledge is involved if you want to get into the nuts
on an Apple phone, the idea is that the IFCs are and bolts (although you don’t have to, to benefit
platform-neutral and can all access the same multi- from their use!). The truth is that with such a simulta-
lingual dictionary. This means they can share digital neously broad and deep scope, we’re only at founda-
information easily. They govern the rules and guide- tion level, to use a construction analogy. It will take
lines that allow anyone to create apps and products time, patience, and the investment of expertise. And
70 | Smart Cities and BIM
that’s where this race becomes a team event. For digitisation of the industry, truly collaborate rather than
BIM to achieve its potential and for us all to reap the trying to look for some short-term gain, and we’ll all be
benefits, we need to work together. the winners. ■
“98% of clients surveyed by McGraw To find out more, become a partner or member, or just
Hill Construction back in 2014 said they to contribute to the progress of a universal set of stan-
used BIM in some projects, with 86% dards, visit www.buildingsmart.org/about/community .
using it in more than a quarter of
contracts. 78% of UK owners believed
BIM in facilities management would add
significant value, with 98% anticipating
its use in FM by 2019.”
T
he benefits of the governments’ BIM Solibri has produced a COBie application
Level 2 legacy are potentially immense. which is widely used by industry. It enables
However, there is a caveat – the BIM models to be checked at every stage ensuring
process creates more data than the industry that data (i.e. floors, spaces, types, components,
has ever faced before – what good is that etc.), is complete. It then transfers the data
data if you don’t know its accuracy, complete- to the correct location in the COBie structure.
ness, or compliance with the project COBie data links directly to the model for
requirement? Without Quality Assurance, bi-directional visualisation and XLS sheets
extra data inevitably means an increase in are produced automatically.
errors as the project progresses – BIM could
actually cause more harm than good. “BIM cannot deliver on its
promise if data quality is poor.
Therefore, it is not sufficient just to manage It really is that simple.”
the data, we have to ensure it is correct.
Solibri Model Checker (SMC) does just Unlike other applications, SMC therefore
that – it provides an intelligent, configurable produces a COBie output that goes beyond
environment to take accurate data from simple validation – it is accurate.
the model. • Communication, Version Control
– Identified data errors are reported using In summary, SMC does the one thing
This unique and intuitive software solution a wide range of communication protocols. that every model needs – it allows you to
performs a number of tasks in delivering Different model versions can be overlaid to Measure the Quality of what has been
quality assurance and data mining and these rapidly identify changes and validate that modelled, and to Measure the Quality of the
can be summarised as follows: errors have been corrected. data that accompanies each model object.
BIM cannot deliver on its promise if data
• Federation – SMC brings together data • Information Take Off – Interrogation quality is poor. It really is that simple.
from authoring tools irrespective of source. templates extract model data to reflect
individual requirements such as quantity
• Viewing – SMC provides extensive view- take-off and COBie.
ing capabilities into individual or federated
models, including data interrogation, SMC and COBie
dimensioning and mark up. Central to delivery of the BIM Level 2 legacy
is the need to produce a series of discipline David Jellings
• Quality Assurance – either for a specific models with the provision of a single Managing Director
single discipline or federated environment to store shared data and Solibri Uk Limited
model – SMC ‘rules’ allow models to be information (COBie). Tel: 0844 854 9250
analysed for quality. ‘Rule Sets’ can be info-uk@solibri.com
generic (e.g. constructability, clash), specialist The requirement to produce COBie data is sales-uk@solibri.com
(e.g. COBie, Building Regulations) or increasing rapidly. It will be a requirement www.solibri.com
bespoke (e.g. project specific). for government projects by 2016.
Thousands of free BIM objects from over 300
manufacturers across Europe. 120,000 architects
and designers are using these intelligent and
configurable objects, with automatic alerts when
objects change.
With clever BIMobject® APPs, the objects are available directly from
within market leading BIM solutions including Revit, ArchiCAD, Autocad
and SketchUp Pro. Other formats are also supported.
BIMobject UK Ltd
Call Alan Baikie on +44 (0)844 854 9214 or alan.baikie@bimobject.com
74 | Smart Cities and BIM
T
time that we could actually have a BIM Golden Handover Award…
A simple question, but if cascading late-payment • Yes/No: Use of a digital plan of work to support
down the supply chain is morally unacceptable, why data driven exchanges;
wouldn’t using isolated ‘company’ diktats instead of
the common agreed standards conventions be • Yes/No: Use of BS1192 part 4 on the UK use of
equally so? COBie to deliver structured data up the supply
chain to the client, along with well named PDF
The lack of case studies in the industry only serves to documents and proprietary model files.
create ‘plausible deniability’ – anyone in the client or
supply side can plausibly deny that the savings seen in “It’s handover time, in the sense that it
projects overseas, or last year or in a different market is now the industry’s problem to build
segment, or with a different contractual arrangement, on the kick-start we have been given.
or at a different place in the alphabet might translate The mandate may only apply to perhaps
across to their country, this year, this segment, this 20% of output, but the rationale behind
procurement framework. So we urgently need to know it applies to a far wider remit. Many
more than the photograph of stretched smiles at han- would argue that the process that began
dover and to get into the underlying features. We in 2011 will only be complete when we
urgently need to know how the structured processes reach 100%, and can claim to be a true
offered to the industry are being implemented in prac- consumer-orientated sector.”
tice. And we need to know the tracks which the infor-
mation delivery have taken, in fact a full, 8-point check These are tough criteria, and yes, you do need to
list – Yes or No – along of course with the How and the study the respective documents, not just my quick
Show for each element of BIM Level 2 – Yes/No: summary of each, but there are now examples in
both the public and private sectors, so we should be
• Use of a CDE with controlled access by suitability, able to see what ‘good’ looks like – and celebrate it. ■
stage and role;
1
http://www.ribabookshops.com/item/bim-for-construction-
• Yes/No: Use of BS1192 file naming for all asset clients/85148/
related information, drawings and models; 2
http://www.ribabookshops.com/item/bim-for-construction-
clients/85148/ page 134
• Yes/No: Use of PAS 1192 part 3 to establish the
client’s information needs as a minimum EIR;
B
uilding Information Modelling (BIM)
has fast become an essential in
today’s construction industry. The
challenge faced by management teams now
is to integrate the vast amount of data avail-
able in the most useful, accessible way, so
that it can support effective decision making.
The company has now put its sector expertise BIMReview evolution delivers a range of Because BIMReview enables more efficient
to use in BIMReview, a software tool that practical benefits: working, it has the capability to shrink sched-
provides an integrated project hub bringing • Improved workflow through real-time ules and reduce the risk of overruns.
together data from multiple sources across a access to BIM model content across
complete project lifecycle. multiple teams. “BIMReview is proving to be an invaluable
• Enhanced decision support through tool because it brings together everything
“BIMReview enables you to view all your 3D improved collaboration. you need to deliver a successful construction
models simultaneously,” explains StruMIS’ • Immediate identification of clashes and project in one easy-to-use desktop applica-
Director Simon Inman. “By importing IFC, conflicts. tion,” says Simon Inman.
STEP, IGES, and CIS/2 models, along with API • Improve planning with 4D timelines for
links, it brings together intelligence from all engineering, procurement, suppliers and Low cost, immediate returns
the major BIM authoring products.” construction teams. One of the most appealing things about BIM-
PROFILE 77
Review is its low cost of ownership. It enables Enhanced workflows enables more efficient working. Those involved
savings in materials, time and money BIMReview is designed to facilitate collabo- in the project no longer have to locate and
because all of the information about a con- ration across the project. Architects, owners, cross-reference multiple design models in
struction project is in one place. Because the consultants, contractors, fabricators and order to properly understand and under-
application can be downloaded and installed engineers can work on a single process stand and resolve issues.
within a couple of hours, the return on through the same model with a level of
investment is effectively immediate. The intu- accuracy not previously possible. When Try BIMReview for free
itive interface means that users don’t need changes are needed, everyone involved It’s easy to use. You can download a free trial of
onsite training, however, extensive support has access to all the models and has the BIMReview or request a free demonstration
is available as well as online tutorial videos. information necessary to make the most from the BIMReview website:
valuable input. http://www.bim-review.com
Cost savings from day one:
• Eliminate duplication and over-ordering. Improved project efficiency
• Better decision making through enhanced By providing real-time access to BIM model
information. content and status throughout the supply
• Immediate availability of essential data. chain and across dispersed teams, BIMReview
Mr Simon Inman
Director
StruMIS LTD
Tel: 01332 545800
www.bim-review.com
www.twitter.com/StruMISLTD
78 | Smart Cities and BIM
T
for a seamless BIM operation…
he 4th of April is an important date for the standards of how to work better within the different
UK Government’s current BIM programme as stages of construction in order to gain efficiencies in
it is the day the BIM Level 2 milestone will be quality and cost in the way we build and operate
officially set out for all centrally procured public buildings.
sector projects. The UK government reports that
BIM Level 2 has already achieved 20% cost savings Digital data is crucial for BIM level 2
as part of the Government’s Construction Strategy The generation of the 3 dimensional model of the
for its construction procurement. Additionally, The asset is an important part of the BIM agenda. How-
Ministry of Justice BIM pilot project has identified BIM ever, it is a great misconception that all of the supply
as the process innovation having enabled £800,000 chain members have to invest and work with expen-
of savings in the development of the Cookham Wood sive software such as a Revit or ArchiCAD etc. That is
Young Offenders Institution1. As this date is fast a very critical point, especially when up to 95% of
approaching, all eyes are on the benefits of the construction and civil engineering firms in the EU are
second level of BIM maturity and all minds are on micro-enterprises or small and medium-sized enter-
how to better implement it. prises (SMES)2. More often than not, SMEs just have
to provide the information in the form of digital data
“In order to tackle the information hunger to the main design team or the main contracting firm
that is driven by BIM Level 2, contracting about what products they are installing in the building
firms and their numerous sub-contractors or infrastructure. In order to tackle the information
need to step-up and find a way to deliver hunger that is driven by BIM Level 2, contracting
structured data that anyone can use and firms and their numerous sub-contractors need to
understand.” step-up and find a way to deliver structured data
that anyone can use and understand.
What is BIM level 2?
For the unversed in the BIM particularities, BIM BIM Level 2 for contractors or delivering as
Level 2 is about a group of standards, set by the UK built data
government around the adoption and use of Building So what ProductXchange – the coBuilder tool, actually
Information Modelling (BIM) for the digitalisation of does is help contractors and their supply chain collect
the construction industry. Essentially, BIM itself is all the right information about what’s being built.
about using one coherent system of processes for The platform builds a digital repository of information
designing, building and operating construction assets and data that is collected through all the stages of
through the advancements of the digital medium – construction, ensuring as designed matched as built.
open data, 3D models and digital documents. In Once collected, the data can then be shared with
this sense, Level 2 BIM is the stage of BIM adoption the supply chain in multiple formats such as COBie,
intended to standardise the process of sharing high REVIT, IFC or ARCHICAD that can be then outputted
quality digital information through platform-neutral or attributed to the 3D model. Putting accurate,
digital formats such as COBie and IFC. At the highest interoperable as built data together with the model
level, BIM Level 2 is really a set of processes and at BIM Level 2 is quite simply the act of sharing
Smart Cities and BIM | 79
W
with Lean Planning
orking in the architectural, engi- promises to make as a big an impact as literally fall to the floor from planning
neering and construction (AEC) Building Information Modelling (BIM) is boards! In addition to this, when several
space means you have probably having now; by transforming design and con- decisions and changes are being made each
heard the term ‘Lean’ on numerous occa- struction efficiency and empowering con- day on any given project – it also puts con-
sions. Lean has been applied to all sorts of areas struction teams. Lean principles attempt to struction firms and their clients at risk of mis-
including; Lean processes; manufacturing; address inefficient processes before they takes being made when it’s not easy to track
construction; design; supply and even ‘thinking.’ have an impact on a task or series of tasks. updates in real time.
What lean actually means for the AEC sector
is the streamlining and removal of unneces- From Paper To Screens Given these changes in the marketplace,
sary and complicated process, that often Traditionally, firms have conducted Lean there is a noticeable industry shift towards
occur in the planning phase. By incorporat- scheduling using Kanban boards – coloured the use of software tools to replace paper
ing the knowledge and feedback from all cards or sticky notes on large boards – which sticky notes that serve as a favourite medium
parties involved in a project, systems and show who is responsible for the work to be for Kanban cards. The advantage of such
structures can be planned and agreed before done, work that’s underway and completed software is that it eliminates the labour-
the foundations are even dug. In addition, work. However, a paper-based way of work- intensive, error-prone (that is, non-lean)
by agreeing who is responsible for delivering ing – particularly in construction where team process of transferring data from cards to
certain aspects of a project, each party can members are often going back and forth spreadsheets. Lean planning software auto-
be held accountable for its delivery. from the office to the building site – can be matically records the movement of cards
unreliable and contradict the benefits that across the Kanban board, enabling the gen-
A key aspect of Lean is Lean scheduling. In Lean can offer. Spreadsheets are unreliable eration of real-time reporting, without
the construction industry, Lean scheduling and difficult to maintain – and sticky notes delays. Because reports are immediate and
PROFILE 81
P
professional liability exposure…
rofessional Indemnity Brokers Griffiths & Armour support it and the outcomes it would produce. As
have been at the forefront of discussions around their understanding developed, it became clear that
the introduction of BIM and its potential impact the adoption of level 2 BIM was unlikely to have any
on professional liability exposure. Following their major bearing on insurers’ underwriting decisions in
involvement with the recent ACE Scotland Group BIM the short to medium-term.
event in Glasgow, we spoke with Managing Director
Carl Evans to get some further insight into insurers’ Was there a feeling that BIM could have a
thoughts and to understand how BIM might be the positive impact on PI claims?
catalyst for real change in our approach to managing Absolutely. It was acknowledged that longer-term,
construction risk. BIM could potentially deliver greater clarity and the
ability to model the ‘as built’ project in some detail
“There are also some specific or increased could well reduce the risk of claims. If that proves to
exposures around data security and cyber be the case then it should have positive implications
liability which are not always catered relating to both the cost and availability of cover into
for under PI Insurance. This will have the future.
particular relevance in circumstances
where the consultant is responsible for You mentioned possible ‘gaps in policy cover’.
hosting the BIM environment.” Is the cover afforded under traditional PI
Insurance sufficient to deal with risks in a
Griffiths & Armour were responsible for pro- BIM environment?
ducing the ‘Best Practice Guide for Professional It would be sensible for consultants to question
Indemnity Insurance when using BIM’ on behalf whether there are any limitations or exclusions in
of the Construction Industry Council. Can you their policy that might impact when operating in a
tell us a little more about the background to BIM environment. Although it is unlikely that policies
that document? would contain any specific exclusions relating to
The intention was to produce guidance that would BIM, there are a number of areas where consultants
support the construction industry’s take up of level 2 could find themselves exposed.
BIM. At that point, there had been no real engagement
with insurers to establish their views on the possible A key consideration will be whether cover is afforded
risks, potential gaps in policy cover and the practical on a legal (or civil) liability basis and whether it is
steps consultants should be taking when operating sufficiently broad to cater for liabilities established
in a BIM environment. under contracts and protocols etc. In addition to
standard industry documents, bespoke protocols are
The initial phase of the project involved a series being produced and are often designed to create
of consultations with the majority of PI Insurers. strict obligations that would not otherwise exist. This
Although it was as recent as 2013, knowledge of is one area where gaps could emerge between the
BIM was relatively limited and there was a need to liabilities being taken on and the cover afforded
educate insurers on the technologies required to under the consultant’s PI Insurance.
Smart Cities and BIM | 83
There are also some specific or increased exposures manager can be shown to be a particular consultant’s
around data security and cyber liability which are work. That’s important and anything that can be done
not always catered for under PI Insurance. This will to achieve greater traceability in the design process
have particular relevance in circumstances where will be welcomed by insurers. Certainly, consultants
the consultant is responsible for hosting the BIM should not be operating in a system where third
environment. parties can readily modify submitted models without
robust checks being in place.
What are some of the key things insurers feel
consultants should be doing to protect If taking on responsibility for ‘Information
themselves in a BIM environment? Management’, it will also be important to establish
In terms of managing their liability, a lot will depend the extent of that responsibility and to ensure that it
on the obligations they are taking on under contract does not extend to a more detailed ‘checking’ role.
and requirements set out in the protocol. There is
no reason why appointments should be significantly Something that is often referred to in the context
different on projects utilising BIM, although something of BIM is Integrated Project Insurance (IPI). Can
to look out for would be requirements to comply you explain where that becomes a requirement?
with the protocol. At this point, we’re only dealing with level 2 BIM where
a ‘federated model’ is being used. Each participant
Use of the standard CIC BIM Protocol would be develops their own model, which is then shared with
advisable and should help to achieve greater clarity the project model so lines of responsibility should
through the ‘Level of Detail’ and ‘Model Production be clear.
and Delivery Table’.
Level 3 BIM would involve all parties contributing to
The standards set out in PAS 1192-2 are intended to an open and integrated model. With greater collabo-
ensure that models passed on to the information ration, it becomes difficult to identify responsibility
84 | Smart Cities and BIM
Carl Evans, Managing Director of professional indemnity brokers Griffiths & Armour
for amendments, the position on liability is more Having said that, the emergence of BIM and the need
blurred and it is difficult to see how the traditional to find alternative solutions has helped to fuel the
approach to managing project risk could work. At debate on how we manage risks within construction.
present, procurement practices promote an adversar- The discussion around level 3 BIM could be the catalyst
ial culture based on onerous contracts, and the impo- for real change and that’s an exciting prospect. ■
sition of liability rather than supporting a collaborative
approach, so we need to look for alternative solutions. “It was acknowledged that longer-term,
BIM could potentially deliver greater
It starts with procurement and the contracts utilised clarity and the ability to model the ‘as
but a move away from an adversarial culture needs built’ project in some detail could well
insurance solutions that are focussed on project reduce the risk of claims.”
risk and that’s where IPI comes in. As reported in
Infrastructure-Intelligence in July 2015, ‘IPI insures For more information on ACE BIM activities, please
the whole project team, including the client, against see acenet.co.uk/bimengagement/972
all risks so they can concentrate on innovations rather
than having to cover themselves against potential
problems and all rights of subrogation are waived’.
I
t’s widely held that we already have a very
large proportion of the infrastructure,
environmental and building assets that
we will be using in 2025 and even in 2050.
So how does the BIM revolution affect these?
“We are now focussing on two access, loading and so on, as a short-cut http://www.therotherhamft.nhs.uk/ProjectStreamer/
Implementing BIM?
Engage with your staff
Andy Radley, Group BIM Director at Kier Group examines how to
incorporate BIM into an organisation, and celebrates the benefits
O
that collaborative working can bring…
ne of the greatest challenges faced in For BIM to generate efficiencies and savings it must
meeting the government’s Level 2 BIM become the standard approach for both public and
mandate, is creating accountability for the privately procured construction projects, being
individual stakeholder to play their part in the whole applied across projects, throughout their stages
BIM journey. It still seems that many people view BIM and affecting a positive influence on the Total
almost as an abstract concept, a disruptive technology Expenditure (TOTEX).
that is complex and expensive to implement. This
alone has led to much apprehension, and it is evident Anecdotal evidence suggests that a small number of
that there is a widespread lack of comprehension clients or their representatives who are responsible
about what the benefits of BIM are, along with just for managing capital expenditure, especially within
how much organisational change is involved to the public sector have visibility of both the CAPEX
implement it effectively. and OPEX budgets. The ideal scenario is to invest or
simply bring forward an element of the OPEX budget that we and other practitioners have been promoting
to a much earlier stage in order to support a better as a benefit of using BIM for a number of years. We
outcome through the earlier involvement and recognise that BIM is the golden thread that is able
influence on the scheme by FM teams. With visibility to stitch the wider group together, and it’s this
across both, the opportunity to influence and move learning that we use to pass on to clients.
funds from one pot to another is reduced.
“All staff should be a cog in the BIM
However, where this does happen, the investment machine, a component piece that forms
should result in realising better BIM data about the part of a much larger mechanism, as long
asset leading up to and beyond handover. This as the machine is checked and maintained
situation has also been further compounded by it will carry on operating and delivering.”
many local authorities and government departments
favouring the outsourcing of many services including As an example, Kier Property finances and develops
Asset and Facilities Management. The perception is a broad portfolio of property, some of which are
that there is little value in investing and using BIM if a disposed of to deliver profit and drive further
decision cannot be made at the briefing stage as to investment, while others will become occupied by
who will be running a facility post-handover. one of Kier’s businesses and maintained by Kier
Services. Throughout this process we may choose to
Kier have developed a collaborative way of working appoint our construction division to build and our
internally that delivers the values and efficiencies FM / Asset Management teams to operate, all of who
then collaborate using the same BIM philosophy.
job. BIM at some level is embedded in most of our is being faced today by clients who are being asked
business streams, this is quite deliberate and sends to use BIM without the benefit of experience. In
out the signal that it is (BIM) business as normal and many cases they are starting from first principles,
included within the DNA of every employee.” given the circumstances of departmental budgets
being squeezed whilst being told to drive change
“Kier have developed a collaborative way through services being delivered by private
of working internally that delivers the contractors. We, like many of the UK’s contractors
values and efficiencies that we and other and consultants are joining forces to share our
practitioners have been promoting as a collective experiences via regional, framework and
benefit of using BIM for a number of Governmental BIM special interest groups to help
years. We recognise that BIM is the golden clients deliver this change. Value within these is
thread that is able to stitch the wider generated by capturing and sharing case studies
group together, and it’s this learning that together with delivering workshops, but the most
we use to pass on to clients.” important message we advocate to clients is that
BIM is a collaborative process, that requires them to
The use of new tools and processes has proven go through the same organisation change we have,
to be more efficient, productive and collaborative. and for them to recognise that the generation of
All staff should be a cog in the BIM machine, a closer ties within their own business, and a mandate
component piece that forms part of a much larger from their board will reap rewards. ■
mechanism, as long as the machine is checked and
maintained it will carry on operating and delivering.
BIM adoption has to be a default industry
methodology rather than seen as an additional task.
By demystifying everyone’s level of involvement, ...............................................
supporting staff with appropriate technologies and Andy Radley
timely training, Kier is now overcoming many of the Group BIM Director
barriers being faced across the industry. Kier Group
Andy.Radley@kier.co.uk
Gaining the knowledge and the understanding, www.kier.co.uk
together with ability to apply it, is the challenge that www.twitter.com/kiergroup
PROFILE 89
A
in-house professional team of architects, developers and engineers
collaborated to develop Tata Steel’s new BIM offering…
P
roject Controls is a mix of science and • Information is fragmented, held in docu- optimism and hunger of the construction
art that is used particularly in the ments, schedules and drawings but the team undoubtedly pressurises the balanced
Process and Infrastructure sectors as a computation of key information such as a status. With margins often in the low per-
standalone discipline to control what are count of the number of doors to allow centage points of the overall cost and each
often large and complex projects with the determination of how much the doors will party to the contract having their own inter-
aim of bringing the project to a successful cost or how many are currently fixed pretation of the information to hand it is
conclusion from the aspect of time, cost and requires a detailed review and analysis of hardly surprising that considerable time and
quality. The science is that there are recog- many drawings and associated informa- effort expended and mistakes and claims
nised techniques to be applied to a project tion. The reality is that the analysis often can arise.
to measure the status and better predict the doesn’t get undertaken or may get under-
outcome, the art is that all the information is taken many times by many parties. Such BIM on the other hand thrives on definition.
rarely in the right form to make all the nec- an example represents only a small part of When you model an object in BIM you have
essary analyses while, at the same time the the overall challenge of determining the to position it and size it and say what it is! So
shape and form of the most pertinent form full scope of the project at a project level, while designers prefer not to add items to a
of progress measurement changes across the or the scope of a sub-contract when one drawing until the item is defined and under-
lifecycle of the project. party supplies and another fixes and even stood where it is going, cost planners and
a third may commission and handover; construction teams want to better under-
Typically projects (and the sub-projects stand what is required even if it needs
within an overall programme) start and end • An inability to see information in context. further definition at a later date. In essence
with a critical sequence of tasks before run- A window is quite a different proposition the foundation of BIM and its interaction
ning through a period of volume based deliv- to build when it is on the ground floor with delivery relies on some key principles:
ery before finally ending with a critical compared to being located on the 5th
closeout sequence. To compound the lack of floor, on the east wing above an embank- • There is accuracy and definition in the con-
simplicity offered by a fixed set of rules (as ment overlooking the sea; tent which by the very nature of the output
opposed to an established set of principles) being in 3D places many elements of the
the information to base the judgement of • And of course when the information is requirements in context;
status and recommendations for actions are shown on drawings even experienced
affected by: personnel can interpret the information • There is the ideal of a managed process
differently especially when they have around a single model, whilst perhaps
• Ambiguity in the source information – limited time to view and reconcile. harder to achieve it should nevertheless be
invariably the full information is not avail- a core aspiration, invariably wrapped in an
able until the end of a project unlike man- So the challenges to produce pertinent real integrated CDE;
ufacturing when it is available at the outset, time measurement and predictability in proj-
so judgements, allowances etc have to be ect controls are immense, applying the most • There is a managed process to define, add
made and these can often be found later appropriate technique that most accurately and enhance the object data to create an
to be inadequate; reflects the challenge of the project at the appropriate level of information and rich-
point in time, and then having to work ness at every stage in the project leading
• There are often several sources of the truth around all the limitations and challenges by to digital handover and operation;
in a large fast moving project and reconciling interpreting disparate sets of information to
the analysis from the various sources can derive the right analysis and recommenda- • When we manage 3D object information,
be time consuming and frustrating; tion before being challenged by the essential we are able to enhance it with the attribution
PROFILE 91
of time, work packaging, cost and asset are all opportunities for BIM driven prod- and opportunity to display potential dis-
coding etc, etc, to allow us to aggregate and ucts and will undoubtedly expose issues, ruption, so effective change management,
analyse the information as well as simulate reduce risks and improve the communica- essentially the measured appendix to the
and visualise the outcomes in every which tion amongst the project team. variation notice is a very real opportunity
way we choose.
• Cost estimating and cost management – In conclusion, given the foundation and
However while the foundation of BIM is while a model doesn’t often reflect the objectives of BIM why wouldn’t project con-
strong it is as an enabler that BIM presents complete scope early in the project, it trols as a function not jump at the opportunity
the real opportunity to do new things that does provide the scope from which other offered by BIM? Is it that BIM is often still seen
really accelerate BIM beyond its traditional elements of content can invariably be as pictures or videos, or is it that very few
space into that of Integrated Project Controls, attached. For example, a wall in the model businesses and software providers have
for example: might attract, plaster, paint, skirting, aligned their thoughts and products to the
builderswork restraint, acoustic treatment aspirations of the opportunity and the
• Visual Simulation and understanding of etc but these elements do not need to be enablement of Project Controls through BIM?
program changes. Being able to see the detailed in the model, however the size What will come first, the production of this
impacts of design changes on the program and number of each can be associated to robust information to better enable project
is traditionally quite difficult. Firstly identi- the wall and made available to other users. controls or the demand for more robust infor-
fying changes can be time consuming and Automated measurement and sophisti- mation and consistent processes to feed the
then finding the tasks affected in the pro- cated association with external pricing and opportunity for improved project controls?
gram gantt chart can also be difficult. resource estimation allows objects to be
When BIM is introduced with automated resourced and priced paving the way for Whilst the reality is that leadership on the
mapping between construction elements more accurate progress updates. matter is invariably critical to make it happen
and tasks the process becomes much and lead the change, certain software solutions
quicker, easier and more visual with the • Risk Management can be better enabled are now focussed on delivering the robust
ability to run scenarios across multiple allowing the discipline to be applied more information to support the foundation for the
program versions (e.g baseline vs current/ readily to more projects. In common with more efficient and more effective production
actual). This yields significant benefits for resource levelling the key time consuming of project controls outputs. The ultimate aim
the planner and allows the focus to be on task with risk management is the popula- is to produce the outputs in real time as the
value-adding work rather than handling tion of the programme with cost, associa- exhaust gasses of the process, thereby allow-
fragmented, disconnected data. tion with the risk register and the ing the project controls team to apply their
subsequent set up ready for the analysis art whilst making an experienced judgement
• Short term programming and logistics to take place. BIM will be able to facilitate based on current up todate information.
planning – Projects are typically founded and even automate much of this process There can hardly be a Client or owner that
on structured strategic programmes with allowing experienced users to concentrate won’t be keen to achieve this outcome.
separate discrete local short-term pro- on the outcome and the subsequent
grammes. The desire to better display the actions rather than the non-value adding
detailed sequences often results in the and time-consuming preparation of the
strategic programme becoming overly com- necessary information.
plex with the result that progress updates,
risk analysis and other similar tasks them- • Combine the measurement and costing
selves become overly burdensome. How- with progress measurement in the model,
ever short-term programming within the given that each activity knows the compo-
model space is quite feasible under the nents associated with it, and fast, accurate
umbrella of the strategic programme and progress measurement can now contribute Graeme Forbes
of course allows the richness of the infor- to the reconciliation of cost and value. Managing Director
mation such as resources to be made avail- Clearbox
able to provide greater assurance of the • Change Management – of course if we can Tel: +44 (0)800 085 9872
outcome. Short-term sequencing the per- see what has changed and measured from sales@clearboxbim.com
manent works and the temporary works the model we can also see and measure www.clearboxbim.com
and even simulating material movements change with the appropriate time impact
92 | Smart Cities and BIM
M
for Facilities Managers and how it can help with BIM and Soft Landings…
y previous article in this series took Star and people such as myself representing the
Wars as its inspiration (BIM 4 FM – May the consultancy side of things.
force be with you) but this time I am afraid
that I have been sadly lacking on the imagination As you can probably imagine, with such a broad
front and the best I can come up with is the BREXIT range of interests represented our discussions were
debate. However, rest assured that I am not going to “lively” on occasions and it is this that brought to
spend the next two pages rehearsing the in/out of mind the current BREXIT situation. It is unfair to
Europe debate, but simply use it to draw comparison compare our BIFM “minder” (Laura) to Jean Claude
with the discussions that we have been having within Juncker, but I am sure that she felt as frustrated as
BIFM about how we can help our Members and FM the EC President on occasions – just when she
generally get to grips with BIM and Soft Landings. thought she had got us all going in the same direction
we would suddenly head off somewhere completely
To start from the beginning, a little over a year ago, a different!
somewhat disparate group of interested individuals
morphed into what is now known as the BIFM Anyway, to cut a long story short, after much debate
Operational Readiness Group. Membership is and having re-invented the wheel several times, BIFM’s
(deliberately) drawn from a widely diverse background Operational Readiness Guide for Facilities Managers
that is intended to represent FM at its broadest was made available on 4th April to coincide with the
definition; the group, therefore, includes service official go “live” date for the UK Government’s BIM
providers, clients, academics, software developers Mandate. In developing the guide we were conscious
Smart Cities and BIM | 93
of the need to build on (and supplement), rather than FM’s by nature are, the guide then goes on to identify
replicate the body of work which has already been the underlying activities that are considered necessary
carried out. Equally, we recognised that FM’s are to achieve the “aspiration”. These activities are grouped
typically busy with their day jobs and that to expect under the headings of Compliance, People, Process,
them to read through yet another lengthy BIM related Procurement/Finance and Technical, with each
document was likely to be wishful thinking. section (stage) following the same format.
What we have aimed to produce therefore is a kind of As I said earlier the guide is intended exactly as
“ready reckoner” of how FM can/should get involved what it says on the “tin”, i.e. as a guide; it is not
in the capital project development and delivery intended to be prescriptive in any way. In this
process. This, with the overall objective of enhancing context, we recognise that the role to be played by
the operational and occupational performance of the FM will vary for each RIBA stage depending on the
end “product”. In doing so we have referred to, but nature of the project (e.g. new-build/refurbishment,
not repeated, the underlying alphabet spaghetti complexity, procurement methodology, etc.) and the
(my kids used to love it when they were younger) of requirements of the client or end-user (NB. not nec-
supporting standards and the like as represented by essarily the same organisation). Thus, some flexibility
PAS 1192, Parts 2 and 3, BS8536 etc., etc. about when specific activities are to be undertaken is
to be anticipated. As a consequence the cost of the
So what does the guide look like? Well, it is structured FM support required in each stage will vary accord-
around the RIBA Digital Plan of Work (DPoW) and has ingly to what activities are required to be undertaken
eight sections to reflect the various design stages of the and other variables such as the level of involvement
DPoW. For each stage it sets out the envisaged role of of the service provision supply chain.
the FM representative; thus, by way of example at:
To conclude and return (somewhat tenuously) to
• Stage 0 – Strategic Definition: – “The FM, as the where I started with this article, the process that
representative of the end user of the building with BIFM’s Operational Readiness Group has been
a detailed understanding of their key (core business) through in developing the guide bears some resem-
requirements, has the opportunity to ensure that blance to the BREXIT negotiations. Its production has
the client’s business case and the strategic brief involved much discussion, some heated debate, and
are fully considered from a Facilities Management eventual compromise. Unlike BREXIT though it is not
perspective.” a once in a generation “in or out” decision. We fully
recognise that we almost certainly have not got it
• Stage 3 – Developed Design: – “During this stage, 100% right, and in this respect, we look forward to
the FM role is to continue to ensure that the receiving the industry’s feedback. ■
client/end-user’s operational and occupational
requirements for the premises are appropriately
considered and incorporated into the developing
design proposals. The FM should, therefore, be
involved in reviewing on an ongoing basis drawings
and specifications as they are produced by the
design/construction team.”
O
rganisations involved in the design, struction Operations Building information recorded accurately in BIM models. If it’s
construction and operation of a exchange) is the specified data format. accurate in the BIM model it will also be
public building are being impacted accurate in COBie.
by the information requirements inherent in Whilst designers and contractors have been
meeting BIM Level 2. For designers, contrac- preparing for COBie for some time there is The Level 2 data required for different types
tors, and the contracting supply chain, this one community within construction which of building products is now being identified
means a more disciplined and comprehen- has only recently become aware of what through the provision of Product Data Tem-
sive approach to the collection and recording Level 2 means for them – the manufacturers plates (PDT) – www.bimtalk.co.uk/pdts –
of data about building assets. The Government of building products. These manufacturers which manufacturers can fill out to provide
goal is to provide asset data in a structured are the originators of the product data data on their products (a Product Data
and recognisable format which can be required in COBie and have the greatest Sheet – PDS). How this PDS data is incorpo-
transferred into a CAFM (Computer-Aided incentive to ensure that this data – descrip- rated into a BIM model can be achieved via
Facilities Management) system. COBie (Con- tive, performance, sustainability, etc., – is a number of methods but most have the
disadvantage of being manual, and therefore be “industrialised”. This process has to tools including ArchiCAD, Revit, SketchUp
error prone, and time consuming. The most include all the constituent parts of a BIM and also AutoCAD. Other formats are also
succinct method is to include this data with object – the geometric representation, the available.
the geometric representation of the product structured data (e.g., PDS) and any other
– a BIM object. All manufacturers are able reference information (e.g., PDF of installation BIMobject was founded 3 years ago and
to produce a PDS but only a few have the instructions). This is a strategic focus for since January 2014 has been a public
skills to create geometric representations BIMobject in 2015. Put simply there are two company list on NASDAQ OMX. A winner in
which will work well in the popular BIM communities of manufacturers which need 2013 of a Global Red Herring Award, which
modelling softwares. For this reason most to be supported: those with no 3D represen- recognises world-wide the most promising
manufacturers look to an outside supplier to tations of their products, and those with 3D start-up companies for their innovation and
create their geometric objects, which include representations produced from mechanical technology, BIMobject is now the largest
the PDS data. design CAD software. To support the former, provider in Europe of BIM objects with over
BIMobject MosquitoTM was introduced in late 300 manufacturers as customers, over
“The Government goal is to 2014. A new technology which enables 90,000 registered users, and with over 1.6m
provide asset data in a struc- manufacturers to self-build and maintain downloads from its portal. BIMobject is
tured and recognisable format place-holder BIM objects containing 3D headquartered in Sweden with subsidiaries
which can be transferred visualisations and data properties. During in USA, France, Hungary (for Eastern Europe),
into a CAFM (Computer-Aided this year further releases of this software will Germany, Italy, UK and with business
Facilities Management) system. extend the range of manufactured products partners elsewhere in Europe.
COBie (Construction Operations to which this technology can be applied. An
Building information exchange) introduction to Mosquito can be view on the
is the specified data format.” YouTube channel – key “bimobject mosquito”
into the search criteria. For manufacturers
Having to use an outside supplier to create which already have digital representations of
geometric objects clearly has cost implications their products in a mechanical CAD system,
for manufacturers. Today creating objects is now they can benefit from the conversion
largely a “craft industry” with a limited process to BIM developed by BIMobject. This
number of experts able to develop objects. process is quicker to deliver, less costly and
This craft industry isn’t scalable so the large provides consistent quality – all of which are
number of objects that will be required, both significant improvements on the current
for 2016 and beyond, will be impossible to hand crafted methods. What could be more
produce. And with this hand-crafted approach effective than taking what exists already and
consistency is difficult to achieve and creation re-using it in a different way?
costs will remain at the higher end. In this
situation with a requirement for many more Through its cloud based portal BIMobject®
objects, but only a limited pool of experts, provides the development, maintenance and Alan Baikie
how can the needs of the construction syndication of BIM objects of manufactured Managing Director
industry and product manufacturers be met? building and interior products. These objects BIMobject UK
are provided from the BIMobject portal, at
BIMobject® has been reviewing this no charge, to architects, designers, specifiers
conundrum for some time and concluded and contractors, and are available in native
that the development of BIM objects has to format for a number of the model authoring
96 | Smart Cities and BIM
T
challenges, and his expectations for the future of BIM…
achieve, as well as software and training costs, and routine way of progressing a project in the future. It’s
this could be an issue for smaller schemes with tight all about how we can better communicate information
margins that may make it difficult to justify additional and this seems to me to be the way forward.
expenditure.
Andy Anderson was one of five scheduled speakers
Although it’s not my experience, I could imagine at the ACE Scotland Group event on 24 February
there might be resistance to change whether it be entitled ‘Organisational Engagement and BIM:
designers, contractors or those responsible for the Practical and Legal Challenges’. ■
maintenance at the end of the day, so there will be a
need to ensure that the level of BIM we’re providing Sponsored by Brodies LLP this Glasgow event featured a variety of
is proportionate and realistic for each project. perspectives on BIM implementation in Scotland. For more informa-
tion on ACE BIM activities, please visit www.acenet.co.uk/bimengage-
There are existing asset management systems, and it ment/972 .
is not entirely clear how BIM will integrate with these
systems or how these systems will need to change
in order to receive this information in a compatible ...............................................
format, so there’s still a lot of work to be done on this. Andy Anderson
Project Manager
What do you foresee as the future of BIM? Transport Scotland
Is it a passing trend, or a new standard tool? Tel: 0141 2727 100
I think it’s here to stay – there is government info@transport.gov.scot
commitment to introduce it, and in my opinion it www.transport.gov.scot
represents best practice. I think it will become the www.twitter.com/transcotland
Asta Powerproject BIM –
affordable 4D planning
astapowerproject.com
Term-time rules
The new build and refurbishment of
Norbury Manor Primary School for the
London Borough of Croydon was a
short duration build but had significant
targets and tough challenges to meet.
The 1.83 million contract would deliver
a five-classroom extension along with
“
a new extension and roof to the rear judges noted, this was largely down to
of the school and involve significant I used Asta Powerproject Colin’s organisational and social skills. No
refurbishment. to create drop lines and “ software programme could have conceived
enable me to look ahead the role that a donated Bingo machine
The milestones of the 29-week build were could play in maintaining excellent
at the programme with our
set around the dates of the school year. relations with a nearby elderly care home.
subcontractors.
With a completion deadline for the work
determined by the prospect of children However, this powerful planning tool
suddenly flooding onto site, there was no No school holiday for the crew enabled this strong organiser to stay on
room for error or delay. top of the challenges. Colin concurred: “It
The location was challenging - site access
was very easy to use for resequencing and
was shared not only with local residents
Strict with trades reporting. I found it very useful, and will
but an elderly care home situated
definitely be using it going forward.”
Keeping subcontractors and trades on immediately next to the school. Colin
track was critical. As Colin said: “I used had to carefully schedule deliveries via a
Asta Powerproject to create drop lines route that was used not only for canteen
and enable me to look ahead at the deliveries but also that formed part of the About Bouygues UK
programme with our subcontractors. I care home’s emergency exit route. Bouygues UK has been operating
could easily print off the programme and
in the UK since 1997, during
sit down with them to discuss where we Final report card
which time it has developed
were and what we needed to achieve by Asta Powerproject was used in some and grown its business
when.” smart ways. Colin recounted: “I became organically. This, along with
concerned about the amount of refurb the company’s acquisitions of
Learning to communicate
work that would need to be completed Denne Construction, Leadbitter,
Colin was in charge of maintaining during the final six weeks. Using Asta Thomas Vale and Warings – and
relationships and reporting transparency I broke it all down into much greater the creation of its specialist
with all stakeholders: “Each month we depth, and reached the conclusion that business, Bouygues Development
held a client stakeholder meeting which we needed to reduce the scope of refurb – has helped it to become one
included progress on site. Using Asta I work. The client also needed savings, of the biggest players in the UK
would run off a drop-down for the week and so I was able to suggest areas of the
construction industry.
and use this to discuss where we were refurbishment to reduce.”
Operating on around 110 sites
and what we were doing to mitigate any Of course, Asta Powerproject wasn’t
at any one given time, from
possible delays.” the only key to success – as the CMYA
Birmingham to Brighton and
Southampton to Swansea,
Bouygues UK’s annual turnover is
in excess of £860m. The company
has a workforce of around
1800 people to help deliver its
projects, providing vital homes,
infrastructure and regeneration
for people living in communities
across the UK.
100 | Smart Cities and BIM
F
consider if they are to become a BIM partner…
#5 Integration
In order to drive sales, manufacturers need to think
of the distribution channels they use. Technology
makes it possible to create meaningful relationships
between software that can prove to be of great value
to the end user. That is why it is very useful to have
your products integrated in the software your clients
use. goBIM is fully integrated with ProductXchange –
the tool for contractors. Major contractors such as
Skanska are using ProductXchange to collect accurate
as built data and attribute it to as built information
models. By availing their products in platforms such
as goBIM manufacturers are one step closer to
having their product purchased. Not to mention the
benefits of being a fully BIM-ified partner.
BIM
Legal
Forum
Defining the
Legal Landscape
a C5 Group Company
a C5 Group Company
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COBIE - UK CASE STUDY / STRIDE TREGLOWN 1/2
STRIDE TREGLOWN
HOW DID YOU FIRST BECOME AWARE OF THE WHEN/HOW WERE YOU FIRST INVOLVED IN A COBIE
GOVERNMENT BIM AND COBIE REQUIREMENTS? PROJECT?
‘We had been working in a BIM environment for a number of years and ‘In 2012 we were appointed to deliver one of HM Government’s Early
as one of our key client groups is government, in particular justice and Adopter projects. Our appointment was as the technical delivery
defence, we were aware of the new COBie requirement as a government architect, initially to deliver the scheme to COBie data exchange stage
directive from the outset. To help improve our knowledge, we’ve attended 3 (representing the technical design solution). This changed however
numerous conferences and seminars and disseminated the information and we were eventually tasked with fully coordinating the BIM process
internally to raise our overall company awareness. We knew this was and COBie data requirement (with the lead contractor, other consultants
going to be important and that it would involve developing new working and the supply chain) to stage 6 – i.e. practical completion.’
practices, so we wanted to be properly informed.’
WHAT WERE YOUR INDIVIDUAL ROLES IN THE PROJECT?
Anthony Walsh: ‘I am a Senior Associate and Stride Treglown’s Sector
Early Lead for Public & Community, which incorporates this particular work
stream.’
engagement of Dean Hunt: ‘I am Stride Treglown’s BIM Co-ordinator responsible for
the whole project team directing the project team in a collaborative BIM environment to ensure
that the geometric coordination and data requirements were achieved
is essential to ensure and fully coordinated. I needed to develop new workflows and strategies
productive output. to achieve the COBie data requirements for the project.’
ANTHONY WALSH The management and HOW DID THIS PROJECT CHANGE THE WAY YOU WORKED?
Senior Associate collaborative culture ‘We were already familiar with current BIM processes, such as
Stride Treglown coordinating geometry and clash detection. However, the new process
of the team is just required us to output intelligent data in a format that could be easily
as important as the accessible to all. This necessitated implementing new working practices
and protocols to ensure that these outputs could be incorporated into
technical manipulation the COBie schema. Technically, we had to invest in additional add-ins
of the data.” for authoring tools to enable a more efficient workflow. We also had to
invest time working with other project partners to help them deliver the
data requirements.’
S OL I BR I UK
SO L IBR I UK LTD QU EEN ANN E H OU S E , U K PH O NE : + 44 (0) 8 44 85 4 9 2 50 SA L ES + 4 4 (0 ) 84 4 85 4 9 2 50
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COBIE - UK CASE STUDY / STRIDE TREGLOWN 2/2
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106 | Smart Cities and BIM
P
lead role in its future…
aul Surin is the Head of Built Environment at How are manufacturers engaging with the BIM
Wienerberger and also the Vice Chairman of process, and is there enough uptake?
BIM4M2. He has extensive knowledge of We want to support architects/specifiers/structural
sustainability and planning regulations, alongside engineers and contractors with our technical services
an impressive tally of industry qualifications and and BIM knowledge. I believe manufacturers need to
accreditations, including membership of the Institute show and demonstrate what good and efficient
of Engineering and Technology, a BSc (Eng) in construction process looks like, by trying to help
mechanical, electronics and architecture engineering bridge the training gap and keep encouraging BIM
and an Eco-Building Design Postgraduate Diploma. adoption. Now is the time for manufacturers to
Furthermore, Paul is also a BREEAM Accredited help shape BIM. BIM4M2 will be at the forefront of
Professional, a CODE for Sustainable Homes Assessor, making the construction industry more efficient.
Passivhaus Designer and a chartered member of the Manufacturers should provide free to use objects
Chartered Institute of Building. He is also a BIM and make them as widely available as possible with
Accredited Professional and BIM Level 2 certified strategic focus on placement and coverage. These
practitioner. objects should then be updated as and when, with
third party contracts. Manufacturers should always
“The contractor – thanks to BIM – is stay on the leading edge of object creation and push
provided with a comprehensive and fully and respond to the changing needs of the market.
accurate brief and design. This leads to Benefits can be seen from thought leadership
improved effectiveness, reduced time lost programs, as well as utilising strategic partners
due to double checking project data, earlier (including bimstore, coBuilder, CIBSE, NBS ) for
collaboration in the build process…” the development of objects and tools, evolving
business opportunities. Excellent value propositions
Paul spoke to BIM Today about how the BIM4M2 in niche markets can be delivered by considering
group will help manufacturers to engage and flourish the advantages provided over the competition for
within a BIM world. offering a full design and services function which is
fully “BIM enabled”.
What have been the key priorities of the group
this year, and where will the focus lie next year? What challenges do manufacturers face?
BIM4M2 will be focusing around defining the right There are a lot of challenges for manufacturers such as:
formats for PDT’s and helping manufacturers to be
well equipped for the April 2016 BIM Mandate. Now • Establishing BIM from “scratch” is not easy. BIM as
is the time for manufacturers to help shape BIM. At an acronym is being used in many different ways –
Weinerberger we want to be at the forefront of all are correct and have a place, but only one should
making the construction industry more efficient. be used to describe what BIM actually is in the
BIM4M2 will keep encouraging manufacturers to broader sense – Building Information Management.
play a vital role in the creation of models with clear, The others are either an activity or a result of the
concise, structured and relevant product data process and it’s the management of information
embedded, which will allow customers to make that is the key thing for BIM, without a focus on
informed investment decisions. accuracy and sharing, how you will demonstrate
Smart Cities and BIM | 107
savings, and if it’s just a model then that costs time is becoming a reality. Who would have considered
and money to implement and create, how has that that a handheld device could scan and map a
saved anything? Well, the model does bring benefits, room or an object and deliver a detailed drawing
it’s like a GUI (graphical user interface), it’s just a to your computer? And yet that’s exactly what
pretty picture that allows you to get access to a point cloud technology delivers, opening new
huge array of data and information all related to the methods and uses for contractors seeking to
asset in one place. This will allow funky cool things obtain accurate dimensions for a refurbishment.
like clash detection, intelligent objects that won’t
allow you to use them unless the situation is correct “BIM4M2 will keep encouraging
and more. This will save you some time and money, manufacturers to play a vital role in the
but the real savings come from utilising the BIM creation of models with clear, concise,
method and approach to information and structured and relevant product data
information management for the lifecycle of embedded, which will allow customers to
the asset. make informed investment decisions.”
• BIM is moving forward at a serious pace with new • Model Creation Firms offer part of the solution to
innovations and directions being taken seemingly the puzzle and it is difficult for any manufacturer
each week. Technology is growing around BIM and to pick and choose “the right” partner; quite
opening doors not previously considered at the often we only get one shot to make BIM work for
inception of the movement – a Digital Built Britain a manufacturer.
108 | Smart Cities and BIM
B
changing the game plan for businesses in the fire industry…
IM (Building Information Modelling) is a hot FIA continues working with manufacturers to help
topic right now, and for good reason. In May them understand BIM.
2011 the UK Government published its
Building Information Modelling (BIM) Working Party So if you are an SME and don’t have enough informa-
Strategy. This report announced the Government’s tion about BIM and how to be ready for it, what is
intention to require collaborative 3D BIM on its the best course of action? We suggest that first off,
projects by 2016. familiarise yourself with the Government Construction
Strategy and then go to the FIA website which has a
We are already well into the first quarter of 2016 and number of resources that anyone can access
it’s time to consider the consequences. (http://www.fia.uk.com/news/building-information-
modelling-bim-is-coming.html to find links to the
The fact is that BIM is here. It’s not a vague prospect government strategy and short videos).
of the future, like how we all thought household
robots would take care of everyone’s domestic Also available is a video presentation on BIM and
chores back in the early 80s and 90s. BIM is already how to be ready for it in seven digestible chunks,
here, and it is being used to fully render buildings in direct from the seminar that we held in January. This
3D on the computer, complete with a list of products can be accessed by heading to YouTube starting with
and materials that can be easily selected. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40MjI6Kmo8g .
This is going to be a difficult transition process for Alternately, the FIA are providing a consultancy
some companies within the fire world. Whilst the service (for members only) to provide information,
major corporations have their own BIM experts guidance, and advice. To find out more about the
who can guide them towards getting their fire safety service, or to become a member, phone the Hampton
products exposed to the world of BIM, smaller office: 0203 166 5002.
business enterprises (SMEs) are unlikely to employ,
or have the capacity to employ, such experts. This is What will the future hold exactly? It’s difficult say
a critical time for the industry; be up-to-date with precisely. Will BIM revolutionise our lives? Hard to
BIM technology, or risk being left behind. say. Will BIM affect the future of the fire industry?
Almost certainly! ■
For SMEs that have not yet digitised their products in
this way, they could potentially lose out to a competi-
tor in a fast turnaround project. It is clear from our ...............................................
conversations that many SMEs need assistance. Ian Moore
CEO
This is precisely the reason that we at the FIA held Fire Industry Association (FIA)
a seminar in January for our members in order to Tel: +44 (0)203 166 5002
provide this much needed service; to inform and to info@fia.uk.com
guide SMEs in the use of BIM and the effect it may www.fia.uk.co.uk
have on their businesses now and in the future. The www.twitter.com/FireIndustry
invest in your success
CostOS V
Powerful Estimating & Bidding Software
I
how to manage change in order to embed BIM across large organisations…
one that is understood differently across industry. Dr Anne Kemp is a Fellow and Director at Atkins,
She asked Linton what digital represents for her: responsible for BIM Strategy and Implementation
across the UK. At the start of 2015, she became
“I think there are two different parts and you can’t do Vice Chair of BuildingSMART UK, having completed
it without thinking about analogue first. This is where two years as Chair for AGI, where she remains as
you have your sensory perceptions – it’s a continuous an active member of Council. She is also Chair of
stream of information flow that comes at you. When ICE’s BIM Action Group and BIM4Infrastructure UK.
it comes to digital, its binary – just ones and zeros, and
through that binary information, the data is built up She has been part of the UK Government BIM Task
over estimation. The higher your data set, the better Group helping the departments to implement BIM,
and more accurate you are. With BIM, you have and has graduated as prize winner for her MSc
better quality of the information coming through. in Coaching and Behavioural Change at Henley
Business School where her research focused on
“One of the things we can see with digital is not just enabling sustained collaborative working across
the technology or the data, it’s about the mind-set the infrastructure industry.
and how you use it. It’s about how we behave as a
company because technology is changing so rapidly.
For me, you need to examine that technology every “Once you understand digital disruption,
few months. The mind-set needs to change to more you get a very excited leadership group.
of a circular check.” Once they understand that this is part of
the strategy of the company you get a lot
Kemp added that: of people really excited very quickly.”
“It’s interesting that many years ago we probably “It is really important to tailor the change to the
didn’t anticipate the actual rate of change. Change is organisation and the people who are there. The more
the norm now but it feels very unsafe.” thought applied upfront, the higher the success rate”
she added.
She asked Linton what it is that we can do to make
people feel braver about embracing change, after all, In summary, if you want to engage with BIM you
BIM requires a change in behaviours. should:
Linton believes that change is a constant. Every • Understand what BIM means for your organisation
experience we have enables change and for a large
organisation, it is important to plan for it: • Create the case for change – manage expectations
and excitement
“The level of control for change varies on the envi-
ronment, the type of change, the organisation itself • Understand the type of organisation you have
and the type of people you have in the company.
Managing change has to be tailored to the company. • Plan your adoption to suit your organisation –
Have a CHANGE plan. ■
“There will always be resistance, but if the change is
managed in a structured way, where all job roles are
defined, you can get an end conclusion. Because of
what we are seeing with BIM is about a high level of ...............................................
change and disruption, it has to be very closely BIM Today
monitored and catered for. As long as you have the Tel: 0843 504 4560
right people leading this, you will be able to take editorial@adjacentgovernment.co.uk
this further forward. www.planningandbuildingcontroltoday.co.uk
This quarter’s industry news is a siveness of AR, VR, BIM, laser-scanning report back how many of those are
peculiar mix of losses, risk insurance and IoT solutions points toward a now exploiting BIM or are instead
challenges, unwanted takeovers, sig- healthy dose of innovation starting opting to jump straight into IoT.
nificant drops in housing registration, to spread. I applaud everyone in the
the softening in top-end resi and yet industry who push the boundaries. IoT and BIM ought to be bed-fellows
still the industry forges ahead with in the pursuit of use case scenarios
some incredible new proposals for It was a shame that this year’s BIM and real-world deployment as I
ever and ever higher towers, a drive Live show didn’t give us all the chance believe for both sectors the need for
in student accommodation and PRS to catch up, swap notes, see what increasingly robust and relevant busi-
shaping up take more of the market each other are up to and brainstorm ness cases is growing and the two
place and some notable wins by some some more. We do need more industry sectors have a symbiotic relationship
of the top performers. It is clear that events if only to bring us all together when approached with the end solu-
as we shrug off the legacy of bought- to share our learning. I for one will be tion in mind. This brings me to my
business earlier in the decade that at MIPIM, taking the chance to meet closing comments around BIM Be-
the horizon scanning for efficiencies, our international clients a) without the yond Build™. When horizon scanning
more with less, leaner organisations, need for a transatlantic flight b) in the for the next innovation, always allow
is picking up pace. We are seeing sun of the French Riviera and c) in an time to look over the horizon. The BIM
reduction in staff numbers through environment that encourages open Beyond Build™ ethos encourages that.
carefully considered change-processes and honest discussions which, as has Let’s look at what we can do now to
rather than accountants’ will, we are been proven every one of the 6 years help our builds do more tomorrow.
also seeing much higher levels of I’ve been attending, has led to real For there lies the Future of BIM.
selective bidding along with tighter projects back in the UK.
control on the supply chain. All of Do keep the comments coming in, I
which are symptoms of a new caution. Events such as MIPIM are a superb op- appreciate every one of them. If the
portunity to showcase our innovations timing of this article allows it, let me
As we all tighten our belts I look for all of us across the industry. It is a know if you are in MIPIM and I’ll see
forward with eager anticipation to chance to reach across the globe and you there!
see which companies will forge ahead, discover what other countries and
learning how they do it and with our regions are doing. I will be looking to
own clients, being a part of that learn- see what levels of BIM compliance our Stewart Bailey
ing. It is certain that technology, its American counterparts have achieved Virtual Viewing
deployment and sensible evolution of and just where the Singapore and 23 Hanover Square, Mayfair
the way we work will prove to have Chinese markets are taking their BIM. London W1S 1JB
the biggest impact on the changes The latter two markets have been hot T: 0203 714 8710
afoot. Just in the last year the perva- beds of “Smart” innovation and I will stewart.bailey@virtualviewing.co.uk
(t) +44 (0) 1908 930 300 www.virtualviewing.co.uk www.slimbim2go.co.uk
116 | Building Control
Introduction
be interesting to see how this progresses.
B
Chairman at Association of Consultant industry is difficult as it is not perceived as attractive
Approved Inspectors (ACAI) as some others, and we all need to work together to
change this perception.
uilding Control is now enjoying a quiet period With regard to building control I know that some in the
before the results of the All Party Parliamentary private sector are working hard to attract apprentices
Group for Excellence in the Built Environment and graduates as they are driven by commercial need
enquiry into new build housing (APPG) are announced to service their clients. I’m also aware that our friends
in May 2016; the results of the Red Tape Review are at LABC are working on a number of initiatives in the
announced and the recommendations of the Working difficult context of restricted public sector finances.
Group ‘Future of Building Control’ are considered by
the Building Regulations Advisory Committee (BRAC). With this specific challenge ahead, I think there are
opportunities for the public and private sector to
One of the early outcomes from the APPG is that the work much closer together, ensuring capability and
Building Regulations Performance Standards Advisory resources of all Building Control Bodies are aligned
Group (BCPSAG) have been asked to look at a standard with local and project need, ensuring that effective
providing guidance on the release of records from the customer facing building control is delivered.
Building Control Process. There is no doubt that this is
a challenge in the context of the dual building control England & Wales enjoys an effective and valued
system and the contractual nature of the design and independent third party building control process and
construction process, but we hope for a positive and with the full engagement of all those involved we can
constructive outcome. ensure this continues long into the future. ■
Approved Inspectors
and Consultants
H
housing stock to meet the needs of our diverse and ageing population…
ousing is never out of the news these days – to decide upon, and they can only demand the
the lack of it, the cost of it, and the quality of optional Categories 2 and 3 if such a requirement is
it. Housing design can heavily influence our set out in their Local Plan. In order to include the
quality of life and the communities we create, it can requirement in the Local Plan, there must have been a
increase or relieve NHS bed-blocking. Yet people local needs assessment and viability must be assured.
rarely give much thought at the outset to how adapt-
able their new home is and how well it might meet “CAE, Habinteg and others will be
their needs in the future, such as when starting a watching closely to see the impact of
family, or growing older. the new standards on the number of
accessible new homes built as the sector
For many years, across Greater London and in some reaches for the challenge of delivering
other areas of the country, planners have wisely not only the number of homes that we
seen the difference that flexible housing can make need, but the quality and flexibility that
and have adopted Lifetime Homes and wheelchair will see us into the future.”
housing design standards for at least a percentage
of new build. In London, these standards are required Herein lies the main challenge.
for all new housing and even some adaptations and
conversions. Lifetime homes can be easily adapted Transitional arrangements have happily enabled
to meet a variety of needs because they have been London and a few other authorities who already had
designed with the flexibility for change. The challenge such standards in their Local Plan to simply “passport”
has always been how to ensure they are built as these across to the new standards. Sadly, any local
intended, because there has never been any authorities without such a provision previously, now
regulations to cover this. have a great deal of work to do. They need to gather
evidence and undertake viability assessments if they
In October, however, we saw the introduction of wish to adopt the ‘optional’ Category 2 & 3 standards
new accessible housing standards for the first time into their local plan and prove that the need exists
in Building Regulations. The new Volume 1 Approved in their local area. Most local authorities lack readily
Document to Part M explains how the new standards available data sufficient to satisfy the evidence of
can be achieved. The standards have three categories; local needs so this is unlikely to be a quick process.
Categories 2 and 3 being broadly equivalent to Consequently, despite good intentions, the arrange-
Lifetime Homes and wheelchair housing standards ments are causing difficulties and no doubt there
respectively. The move to building regulations is will be significant delays before many are able to
sensible and welcomed by developers as theoretically introduce the provisions into their local plan.
it will harmonise standards across the country to
three categories only. Optional standards are new to building regulations
so this is confusing to many professionals. The
So far so good. However, Categories 2 and 3 are standards are not optional to the designer, builder
optional for each local authority planning department or developer but are dictated by the planning
Building Control | 119
authority through planning conditions (but only after standard. The name of this category is being confused
they appear in the Local Plan). Designers will also with wheelchair user dwellings (Category 3) because
need to ensure dwellings can accommodate the this has two sub-categories named “accessible” and
dimensional requirements at an early enough stage “adaptable”. (Many people are consequently already
to satisfy both planning and building control, (usually referring to the Category 2 standard as Lifetime
further detail is added after the planning stage). Homes since this term is more readily understood).
A summary of how it all works: The most significant difference between Category 2
There are 3 categories within Approved Document M and Lifetime Homes is that step-free access is required
which apply only to new build dwellings. Planning to all properties. Whilst this may seem sensible, if the
conditions will specify which category applies to each lift is not financially viable, then Category 1 applies,
dwelling and building control will then inspect and with the loss of many beneficial design elements for
regulate. The applicant is responsible for informing older and disabled people, such as flexibility to easily
building control of which conditions apply. add grab rails or a level access shower.
Conclusion
So will these standards improve the accessibility of
our housing stock and meet our needs for a diverse
and ageing population?
Excellent training, I
Training
• Accessible housing regulations including Cat 3 thoroughly recommend
• Inclusive design to others!
Development Manager,
• Street environments University of Arts
www.cae.org.uk/training/events
Consultancy
• Plan checking
• Access advice services for planning and building control
• Auditing of public buildings
www.cae.org.uk/consultancy
www.cae.org.uk
W
hen it comes to designated parking
spaces the signs are easy to see,
and the cost implications are clear.
But the financial impact of failing to meet the
needs of disabled people in terms of design
are less obvious, and that’s where About
Access comes in.
We work on the principle that for every £1 – using social media to recommend construction design and management
you might spend remedying a problem at the businesses which offer accessible shopping, consultant, a fire engineer, a mechanical and
concept and preparation phase you can dining and accommodation, and to warn electrical expert, a landscape architect. They
expect to spend £10 if the problem is not people away from those that don’t. are all specialists and they should be
resolved by the time you get to scoping a supported by an access consultant who will
project, and £100 at the planning and “We conduct appraisals to ensure you get things right first time, avoid-
pre-construction stage. ensure that inclusive design is ing the delays and cost that result from
achieved throughout the con- having to revise the work of one specialist
Add another zero if the problem lingers to struction process. We study and then make sure it fits with the plans of
the point of application and construction, accessibility provision from all the others. The savings in time and money
and be prepared for that initial £1 to climb the earliest stage, looking at are such that typically the investment will pay
to £10,000 if the failure to act early leaves the plans and giving our advice for itself.
you making alterations once the property is at a point where corrections
occupied and in use. and improvements can be
easily accommodated.”
Be aware also that the cost of remedial work
is only part of the story. An additional factor The Department for Work and Pensions
when designing to accommodate disabled refers to the “purple pound” to indicate the
people is the cost of any discrimination spending power of a disabled person and
claims which may result. their party. Using the Family Resources Ian Streets
Survey of 2012–13, it calculates that the 12.2- About Access Ltd
And then consider the possible loss of million households in the UK which include Tel: 01482 651101
business. You could lose revenue as a result a disabled person have a combined income info@aboutaccess.co.uk
of adverse publicity from a court case or, – after housing costs – of £212-billion. www.aboutaccess.co.uk
increasingly in the modern age, disabled
people – and, significantly, their companions Your project might have a lead architect,
Approved Inspectors
and Consultants
Everything under one roof
Ian Hardy
Myatts Field North Estate Special Projects Manager at BBS
Lambeth, SW9 Based at our South East London office, Ian
Major regeneration programme, oversees the company-wide operations of
consisting of more than 800 homes the Special Projects Team. He, together with
his Team, ensure each project undertaken is
Developer: Higgins Homes Plc, carefully controlled and organised.
Regenter Ltd and Notting Hill Housing Trust
Architect: PRP Architects Co-ordination and communication between
Contractor: Higgins Construction the Team and our clients is of paramount
importance, especially on the larger and
more complex schemes.
During the past 26 years, Ian has gained
vast experience in Building Control and
Wayland House, Stockwell, SW9 Management through varying positions
Part of the Stockwell Park within Local Authorities and Approved
Inspectors. He is particularly interested in the
regeneration master plan. Private and
Fire Engineering aspects of the role within the
affordable housing over 20 storeys
diversity of complex building types.
Developer: Network Housing Group
Another critical aspect of his role is
Architect: PRP Architects
consulting with key clients and their design
Contractor: Wates Living Space
teams at an early stage of the projects.
T
find the right balance between energy efficiency, comfort and ventilation…
he UK has a rich and diverse range of buildings It is accepted that all occupied buildings must deal
that make up the housing stock. We have with the moisture created by occupation. In older
found ways to adapt very old buildings to styles buildings they dealt with that water very well because
of modern living and have adopted ideas and they were very leaky! Doors were fitted roughly into
technologies developed for cutting edge architecture frames, timber windows let in draughts, there were
into historic structures. open chimneys in most of the occupied rooms, a
kitchen stove was fuelled with wood or coal for
On the whole this melding of old buildings with the heating and cooking, ceilings and roofs lacked
needs of modern occupation has worked remarkably insulation and promoted very rapid air exchange.
well. After all, these buildings are still standing and On the downside these buildings were colder and
are more desirable than ever. It is true however that took large quantities of fuel, especially if you wanted
in a significant number of cases things can and do go to get them to a state that we in the 21st century
wrong. We would also assert that the number and would consider warm. They were also usually
severity of some of these conflicted dwellings may affected by damp. The replacement of lime plaster
be growing. with other products and the presence of historic
Building Control | 125
maintained and cared for it as it was built. It would homes has been good and bad. Their adoption has
not be abused, altered or changed. It would not be meant we live more comfortably in houses that are
overcrowded, extended, damaged or modernised. warmer and use less energy, they are less affected
In an ideal world it would be preserved in aspic and by rot and the plaster doesn’t need lime washing
time would stand still. every three years to mask the damp stains. On the
downside, we are finding new problems that are
In reality, occupants across the generations change more to do with the elimination of air exchange in
expectations. Materials, performance, technology otherwise dry buildings than they are to do with the
and economic imperatives change. Buildings get air permeability of individual construction products.
altered, things break, fires and floods happen, alter-
ations, updates and remodelling have always been Needless to say, the use of impervious finishing on
aspirational and will always be led by fashion, need, the exteriors of masonry buildings regardless of age
and cost rather than the technical characteristics of or architectural merit is abhorrent. The reason for
the component products. our disgust is not some woolly-minded notion that it
will prevent gas escape, but rather the fact that they
The adoption of high performance man-made will not be perfect. Renders, paint, coating and
building materials in predominantly traditionally built claddings will fail. They can never be expected to be
Continued on page 128…
COMPLIANCE
THROUGH
COLLABORATION
www.butlerandyoung.co.uk
128 | Building Control
perfectly monolithic and they will crack, suffer weather Impervious materials should never be applied over
impact damage or be perforated at some point. They porous external finishes. This will almost always
will fail and when they do water will get in behind cause problems in time. We also know that rising
them and will not find it easy to get out. The results damp has been observed and independently studied,
can be severe deterioration to the fabric of the on every continent of the globe other than Antarctica.
building both internally and externally. To my mind, That is fact. There are still those who for their own
cavity wall insulation is a practice that has the potential ends very vocally continue to refute its existence.
to encourage the deposition of atmospheric water This I think says more about their commercial
within the wall over a long period of time. It is my interests, lack of research and experience than it
belief that the issues we may face in the future as a does about the legitimacy of those who recognise
result of external solid wall insulation (that changes and help manage the problem in affected properties.
the temperature profile in the original wall) are as
yet unknown. We know that the practitioners who consider
themselves the protectors of historic buildings and
“…it is no great wonder that the vapour refer to people like me as “damp proofing Noddies”
pressures now being seen in occupied will come to recognise that we all want healthy
buildings are resulting in more problems buildings, dry homes and happy clients.
associated with atmospheric moisture
finding itself deposited in, or on the surface While some may take a “preserve buildings as they
of walls, within roofs and on floors.” were approach”, we must also acknowledge that most
occupants of even important historic structures,
The Property Care Association has taken a great deal want to live in warm, dry, well-appointed homes. It is
of time and care to understand the processes involved my view that this balance must be found between
in the way a building becomes wet, and its members modernisation, heritage and performance and that
have been dealing with problems successfully for this can best be achieved if we all work in partnership
many years. That said, times are changing. The rate rather than in a state of perpetual conflict. ■
of change, driven by the need to use less heating
energy and changing styles of occupation mean we
must continue to learn and adapt our diagnostic
processes as well as the solutions that we deliver.
W
of passive fire protection…
ithin the fire sector world, one of the most • Supporting evidence of the quality of the product
common ‘buzz words’ you are currently or service for the architect, specifier, contractor,
likely to hear is the word ‘competency’. building control authority, end-user, responsible
person and any other stakeholders;
The dictionary offers a range of explanations to
define the meaning of competency, not least of • Assures the quality of the product or service
which is ‘the capacity to testify in a court of law’. A independently of the supplier.
sobering thought, as without doubt, the penalty for
proven ‘incompetence’ can be very severe. One Third party certification is encouraged by authorities
only has to be aware of the number of heavy fines, such as DCLG (AD-B), Scottish Government, Local
and indeed custodial sentences brought about Authority Building Control, the fire services and many
through incompetent fire risk assessments under others key bodies, and is encouraged by all fire
the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 to protection trade associations. In fact, it is mandatory
understand the importance of competency in for all ASFP contracting members to hold and
achieving a given objective. maintain third party certification to become and
maintain ASFP membership.
In relation to fire safety, competency can only be
assured by a combination of education, training and Whilst the third party certification approach is now
experience, starting with the design concept and widespread within the ‘specialist installer’ sector of
progressing through specification, the main contractor the fire community, the ASFP has long been aware
tendering process, installation, inspection and finally that a considerable element of the workforce
the onward management for the life of a building. currently installing passive fire protection is doing so
as a secondary activity, which may be outside of its
In other words, fire protection is a cradle to grave core construction competencies. These contractors
process, specified, installed and managed by many therefore cannot be considered as ‘specialist’
different professions, all of whom should have, in operators. As a result, there is an identifiable ‘under
varying degrees, an appropriate knowledge and skilling’ of essential elements of the construction
understanding of the functionality of the fire protection industry workforce, all of which would benefit from
measures installed and its surrounding structure. having an appropriate understanding of passive fire
protection.
Improving competency
Over the last twenty years, the Association for Industry wide training
Specialist Fire Protection (ASFP) has promoted both Given the above, the ASFP, has now taken the next
product and installer third party certification as a important step. Working in partnership with the Fire
vital means of demonstrating competency in the Protection Association (FPA) and part funded by CITB
quality of product selection and the installation of (the Industry Training Board for the construction
appropriate fire protection systems. Such a UKAS industry), the ASFP has now developed an industry
accredited process offers: wide training scheme which encapsulates in one
Building Control | 131
syllabus the necessary awareness training to assist in will enable an up-skilling of the existing workforce
improving capabilities during the installation process. by creating a recognised and measurable industry
benchmark.
This comprehensive awareness training programme
is offered in two parts: Further analysis of the passive fire protection sector
has identified that there are a number of other
Core Module groups that should be better advised and trained in
This two-day core module introduces attendees to appropriate passive fire protection awareness. These
essential fire safety concepts, explaining the need for include but are not limited to:
a holistic approach to fire safety in which all types of
fire protection system, both passive and active, have • Site supervisors;
a role to play. The core module:
• Inspectors of fire systems e.g. the fire services;
• Outlines the legal, standard and other code-driven
requirements for passive fire protection installations; • Approved inspectors and building control officers;
• Explains the principles of fire science and the role The ASFP’s Passive Fire Protection Awareness
of fire engineering. Training Programme is a first step in an important
process which aims to raise levels of competency
Pathway Modules throughout the construction sector and improve
For those wishing to progress their understanding standards of passive fire protection specification,
of the passive fire protection process in more detail, inspection and installation. Ignore it at your peril. ■
the ASFP and FPA have developed a number of
specific ‘Pathway’ modules in each of the passive fire For further information on ASFP training, seminars and technical
protection disciplines. guidance visit www.asfp.org.uk ; or to book a place on the Core
module visit http://www.thefpa.co.uk/training/training-
Each of these modules combines both theoretical courses_detail.introduction-to-passive-fire-protection.html
and practical application to reinforce the required
awareness for the installation of passive fire
protection, and can act as a springboard to assist in
the process of onward development to an NVQ in
passive fire protection. ...............................................
Wilf Butcher
Reaching a wider audience CEO
This new training scheme has been designed to Association for Specialist Fire Protection
significantly improve overall standards of passive fire Tel: 01420 471612
protection specification, inspection and installation wilf.butcher@asfp.org.uk
within the construction sector, and in the process www.asfp.org.uk
132 | Building Control
M
management is integral to reducing fire hazards within public buildings…
any of us take our safety in case of fire for measures and a process of statutory consultation
granted. Few of us ever witness a severe means that the Fire and Rescue Authority has to be
fire, our high streets are not filled with consulted as to the fire safety of the proposal. For
burned out shells of buildings and our public buildings older buildings, there is a strong possibility that the
seem to be a constant in our lives. For those that premises was once subject to certification by the
know, or have seen the devastation fire can cause, Fire and Rescue Authority, when they exercised
the sights, sounds, smells and feeling of helplessness responsibility for the fire safety measures in buildings.
leave a lasting impression. The feeling of helplessness
and loss is perhaps felt more widely in public buildings. Today our safety in case of fire is provided in
consequence of a risk assessment. The Fire and
For the most part our safety in case of fire is well Rescue Authority is not involved in these assessments
looked after. New buildings are subject to building (other than inspecting their suitability and sufficiency,
regulations, including requirements for fire safety according to a risk based inspection programme).
Building Control | 133
Rather the assessment can be done by the person • Make sure that escape routes (corridors, stairs and
responsible for the premises, regardless of their doors) are safe to use when needed – emergency
fire safety understanding or by a third party. Both lights in case the fire is in the electrics, fire doors
methods are fraught with potential dangers. A lack of are in the right place and protecting the corridors
knowledge and experience can lead to fire hazards and stairs etc.;
being missed or inappropriately mitigated, whereas
the third party can lead to those responsible being • Have something in place to detect fire and raise
divorced from the fire safety measures that protect an alarm – fire alarms and detectors of various
them (assuming the third party has sufficient skills to sorts etc.;
identify and mitigate the risks).
• Make sure people understand what to do if a
“For the ongoing fire safety of premises fire breaks out – employee training and signs for
the term ‘fire safety management’ is non-employees;
arguably more appropriate. It suggests
the ongoing nature of keeping fire safely • Have something in place to fight outbreaks of fire
under control, which is so important to (safely) – sprinklers, fire extinguishers, suppression
maintain safe premises.” systems etc.;
The process of undertaking a ‘risk assessment’ might • Make sure that the effects of any fire will be as
be seen as a one-off process; assess the risk … job small as possible – tell employees how to prevent
done. (Then review it occasionally). For the ongoing fires and how to maintain safety and keep the
fire safety of premises the term ‘fire safety manage- safety measures working properly etc.
ment’ is arguably more appropriate. It suggests the
ongoing nature of keeping fire safely under control, When things get more complicated the best course
which is so important to maintain safe premises. of action is to engage professional help. This is
The constant management of fire safety is vital for currently an unregulated sector and as such the best
the ongoing function of the fire safety measures that way of securing dependable assistance is to use only
are designed and installed to keep people safe. third party risk assessors who are certificated or reg-
istered 1. If improvement or other works are needed,
In common with many subjects, fire safety can be then both the products and the installers should be
straightforward and relatively simple. Likewise, it can likewise third-party certificated. ■
quickly become complicated. For the simple
approach the way to achieve fire safety is by continu- 1
http://www.cfoa.org.uk/19532
ally providing general fire precautions:
U
K fire safety legislation requires that
all buildings used in commercial or
similar type activities, but not those
that are solely domestic, are required to carry
out a fire risk assessment for the purpose of
life safety protection and keep the fire risk
assessment up to date.
editorial@adjacentgovernment.co.uk
CONTACT
www.planningandbuildingcontroltoday.co.uk
136 | Building Control
I
details the importance of achieving sustainability within the cement industry…
n many countries around the world, Portland this results in a proportionally lower tolerable chloride
cement has for decades been the most used type concentration for corrosion initiation. Additionally,
of cement to build reinforced concrete infrastruc- also the pH buffer capacity is generally depressed as
ture. For new structures that will be built in industri- a result of the reduction (or elimination) of the calcium
alised and emerging countries to expand the civil hydroxide reserve considered one of the main reasons
engineering infrastructure, the challenge is to achieve for the corrosion inhibiting nature of Portland cement
long service life, practical, cost-effective solutions systems. On the other side the new binders might
with materials having a reduced environmental show a higher chloride binding capacity, eliminating
footprint. To achieve this, the cement industry made part of the aggressive chloride ions from the pore
great efforts in substituting clinker (responsible for solution. Whereas it is clear that the different pore
great part of the CO2 emissions) with supplementary solution chemistry of concrete made with blended
cementitious materials (SCM) such as limestone, cements will affect the corrosion protection of the
fly-ash, geopolymers etc. This substitution is ongoing reinforcing steel, precise information on how much
and reflected in the decreasing amount of Portland are not (yet) available. Despite the ongoing massive
cement and the increase of blended cements. How- use of the new blended cements convincing answers
ever, achieving sustainability clearly not only requires regarding the long-term durability of these new
decreasing the environmental footprint of the structures, both regarding the resistance against
materials at the time of their production (reducing carbonation and against chloride-induced corrosion,
the clinker content), but to combine this with long are lacking.
and maintenance free service lives of the structures
in their actual exposure environments. Service life prediction
Due to the lack of long-term experience on the
Durability of reinforced concrete field performance of modern binders, engineers are
Achieving strength similar to Portland cement is not forced to make predictions, essentially to extrapolate
a problem with new binders, thus blended cements the short-term behaviour from laboratory tests to
can be used to build concrete structures. From the long-term and field conditions. These predictions are
point of view of the end user (engineer, owner of the based on well-established data for chloride ingress
structure, society) the long-term durability of reinforced into Portland cement concrete: the chloride concen-
concrete structures has to be guaranteed. Experience tration is determined in different depths from the
and research on corrosion of reinforcement in con- concrete surface both in laboratory tests and in
crete made of Portland cement have shown that the cores taken from structures under different expo-
very high alkalinity of the pore solution ideally protects sure conditions. Experience has shown that these
the steel. The introduction of non-Portlandite binders chloride profiles can be approximated with the
has strongly increased the diversity of the pore solution of Fick’s second law of diffusion, as a result
solution chemistry in concrete. One important factor the apparent diffusion coefficient Dapp can be
is that the hydroxide (OH-) concentration in the pore determined. Dapp is related to concrete quality: a
solution of systems with SCMs is typically about a small diffusion coefficient relates to high concrete
factor of 10 lower than in Portland cement systems; quality viz. low porosity. The same equation is also
Building Control | 137
used for the prediction of long-term performance of research networks such as NANOCEM and individual
structures exposed to chloride environments during research groups dealing with durability of reinforced
the design stage or the evaluation of the residual concrete structures urge to study the pore solution
service life of existing structures. Although this chemistry of concrete made with new blended
approach is simple and used very often, it should be cements, its variation with time and to link these
observed that its reliability strongly depends on the findings to the conditions for corrosion onset when
parameters utilised, especially the “critical chloride chloride ions or CO2 penetrate into concrete. Without
content” Ccrit, threshold for corrosion initiation. As convincing results blended cements reduce the
this value is statistically distributed and varies in a CO2 emission in short term but might fail to be a
wide range, predictions are difficult or, assuming a sustainable solution in long term. ■
low Ccrit of 0.4% by weight of cement, very conserva-
tive. Note that most of the information on the critical
chloride content stems from Portland cement con-
crete – for concrete made with new binders service
life prediction is thus highly difficult and has poor
predictive power.
...............................................
Challenges for research Prof. Dr. Bernhard Elsener
The substitution of Portland cement with supple- ETH Zurich – Institute for Building Materials
mentary cementitious materials (SCM) will continue. elsener@ethz.ch
To make this a sustainable solution, cement industry, www.ifb.ethz.ch/corrosion
Your Structural Warranty and Building
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We work with you, not against you.
Yogo Group
Case Study
We always like to hear positive feedback from our clients so we caught
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THE PROJECT:
BAYVIEW HOUSE
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I would like to take the opportunity to praise Premier Guarantee and their
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www.premierguarantee.co.uk
MD Insurance Services Ltd is the Scheme Administrator for the Premier Guarantee range of structural warranties.
MD Insurance Services Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
140 PROFILE
M
arket leaders of Self-build insur- our staff, underwriting standards and our renovations, extensions and conversion
ance; Self-Build Zone have been approach to Risk Management.” projects from DIY home improvements and
awarded a long term contract new build, to major renovations incorporat-
with NHBC as sole suppliers of Structural Boyd Hackett, NHBC Product Manager also ing large scale alteration, employment of
Warranty, Site Insurance and survey visits to said: “We have worked closely with tradesmen and extension work.
their customers within the self-build arena. Self-Build Zone to understand their business
and we are confident that they can provide Site Insurance is essential for anyone plan-
NHBC is the UK's leading standard-setting the appropriate products and service to self- ning an extension, renovation, conversion or
body and provider of warranty and insurance builders who approach NHBC.”Self- Build new build project. Self-Build Zone have
for new homes. Working closely with the Zone (a trading style of Sennocke Interna- several different site insurance options to
house-building industry, NHBC strives to tional Insurance Services Lts) is the leading protect your project during the build process,
raise the standards of new homes and pro- provider of self-build Insurances – including including flexible short term policies as well
vide consumer protection for homebuyers. Site Insurance, 10 Year Structural Warranty as the traditional 12, 18 or 24 month policy.
They recently announced confirmation of a (including Technical Audits, Building Control
long-term agreement with market leaders of and bespoke Survey Services), Health & Go online at www.selfbuildzone.com or call
Self-build insurance; Self-Build Zone (SBZ). Safety advice and Contract Wordings to the the team on 0345 230 8974.
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ucts to meet their requirements. or New Build project. Self-Build Zone have
several different Site Insurance options to
Self-Build Zone will carry out all works protect your project during the build process
relating to the policies referred by NHBC and on from completion, including flexible
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claims management for the policies. Services 12, 18 or 24 month policy.
provided by Self-Build Zone will also include
Inspection arrangements for Building Control NHBC Services Limited is an Introducer
and Technical Audits for the self- builder. Appointed Representative of Sennocke Inter-
national Insurance Services Limited. Build-Zone
Managing Director and Founder of Self-Build 6 Pembroke Road
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market leaders to the Self-build market we Self-Build Zone is a trading style of Sennocke Kent, UK
are delighted to have been selected to work International Insurance Services Limited, TN13 1XR
with NHBC on this project. NHBC has long which is authorised and regulated by the Tel: 0345 230 9873
been the most respected warranty provider Financial Conduct Authority. sales@build-zone.com
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and the opportunity to work with them and Self-Build Zone provides Site Insurance and www.selfbuildzone.com
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142 | CDM2015
S
the Principal Designer and how to comply with the CDM2015 Regulations…
o, what is the role of the Principal Designer all (working with Principal Designers) really need to
about? What it should be about is working with concentrate on the effect their design has on the
Clients and Designers during the Pre-Construc- health of construction workers whilst not forgetting
tion Phase, to produce designs that can be built the safety side.
healthily and safely by contractors who are provided
with sufficient information on reduced residual risks Who can be a Principal Designer?
to ensure that construction workers can go home The Principal Designer must be a Designer,
safe and as healthy as they arrived for work at the appointed in writing by the Client as Principal
beginning of their shift. Designer (an e-mail will do) with control over the
Health and Safety elements of the Pre-Construction
A Principal Designer (and Principal Contractor) is Phase. One of the Design Team, perhaps the Lead
required to be appointed (in writing) by the Client for Designer may be best placed to undertake the role,
every project where there are (or is likely to be) more but the Principal Designer does not have to be a
than one contractor on site at any one time. So a Designer on the project. Note the sensible flexibility
Principal Designer appointment is required for the built into the Regulations to cater for the many
vast majority of construction projects. The Principal faceted and amorphous shaped construction
Designer role generally occurs during the Pre-Con- industry where virtually every project is unique. In
struction Phase, which is any period where design is common with Designers and Contractors, a Principal
being undertaken and on most projects will continue Designer must not accept an appointment to a
well into the Construction Phase. In practice, most project unless they (and/or) their organisation have
projects will have design continuing into the Construc- sufficient skills, knowledge and experience and
tion Phase. For many projects, the Pre-Construction organisational capability to undertake the role.
Phase can last until the end of the Construction Phase.
Delivering the role of the Principal Designer
Health and Safety The duties of the Principal Designer need to be
In the text that follows, the words ‘Health and Safety’ proportionally undertaken for every Principal
crop up constantly. It is a large part of the responsi- Designer appointment for every construction
bility of being a Principal Designer and Designer project. Note the use of the words “……proportionally
during the Pre-Construction Phase. Over the years, undertaken for every project.......”. By this, I mean
since the initial advent of CDM in 1995, safety on the Principal Designer has to undertake all of their
construction sites has been vastly improved, particu- duties (shown graphically in the diagram opposite)
larly so on the larger projects. The same cannot be but depending on the size and complexity of the
said for Health. Slightly less than one person per project, complying with the individual duty may take
week dies on a construction site due to safety reasons minutes of resource or days.
(we call them accidents but the term is ill advised).
Over 100 construction workers per week die from ill The diagram opposite shows the requirements of
health caused by their work in construction. Designers the role of the Principal Designer.
CDM2015 | 143
C
DM2015 came into force on 6th April documents for CDM2015, and therefore we construction work. General maintenance of
2015, with a six-month transition can only take the regulations themselves fixed plant which mainly involves mechanical
period, which is now passed, so all into account, which clearly state that adjustments, replacing parts or lubrication is
construction work must be fully compliant. fixed plant and systems are structures and unlikely to be construction work.
that repair and maintenance of these is
There are still significant discussion taking construction. If the maintenance work is construction work,
place as to whether CDM2015 applies to a and there is only one contractor, no PC or PD
particular task or project, with the main The following extract from Q&A Briefings – appointment is required. If more contractors
points of dispute being whether fixed plant Construction Division - Construction (Design are brought in, then a PC and PD need to be
or systems are structures and whether and Management) Regulations 2015 further appointed for that particular project.
repair and maintenance of these is construc- explains the Health and Safety Executive’s
tion. This is primarily due to the clarification interpretation of what is construction. All construction work under CDM 2015
of the definition of construction that was requires planning, but the plan for smaller jobs
previously contained within paragraph 13 of Q1. Does CDM 2015 apply to all should be simple, short and proportionate to
the CDM2007 Approved Code of Practice, maintenance work? the risks.
L144, which was withdrawn at the same The definition of maintenance work has
time as CDM2015 came into force and not changed. If the task in hand looks like The following table provides some guidance
CDM2007 was revoked. This clarification has construction work, requires construction from Callsafe Services Limited on what is,
not been included in any of the guidance skills and uses construction materials, it is and is not, considered construction.
Installation, repair or removal of equipment that is permanently Installation, repair or removal of portable equipment that is
electrically connected or plumbed in with a screwed, soldered or electrically connected with a plug or joined to the water supply
brazed connection with a ‘quick connector’
Installation, repair, removal or moving of partition walls Moving of portable desk screens
Installation, repair or removal of any fixed electrical, IT or plumbing Placing computers onto desks and connection to an internal network
equipment or systems
CDM2015 applies to any construction work Do your management CDM2015, your staff with those duties must
performed for both commercial and domestic arrangements include for have the necessary skills, knowledge and
clients, and is not dependent on the time your CDM2015 duties? experience to perform them, which is likely
taken for the work or the number of persons If you do any of the above actions, and there- to require some training. Callsafe Services
performing the work. fore attract CDM2015 duties, your policies Limited have developed a number of
and procedures should have been amended CDM2015 courses to assist organisations
• If you arrange for any construction work, to ensure compliance. If you need assistance with the requirements, as both in-house and
including maintenance, repair and re-dec- with this, or just a check on whether your public courses. Our currently programmed
oration, to be performed, you are a CLIENT arrangements are compliant, Callsafe Services public CDM2015 courses are as follows.
under CDM2015. Limited can provide these services and assist
you with compliance in a cost-effective and Management of Pre-construction
• If you also specify materials and/or equip- efficient manner, with the minimum amount Health and Safety
ment, and/or where they will be installed, of bureaucracy and paperwork. 3 Day Course
you are also a DESIGNER under CDM2015. This APS accredited course is aimed at those
“CDM2015 applies to any con- persons who will be performing the duties
• If any of your staff perform any of the struction work performed for of the Principal Designer on behalf of their
above types of work, you are also a both commercial and domestic employer, who has been appointed to this
CONTRACTOR under CDM2015. clients, and is not dependent role by the Client. It provides knowledge on
on the time taken for the work the requirements, methods that could be
• You may also perform the duties of PRIN- or the number of persons used to achieve these requirements and the
CIPAL DESIGNER (PD) and/or PRINCIPAL performing the work.” personal qualities necessary. The course also
CONTRACTOR (PC), or be required to provides for the additional services that
appoint others to perform these duties, Have your staff been trained in could be offered by the Principal Designer,
and make sure that they perform the their CDM2015 duties? or as a separate commission, for advising and
duties correctly. For full compliance with duties under assisting the client with the Client’s duties.
146 PROFILE
Course Schedule
Click on ‘Course Ref’ for further details Prices exclude VAT
Design Risk Management clients, project managers, principal design- Further details of these, and other, courses can be found on our
and CDM2015 for Designers ers, designers, principal contractors and website: www.callsafe-services.co.uk , or by contacting Gemma
2 Day Course contractors with a broad overview on the Esprey at: gemma.esprey@callsafe-services.co.uk , or by phone on:
This APS accredited course is aimed at CDM Regulations 2015. 01889 577701
eNter todAy
Entry deadline 31 May 2016
www.aps.org.uk/how-apply
O
ne year on since its introduction,
builders are being reminded about
maintaining a firm grip on their
health and safety obligations and in particular
rules related to Construction Design Manage-
ment (CDM) 2015.
project should have one but proportionate distraction but builders have a legal obligation For further information on HBXL’s Health &
to the risks involved. to demonstrate that they take their respon- Safety Xpert 2016 please call 0117 916 7898
sibilities seriously. or visit www.hbxl.co.uk
It means whether it’s the installation of a
bathroom, replacing a boiler, plastering a “Those worried about what looks like a mine-
room, building a porch or an extension, an field of rules and regulations can rest easy
appropriate CPH & SP will be needed. by making the most of tools which keeps
them right up to date with all things related
Joanna added: “The vast majority of builders to health and safety.
would have done this and put in place new
work methods and systems to make sure “This includes the latest version of our Health
they were compliant. However everyone has & Safety Xpert 2016 software which not only
had long enough to put in place suitable saves them time but money and the anxiety
arrangements in order to comply and the of whether they are compliant with the Joanna Mulgrew
HSE will not take ignorance as an excuse.” latest regulations and in particular the new Marketing & Product
CDM 2015. Development Director
Joanna’s concerns are well founded with the HBXL Building Software
latest data showing that Fee For Intervention “Many smaller building firms thought the Tel: 0117 916 7898
invoices totalled £609,312 in Oct 15 in the new regulations wouldn’t affect them but it’s sales@hbxl.co.uk
construction sector alone, so the need for imperative they take CDM seriously. www.hbxl.co.uk/cdm2015 or
compliance couldn’t be more plain. www.hbxl.co.uk/principaldesigners
“Builders definitely don’t want to put them- www.twitter.com/HBXL
Joanna said: “For many, the introduction selves at risk of hefty fines or in the worse-case
of CDM 2015 might seem like an irritating scenario of a stint behind bars!”
CDM 2015
Are you confident about your role?
Proportionate and
Practical CDM Advice and
Training for
Clients and Designers
www.jracdm.com
info@jamesritchie.com 07785 915687
Energy Efficiency | 151
T
UK can achieve net-zero energy housing…
he European Commission recently company for their energy, tenants pay a similar, but
announced €3.6 million grant funding to roll out guaranteed amount to their housing provider to
Energiesprong – the innovative Dutch refurbish- cover the cost of financing the upgrades.
ment process – in a number of European countries,
including the UK. The aim of the multi-national ‘Tran- Critical to the Energiesprong approach is that the
sition Zero’ bid, which was led by Energiesprong UK total solution is provided through a single OEM
and made to Horizon 2020 (the largest research and (Original Equipment Manufacturer). This is similar to
innovation programme of the European Commission) the way other manufactured products are sold – cars,
is to kick-start mass uptake of net-zero energy computers, consumer goods – where the seller takes
refurbishments of domestic properties, starting with full responsibility for providing the product to the
the social housing sector. customer, even though that product might contain
components and systems from many other
Energiesprong UK was set up in 2015 to explore manufacturers or sub-contractors. By adopting this
whether the Energiesprong approach could be approach in the Netherlands, inefficiencies in the
applicable in a UK context. It was formed by a number supply chain are driven out, complex relationships
of leading social housing providers, construction between contractors and with the end customer are
companies, trade bodies and expert organisations, eliminated and innovation is stimulated.
following a study tour to the Netherlands. Energiesprong
UK aims to stimulate a ‘game-changing’ housing Energiesprong works because it delivers results
refurbishment sector in the UK and make net-zero whilst also being an attractive offer for contractors,
energy housing a reality – at an industrial scale. housing providers and residents. Unlike existing
refurbishment models, Energiesprong uses an
In the Netherlands, several manufacturers already energy performance contract to guarantee the
offer Energiesprong solutions. They use off-site performance of the improvements over a long-term
manufacturing to construct mass-customised walls and – a minimum of 30-years. This provides the property
roofs, which are pre-fitted with windows, doors, high owner with financial security, giving assurance that
levels of insulation and renewable energy measures. the property will perform at the expected level. The
This improved building envelope also comes with a extra risk to the contractor is made a viable business
services pod, which houses the technical equipment proposition by a guaranteed number of properties
and intelligence to provide heat and power. delivered through the programme.
The whole package is delivered to the site where The Energiesprong model is a radical transformation
each new section is precision fitted to the existing – both practically and conceptually – as its focus is
house, with the minimum of on-site finishing. on creating a volume market for solutions that satisfy
Internal improvements can include low-energy four key criteria:
lighting and energy-efficient appliances as part of
new kitchens and bathrooms – an attractive benefit • Performance guarantee for 30 years – ensuring
for most householders. Instead of paying a utility energy savings are locked in and guaranteed.
152 | Energy Efficiency
• Fast implementation (within one week to 10 days) • How to stimulate demand for net-zero energy
without the need for occupants to move out; refurbishments;
• Attractive – providing upgraded properties that • The transformation of the refurbishment market
occupants aspire to, dramatically improving the through stronger supply chain integration, product-
external and internal attractiveness, convenience focused collaboration industry-led innovation.
and comfort, and collectively improving local
neighbourhoods. Energiesprong has transformed the Dutch market
where it has already delivered over 500 net-zero
The Horizon 2020 grant is for up to €3.6 million energy refurbishments as part of a 111,000 volume
for the next three years. It will be used to kick-start deal between housing associations and industry.
net-zero refurbishment markets in the UK and
France, using the social housing sector as a catalyst. In the UK, Energiesprong is committed to bringing
about a viable net-zero energy refurbishment market
The EU grant money won’t be used to fund at scale, which will provide desirable, warm and
Energiesprong solutions themselves but will enable affordable homes for life.
Energiesprong UK to significantly increase its
independent market development team so that This will be achieved through negotiating an
solutions can be developed quickly within the current initial 5,000 volume deal in the UK and France.
financial, planning and regulatory environment. This volume will provide an excellent opportunity for
industry to innovate and rise to the net-zero energy
In the UK, this process has already started and challenge; if this level of refurbishments can be
Energiesprong UK has taken the first steps in driving delivered on a commercial basis, it will set the scene
new approaches to net-zero refurbishments based for a much wider roll-out, including into the private
on a commercial business model. owner-occupier sector.
Energy Efficiency | 153
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In order to gain a secure and confident position in the industry, we have already
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An example of this would be the use of our own CNC manufacturing plant.
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www.lifesteeldesign.com www.hellbrok.com
SAP untangled
The Zero Carbon Hub explain their new SAP Untangled Guide
T
which aims to help SME’s meet Part L compliance…
he Zero Carbon Hub’s Performance Gap and the information required by the assessor and
project highlighted deficiencies in a number of Building Control in order to achieve compliance with,
areas relating to SAP calculation inputs, and certain aspects of Building Regulations Part L1A and
associated procedures. To help improve skills and ultimately, the successful production of an Energy
knowledge in this area, the Zero Carbon Hub has put Performance Certificate for the new home.
together an informative guide that promotes good
design and communication throughout the build The Guide, therefore starts by giving an overview of
process, in relation to SAP and Part L compliance. the SAP assessment process, pointers on how to
choose a SAP assessor and going on to detail the
The guide focusses on explaining, in simple terms, information required by the assessor at Design
the process of obtaining an accurate SAP output – Stage, in order to produce a prediction of the energy
from the commissioning of a SAP assessor through use and carbon emissions of the dwelling. Highlights
to receiving the as-built SAP calculations – and out- include the importance of the SAP calculation result,
lines simple cost effective ways to meet energy and (for compliance) and the effects of product substitu-
carbon requirements/targets for a development tion or alterations to the design, at construction
(be it Building Regulations compliance or higher stage, together with the information required by the
standards). It draws upon work carried out by the assessor to complete the As Built SAP assessment
Zero Carbon Hub’s Performance Gap project, and and produce the EPC for the dwelling. A number of
the specialist knowledge of the authors. The intended quick facts, highlighted in boxes and explanations of
audience is SME Builders/Developers and their clients. simple cost effective ways of meeting fabric energy
The aim is for this new “SAP Untangled” guide to help efficiency and carbon targets, make the guide an
to improve quality of new homes, by identifying the informative read.
most common significant and misunderstood areas
of the SAP process, in order that the As Built dwelling This Guide is one of a series of good practice guides
closely matches the As Designed, and so gaining that are aimed at addressing the performance gap
Part L Compliance. The information in the Guide is and improving the design, procurement and construc-
based on the current versions; Part L1A 2013, and tion quality of new homes. All publications in the series
SAP 2012. However most will also be applicable to are available from the Zero Carbon Hub website. ■
dwellings being built to Part L1A 2010. Although the
information is only applicable to properties in England
as Scotland and Wales have different regulations
and are not covered by the Guide. The principals
of the flow of information, however, would apply to
all regulations.
...............................................
The aim of the Guide is also to make the SAP Zero Carbon Hub
assessment process more transparent to those who Tel: 0845 888 7620
may not be fully aware of its significance in achieving info@zercarbonhub.com
Building Regulations Part L1A compliance. It is intended www.zerocarbonhub.org
as a basic introduction to the SAP assessment process www.twitter.com/ZeroCarbonHub
Energy Efficiency | 157
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a solution for tackling fuel poverty in some of its coldest homes…
rexham County Borough Council are one The villages are home to a total of 97 Council
of a number of local authorities in Wales owned British Steel Framed Houses (BISF). There are
to choose External Wall Insulation (EWI) also a further 73 of these properties which are now
as a solution for tackling fuel poverty in some of its privately owned.
coldest homes.
The properties were built in the 1940’s, but despite
A number of both private and council owned homes being a quick solution for tackling the huge post war
in the area have been able to benefit from EWI work, demand for housing, tenants have had to live with
thanks to new investment in improvement work by the properties which are far less efficient at holding in
Council, Welsh Government grants, and the introduc- heat than traditional brick properties. According to
tion of the Welsh Housing Quality Standard (WHQS) the Energy Saving Trust, around 45% of the heat lost
which requires all social housing in Wales to bring their in houses such as these is through the walls.
housing stock up to an acceptable level by 2020.
Many of the properties were also showing significant
With 11,300 social housing properties, Wrexham external signs of age, although surveys carried out by
Council’s Housing Service is the largest social an external specialist housing consultant revealed
landlord in Wales, outside of Cardiff and Swansea. that they were still in good overall structural condition.
Around 1,600 of these homes are non-traditional
properties of various types, built of steel, timber, A report from the consultants was put before Council’s
concrete and other brick alternatives. Executive Board in late 2014, who recommended
that EWI would be the best solution for bringing
The Council are currently investing in a huge social these properties up to the WHQS. Approval has
housing improvement works programme, leading up since been given for the same work to be carried out
to the 2020 WHQS deadline, which is seeing thou- on all 1,600 non-traditional properties in Wrexham.
sands of properties receive new kitchens, bathrooms
and other internal and external work, including EWI, The process involves applying a 100mm layer of
where required to meet the standard. insulation to the outer walls of the properties. The
layer of insulation is then covered in a render and
Over £90m is being invested in by the Council in brick slips.
improvement work between 2015-2017 This includes
an annual £7.5m ‘Major Repairs Allowance’ grant which As well as helping the houses to hold in heat, installing
the Welsh Government awards to local authorities to EWI will also help fill in cracks to reduce drafts and
support them achieving WHQS. improve sound resistance, reduce CO2 emissions,
and increase the overall lifespan of the property by
Two areas in Wrexham that have recently been able protecting the structure from the elements.
to benefit from major EWI projects thanks to the
funding are the large villages of Cefn and Johnstown, The work means these properties will now achieve
both just south of Wrexham. the key targets set out in the WHQS, which state that
158 | Energy Efficiency
The Welsh Government’s support for using EWI to Michael Cantwell, lead on sustainability at Wrexham
eradicate fuel poverty has also allowed the same Council and who was the project manager for the
work to be carried out on the privately owned steel scheme, said, “The Warm Homes Arbed scheme has
houses which are dotted amongst the council been a key part in our programme to reduce fuel
properties in the villages. poverty in Wrexham. We have worked closely with the
team at Welsh Government and our contractors have
Wrexham Council managed to successfully secure been able to install a high quality solid wall insulation
funding for the private homes from the Welsh to hard-to-treat, often steel prefabs properties, both
Government’s Warm Homes ‘Arbed’ energy perform- private and Council. Having heavily insulated homes
ance investment programme. will save the resident a small fortune in energy over
the next twenty years and will help to reduce their
The ‘Arbed’ (a Welsh word meaning ‘to save’) project carbon emissions uses, building resilient communities
was set up by the Welsh Government in 2009. The that people really want to live in. We are also following
aims of the project being to reduce carbon emissions the physical work up with lifestyle and fuel switching
from homes, cut down on fuel poverty so that those advice from our partners at Groundwork and
people on low incomes can afford to pay their bills Community Switch”.
and boost economic development by providing jobs
and training opportunities for workers and businesses Work on both the Council and private homes in
in Wales. Cefn and Johnstown is due to be completed by
March 2016.
Local authorities and social housing landlords were
invited to bid from a central funding pot.
T
Systems Certification and the benefits that implementing it can bring…
The organisation regulates and promotes the The standard can be applied to any size or type of
profession, maintaining the highest educational business and, once in place, demonstrates a
and professional standards, protecting clients and company’s commitment to reducing its impact on
consumers via a strict code of ethics, and providing the environment and compliance with EU legislation.
impartial advice and guidance. Among other things,
RICS developed the SKA rating system, mentioned in The journey to certification
the UK Government’s Low Carbon Action Plan, which RICS commenced the certification process in 2013,
provides landlords and tenants with an environmental initially focusing on obtaining the standard for its
assessment method, benchmark and standard for offices in London and Coventry.
non-domestic fit-outs.
This was expanded the following year to include
Given its position, it is imperative that RICS is seen international offices in Brussels, Belgium; New Delhi,
to set the example for best practice and as such, India; Frankfurt, Germany; Wanchai, China and
the decision was made to obtain ISO 50001 Energy Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Management Systems Certification – becoming one
of the first organisations to implement an energy In 2015 all of RICS UK portfolio was included in the
system to this standard. certification process along with offices in Sydney,
Australia; San Paulo, Brazil; Washington; America;
Paul Chidgey, Head of Facilities at RICS explained: Beijing, China; Singapore, and Dubai.
“Being who we are and what we are – the world’s
leading property professional – we set industry The certification process is split into two stages. The
standards with what we do. initial certification audit comprised two mandatory
on-site evaluations to review RICS management
“There is now a huge emphasis on companies system documentation, an evaluation of the locations
meeting their environmental and social and site-specific conditions, review of the status
responsibilities and obtaining Energy Management and understanding of the requirements of the
Certification was therefore very important to us as it standard, and an evaluation of whether internal
was a great opportunity for us to practice what we audits and management reviews had been planned
preach, and reflect internally what we do externally and performed.
as an organisation.”
The purpose of the stage 1 audit is to determine if
ISO 50001:2011 Energy Management Systems the organisation is ready to go through to the next
Certification is the international standard for energy audit, which confirms that their management system
Energy Efficiency | 161
Left: Martin Russell-Croucher, former Director of Sustainability and Special Projects, RICS; Boris Johnson; Paul Chidgey,
Head Of Facilities, RICS
fully conforms to the requirements of the ISO standard. “As more sites were added things naturally
transitioned with more teams and managers involved
During stage 2, RICS were evaluated on the level of in the day-to-day operations. That was where the extra
implementation and effectiveness of the management effort and time was all spent as we didn’t have any
system in accordance with the requirements of the idea of how energy was being used in those offices.
standard. A sample audit of the processes and
activities defined in the scope was then conducted. “That was the huge challenge: going global with the
energy management audits. We were reliant on
“The process itself was fairly straightforward,” said colleagues in offices around the world to implement
Paul. “We were already doing a lot of things outlined the processes and produce the type of energy data
in the standard in terms of identifying and recording we took for granted in the UK.
energy use, and finding ways to reduce this and our
CO2 footprint. “Each office had to carry out an energy audit to
establish a base line and identify key energy uses,
“All the raw data was there but before certification which we then brought in as part of our overall
we had no recognised standard to work towards. energy management system.
ISO 50001 gave us that, and allowed us to put systems
in place in order to manage our energy usage properly. “We also initiated a comprehensive training
programme with e-modules for staff around the
“In the early days, with certification of our head world, including setting up staff user groups.
office in London and our office in Coventry, I took it
upon myself to go through the certification process “This allowed the whole environmental approach to
with a small support team from within the facilities cascade down throughout the organisation and for
department. the organisation’s energy management policy to be
162 | Energy Efficiency
enhanced by our staff’s suggestions. Paul said: “ISO 50001 has been hugely influential
in enabling us to reduce our energy usage and
“It was pretty scary at the outset but once expenditure.
certification has been set up for a site then it rolls
itself. That’s the beauty of ISO 50001 – it provides a “With a system in place it gave us the mechanism to
structured system that you can then hand to other record energy usage data across all our offices and
teams to implement.” for the first time work out, and then reduce, our
global carbon footprint.”
Why Exova BM TRADA?
RICS has worked with global certification body The standard also helped RICS win a prestigious
Exova BM TRADA since early 2015 to oversee the gold award in the 2014 Mayor of London’s Business
auditing of additional offices world-wide, and to Energy Challenge, for improvements to its London
maintain specific site certification – which is valid for HQ on Parliament Square.
three years – through yearly surveillance audits.
Paul said: “Our Grade II-listed London headquarters
Paul says he is delighted with the move to Exova BM had gone through a fairly extensive refurbishment
TRADA and said: programme and included within that were a lot of
energy-efficiency measures such as motion detector
“It’s been a fresh approach and I’m very happy with lighting, insulation, a building management system
the work done to date. (BMS), replacing old plant and equipment, and a
new roof.
“Exova BM TRADA is very much focused on the client’s
needs and their auditors are highly experienced and “We recorded our annual energy figures but there
knowledgeable. was no benchmark and no system to catch things.
We had no idea how much we had been doing
“They have understood our organisation and offered internally but once we had conducted the audit and
advice where needed. One example was with an office had the standard in place, we could bring in a new
where we weren’t able to record energy usage data. regime and carry out checks to identify payback in
terms of the energy we used and our actions.
“They suggested we look at a different approach and
were very helpful in terms of identifying different
ways of measuring energy in our offices.
“Simple things such as switching lights off at night ISO 50001 will help an organisation implement the
and unplugging equipment all made a difference, processes needed to enable them to understand their
and along with the refurbishment, we have been baseline energy usage and establish an energy policy,
able to cut our CO2 emissions at the London HQ by including objective setting and an implementation plan
31 per cent between 2010 and 2014.” for reducing energy consumption.
Non-compliance with ESOS could result in individual • Promote energy efficiency throughout the
penalties of up to £50,000 as well as the company supply chain;
being publically ‘named and shamed’ by the
Environment Agency. • Evaluate and prioritise new energy-efficient
technologies;
Paul said: “The ESOS legislation has come in to force
organisations down the energy-saving route and • Increase new business opportunities and meet
raise awareness of the environmental impact of legal and contractual obligations;
energy use.
• Increase stakeholder confidence and enhance
“Companies, however, should be doing that anyway reputation. ■
as effective energy management brings real savings
as well as reductions in their carbon footprint.
W
Making thermal performance the clear winner…
Looking at vapour resistance, according to BS gives to the roof structure – and so the bal- Further information about the Code of Practice for Control of
5250:2011 (Code of Practice for Control of ancing act begins… or does it need to? Condensation in Buildings can be found at http://shop.bsigroup.com/
the definition of condensation company which specialises in the design and manufacture of thin
• HR (High Resistance) having a water vapour and in particular interstitial reflective insulation for the professional and self-build markets.
• LR (Low Resistance) having a water vapour condensation is the process since 2007 and understands how to create cost effective, thermally
resistance not exceeding 0.25 MN.s/g. of water vapour in the air enhanced insulation products. Mark can be contacted via LinkedIn:
ing or ceiling is provided, there is a risk of PhotonAir is a Low Resistance (LR) insulating visit www.thermictechnology.co.uk
R
air quality of new homes, and how it should be addressed…
The need to resolve these issues is pressing, as they The guide will be presented at the Zero Carbon
directly affect indoor air quality and occupant health. Hub and Green Register’s training sessions through
Clearly there is a lack of knowledge in this area of April and May. All the guides are available to download
ventilation and wider building services, but to help for free on the Zero Carbon Hub Website. ■
improve skills and knowledge in building services, the
Zero Carbon Hub has put together an informative
guide that highlights good practice and common
problems to avoid. ...............................................
Tom Dollard BArch DipArch ARB RIBA
The new “Services Guide” from the Zero Carbon Head of Sustainable Design
Hub will help to improve the quality of homes by Pollard Thomas Edwards
identifying the most common failures of domestic Tel: 020 7336 7777
services design and installation, and offer potential pollardthomasedwards.co.uk
solutions for project teams. It is intended to be used www.twitter.com/PTEarchitects
Energy Efficiency | 167
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removal of the zero carbon target doesn’t have to mean the end
of thermal efficiency obligations…
hatever our opinions of the retraction of whether new build or existing – and how much the
the Zero Carbon target, the fact remains additional and likely savings are likely to be, it is no
that it has happened. We must now step wonder they often choose the seemingly cheaper
back and look at practical, positive ways in which we approach. When buying a new home, sales literature
can adapt to ensure that the construction industry should also include the likely running costs and
as a whole and the insulation sector in particular can present the projected total cost – house plus bills –
look forward to the kind of sales volumes they’d over ten years.
anticipated under the previous, greener, agenda.
We can provide facts and figures for inclusion in new
To this end, we as an industry need to reinforce the home sales literature, illustrating likely heating bills –
message that not only does it make financial sense to enabling homebuyers to weigh up the costs and
insulate effectively – it is still obligatory. estimate likely savings over the coming decade or
more, giving them the chance to make an educated
The areas we should address are: decision on which home to choose. Likewise, we can
provide fact sheets for merchants illustrating likely
1. Educate builders. Reiterate the need within heat savings achieved – again with cost comparisons
Approved Documents to achieve demanding thermal showing investment vs return over a certain period.
requirements. Additionally, housebuilders can use
the carrot of lower fuel bills as a selling point for 3. Educate mortgage lenders. This is something to
both private homebuyers and housing associations – be approached from a wider industry, rather than
backed up with illustrations of how the sums will add manufacturer specific standpoint. While it’s all very
up over a ten-year period. well to suggest buyers pay more for a ‘green’ house,
this is no help if they can’t borrow the figure required.
Meeting their thermal obligations shouldn’t be Lenders need to adopt a longer-term approach and
difficult. It doesn’t have to cost any more to insulate offer a greater income or affordability multiplier
a house to an impressive U value than to insulate it when taking into account longer term running costs.
to the minimum required thermal efficiency. Using
good products can save around 25% on labour While we can work alone as individual manufacturers,
costs – thanks to the speed with which they can be the effect will be so much greater if we can be joined
installed and the materials themselves can also cost by other suppliers, installers, specifiers, merchants
around three quarters of the price of some and industry bodies. ■
traditional alternatives.
A
for electric heating and the building regulations you should be aware of…
s a technology, electric heating has been pump takes its heat from a more stable source than
with us since the invention of electricity in the air, for example the ground, then the efficiencies
the late 1800’s with the first available electric improve to around a seasonal CoP of 4.
heaters being used in the 1900’s. Electric heating has
developed greatly over the last 115 or so years, from What do the building regulations say about
electric resistive heaters that have been used in electric heating?
panel heaters, night storage heaters, radiant heaters Part L2 of the Building Regulations requires that the
to warm air heaters and more complex heat pumps. actual Buildings Emissions Rate (BER) is determined
using software and is compared against a building
At the same time, the way electricity is generated has regulation compliant Target Emissions Rate (TER). In
changed dramatically from coal-powered electricity order to pass, the BER must be lower than the TER.
generating stations, to gas and nuclear and now onto The TER is based upon a notional building specification
greener hydro, wave, solar and wind-powered methods. that typically includes standard thermal resistivity ‘U
values’ for elemental constructions (e.g. roof, wall,
Electric heating is a controversial choice to heat a floor, and windows) and a building air permeability
building. On the one hand, it is seen as the most standard that restricts air leakage from buildings.
carbon intensive method to provide heat for thermal In terms of systems, it assumes a heating efficiency
comfort and the most expensive to run. When com- (gas heating and hot water) of 91%. Heating is only
pared against gas heating, electric heating causes one of all the building services that consume energy
carbon dioxide emissions that are approximately and systems such as lighting, ventilation and cooling
2.7 times higher, and energy running costs are collectively make up the TER. So it is important to
approximately three times higher. However, owing to understand that the heating system is only a part of
cleaner and greener methods to generate electricity, the overall TER.
electric heating can have zero-rated carbon emissions.
Green electricity can also benefit from government The choice of heating impacts the whole BER and
subsidies. can therefore affect the choice of other building
services. This is the concept of the trade-off. For
Technology has moved on tremendously, and electric example, a highly efficient heating system can enable
driven heat pumps can dramatically reduce the carbon the provision of a lower efficient ventilation system
dioxide emissions and energy costs further owing to achieve compliance. Most designers would prefer
to their high efficiency – termed as Coefficient of to opt for the highest efficiency choices – where the
Performance (CoP). The CoP rating is the multiplier budget can afford the best systems.
of input energy to the heat output. A CoP of 2 would
mean that, for every unit of electrical energy input, The Building Regulations are technology neutral and
twice as much heat output can be achieved. The do not require that any specific heating system be
seasonal CoP rating for an air source heat pump in a provided. However, these regulations do recognise
heating mode is typically 2.5. However, if the heat that low and zero carbon options exist and can help.
Energy Efficiency | 169
These include co-generation (using Combined Heat dramatic rate, we will see some very clever takes on
and Power (CHP) techniques), district heating (from a the simple storage heater design that are linked to
centralised heat network that feeds many buildings, heat pump designs. Watch this space!
typically from biomass or CHP), energy from renewable
sources (including solar, geothermal water, biomass, Paul Bennett is a Chartered Engineer, Chartered
biogases) and heat pumps. Director and Executive Chairman of BSSEC. He is an
approved ESOS Lead Assessor and accredited with
As far as the Building Regulations are concerned, the Energy Institute on its Register of Professional
the best choice for a compliant electric heating Energy Consultants. ■
system, is whether it is going to be a form of heat
pump and whether it being air/water/ground source. For more information from the Energy Institute,
There are also options for using heat pumps to please visit their website at www.energyinst.org and
recover waste heat. follow them on Twitter @EnergyInstitute
W
ith over 10 years experience of
supplying Electric Heating and Hot
water products for “Off-Gas”
Domestic properties, The Electric Heating
Company (EHC) has grown to become the
UK’s premier provider of Direct Acting Electric
Heating products to the Social Housing
market. With a proven track record of provid-
ing electric central heating solutions to Local
Authorities and Housing Associations we
have a dedicated page on our website for
Social Landlords.
Warranties. such implemented a unique support service, e-mail info@electric-heatingcompany.co.uk or call us on 01698
With over 2.5 Million homes in the UK having Social Landlords and their Tenants. This
no access to natural gas, and a considerable service ensures that when Electric Heating is
amount of these heated by old antiquated installed in the property the Tenants are
electric storage heating systems, many furnished with guidance on electricity tariffs,
tenants are now requesting a heating system typical running costs and are educated in the
that is fully controllable and flexible – just controllability of their new heating system.
like a gas central heating system.
EHC are an ISO 9001 Quality Management
EHC offer a choice of Electric Heating solu- approved company and continually strive to David Lee
tions that tenants can control 24/7: Electric develop products and technologies that Director
Boilers for a Wet Central Heating System or improve the heating experience and controlla- The Electric Heating Company Ltd
their EHC Electric Combination Radiator bility for tenants when using our electric heat- Tel: +44 169 882 0533
system that requires no plumbing but offers ing systems. All our products are manufactured info@electric-heatingcompany.co.uk
the same controllability as a Wet Central to the highest standard and are frequently www.electric-heatingcompany.co.uk
Heating System. Our products have been specified on contracts throughout the UK.
TAILOR-MADE
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As part of our package of information We have access to an extensive database of
services, Adjacent Digital Politics Ltd contacts within specialised areas that can be
are proud to present the option of a utilised. All our data is cleansed and complies
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an ‘e-book’. that your message will be delivered to the
right people at the right time.
Our e-books are a bespoke tool used by our
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www.planningandbuildingcontroltoday.co.uk PLANNING
& TODAY
BUILDING CONTROL
172 | Neighbourly Matters
Section 237:
Extinguishing the
right to light
Tom Kibblewhite, Director for Watts Group PLC draws attention to Section 237
of The Town & Country Planning Act 1990, which gives local authorities the power
A
to extinguish rights to light and how to exercise the power appropriately…
s discussed in a previous article in PBC Today, The ability to claim an injunction also places adjoining
October 2015, Rights to Light is an easement. owners in a position of strength in negotiations over
This means that the light passing over a whether they are prepared to release their right,
neighbour’s land or buildings to a window effectively something which sees rights to light claims frequently
acquires a right of way, and if that light is interfered running to six figure sums.
with, the aggrieved party may be able to claim an
injunction to halt or modify a development which The Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (the Act)
has a significant impact. attempts to assist local authorities in ensuring that
developments can proceed where the threat of an
It has the potential to cause major disruption, cost and injunction exists, either before construction or after
delay to a development with an injunction that causes completion. Section 237 of the Act provides local
the greatest concern to developers, particularly as a authorities with the power to override easements
scheme may no longer be viable should parts need to (including Rights to Light) and other rights, such as
be removed or cut back to accommodate the rights to rights of way. To trigger this the local authority must
light of surrounding windows. acquire or appropriate the development site for
Neighbourly Matters | 173
planning purposes. If done correctly, this appropriation Most recently, the 62 storey development proposed
removes the ability of the neighbour to obtain an at 22 Bishopsgate (the former site of the ‘Pinnacle’
injunction and allows the development to proceed. skyscraper) has run into difficulty due to its effect on
the right to light of its neighbours and negotiations
Whilst using Section 237 to extinguish rights of stalling for them to release their rights. Lipton
light removes the risk of an injunction being acquired Rogers owns the site and need to place substantial
by adjoining owners for any injury to that right, pre-construction orders for materials and procure
compensation would still need to be paid but this the main build contract to hit its 2019 completion
will be calculated by reference to a statutory formula. date. The reported £40-50 million steel and £30 mil-
lion concrete packages are attracting attention and
Whilst it is understandable that local authorities may show the potential cost of a rights to light dispute.
wish to assist developers in unlocking stalled devel-
opments that benefit the economic, social or envi- “Whilst it is understandable that local
ronmental wellbeing of the surrounding area, they authorities may wish to assist developers in
will need to consider carefully whether using their unlocking stalled developments that benefit
power is appropriate, given the risk of judicial review the economic, social or environmental
if it is not used properly. Individual decisions will turn wellbeing of the surrounding area, they will
on the facts and circumstances of each particular need to consider carefully whether using
development but some of the overarching issues their power is appropriate, given the risk of
that local authorities will need to consider include: judicial review if it is not used properly.”
• Whether the scheme is a proper use of its Understandably the developer has appealed to the
planning powers; City of London Corporation for assistance in the face
of such difficulties; however, at the time of writing, the
• Whether there is a compelling case in the public Corporation – which granted planning permission for
interest for the use of its powers; and the revised scheme – appears unwilling to step in. ■
M
neighbourly matters and how it aids in the smooth delivery of projects…
ore and more we are being asked So in essence there are two breeds of party We must acknowledge that there is a huge
to advise on ‘neighbourly matters’ wall surveyor, those who are Chartered and amount of administration involved in the
generally, in addition to party walls. want to specialise in the area and those who process, from serving notices to following
So who can be a party wall surveyor and what have chosen to get involved in the process in timescales, which in itself can be compli-
does neighbourly matters actually mean? order to obtain a qualification. cated, through to finally signing and serving
Sara Burr
an Award. Assistant surveyors and adminis- be regulated in the same way as party wall not just party walls and provide cost saving
tration assistants are invaluable members of matters. These matters may or may not be advice to both Building Owners and Adjoin-
the team. The key to the process is ensuring incorporated into the Party Wall etc Act 1996 ing Owners. As part of property consultancy
you have all the information available to but it must be remembered that this Act Bilfinger GVA we can offer support to clients
undertake the work and allow sufficient time sprung from the London Building Act 1939 nationwide.
for the process to take place. which became Nationwide on the one spe-
cific issue. Basements historically have been Sara is past London Chairman and currently
“You do not require any curtailed to London but boundary disputes Vice Chairman of the Pyramus & Thisbe Club,
professional qualifications, but have not. Given the current development a Learned Society for party wall specialists.
experience and knowledge landscape there is clearly a need for this to Sara leads the party wall team at GVA
of the Act is paramount. The be reviewed. Schatunowski Brooks, a specialist neighbourly
interpretation of the Act has matters team within Bilfinger GVA with over 50
become more complex as Then there are matters which don’t come years of experience delivering expert advice.
has case law. It is now a whole under any of those or the Access to Neigh-
industry which can cause bouring Land Act. Matters such as scaffolding
delays and halt construction. ” or crane over sailing licences. The Access to
Neighbouring Land Act was intended for
Adjoining Owners see the Act as a tool to halt ‘maintenance’ not to allow access for ‘devel-
a development when the planning process opment’ purposes. Such issues again can
fails to protect their ideals. It becomes delay a project or cause additional cost if not
expensive for building owners who have not obtained. More and more frequently now
budgeted for surveyors’ fees, the information Adjoining Owners are using that potential
required or the cost of time. The Act was gain as a tool for compensation.
intended to be an enabling Act.
Boundary disputes can also amount to Sara Burr
So what are ‘neighbourly matters’? trespass, but not just because ‘who owns Director
what’. It could extend to rights of way or GVA Schatunowski Brooks
There are currently working parties discussing established use. Tel: +44 (0)20 7911 2703
with the government about a Boundary sara.burr@gvasb.co.uk
Dispute Resolution Bill and a Basement As Chartered Building Surveyors we deal with
Development Bill to enable such disputes to a whole spectrum of neighbourly matters,
176 | Index
Index
A J
About Access Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 James Ritchie Architects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
AEC3 UK Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
L
B Lloyd’s Register Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58-59
BBS Building Control Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117, 123
Bilfinger GVA Shatunowski Brookes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174-175
BLP Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11
N
BIM Legal Forum Event (C5 Group). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Newforma Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80-81
BIMobject UK Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50, 72-73, 94-95
Butler & Young Group Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC, 127
P
C Premier Guarantee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138-139
Prospect Archaeology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23, OBC
Callsafe Services Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144-146
Centre for Accessible Environments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
CIP Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44-45, IBC
R
Clearbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90-91 Reigning Paradigms LTD T/a Hot Frog Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Cornwall Archaeological Unit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 RICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31, 41
E S
EHC Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170 Sennocke International Insurance Services Ltd . . . . . . 140-141
EIH Systems Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154-155 Solibri UK Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55, 71, 104-105
Elecosoft UK Limited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98-99 StruMIS LTD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65, 76-77
F T
ForgeTrack Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110-111 TATA Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
The Association of Project Safety (The APS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Idox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-19
Invigilatis Limited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66-67
W
Ivor Fire Safety Services Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 Walsingham Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-15
Building Regulations | 177
Building Regulations
Any person carrying out a building project that aims to create
something new, or extend an existing building, has to comply with
Building Regulations. The following summarises each regulation
and includes a link to each approved document.
Part A covers technical guidance concerned with the requirements in regards to structural safety.
This includes the July 2013 amendments that came into force on 1 October 2013.
www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildingregulations/approveddocuments/parta/documenta
178 | Building Regulations
http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildingregulations/approveddocuments/partb/bcapproveddocu-
mentsb/bcapproveddocbvol1/#Download
www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildingregulations/approveddocuments/partb/bcapproveddocu-
mentsb/bcapproveddocbvol2#Download
This current reprint of Approved Document C – Site preparation and resistance to contaminates
and moisture, incorporates amendments made to the 2004 edition. This includes the July 2013
amendments that came into force on 1 October 2013. This reprint further incorporates editorial
corrections and amendments.
www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildingregulations/approveddocuments/partc/documentc
Building Regulations | 179
Part F – Ventilation
The Part F document states that ventilation is the removal of ‘stale’ air from a building
and replacement with ‘fresh’ outside air. This of course assumes that the outside air is of
reasonable quality.
The Document states that ventilation is required for one or more of the following purposes:
• Provision of outside air for breathing;
• Dilution and removal of airborne pollutants including odours;
• Control of excess humidity (arising from water vapour in the indoor air);
• Provision of air for fuel-burning appliances (which is covered under Part J of the Building
Regulations).
This 2010 edition of Approved Document F – Ventilation has been updated and replaces the
previous edition.
To view the document – click on the link below
www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildingregulations/approveddocuments/partf/approved
180 | Building Regulations
This 2015 edition of 'Approved Document M: Access to and use of buildings - Volume 2: Buildings
other than dwellings' only covers buildings other than dwellings.
It incorporates previous amendments but there have been no technical changes.
The 2015 edition takes effect on 1 October 2015 for use in England.
To view the document – click on the link below
http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/buildingregulations/approveddocuments/partm/adm/admvol2
182 | Building Regulations