THE VOICE OF THE UK OFFSITE INDUSTRY
IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT MODULAR Methodology for quantifying the benefits of offsite construction
Offsite - It’s about the people
Reaping the benefits of creating housing above railway lines
MAY
CONTENTS
IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT MODULAR
Hawkins Brown provide an insight and explain the differences between the 7 categories of MMC
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Buildoffsite News Buildoffsite welcomes Tim Broyd as Head of Industry Foresight 04 What does the “Linear Infrastructure Overbuild Guide” aim to achieve 05 How can procurement play its part in helping MMC thrive in the UK infrastructure market 06 Reaping the benefits of creating housing above railway lines 07 Methodology for quantifying the benefits of offsite construction 08 Transport Hub Webinar The Infrastructure Overbuild Opportunity 09
Member News
Offsite - it’s about the people 10 It’s not just about modular 12 How Modern Methods of Construction can positively impact social value 20 Learn how the KSB Group and Cobuilder bring innovation to online product configurators 22
Member Responses to COVID-19
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Thinking beyond traditional paradigms to finance modular construction
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Construction Innovation Hub
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Reaping the benefits of creating housing above railway lines Buildoffsite’s recently published Linear Infrastructure Overbuild Guide presents the broad solution to a truly golden opportunity for Housing-led Urban Regeneration.
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Offsite - it’s about the people
Midlands-Based Design and Detailing Company, TDS, discuss the value of collaboration and digital modelling at the front end of the design process.
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How Modern Methods of Construction can positively impact social value As a pioneering innovation to social value investment, Kier announces its partnership with specialists Social Profit Calculator (SPC), consultant Rider Levett Bucknall, framework specialists Pagabo and modern methods of construction (MMC) experts Akerlof, to develop a social value calculator dedicated to MMC.
Joe Dyde, Business Manager Welcome to the May 2020 edition of the Buildoffsite e-magazine. Firstly, I hope this finds you, your families and colleagues safe and well during these unusual and unique times we all find ourselves in. As we all do, I hope that soon we are all able to return to some normality both at home and at our workplaces; and ultimately continue to deliver and enhance the buildings and infrastructure up and down the UK and beyond, using MMC and the fantastic innovations our sector demonstrates. Within this edition you will have a chance to hear from some of the Buildoffsite team on how some of the key issues facing the sector could be supported by innovative ways of working, collaborating and delivering. There is also a look at some of the recent research and guidance that we, our members and other industry bodies have been involved in – and information on how to access and engage with these publications. From our members, the chance to hear how architects and digital solutions providers approach and support MMC and manufacturing approaches; how offsite construction can provide social value amongst its many other key benefits; and how as an industry we need to collaborate more to ensure we are providing the right training for our current and future workforce.
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NHS Nightingale Hospital North West finished within two weeks It is equipped to receive up to 750 coronavirus patients from across the region who do not need intensive care but still require treatment.
Additionally, a focus on how some of our members and the wider industry have come together; ingeniously, efficiently and safely; to deliver the vital facilities and equipment needed to support the NHS at this most testing of times. Finally, a chance to hear about the latest Government backed innovation funding opportunities and how the Construction innovation Hub and its partners are continuing to develop a more robust, efficient sector despite the current issues we all face. As always, do not hesitate to get in touch should there be any support we can provide, and please continue to keep a watch on our social media channels for the latest updates from Government and industry groups to ensure you are aware of the current support for your businesses and staff; and I firmly believe that we will see a more thriving, successful offsite industry in a post COVID-19 world. Stay safe, stay well.
BUILDOFFSITE WELCOMES TIM BROYD AS HEAD OF INDUSTRY FORESIGHT
Professor Tim Broyd FREng CEng FICE FRSA Tim is Professor of Built Environment Foresight at University College London as well as an Honorary Professor of Civil Engineering at the same university. Tim joined advocacy body, Buildoffsite as Head of Industry Foresight in January 2020. He is the founding Director of UCL’s Institution for Digital Innovation in the Built Environment. He moved to UCL following a career in industry, and has substantial experience as corporate director of technology, innovation, knowledge management and sustainability for globally operating engineering design consultancies. In addition he was CEO of construction industry research body CIRIA from 2002 to 2007. Within his current role he works with leading individuals in industry, government and academia to understand and prepare for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. He is a leading advocate for Digital Transformation, including BIM (Building Information Modelling), was a founding member of the UK Government’s BIM Task Group, was lead author of the UK’s published strategy on BIM Level 3 (‘lifetime BIM’) and has provided advice in this area to the development teams of a number of large infrastructure projects. Tim is a Past President of the Institution of Civil Engineers. He is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineers, the Institution of Civil Engineers and the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.
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Buildoffsite news
WHAT DOES THE “LINEAR INFRASTRUCTURE OVERBUILD GUIDE” AIM TO ACHIEVE? Our Linear Infrastructure Overbuild Guide aims to do 3 things.
1. 2. 3.
Make more potential sites viable, creating homes and offsite project opportunities in great places Convince stakeholders to consider how to unlock more of this potential Help more developers and suppliers be involved with infrastructure overbuild.
Here we outline the first of these themes. The report itself provides much more detailed and practical information and can be downloaded here. Viable, transformative, place making Many of the potential locations for such projects offer great opportunities to transform and reconnect areas within our cities that have been blighted by railway corridors and major roads for more than a century. Examples of how this could be done are creatively described by leading architects. There is a perception that over-build sites, particularly over railway lines, make complex and risky projects, with expensive civil engineering works to provide the foundations and modify the railway’s signalling systems etc. This Guide provides several routes for reducing the cost, both capital and whole life, of the supporting structures. These range from careful location of the mass above, the reduction of that mass, suitable types of accident containment and buildable support structures and how they can be monitored and protected for assured longevity, i.e. “structural healthcare”. This is the outcome of collaboration between renowned architects, structural and corrosion engineers. It also considers how to manage the initial risks concerning what is already
“in the ground” and who is best placed to manage these risks. The Economics chapter adds benchmarks based upon real projects and studies. And there is still more scope for optimising this, as the Buildoffsite Residential Hub plans to explore in 2020 with further consideration of the accommodation aspects.
Look out for the Buildoffsite Overbuild Webinar on 7th May that will initiate a series of sessions on the Guide. In the meantime, why not download the Guide and get ahead of the game.
Buildoffsite News
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HOW CAN PROCUREMENT PLAY ITS PART IN HELPING MMC THRIVE IN THE UK INFRASTRUCTURE MARKET
Nigel McKay, Industry Advisor1 I was once advised by a manager that my role as a procurement manager was to “say no”. Luckily, I think for my career, I decided against that piece of advice. I was always of the opinion that my role was to help my clients and customers to get the most successful result from any procurement exercise. I was trained that the “5 Rights of Procurement” to get the Right Supplier, with the Right Price, to Deliver the Right Scope at the Right Place and the Right Time, was the most important objective of a procurement manager. Latterly, I was questioned by a Head of Procurement at a Government department, why I was insisting on the Negotiated Route to market, when they said and I quote, “I can foresee no situation where you would ever have a circumstance to negotiate with any supply chain”. If this is the prevailing thoughts in the industry where the mantra (quite rightly so) is to achieve a “Value for Money” then we need to better understand how we can achieve this objective whilst still complying with all the regulatory compliance. To lock tools such as a good “Win- Win” negotiation out of our armoury just leads to poor procurement decisions. To add to the current minefield and to open up the debate further as to “why offsite manufacture and modern methods of construction offer more benefits”, then our profession needs to rid itself of the label “Killed by Procurement” and to revert to basics, and demonstrate that at the end of the procurement process that we have answered the “5 Rights” question. This current trend to reduce everything into a set of frameworks, seems to have one objective only and that is to neutralise the procurement process so that no one loses! I once saw an announcement after a particular long and convoluted procurement process that 89 companies had successfully qualified through the event. It doesn’t seem logical to me as a procurement professional that at the end of the procurement event, you are no nearer to getting to a solution where the “5 Rights” can even be considered. Buildoffsite are working with our member organisations to try and free ourselves of the myths that have built up over time and provide solutions where we can open up innovation and uncover the companies who have the right skills and solutions required to contribute to the success of the organisations who look to procure from them. These are trying times, but it seems to me that the skills that were successful in the past have been lost over time and it is our duty as procurement professionals to make sure that we demonstrate how these skills and tools still have a major part to play in our industry.
1 Following a successful career within the construction industry, our Industry Advisor, Nigel McKay has decided to embark on the next chapter of his life by deciding to take early retirement. Read more here. 6
Buildoffsite Opinion
REAPING THE BENEFITS OF CREATING HOUSING ABOVE RAILWAY LINES
Tom Eshelby, Industry Advisor Buildoffsite’s recently published Linear Infrastructure Overbuild Guide presents the broad solution to a truly golden opportunity for Housing-led Urban Regeneration. More specifically, it creates an ideal platform (literally) for designers, manufacturers and developers to demonstrate the benefits of DfMA, where traditional construction methods are unlikely to be feasible. With London’s population growing by 100,000 each year, and an acute undersupply of high quality housing, opportunities such as that at Clapham Junction seem too good to miss. Not only could we create much needed new homes but also resolve one of the great causes of urban blight in the process. The social, environmental and logistical problems around major transport hubs are well-known. The improvements seen at Kings Cross Station – which once embodied all the negative aspects imaginable – are self-evident in its revitalisation to a lively new quarter for London. The great joy of this opportunity is the chance to transform the very worst parts of city centres and provide precisely what is required there – shopping, leisure, pedestrian access, jobs and homes. Far better this, than to expand our cities outwards. And whilst, in the first instance, the economics of building above railways will probably require large-scale London project values, in time this could be rolled out to other major cities and provincial towns. Yes, there will be additional costs – but this will provide development opportunity “out of thin air”, to borrow from WSP’s initial report. And it will require all the benefits of modern methods of construction to maximise the opportunity above these decks. The faster and less intrusive the delivery of such buildings, the better; and the lighter the solution, the more we can provide of it. Plus, safely delivered in challenging conditions. If we can provide an engineered approach to the foundations of these buildings, we should also harness manufactured solutions above them, to create truly innovative and modern new communities.
Buildoffsite Opinion
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CIRIA and the Laing O’Rourke Centre for Construction Engineering and Technology, University of Cambridge, are pleased to announce the launch of a new guidance report entitled Methodology for quantifying the benefits of offsite construction (C792). Offsite construction offers the potential to deliver a number of benefits including better quality construction, improved health and safety, a faster construction programme as well as predictability of cost and time on any given project. Despite this, uptake of offsite construction is slow as there is no industry method for assessing the benefits of offsite techniques. This new CIRIA guide proposes a framework for comparing construction approaches, making it possible to keep consistent records across projects and identify all the possible benefits available. This guide also highlights the challenges that can be expected when assessing the performance of construction projects and developing robust benchmarks for comparison. It provides a framework for evaluating project performance that can be used by clients, construction management teams and designers to assess the value and benefits achieved on projects. The guidance is set to support decision making and facilitate wider industry collaboration across different sectors in the construction industry. Professor Lord Robert Mair, Emeritus Sir Kirby Laing Professor of Civil Engineering and Director of Research at the University of Cambridge commented “There is compelling evidence for more widespread adoption of offsite manufacture in construction. Yet a methodology for quantifying its benefits is much needed. The process outlined in this excellent report provides an invaluable guide for industry professionals, such as contractors and project managers, as well as those who are influential in decision-making on construction projects, including clients, advisors and policy makers.” To download the free guide, you will need to add to cart and checkout by clicking here. Keep an eye out for an announcement regarding the webinar on the guide coming soon.
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Report launch
TRANSPORT HUB WEBINAR THE INFRASTRUCTURE OVERBUILD OPPORTUNITY 7th May 10.30 - 11.30
Register here
The webinar will cover 3 topics from Buildoffsite’s recently published Linear Infrastructure Overbuild Guide. This developed from earlier research which identified the potential to build 1/4 of a million homes above railway lines in London. Come and join us to gain insight into these emerging opportunities. The running order: 1.
Marko Neskovic of Hawkins\Brown, will précis the “Placemaking” chapter and then take us through this aspect of the Clapham Junction overbuild project.
2. Bill Price of WSP will update us on this market, with news of the latest opportunities with Network Rail and Transport for London. 3. Nigel Fraser of Buildoffsite will focus in on some of the sustainability aspects of overbuild. This will be followed by an interactive Q&A session with the presenters plus Nigel Ostime of Hawkins\Brown and Ian Watkins of Mott MacDonald (Clapham Junction) for Q&As. Nigel Fraser will wrap up with news of future webinars on this topic. What will participants get out of this? – Awareness of the new Overbuild for Linear Infrastructure Guide – A feel for how real project opportunities are becoming and their potential scale – How to approach Network Rail or Transport for London with project proposals – Inspirational thoughts on how areas may be transformed – How all of this can be done in more sustainable ways – Insight into what is to come. Come and join us on the 7th of May!
Member News
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OFFSITE - IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE By Ian Heptonstall, Business Director These pages contain much about the latest innovation in offsite systems and of inspiring examples of how these systems are building ever taller or large structures. We all get excited by these new solutions, but where we should be focusing our efforts is on the people. With a 42% increase in the last 9 months in people seeking to access learning about offsite through www.supplychainschool.co.uk there is clearly a demand, but is this enough? Whether you want to build 44 stories of residential in Croydon, a new airport terminal in Dublin, or indeed apply offsite systems to the stations and platforms of Crossrail there are systems suitable to do just this and much more. These great projects do much to make the business case for offsite, add to this the ever growing list of articles and white papers that have set out the business case and advantages that offsite can bring and we should by now need no further convincing that we need to build better and to do this we need to build differently. Increased investment in construction industrialisation Offsite, or perhaps a better term is Construction Industrialisation, provides an obvious answer to this need and it is indeed encouraging to see its adoption in the UK is being backed by HM Government, infrastructure clients and increasingly by house builders. This has created the conditions where we are seeing significant investments not just by the leading industry players such as Laing O’Rourke, McAvoy and Elliott, but also from outsider such as Goldman Sachs, Sekisui and Legal & General. 10
Member News
Investment in new manufacturing facilities is indeed important, but in the rush to expand capacity we must not forget that it’s the people and the processes they develop that will ultimately be the deciding factor on whether these investments, indeed the wider adoption of offsite, will be successful or not.
Skills gap or skills shortage? It is common to hear about the struggle to get the right talent. The skills gap and skills shortage get regular mentions, but what do we mean by these terms? Dealing with the
latter first; the threat to our industry of the ageing workforce and our ability to attract new and diverse talent was clearly laid out in “Modernise or Die” by Mark Farmer. The skills shortage is one completely of our own making, our business models are project led and this means we focus on the short term need for labour rather than investing in the long-term pipeline of talent. Building a pipeline of talent The Offsite sector is in danger of making the same mistakes. Laing O’Rourke has led the development of the Construction Assembly and Installation Operative Apprenticeship. The Manufacturing Technology Centre are currently developing learning to upskill colleges in the principles of good offsite factories. But both organisations are struggling to persuade colleges to invest in developing their capability to deliver these new qualifications. Rather than bemoan the lack of talent, employers and colleges need to collaborate to form a national network of regional colleges that can inspire the next generation.
need to do differently to embed an offsite approach through the RIBA Plan of Work stages? Equally if I’m a cost consultant or procurement manager how will the forms of contract change, how do a I value work in a factory and how do I assess the ability of the supply chain to deliver. Courses are also in the pipeline for Project Managers, Site Managers and Logistics Managers which will deal with the practicalities of setting up the sites for offsite. Developing management skills It is not just these practical skills that are required, research by the www. supplychainschool.co.uk has revealed that we also need to equip managers with an industrialisation mindset. These are the skills to innovate, collaborate, make the business case for, and then lead, change. The
construction industrialisation wheel depicts the interaction between these practical and management skills, but Volume 2 of Kier’s “The Choice Factory”, makes a great case for the need for behavioural change to drive the adoption of offsite. Invest in our people to avoid stalling the offsite revolution Looking at the investments being made by our industry we need to ensure that we also upskill our workforce and work with colleges to ensure that the next generation are equipped to meet our needs. Without this investment in our people the offsite revolution may once again stall.
Educating our current workforce The other half of the problem is the Skills Gap. That is our current workforce are not being educated on how adopting an offsite solution will affect there day to day decision making. www.supplychainschool. co.uk, is currently developing new training materials to address this issue. If I’m and architect what do I Member News
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IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT MODULAR Nigel Ostime and Michael Judd, Hawkins\Brown Architects When we talk to clients about using modern methods of construction, we often get the sense that they are thinking about volumetric systems and not the other categories the government helpfully set out a year ago.
At Hawkins\Brown we like to say that in the same way BIM is not just Revit, DfMA is more than one product or method.�
In March 2019 the Government published its seven MMC categories for the housing sector. The categories were developed to improve stakeholder understanding of MMC, and particularly to enable better access to mortgage finance, insurance and assurance. The categories span all types of pre-manufacturing, site-based materials and process innovation. In an industry infamous for its arcane acronyms, it is an important first step in promoting MMC that we use a common language and these categories do that.
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Member News
We don’t need to sell the message to this audience but implementing a manufacturing ethos into construction could be transformative. Offsite is not suitable for all projects but most can adopt a percentage of the build using it. We talk about ‘pre-manufactured value’ (PMV) denoting the amount of offsite there is in a project. At the top end of the scale, a Category 1, fully volumetric project might achieve 75-80% PMV. It is however just one of the seven categories of MMC and designers need to understand all of them and bring them to bear on their projects to bring the benefits in cost, programme, quality, safety and productivity that can be accrued. There is no right amount of PMV but building designers should keep an open mind and look for opportunities to optimise it. Architects need to prioritise high quality deign and placemaking. To achieve this with a manufacturing mindset, this we need to define the project’s DfMA goals from the outset. Design teams need to be appointed differently: engineers and manufacturers need to complement the architect in the pre-planning application stage. Procurement needs to be changed: no more D&B! It is virtually impossible to implement a DfMA process using single-stage design and build procurement as it makes early introduction of the specialists very difficult, if not impossible, and legislates against the necessary design ‘fixity’. The project team must be collaborative, not combative. The form of appointment used is critical in achieving this. Design coordination and technological criteria must be brought forward for consideration during RIBA Stage 2/3 and not left until the technical design or construction in Stages 4 and 5. Early consideration of site logistics is key to finding the right construction/ assembly solution.
THE OPTIONEERING PROCESS Hawkins\Brown has invested heavily in digital technology and to develop knowledg of the offsite market. Our approach is not to evangelise one system but to recognise the range of options and identify what is appropriate for the particular site, the project brief and the building type and to optimise ‘pre-manufactured value’ to the extent that it improves one or more of cost certainty, programme certainty, quality and sustainability. Category 1 volumetric pre-assembly has its place and works well for those buildings suited to it and where the market has capacity. But in practice its potential is limited.
Member News
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PLOT 6, EAST VILLAGE, STRATFORD In Hawkins\Brown’s experience, Categories 2, 3 and 5 provide more flexibility and more widespread potential. Our project at Plot 6, East Village in Stratford is a good example. Designed for Qatari Diar/ Delancey and Get Living London and being assembled by Mace, the project uses the High Rise Solutions (HRS) system, a combination of Categories 2 and 3, along with Category 5 bathroom pods, utility cupboards and services risers. The HRS system combines the latest advances in digital technology with a new offsite manufacturing approach to construct buildings faster, safer and to a consistently higher quality. Using parametric modelling tools and artificial intelligence, HRS is able to draw from a catalogue of components to design and manufacture the structure and façade sub-assemblies offsite. This converts site activities to an assembly process by installing modules concurrently with bathroom pods, utility cupboards and MEP service modules. The process drastically reduces programme and improves productivity by up to six times compared to current industry performance. Split across two towers of 26 and 31 stories, the project will deliver 524 new homes. The construction programme has been reduced by 18 weeks with 20% less workers onsite compared to a traditional building approach.
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STUDENT CENTRE, UNIVERSITY OF LANCASTER (UCLAN) Student Centres are often occupied in unpredictable and changing ways. Hawkins\Brown have designed the UCLan building to be a flexible loose-fit container, offering a range of different spaces that can change over time, responding to new ways of learning. Once complete the student centre will deliver 7,500sqm of learning and support spaces. Sat between two new public squares the building will form the gateway to the UCLan campus. Clad in perforate sinusoidal aluminium. The early aspiration was for a CLT structure to reduce the scheme’s embodied carbon and provide a ‘warm’ learning environment however the variety of spaces necessitated by the client brief proved unachievable. The design team developed a hybrid of steel post and beam frame with CLT floors and roof deck.
CITY OF LONDON FREEMANS SCHOOL SWIMMING POOL The scheme provides a 25m, six lane competition pool with associated changing facilities and a flexible teaching / event space. The building needed to be sensitively located and designed to minimise its impact on the school’s Grade II* listed landscape. It was also important to conceal the building from the school’s Grade II* listed Main House. The proposal nestles into the landscape by partially submerging the lower ground floor. A dark copper colour standing seam cladding was chosen and this is articulated with vertical ribs which help to meld the building and landscape. Standing seam cladding is utilised because it is a more traditional form of construction which responds to key features of the listed Main House. The deep columns of the all-timber construction and wrap-around glazing, which afford direct views from the water into the woodland, give the sense of swimming amongst the trees. The internally expressive structure consists of a timber glulam portal frame braced with CLT providing a self-finished natural timber interior.
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TOTTENHAM COURT ROAD STATION OVER-SITE DEVELOPMENT The over-site development above the new Western Ticket Hall at Tottenham Court Road Station provides retail space and 92 high-end residential units across two characteristically distinct blocks. Block C is larger in scale and the materiality reflects ‘retail-centric’ Oxford Street onto which it fronts, whilst Block D responds to the Soho aesthetic, with traditional brick and concrete cladding split into 3 distinctive blocks to reflect the historic Georgian townhouse typology synonymous with the Soho context. Developing above and around transport infrastructure is complex, the interfaces and technical constraints are demanding, and the construction of the OSD must not compromise the operation of the railway. The use of BIM has been key in the detailed design of the project to understand the complex interfaces with the ticket hall and coordinate the design with the station team and specialist sub-contractors. DfMA techniques and considered construction programming are being utilised to explore opportunities for ‘scaffold-free’ construction with no disruption to the operations of the Western Ticket Hall below. The design required the consideration of interlocking programmes of the over-site development and station, which were designed to maximise active frontages for the station and the proposed commercial developments. The proposals also considered the reconfiguration and redesign of the public realm that served the station and the wider environs.
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GREENFORD GREEN Greystar’s Greenford Green regeneration project will create a new and exciting mixed-use neighbourhood that breathes new life into this once thriving, but long-underused, canal-side site. The regeneration will establish a new community, renting high quality, purposed-designed and well managed homes, with facilities of exceptional quality, stitched into the fabric of the surrounding neighbourhood. A large part of the project has been the development of an efficient ‘E’ plan (in collaboration with lead architect HTA), to generate a greater connection of apartments to social amenity space and the concierge in line with Greystar’s management model. This has resulted in a six-storey primary layer of accommodation, with 45 apartments per floor, above ground level restaurants and parking. All apartments connect directly with the ground floor concierge. The ‘E’ blocks are repeated around the masterplan, under the design of a different architect for each block to create brand variety, whilst allowing consistency of management. These blocks have been designed using Greystar’s standard unit layouts which have been specifically developed to be delivered using category 1 volumetric modular construction.
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PEPPER CANYON – SAN DIEGO, US The Hawkins\Brown Los Angeles office has been collaborating with Perkins & Will and Clark Construction on a student residential development for the University of California in San Diego. The scheme comprises two towers with ‘C’ shaped tails and will deliver 1400 beds once completed. Both the client and contractor were keen to explore what could be achieved utilising offsite construction, to both de-risk the programme and reduce the pressure on the university, and city’s already overloaded transport network. Hawkins\Brown were appointed specifically to lead MMC integration on the scheme and have been working closely with the design team and contractor to establish supply chain capability and capacity, test options across all facets of the building from structure bathroom pods and advise on standardised component design.
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HOW MODERN METHODS OF CONSTRUCTION CAN POSITIVELY IMPACT SOCIAL VALUE “As the construction industry continues to wrestle with the ‘productivity challenge’ at a macro scale, the Government has sought to improve national economic growth through improving wellbeing in poorer areas and narrowing productivity gaps regionally. Data analysis shows regional imbalances, with disparity in employment, investment and quality of life. To address this, the new catchphrase in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government is ‘levelling up’ – raising the economic performance in all parts of the UK. As a pioneering innovation to social value investment, Kier announces its partnership with specialists Social Profit Calculator (SPC), consultant Rider Levett Bucknall, framework specialists Pagabo and modern methods of construction (MMC) experts Akerlof, to develop a social value calculator dedicated to MMC.
By using MMC – effectively moving elements of the construction process beyond the confines of the site hoarding – we bring investment to deprived areas and sustainable jobs to their communities. The Government recognises this, reinforcing its ‘presumption in favour of’ offsite through the appointment of Mark Farmer, CEO of Cast Consultancy, as ‘champion of MMC in housebuilding’. Mark is “charged with developing the ‘construction corridor’ in the North,” starting with £30m Homes England investment to the area, announced pre-Christmas.
John Handscomb is procurement lead at Kier and oversees the business’ modern methods of construction strategy. Here, he explains how the increased use of MMC can help drive social and economic prosperity in the most deprived areas of the UK, using the Modern Methods Social Value Calculator as a tool to assist with holistic MMC comes with significant benefits, but recent research has shown that decision-making at project level. 20
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just 7% of UK construction is currently undertaken in this way. By increasing this proportion to 25%, the WPI Economics report for Heathrow shows that productivity in the sector could increase by 3.6% with much of this growth coming in areas of the country that would most welcome it. The report also concludes that significant expertise and experience of offsite manufacture currently sits outside of the capital and, coupled with lower land and labour costs, this means that increased offsite manufacture will provide significant economic benefits to regions outside of the major cities and particularly London. Modelling in this report shows that, by boosting employment and utilising skills and expertise outside of the Capital spur to growth outside of London could be worth some £15 billion. Our map below illustrates the location of offsite manufacturing facilities mapped against areas of deprivation. It demonstrates how an increase in MMC provides the opportunity to address construction skills shortages in London and the South East by moving activities from these regions and creating sustainable employment in other parts of the UK.
Our Modern Methods Social Value Calculator will enable the assessment and visualisation of social value to identify the holistic impact of construction, not just on site, but also at manufacturing locations through the supply chain. Whilst the promise of ‘levelling up’ sounds attractive, the ability to import holistic economic considerations into a ‘Procuring for Value’ agenda at a project level remains a challenge. Our calculator looks to addresses this hurdle. Underpinned by Industry and Office of National Statistics data, it enables the evaluation of MMC options on a broader basis than direct capital cost; quantifying the benefit of the social value investment and productivity-enhancing potential.
In simple terms, offsite manufacture is often routed in the former industrial heartlands of the Midlands and North, providing the opportunity to help rebalance the UK economy, improve national productivity and support a regionally-balanced, safer, and more sustainable construction industry.” John Handscomb, Procurement Lead at Kier Member News
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LEARN HOW THE KSB GROUP AND COBUILDER BRING INNOVATION TO ONLINE PRODUCT CONFIGURATORS Nowadays, product configuration systems are increasingly being used by manufacturing companies. Assisting customers to specify their requirements and helping them easily to find the best product for their construction project is a must-have service. Creating a credible product configurator that enables customers to quickly set up a particular product based on their specific needs is not an easy task. This is a long and complex process and it usually requires the alignment between multiple software systems. Only after that, the enduser can benefit from meaningful product information. In this article, we present you with how Cobuilder and the KSB Group collaborate to transform the manufacturer’s existing online configurator into a cutting-edge service based on real-time data. As part of the strategic agreement between the two companies, Cobuilder will facilitate the alignment between KSB’s pump configurator, 3D CAD modelling tool and the data management solution for manufacturers Cobuilder goBIM. Using Cobuilder’s Data Templates, KSB will manage a pool of digitalised product data that is structured according to the latest industry standards. Thus, not only the product data will be turned into a universally read ‘digital language’ but this would also allow 22
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linking this data to relevant 3D objects thus visualising the new configuration. The result is a huge amount of digitalized product data flowing seamlessly back and forth between various platforms to meet the needs of each individual construction project. The KSB Group have already pioneered the development of tools for the online selection and online marketing of its sophisticated products in the past. The continuous improvement of the online configurators and the associated data management is an important step taken by the manufacturer to keep their leading role on the market. As part of the new development, end-
users are only required to interact with a single interface hosted by the KSB Group. This allows them to access structured product information and 3D visualisation of the pump or valve and download all relevant information for the instance they have configured. Andrea Minerdo, Cobuilder VP Global Sales, shared: “The product manufacturers within construction are being pushed hard to provide better and better digital services. KSB is a great example of a consolidated global manufacturer being able to apply innovation in a systematic way through the adoption of industry standards. We at Cobuilder are honored to partner with KSB into developing this cutting-edge technology.”
The product manufacturers within construction are being pushed hard to provide better and better digital services. KSB is a great example of a consolidated global manufacturer being able to apply innovation in a systematic way through the adoption of industry standards. We at Cobuilder are honored to partner with KSB into developing this cuttingedge technology. Andrea Minerdo, VP Global Sales at Cobuilder
Cobuilder has a proven track record when it comes to exploiting the potential of product data in construction. With this partnership, we will achieve interoperability across multiple software systems and will provide our customers with the best possible experience while using our product configurator. Oliver Kraus, Global Executive Officer at KSB Member News
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MEMBER RESPONSES TO COVID-19 NHS NIGHTINGALE HOSPITAL NORTH WEST FINISHED WITHIN TWO WEEKS Integrated Health Projects (IHP) and its partners are proud to have been instrumental in the creation of the NHS Nightingale Hospital North West at the Manchester Central Convention Complex that opened officially on 17th April. Delivered by IHP. the joint venture between VINCI Construction UK and Sir Robert McAlpine under the ProCure 22 Framework and working alongside NHS staff, the Army, Mott MacDonald, Archus, BDP and NG Bailey, up to 1,000 people have worked 24-hours a day to complete the 750 bed hospital from scratch in a grade-2 listed building in less than two weeks. It is equipped to receive up to 750 coronavirus patients from across the region who do not need intensive care but still require treatment. The hospital has been functioning since 13 April. This releases crucial critical care beds in existing hospitals. The project has been an excellent example of collaboration across all construction disciplines, local government, the military and the NHS. IHP were asked to proceed on Saturday, 28 March and within 12 hours our team was up and running in liaison with the NHS and the Army 24
Member News
and the facility was handed over 13 days after construction began. The 14,500m2 of flooring could cover Wembley twice over; there is 104km of data cable that is the same distance as a return journey from Manchester to Liverpool; there is 45km of power cable and the 3,400m of partitioning is 17 times the height of the local Deansgate Square tower. It will be staffed by consultants, junior doctors, nurses, healthcare support workers, physiotherapists, pharmacists, occupational therapists, social workers, and a huge range of non-clinical support workers and administrators. Professor Michael McCourt, the chief executive of the Nightingale thanked all of the contractors and suppliers involved: “It has been incredibly humbling to see all the hard work that has gone into building a hospital out of nothing and in such a short period of time. No matter what your role has been, without you, this wouldn’t have been possible. Teams have worked day and night, in a challenging environment to achieve this and you should be very proud of your contribution.
“This hospital will play a crucial role in caring for Covid-19 patients and supporting hospitals across the region. By providing care for patients who no longer need to be in a critical care environment we will be helping to make sure the highest-level critical care beds are available for those patients who need them. This hospital will help save lives. On behalf of the NHS, the patients this hospital will care for and their families I want to say thank you.” John Roberts, of IHP and Regional Managing Director of VINCI Construction UK, said: “The commendation from Professor Michael McCourt sums up the enormous effort made by everyone across the project. The teamwork between contractors, the NHS staff and the army has been superb, and the project is an excellent demonstration of the partnership and commitment within the IHP team and our suppliers. Everyone has done a great job and on behalf of IHP I want to thank everyone involved particularly colleagues in VINCI Construction, Sir Robert McAlpine, Mott MacDonald, Archus, BDP and NG Bailey.”
This hospital will play a crucial role in caring for Covid-19 patients and supporting hospitals across the region. By providing care for patients who no longer need to be in a critical care environment we will be helping to make sure the highest-level critical care beds are available for those patients who need them. This hospital will help save lives. On behalf of the NHS, the patients this hospital will care for and their families I want to say thank you.� Professor Michael McCourt, Chief Executive at Nightingale
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NG BAILEY JOINS PARTNERS TO DELIVER NIGHTINGALE HOSPITAL NG Bailey is continuing to play its part supporting national efforts to combat the COVID-19 epidemic as part of the team that has transformed Harrogate Convention Centre into an NHS Nightingale hospital to serve Yorkshire and Humberside. Harrogate Convention Centre houses 500 hospital beds and is the first of the emergency ICU field hospitals created to help deal with the rising number of coronavirus cases, to operate outside a major city. From a standing start, NG Bailey prototyped and produced a suite of bespoke solutions, which included 500 prefabricated bed-head power units, 440 pipework modules units and 70 prefabricated hot water modules. The company used its offsite manufacturing expertise to construct key components for the hospital, which will be completed in less than two weeks. The use of Offsite Manufacture has been critical to the success of the installation as it has enabled rapid production of equipment whilst maintaining safe social distancing measures. There have also been 150 people working around the clock onsite installing the medical gas, pipework and power equipment. As part of the project NG Bailey has produced and installed more than 19km of pipework; 500 bed-head power modules; 3,500 socket outlets
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These are unprecedented times and as a business NG Bailey is doing what we can, in collaboration with the wider industry, to help support our fantastic NHS and deliver other critical services.” and 70 water heating/ sink modules. Driven from the company’s Offsite Manufacture base in Bradford, project logistics have been seamless with items manufactured, delivered and often installed on the same day. The UK’s largest independent engineering and services business has worked closely with the NHS, Ministry of Defence and BAM Construction. David Hurcomb, chief executive of NG Bailey, said: “We are proud to be playing our part to help deliver this vital NHS Nightingale Hospital in Harrogate and support the response to coronavirus over such a short period of time.
“It’s a real collective team effort with all parties working in partnership to project manage, mobilise supply chains, associated materials and services, and deliver for the benefit of the nation. “I’d like to thank our employees and our supply chain partners for their continued efforts and going above and beyond to deliver this at very short notice. “These are unprecedented times and as a business NG Bailey is doing what we can, in collaboration with the wider industry, to help support our fantastic NHS and deliver other critical services.”
It’s a real collective team effort with all parties working in partnership to project manage, mobilise supply chains, associated materials and services, and deliver for the benefit of the nation.
Member News
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ELLIOTT RESPONSE We know how important continuity of service and support is to our customers, we are doing everything we can to keep our depots open, and we are committed to working with you to keep your operations running as smoothly as possible.
also put in place social distancing measures for employees at our depots and on-site to ensure their safety.
We will keep you updated as the situation evolves but please rest assured we are doing everything we can to support our customers, Following the Prime Minister’s broadcast suppliers and staff through this challenging time. on Monday 23rd March 2020, and in response, we have immediately If you have any questions or concerns implemented a working from home about the measures we have put in policy for all employees based in our place, or if you would like to enquire administrative offices in Peterborough, about how we may be able to help you Leeds and Cannock and which are for at this time, please fill out a contact now, closed. form on the website, or call us on 0808 108 2222. However, our depots remain open and operational and we are currently We have put together the following operating with only a minimal useful FAQ for our customers, disruption to our supply chain. Our hopefully answering some questions priority is to keep our customers, suppliers, staff and all of their respective you may have at this time: families safe and healthy and everyone working in our depots or with you on site is fully briefed to practice good hand hygiene and we ask that our customers do the same. We have
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Can contracts be terminated for force majeure? Our standard terms do not provide for this, but if you are trading on a nonstandard contract, please discuss with your contact in Elliott. Are you still charging early return fees? Where they are included in our T&Cs, yes - an early return fee will apply to reflect the reduced hire period. We don’t know when we will need the units delivered to our site. Are we still able to place an order with Elliott? Yes, we are able to prepare and reserve units for you until you need them. Please call us or fill in a contact form, and we’ll work with you to have units ready for when you have a clearer idea of your site’s circumstances.
Are you able to defer or postpone charges on sites that have had work suspended? Unfortunately, we are not able to defer or postpone charges as long as our units remain on-site. If you are using our units, and your site has had work suspended, please speak with your Elliott point of contact to discuss your circumstances. Are you able to continue delivering, installing, dismantling and collecting units? Yes, our operations will continue as normal unless government recommendations change. Any arrangements we have made regarding times and dates for delivery and collection of units remain in place. We are constantly reviewing governmental guidelines as they change to ensure that our customers and employees remain safe during site visits. Will you continue to service and empty effluent and refill water tanks? Yes, our emptying and refilling of tanks will continue as normal. We are constantly reviewing governmental guidelines as they change to ensure that our customers and employees remain safe during maintenance visits. Are you able to provide additional hygiene and hand-washing facilities in units? The flexible nature of our products means that when you hire a unit from us, we’ll work with you to ensure we provide all the facilities you need, whatever the situation. However, please note that once a unit has gone out to your site on hire, we are unable to alter the layout further or add extra facilities. Can you provide hand sanitizer as part of your 360° offerings? Yes, hand sanitizer is available as part of our 360° packages. However, please be aware that this product is in very high demand, and we may be unable to provide as much as you may ask for. Are you still providing 360° services?
Yes, all of our normal 360° services are still completely available. Our service partners are all still operational, and we will continue to work with them to supply our customers.
- Increased the ventilation in enclosed spaces.
Are you still able to supply solutions and service in line with any tenders previously made?
- Enhanced cleaning procedures across our sites, especially at critical touchpoints including door handles, taps and hand rails.
Yes, any tenders we have completed and against which you have placed orders, we are able to fulfil. Are we able to meet your staff faceto-face, such as in a meeting or a depot visit?
- Reduced physical meetings to the minimum, replacing them with digital meetings.
The safety of our employees and customers is, and will continue to be, our number one concern as the situation develops.
We are able to arrange face-to-face meetings or depot visits where absolutely necessary, and even then only subject to appropriate government guidelines. We would propose a Skype/telephone meeting as our preferred means of communication. Should you wish for a face to face meeting please contact your Elliott representative to discuss. Can you delay deliveries? Yes, we are able to delay your delivery if necessary. We will prepare and reserve your units, and can guarantee they will be delivered at a time more suitable to you. Please contact your sales representative to discuss if you need your delivery to be delayed. What measures are you taking to protect your employees and customers from the risk of infection? We have taken steps in all our sites across the UK to protect our workers and customers. Our Peterborough, Leeds and Cannock offices have shut, and workers from those locations are now working from home. Some of the steps our operational locations have taken are: - Given every worker their own personal set of tools where possible, to minimise the risk of contact between workers. - Provided mandatory PPE to all workers to be used at all times. - Ensured the thorough cleaning of shared tools and equipment after each use.
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HOW DID WSP USE 3D PRINTERS TO SUPPORT NHS STAFF AND PUBLIC Employees from across WSP’s UK business have been maximising their free time to support public sector services, using 3D printers to deliver essential PPE for the NHS... Employees from WSP, the engineering professional services consultancy, have found alternative ways to use 3D printing to develop protective face masks, as individuals from across the UK business devise innovative ways to support public health services and the communities they serve.
3D Printers, Meryl and Denzel hard at work after 18 hours of printing
From London to Manchester and Essex to Yorkshire, WSP employees have voluntarily joined different collaborations to design, manufacture and deliver Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to public sector services. This has involved communicating with a number of clients to locate and direct hauliers containing equipment to NHS teams, as well as sourcing the necessary technology to produce the equipment being distributed, such as face masks. Peter Townsend, BIM Model Manager at WSP, is producing face masks using 3D printers to contribute around 500 face masks to the cause that are already being sent to the NHS. Peter said: “Knowing that there was a demand for essential supplies and being in a fortunate position to have the equipment solution at hand, as engineers, it is in our DNA to help in times of need which is why I didn’t hesitate to offer my support, however small. Meryl and Denzel (the printer’s names) are more than happy to help, too, even if it does mean an 18 hour day for them!”
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From London to Manchester and Essex to Peter, Townsend, BIM Model Manager Yorkshire, WSP employees have voluntarily joined at WSP showcases his first batch different collaborations to design, manufacture and deliver Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to public sector services. This has involved communicating with a number of clients to locate and direct hauliers containing equipment to NHS teams, as well as sourcing the necessary technology to produce the equipment being distributed, such as face masks.
Tim Neobard,Project Controls Manager at WSP models a test mask
Peter Townsend, BIM Model Manager at WSP, is producing face masks using 3D printers to contribute around 500 face masks to the cause that are already being sent to the NHS. Peter said: “Knowing that there was a demand for essential supplies and being in a fortunate position to have the equipment solution at hand, as engineers, it is in our DNA to help in times of need which is why I didn’t hesitate to offer my support, however small. Meryl and Denzel (the printer’s names) are more than happy to help, too, even if it does mean an 18 hour day for them!”
Tim Neobard, Project Controls Manager in WSP’s Rail, has maximised his time outside of work and is using lasers to manufacture face masks, as part of a collaboration with the East Essex community workshop, Hackspace. This method allows for a production of 400-600 face masks in in 2-3 hours in support of the NHS’s 345,000-unit requirements.
Other members of staff are similarly showing their support to communities, businesses and services, either outside of their normal working hours or electing to use designated volunteer days which WSP offers employees as part of its annual Employee Volunteering Scheme.
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THINKING BEYOND TRADITIONAL PARADIGMS TO FINANCE MODULAR CONSTRUCTION Modular construction has been touted as a way for the construction industry to overcome the challenges of a dwindling skilled labor force while also producing high-quality building components efficiently. It allows for an assembly-line approach to construction, with factory workers becoming experts at putting together their particular piece of a project. Despite the benefits, including much faster turnaround times, Chief Financial Officers have had trouble securing financing because of lenders’ unfamiliarity with it. But that’s changing.
Faster, better Modular manufacturing has two main benefits, said Henry D’Esposito, JLL’s construction research lead for the Americas: speed and quality control. “The process is carefully monitored, highly controlled, and generally safer.” In addition, while traditional construction projects can be shut down due to inclement weather, and workers risk injury, modular construction occurs in a dry, safe factory setting at ground level.
get on board with a method that has been proven to provide such benefits. Right? Well, actually, they are not. As it turns out, the square peg of modular construction is having a tough time fitting into the round hole of construction financing.
Modular’s penetration into the U.S. construction market is at about 5%, however, according to Kyung Kim, senior vice president of strategic growth markets at Avana Capital. According to a June 2019 McKinsey & Co. report, not only could modular “We’re still in the early stage of construction claim a $130 billion piece adoption,” he said. of the United States’ and Europe’s construction market, saving the industry up to $22 billion compared to Unfamiliar underwriting traditional stick-built methods, it can also reduce the standard schedule by The fundamental challenge in financing a modular project, as much as 50%. D’Esposito says, “is the timing misalignment between capital So, lenders should be clamoring to 32
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required for the manufacturing process and collateral available to the lender. “In a traditional construction project,” he said. “the lender provides capital in smaller draw packages as the project progresses, and with each draw, the building onsite becomes more complete, and therefore more valuable, as collateral. In a modular project, most of the materials and as much as half of the total cost is required upfront, and all the lender typically has as collateral is an empty lot where actual onsite assembly may still be months away.” Both developers of commercial construction projects such as hotels and multifamily housing are faced with this financing dilemma. But traditional project finance difficulties are opportunities for nontraditional lenders. Gregg Delany, managing director at real
estate capital advisory firm Eyzenberg & Co., said his company has facilitated the financing of $150 million of modular housing projects in the Southeast, stepping in where balance-sheet depository institutions would not. “What’s been hard for regional banks to understand, or at least to structure around,” he said, “is how [to] collateralize and finance when the units are in the factory, before they get to the real property and become attached to that property.”
Getting deals to happen Delany said Eyzenberg has worked with non-bank lenders, real estate investment funds and debt funds in order to make modular deals happen. Those lenders, he said, see the market opportunity and are thinking beyond traditional paradigms. In addition, the product is exceptional, he said, given today’s manufacturing standards. The units are inspected at the factory before delivery and comply with all state building codes, which are typically much higher than Housing and Urban Development (HUD) standards. Also, he added, the layouts and configurations once the units are put in place onsite are more advanced than what usually comes to mind when one is considering the aesthetics of modular or manufactured homes. “[Nontraditional lenders] realize that this type of housing actually qualifies for agency permanent financing upon stabilization and have developed with us financing mechanisms to allow for advances to fund the construction in the factories as well as once [the units] are attached and become part of the real collateral,” Delany said. “And that’s been the big innovation that we’ve developed over time by doing multiple transactions. We’ve been able to bring the community forward so that, in effect, we overfund, if you will, on the real property.” Those funds, he said, are allowed to be used as a working capital line to pay for the completed units while they are First published on
still at the manufacturing facility and after they have been inspected by both the developer and state officials. The money can also go toward roads, site work, utilities and concrete pads, as well as community amenities that one would find at most Class A apartment complexes. Lien as collateral Still, the units have not been attached to the real property at that point, so Delany said Eyzenberg uses UCC (Uniform Commercial Code) lien filings to collateralize the lenders. UCC filings are commonly used to secure financed items, like leased equipment or vehicles. While the units are being built at the factory, he said, lenders also have additional protections like third-party inspectors who verify that production is moving along. In addition, there are recourse guarantees included in the manufacturing contract plus the lender is typically listed as an additional insured. It’s all of these things taken together, Delany said, that usually wind up providing these non-traditional landers the kind of assurances they need. Working with alternative lenders also provides a little more flexibility than the traditional draw schedule and allows for friendlier prepayment terms, Delany said. “We’ve negotiated the ability to prepay in part or for components of the site, and what’s nice about that,” he said, “is that it allows you to then quickly go to permanent financing.” If, for example, Delany said, a third of the site is leased and stabilized, the owner can go quickly to permanent financing and pay off the construction loan without exit fees or expensive prepayment penalties. But traditional lenders aren’t totally out of the game when it comes to modular projects. Once projects are complete, Delany said, they are more than willing to get involved in the takeout financing. When the industry wakes up to the benefits of modular construction, he said, “there will be a stampede” of banks trying
to get into the space. Kim says high-profile projects, like the AC Marriott hotel under construction in New York City, could also drive more lenders into the modular market. The property is slated to be the tallest modular hotel in the world, and Avana, a commercial real estate debt fund, stepped in with $65 million of financing for owner 842 Enterprises. Cost is a major hurdle keeping lenders out of the modular market, Kim said. “Right now, it doesn’t really save you that much,” he said. “It’s pretty much on par to stick-built construction. The real savings is time. Time value of money is a very common corporate finance concept, but it’s not as intuitive or as tangible to most people.” For income-producing properties like hotels or apartment complexes, however, the sooner the opening, the faster owners can start realizing income and repaying investors. “There’s tremendous value in that,” he said. Another factor perhaps keeping potential modular lenders at bay, Kim said, is that right now banks like Wells Fargo and Bank of America have plenty of other deals to keep them busy. “They won’t take the risk, and they don’t need to,” he said. Again, the volume of modular construction can’t compare to traditionally built projects. So, what will it take to get traditional lenders into the modular sector? First, project teams need to keep getting it right. This means that developers need to make sure they have the right architect, engineer, general contractor, manufacturer — people with experience in factorybuilt construction and a building team with experience. The right team is very important, Kim said, because this is still the early stages of [modular], and everybody’s learning with each transaction. As far as widespread adoption is concerned, he said, “It’s kind of the chicken or the egg, Until higher adoption occurs, and they have to make that mind shift, they won’t.”
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A STATEMENT TO INDUSTRY FROM KEITH WALLER, CONSTRUCTION INNOVATION HUB With the current global crisis surrounding COVID-19, we know that society is facing unprecedented and uncertain times ahead. Ultimately, this is likely to have a significant impact on the construction sector and consequently many of the communities we live and work in. The Construction Innovation Hub is working closely with government and the leading sector trade bodies to do all we can to provide stability to the industry. As the Construction Innovation Hub, we truly believe that by working collaboratively, we can increase sector resilience and face this challenge together. It’s our goal to be as transparent and proactive as possible through these difficult times, as we continue the delivery of our programme. We continue to work alongside the Construction Leadership Council, the leading sector trade bodies and government to help ensure that the UK economy is resilient in the face of this complex situation. As the landscape continues to evolve at a pace, we would like to encourage you to find the latest updates through our partner websites, as detailed below: Our industry partner Build UK have created a dedicated online resource to provide accessible industry information and guidance. Over the coming days this will continue to be populated, please check back regularly for further updates: www. builduk.org/coronavirus. Furthermore, in addition to contractors, many of the strategic partners we are working with are engineering and technical consultants – both large and small. The Association of Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) have produced guidance that provides specific advice through a consultancy lens. This is updated daily and can be accessed at www.acenet.co.uk/news/ ace-news/coronavirus-what-you-need-to-know/ Internally, we have already adapted our working practices to ensure we can continue to collaborate and minimise disruption to our programme. Over recent weeks we have prepared our teams for remote working and have a suite of digital tools to enable us to stay connected with all our stakeholders. Finally, we know that COVID-19 is likely to have a deep impact on our sector, however by facing this challenge collectively, we have confidence that the construction industry will emerge as a more robust and connected sector on the other side. We continue to remain absolutely committed to enabling cross-sector dialogue and the delivery of a programme that reflects industry needs. We wish good health for all of you at this time. Yours sincerely, Keith Waller Programme Director 34
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Keith Waller, Programme Director
As the Construction Innovation Hub, we truly believe that by working collaboratively, we can increase sector resilience and face this challenge together. It’s our goal to be as transparent and proactive as possible through these difficult times, as we continue the delivery of our programme.� CIH News
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CDBB LAUNCHES PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON BIM INTEROPERABILITY The Centre for Digital Built Britain (CDBB), a partner of the Construction Innovation Hub, opens public consultation on Building Information Management (BIM) Interoperability Report recommendations to government. On 17 April 2020 CDBB, a partner in the Construction Innovation Hub, has published The Building Information Modelling (BIM) Interoperability Report for consultation. It forms part of the Construction Innovation Hub’s work to grow the digital economy for the construction and infrastructure sector, and to develop and promote digital ways of working as enablers of greater whole-life-value in the built environment. The report, produced with oversight from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), the Infrastructure Projects Authority (IPA), and support from the UK BIM Alliance, gives recommendations to Government on how to continue to support existing BIM policy, referred to as the ‘BIM Mandate’ and implement a series of recommendations in order to achieve interoperable information exchange across the asset lifecycle. The report is based on evidence provided to CDBB’s BIM Interoperability Expert Group (BIEG) committee by 21 organisations during open evidence gathering sessions and through written submission in December 2019 and January 2020. Participants included practitioners (both client and supply sides), technology providers and supporting organisations such as institutions, academia, standardisation bodies and BIM consultants. Key themes included: the need for continued government leadership, greater standardisation, , education and upskilling; and support of the development of the Industry Foundation Class and model view definitions, including COBie, to support all asset types . In response to the evidence received, the top level recommendations of the BIEG are that:
1. 2. 3.
Central Government intervention is required: the existing BIM Mandate is further developed to reflect recent technology, standards and process developments in order to deliver open interoperable data; A coordination group is required to ensure continued adoption: the BIM Mandate is supported by the formation of a new BIM Interoperability Steering Group to provide leadership, oversight and coordination; and The UK should increase its support for the development and adoption of a set of recommended enablers as part of the evolving BIM mandate: the Steering Group must have funding and resources available for the development and adoption of the primary recommendations and enablers identified as part of the evidence gathering:
1. 2. 3. 4.
Classification Schema Alignment with NBS COBie – practical application and development with the UK BIM Alliance and buildingSMART UKI Education and skills Further development of Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) with building SMART international and its UK/Ireland chapter 5. Standards The recommendations made in the report aim to greatly increase the benefits gained from improved interoperability, across all parties, including Government and supplier organisations; and to ensure that the momentum UK BIM adoption has achieved to date is maintained. 36
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The recommendations presented in the BIM Interoperability Expert Group Report provide a clear pathway for the UK to drive the digital ways of working that will support economic recovery, increase building safety, move towards net-zero, and improve overall sector resilience.”
Keith Waller, Programme Director
Professor Andy Neely OBE, Director of CDBB and Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Enterprise and Business Relations at the University of Cambridge said: “Interoperability is pivotal to creating a new information economy and business opportunities for the UK, by providing a means of information transfer between different proprietary technologies. Breaking down barriers to information sharing, through the joined-up efforts of industry, academia, and government with the BIEG, Construction Innovation Hub and the National Digital Twin Programme, will deliver a Britain fit for the future, and build on the nation’s position as a globalleader in the digital transformation of the construction and infrastructure sectors.” Fiona Moore, BIEG Chair said: “This is an inclusive process which aims to provide wide industry and societal benefits in both the short and long term, by providing clear leadership on the UK’s information management journey, from BIM and digital twins, to a National Digital Twin. I would like to personally thank all those who have provided evidence to date, and encourage wide participation in this consultation. Through coming together to share expertise and insights we will all advance faster.” The public consultation will be held from 17 April to 15 May 2020, with the final Report and key recommendations to be published on Thursday, 28 May 2020. Views may be submitted via web form at https://www.cdbb.cam.ac.uk/news/biminteroperability-expert-group-report or by emailing Alanna Gluck, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at alanna.gluck@cdbb. cam.ac.uk.
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£1.25BN INNOVATION FUND WELCOMED BY CONSTRUCTION CHIEF Construction Innovation Hub programme director Keith Waller has welcomed the creation of the government’s £1.25bn innovation fund. Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced the fund “to protect firms driving innovation in UK”. The fund includes a £500M investment fund for high-growth companies impacted by the crisis, made up of funding from government and the private sector. SMEs focusing on research and development will also benefit from £750M of grants and loans. Waller said: “I really welcome the Chancellor’s announcement this morning. In the Construction Innovation Hub, we are fortunate to already be working with a number of leading innovators who make a real difference in how our sector can impact peoples’ lives. “It is vital we continue to encourage them so we can exit this crisis with thriving innovative businesses helping to shape the future, not simply seeking to repeat the past.” Delivered in partnership with the British Business Bank and launching in May, the fund will provide UK-based companies with between £125,000 and £5M from the government, with private investors at least matching the government commitment. These loans will automatically convert into equity on the company’s next qualifying funding round, or at the end of the loan if they are not repaid. To be eligible, a business must be an unlisted UK registered company that has previously raised at least £250,000 in equity investment from third party investors in the last five years. Sunak added: “Britain is a global leader when it comes to innovation. Our start-ups and businesses driving research and development are one of our great economic strengths, and will help power our growth out of the coronavirus crisis. “This new, world-leading fund will mean they can access the capital they need at this difficult time, ensuring dynamic, fastgrowing firms across all sectors will be able to continue to create new ideas and spread prosperity.”
I really welcome the Chancellor’s announcement this morning. In the Construction Innovation Hub, we are fortunate to already be working with a number of leading innovators who make a real difference in how our sector can impact peoples” Keith Waller, Programme Director
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NIGHTINGALE HOSPITALS OFFER A GLIMPSE OF CONSTRUCTION’S FUTURE buildings using a predefined ‘kit of parts’. One of those companies, Mace, played the central role of construction and project manager in transforming ExCeL from conference venue into Nightingale hospital.
Trudy Sully
Impact Director for manufacturing CIH
Last month, like many others in the construction sector, I was in east London for the annual Futurebuild trade show. Over the two days I spent in that cavernous exhibition hall at ExCeL, I was struck by the hundreds of innovative companies, from tiny startups to household names, each seeking to push the boundaries of what’s possible through innovative products and new ways of doing things. How the world has changed in such a short period of time. By 3 April – one month to the day after Futurebuild ended – those same exhibition halls had been transformed into the first of the NHS Nightingale hospitals, with 5,000 beds and 80 wards. Our national media marvelled at how this impressive feat could be accomplished in only nine days but, for me, it was above all else a vivid demonstration of construction’s ability to rapidly respond, collaborate and deliver. On the front line in building those lifesaving hospitals are our Platform Design Programme integrators, which, before this current crisis began, were already leading the charge for transformative change, working collaboratively to develop ways of delivering critical new social infrastructure
Stepping up when needed As demand has grown rapidly for more of these lifesaving facilities around the country to stem the rising number of cases, our platform integrator companies have promptly stepped forward and answered the call. “When we look back in years to come, I hope we will say that when our country faced the worst, our construction sector was at its best” Kier is transforming the University of the West of England’s conference centre into another Nightingale hospital with capacity for 1,000 beds. Meanwhile in Manchester, Vinci has worked alongside Sir Robert McAlpine as part of a joint venture known as IHP to turn the Central Convention Complex into a 750-bed facility. In Yorkshire, the country watched as 99-year-old war veteran Captain Tom Moore opened a 500-bed facility at Harrogate Convention Centre, now dubbed NHS Nightingale Yorkshire, which was delivered by our platform partners Bam Construction and NG Bailey working in close collaboration. Meanwhile, another of our platform partners, Mid Group, has been delivering badly needed extra intensive care capacity at east London’s Newham Hospital, adding to the facility’s existing 340 beds.
developed and using standardised designs and components, our partners are demonstrating the power and transformative potential of a modern and collaborative approach to delivering quality at pace. This is something our Platform Design Programme will continue to build on. When we look back on this period in years to come, I hope we will say that when our country faced the worst, our construction sector was at its best, collaborating and innovating to help save lives. Maintaining the energy But looking to the more immediate future, as the recovery begins, we need to build on the legacy of what our sector has achieved during this time of crisis. As we begin to focus once again on the task of building not just hospitals, but also schools and other vital social infrastructure, we cannot afford to run the risk of continuing with traditional, wasteful and inefficient practices. On the contrary, we need to channel that same innovation and energy we saw in the COVID-19 response to accelerate the pace of transformation so that the sector not only recovers, but emerges stronger and more robust for the future. Through their collaborative efforts in this time of national crisis, our Platform Design Programme partner companies have demonstrated – in the clearest possible terms – the positive outcomes that construction can deliver for society. Let’s make sure we build on this positive legacy to create a better future not just for construction, but for the society that depends upon it.
By applying modern methods of construction with rapid solutions CIH News
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