Construction Global – December 2019

U.S. Green Building Council: Exploring sustainable solutions

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FOREWORD

W

elcome to the December issue of Construction Global magazine!

Our cover stars this month are building the digital future. Data centre giants Digital Realty are innovating to deliver hyper-personalised data centre services from the single rack to the hyperscale.

“We build, design and operate some of the most highly interconnected data centres in the world,” says Corey Dyer, EVP of Global Sales and Marketing, who reveals the company’s plans for expansion in South Korea and gives us the lowdown on Platform Digital.

We hear from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) on how sustainable construction sites can drive the industry forward. Targeting reduced CO2 emissions, the green construction market is predicted to grow by 10% each year.

USGBC President Mahesh Ramanujam explains how your business can be part of the green solution with the advancement of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).

Our country focus examines the challenges UK construction faces meeting net-zero targets for 2050. Thornton

Tomasetti’s Sustainability Lead Duncan Cox argues that in order to deliver netzero buildings that are truly sustainable, we must consider the ‘whole life carbon’ of the building from the outset.

Meanwhile, we get up to speed on HS2 and learn how a joint venture between Skanska, Costain and Strabag is utilising BIM (Building Information Modeling) and GIS (Geographic Information System) integration to support a shared platform for data that promotes efficiency by building a common visualisation environment.

We also profile eStruxture Data Centers and learn how Randall Construction is cementing its position as the leading self-perform in Florida by investing in innovation to deliver market disrupting services across an impressive portfolio of business units.

Do you have a story to tell? Email daniel.brightmore@bizclikmedia.com to join the conversation with Construction Global.

Enjoy the issue!

Daniel Brightmore, Editor w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

03

WE ARE

A SOLID FOUNDATION OF TURNING SMALL ACTIONS INTO BIG GAINS

Founded in 1996, we are a construction services company based in Malaysia with over 20 years of operating history and are principally engaged in provision of a wide range of construction services. The group was founded with a mission to pursue sustainable engineering models in a competitive resource-heavy sector.

BGMC stand today as a builder of good repute positioned to make our mark beyond Malaysian shores. On the back of a solid trajectory of growth, the Group listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (HKEX) on 9 August, 2017. Our successful listing in Asia’s financial centre places us at an advantage to leverage the Belt and Road Initiative, paving the way into key Southeast Asian markets for accelerated growth.

Concession & Maintenance will be a priority in coming years to sustain long-term cash inflow. Meanwhile, we will be increasing our assets through acquisition of more advanced machinery and technology. We will also be strengthening our portfolio through collaboration, partnership agreements, or merger and acquisition. Ultimately, BGMC stands for a sustainable future where our people, clients, and surrounding communities can thrive for generations to come.

2.0

www.bgmc.asia

THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF WAYS TO BUILD WE ARE JUST GOOD AT FINDING SMARTER AND FASTER WAYS TO DO IT.

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CONTENTS

Inside Digital Realty’s strategy for an agile, interconnected world

28

10

40

HS2 BREAKING BARRIERS WITH BIM-GIS INTEGRATION

54 WAYS TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY

68

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12

DECEMBER 2019

Inside Digital Realty’s strategy for an agile, interconnected world WRITTEN BY

HARRY MENEAR PRODUCED BY

TOM VENTURO

w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

13

D I G I TA L R E A LT Y

Tony Bishop and Corey Dyer of Digital Realty discuss the data centre giant’s ongoing efforts to offer hyper-personalised data centre services from the single rack to the hyperscale

T

he global business landscape is experiencing a sea change. This transformation is permeating every industry

and market, seeing enterprises in the public and 14

private sectors swept along by a rising tide of demand for interconnected digital services. The ongoing transformation of the global economy is increasing the need for a wider array of digital infrastructure solutions, and is driving a seismic evolution on a global scale. “We’re the best positioned in the industry to address the broadest range of requirements. We build, design and operate some of the most highly interconnected data centres in the world,” says Corey Dyer, EVP of Global Sales and Marketing for Digital Realty.

Arriving at Digital Realty in January 2019, Dyer can look back on a year of continued growth and strategic success. Now, he and the rest of Digital Realty are looking forward, as the company embarks on the next phase of its digital transformation voyage.

DECEMBER 2019

2004

Year founded

$3bn+ Approximate revenue

1,500

Approximate number of employees 15

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Founded in 2004, Digital Realty supports the digital infrastructure needs of more than 2,000 companies across the Americas, EMEA and APAC, with industry-leading data centre, colocation and interconnection services. Being uniquely positioned as the largest provider of data centre and digital infrastructure solutions worldwide gives Digital Realty the opportunity to not only navigate the tides of change, but also direct them to help create even more value for its customers.

“The digital economy is remaking

“ The digital economy is remaking both private and public enterprises across all industries, transforming how they create and deliver value” — Tony Bishop, SVP, Platform and Ecosystem Strategy

both private and public enterprises across all industries, transforming how they create and deliver value,” says Tony Bishop, SVP of Platform and Ecosystem Strategy at Digital Realty. Now more than ever, Bishop believes, companies need to operate ubiquitously, providing on-demand services to customers, partners and employees enabled by intelligent analytics. “Companies are being forced to re-architect their IT towards a decentralised infrastructure to accommodate distributed workflows, which vary by participant, application, information and location w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

17

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘AARON BINKLEY ON THE ROLE DATA CENTERS PLAY IN SUSTAINABILITY’ 19 specific needs,” he elaborates.

infrastructure, a “one-stop solution

Dyer agrees. “These customers

that helps to interconnect their entire

need a platform that allows them

digital ecosystem,” enthuses Bishop.

to augment and change things in

“Customers will get to collaborate at

real time,” he says.

scale to solve the problems of global

From this market-wide demand

coverage and capacity through one

for solutions to the increasingly

provider; tailor their infrastructure

mission critical nature of agile,

deployments to their business needs,

on-demand capability is at the

irrespective of data centre size, scale

heart of Digital Realty’s newest

or location; and operate their deploy-

offering: PlatformDIGITAL™.

ments as a seamless extension of

Scheduled for launch this month

their global infrastructure to enable

at the company’s MarketplaceLIVE

globally distributed workflows.”

event in New York, PlatformDIGITAL™ is a new way of approaching digital

Digital Realty is a genuine global partner, placing customer service w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

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at the heart of its business strategy.

“From a single cabinet, up to multiple

Dyer notes that the company is

megawatts, we’re a one stop shop for

uniquely positioned to deliver a ser-

all their infrastructure needs.” This

vice that is unavailable anywhere else

will be key to Digital Realty’s creation

in the data centre space. “We’re really

of a truly interconnected infrastruc-

the only provider that operates globally

ture offering. “We’re refocusing our

at scale, but at the same time, we

business to take advantage of this

offer this highly tailored experience

unprecedented opportunity and

to each individual customer,” he says.

become the global partner that helps

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Corey Dyer Corey Dyer is Executive Vice President, Global Sales & Marketing, with responsibility for sales, leasing and marketing efforts across the organisation.

Prior to joining Digital Realty, Dyer served as Senior Vice President, Sales, Americas at Equinix, where he had responsibility for sales across the Americas region. Before joining Equinix, Corey worked at Hewlett-Packard, where he served as Vice President, Storage Sales, Canada and led the firm’s Canadian storage business. Previously, he held various sales and sales leadership positions at Dell, primarily in the server, software and peripheral businesses. Corey has over 25 years of experience as a sales leader with a track record of building and driving sales and marketing operations at leading technology companies.

He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Wake Forest University.

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21

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companies manage their digital

and other industries. We’re bringing

transformation with their data centre

together the community that builds

infrastructure as the foundation,”

the cloud, network and internet

says Bishop.

infrastructure to demonstrate how

At MarketplaceLIVE, the company

PlatformDIGITAL™ is built to lead

will launch PlatformDIGITAL™. The

companies into the future of the

event – taking place on 7 November

digital economy,” says Bishop. This

at Spring Studios – is intended to

future that Digital Realty is helping

facilitate discussions around the

create for (and with) its clients and

future of digital transformation.

partners is defined by interconnec-

“We’ll host conversations around

tion and the ways in which coming

connectivity and connected tech-

together fosters collaboration. “It’s a

nology across AI, cloud computing

huge opportunity for us to connect, w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

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“ We’re really the only provider that operates globally at scale, but at the same time, we offer this highly tailored experience to each individual customer” — Corey Dyer, EVP, Sales and Marketing

not only with our customers but with our partner world,” says Dyer.

In addition to being an infrastructure provider, Digital Realty acts as a facilitator of expertise and connections to its client network. Offering a full range of fit-for-purpose data center solutions, from single cabinet colocation to private hyperscale facilities, Dyer remarks that there really is no end to the variation in the relationships and support structures Digital Realty provides. “Because we have such a strong partner community, we can be very agile in how

DECEMBER 2019

we support our customers in such a

business has also completed the

fast-paced environment.”

acquisition

Digital Realty is continuing to grow,

of data centre infrastructure

both in scale and agility, through a

company Ascenty and entered into

combination of organic and acqui-

joint ventures related to three of

sition-fueled growth. In 2015, the

its data centres.

company completed its acquisition

The past year alone has seen

of data centre solutions company

Digital Realty expand its operations

Telx in a deal valued in excess of

in Frankfurt, Tokyo, Chicago, Dublin,

US$1.8bn. “The Telx acquisition

Northern Virginia, Brazil and more,

has been a huge boost to us and

as well as announcing plans to enter

our ability to provide interconnec-

the South Korean market for the

tion, which massively helped us build

first time. A large element of Digital

PlatformDIGITAL™,” Dyer explains. In

Realty’s growth is self-funded, an

addition to the Telx acquisition, the

impressive feat given what Dyer

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Tony Bishop As part of the Digital Realty CTO team, Tony plays a central role in helping the organisation build a differentiated global platform and ecosystem strategy to enable enterprises and services providers to accelerate their digital business strategies on PlatformDIGITAL™.

Prior to Digital Realty, Bishop served as VP of Global Enterprise at Equinix, Chief Strategy Officer for 451 Research and served at Morgan Stanley as Managing Director, Global Head of Enterprise Datacenter Operations & Strategy.

He is the author of Next Generation Datacenters – Driving Extreme Efficiency & Effective Costs Savings ( July 2009).

w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

25

D I G I TA L R E A LT Y

describes as the “capital intensive” nature of the industry. In September, the company sold 10 of its Powered Base Buildings® to Singaporian real estate developer Mapletree Investments, along with the establishment of a joint venture to co-manage three more facilities. The deal saw Digital Realty generate around $1.4bn in capital. “The transaction is going to allow us to continue selffunding our growth, diversify some of our sources of equity and capital, and really let us harvest value from our 26

fully stabilised assets so that we can redeploy the proceeds into higher

“ MarketplaceLIVE is a huge opportunity for us to connect, not only with our customers but with our partner world” — Corey Dyer, EVP, Sales and Marketing

yielding development opportunities,” Dyer explains. “It continues to build on our global expansions, and lets us stay focused on our core markets and the assets that we think drive the most value to our customers. It also reduces our reliance on capital markets, which can be volatile.”

As a leading builder and operator of data centre infrastructure, Digital Realty is aware of the role it has to play in the evolution of the market as a whole. Given that global internet

DECEMBER 2019

several Northern California properties, and boasting more certified green buildings than any other data centre provider. “Reducing our environmental impact is a priority for us,” says Dyer. “Our long-term goal is to pursue 100% renewable energy for our global portfolio.”

The launch of PlatformDIGITAL™ at MarketplaceLIVE is the highlight of a year filled with global growth and billion-dollar deals, highlighting its importance to the company’s strategy. “The launch is going to be the big mover for us, and I’m very excited,” says Dyer. “It’s going to have a huge impact on our business, and our customers’ businesses as well.” usage has tripled since 2015, and is

Harnessing its industry leading scale,

predicted to double again by 2022,

its commitment to providing a per-

managing the amount of power con-

sonalised service to suit the needs

sumed by the world’s data centres

of each individual customer and an

and networks is key to operators’

increasingly sustainable portfolio,

sustainability goals. Digital Realty

Digital Realty is set to enter 2020 as

continues to set and exceed ambi-

a force for intelligent, interconnected

tious sustainability and renewable

digital infrastructure solutions.

energy goals, achieving 100% renewable energy for its EMEA portfolio, 100% wind power for its US colocation business unit, 100% carbon free and renewable power supplied to w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

27

LEADERSHIP 4.0

28

GREEN MEANS GO

In collaboration with Shell Commercial Fuels, Construction Global hears from Mahesh Ramanujam, President and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council, how sustainable construction sites are driving the industry forward WRITTEN BY

DECEMBER 2019

DAN BRIGHT MORE

29

w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

LEADERSHIP 4.0

E

ach year, the global construction industry uses three billion tonnes of materials.

Worldwide, this sector is responsible for

23% of all CO2 emissions. It’s little wonder then,

that public and investor demand for green construction projects continues to grow.

Between 2018 and 2023, analysts predict that the green construction market will grow by 10.26% each year. Rising environmental awareness and measures are further pushing the sustainability of the building industry up today’s agenda, too.

However, sustainability is not just about doing the right thing from an environmental perspective.

30

It’s also about doing what’s profitable — and thus sustainable — from a commercial perspective. A report by Morgan Stanley found that projects constructed using certified—sustainable materials and project management techniques have lease-up rates 20% faster than average, while commanding a 3% rent premium. Moreover, the 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer — an annual trust and credibility survey — reported that 73% agree that companies can help improve society and the communities they operate in, while at the same time, increasing their profit margins.

However, while many construction companies take great pains to ensure that the materials they use, and the design of the construction project, meet the highest ‘green’ standards, the end-to-end sustainability of the site (or the construction process itself) is often overlooked.

DECEMBER 2019

31

Thus, the question arises: what can real— estate and infrastructure developers do to make their construction sites greener?

WHAT MAKES A PROJECT GREEN? “Did you know, a typical 134hp bulldozer can emit the same amount of particulates as five modern cars?”, Mahesh Ramanujam, the President and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council, animatedly explains, noting the pitfalls of not taking care of site sustainability. “So, you’ve got companies that aren’t sure of the value of green construction, but at the same time, their guys on the site are just choking.” w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

LEADERSHIP 4.0

“My motto is, what gets measured, gets done. What gets done, gets improved. What gets improved, gets replicated. What gets replicated, transforms the market. That’s why standards are so important” — Mahesh Ramanujam, President & CEO, U.S. Green Building Council Ramanujam has dedicated his professional life to the advancement of

32

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a sustainable construction certification which, among other things, teaches construction professionals how to apply sustainable design and building standards consistently across different sites and projects.

“We help developers take the first step to becoming sustainable,” he explains. “My motto is, what gets measured, gets done. What gets done, gets improved. What gets improved, gets replicated. What gets replicated, transforms the market. That’s why standards are so important.”

DECEMBER 2019

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘WHAT IS LEED?’ 33 Asked what advice he’d give to project

By doing these things, you create the

managers looking to improve their sus-

framework necessary to develop — and

tainability, Ramanujam hones in on three

keep in focus — a holistic view of the

things in particular. The first is knowing

construction project, one that takes in

your inventory. Know the spec of every

everything, from initial concept and de-

piece of material or machinery you use

sign, right through to final completion.

and regularly measure to make sure it’s performing to its full potential. Next, cre-

ON-SITE FUEL CONSIDERATIONS

ate a construction plan with sustainabil-

A key — and often overlooked - factor

ity built in and then monitor, so you know

is the importance of properly main-

how closely you are sticking to that plan.

tained equipment and fuel efficiency.

Thirdly, look to the sustainability of the

According to research by Shell, 40%

site itself, for instance, by choosing fuels

of construction companies say they

and other consumables that meet the

had not previously considered the role

highest standards of sustainability.

of fuel in determining a project’s total w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

LEADERSHIP 4.0

cost of ownership (TCO). A further 44% admitted that inappropriate fuel selection had contributed to unplanned downtime.

Switching to a fuel with active deposit control technology — additives designed to clean up the engine from carbon deposits — can increase equipment efficiency and ultimately reduce running costs and overall TCO, to help unlock funds for greater fleet efficiency, including asset upgrades.

And that’s not the only benefit of 34

using premium fuels. Preventing the build-up of deposits on fuel injectors and other key fuel system components

“Partnership is the new leadership.

Companies that collaborate across the value chain not only bring in new expertise that they could not economically have developed in-house, but they also spread knowledge and best practice throughout the industry and along their supply chains” — Mahesh Ramanujam, President & CEO, U.S. Green Building Council DECEMBER 2019

35

keeps the engine running at peak

THE GROWTH OF GREEN CONSTRUCTION

efficiency. This maximises the output

Where is green construction best

of each unit of equipment, which in

developed? “I don’t really see a

turn reduces the amount of overall fuel

difference between the West and the

required, helping to cut CO2 and, in en-

rest,” replies Ramanujam. “The real

gines up to Euro III, also black smoke.

difference is between the leaders and

Shell’s survey found that 57% of

everyone else. And often the leaders

construction managers were look-

are to be found in the developing world,

ing for ways to cut fuel consumption;

particularly in Asia.”

while at the same time, the industry is

Already, by 2016, 40% of all con-

under increasing pressure to cut emis-

struction projects in Asia were built to

sions. The right premium fuel can help

sustainable standards. In some coun-

achieve both.

tries, this figure is significantly higher. w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

LEADERSHIP

36

“ We have to spread the understanding of sustainability best practice, so it becomes the default in the industry” — Mahesh Ramanujam, President & CEO, U.S. Green Building Council

In Singapore, for instance, 60% of all projects are now classed as sustainable. Nor is Asia the only part of the developing world that is taking a lead in the move to sustainable practices.

Africa, in particular South Africa, is also driving its construction sector hard to set best practices. By 2018, 61% of its building projects were classed as green.

“The companies driving these changes are the ones who deliver best practice today

DECEMBER 2019

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Mahesh Ramanujam Mahesh Ramanujam is proving that building a more sustainable world is no longer a dream, but a global evolution. As President and CEO of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and Green Business Certification, Inc. (GBCI), he leads a community of 13 million people that’s growing every day. A graduate from India’s Annamalai University with a degree in Computer Engineering, Ramanujam couples a strong background in technology and innovation with his goal of building healthier communities and democratising sustainable living.

Before becoming President and CEO of USGBC, Ramanujam served as both the organisation’s COO and CIO. Prior to joining GBCI in 2009, he was COO of Emergys Corp., and for more than a decade, he successfully led various business transformation programmes at IBM and Lenovo.

Transformative thought programmes, partnerships, and initiatives continue to be at the heart of Ramanujam’s work today. He leads hundreds of employees and thousands of volunteers who work tirelessly as the backbone of the green building movement.

He believes that sustainable living is not just about the physical building and rebuilding of our communities, but ultimately about our willingness to reimagine the way we treat each other. He envisions a world where construction is as much about compassion as it is about the convenience and efficiency of the structures themselves. And most importantly, behind every strategy, he emphasises our universal responsibility to prioritise health and wellness, to make a commitment to the longevity of our planet, and to create a better quality of life for ourselves and future generations.

w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

37

LEADERSHIP 4.0

C O M PA N Y FACT S

• Over 2.2 million square feet is LEED certified every day with more than 90,000 projects using LEED. • LEED works for all building types anywhere and is currently employed in 165 countries and territories across the globe.

38

• LEED buildings save energy, water, resources, generate less waste and support human health.

• LEED buildings attract tenants, cost less to operate and boost employee productivity and retention.

and will deliver the next practice that

that is serious about reducing its emis-

we use tomorrow,” says Ramanujam.

sions, must be serious about making its

He reminds us that construction activ-

construction sector sustainable.

ity accounts for 36% of worldwide energy. In fact, were the construction

PARTNERSHIP IS THE NEW LEADERSHIP

materials sector a country, it would be

“Partnership is the new leadership,”

the third—largest emitter of green-

Ramanujam explains. “Companies that

house gas emissions, behind only the US

collaborate across the value chain not

and China. As such, any actual country

only bring in new expertise that they

DECEMBER 2019

option for each use case and vehicle, in addition to helping develop datadriven and sustainable models of fuel selection, storage and usage, which will ultimately foster future sustainably and cost efficiency.

BRIDGING THE KNOWLEDGE GAP “If there’s one thing we have to do, it’s bridge the knowledge gap,” says Ramanujam. “We have to spread the understanding of sustainability best practice, so it becomes the default in the industry.”

The good news is that, as the figures show, the momentum for this change is already gathering pace. For the companies that are willing to embrace change, this means higher profitability, better working environments and easier access to investment funds — all could not economically have devel-

important factors to stay competitive

oped in-house, but they also spread

and ahead of the curve in the construc-

knowledge and best practice through-

tion industry.

out the industry and along their supply chains.”

This makes it even more important that developers work with energy experts such as Shell, who can help them choose the right fuel and energy w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

39

S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

40

NET-ZERO AND THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY Achieving net-zero goals in construction and design requires further regulation focused on both operational energy efficiency and embodied carbon, argues Thornton Tomasetti’s Sustainability Lead Duncan Cox WRITTEN BY

DECEMBER 2019

DUNCAN COX

41

w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

42

T

his year we have seen a huge rise

net-zero carbon buildings to provide

in political, public and industry

the industry with clarity on how to

attention toward climate change,

achieve net-zero carbon in construc-

with the declaring of a global emergency

tion and operation. The building sector

dominating many of the headlines.

currently contributes to approximately

As a result, the UK government

40% of global greenhouse gas emissions

committed to becoming net-zero

(source AIA2030), highlighting the

by 2050. But what does this mean

crucial role the sector must play

for the construction industry?

in targeting net-zero carbon.

Following the net-zero targets announced by the government, the

TARGETING 2030

UK Green Building Council (UKGBC)

More recently, structural engineers

released a framework definition for

and architects across the UK have

DECEMBER 2019

declared a climate and biodiversity emergency, with firms across the country committing to strengthening working practices to create structural engineering outcomes that have a more positive impact on the world around us. Of late, net-zero has become an electioneering buzzword, with leading opposition political parties declaring their intent to achieve net-zero by 2030.

Before we explore the challenges we face in achieving a net-zero carbon target and the benefits that can be achieved, we must first clarify what the term means to the construction sector.

The definition varies across the industry

“ THE BUILDING SECTOR CURRENTLY CONTRIBUTES TO APPROXIMATELY 40% OF GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS (SOURCE AIA2030), HIGHLIGHTING THE CRUCIAL ROLE OUR SECTOR MUST PLAY IN TARGETING NET-ZERO CARBON” — Duncan Cox, Sustainability Lead, Thornton Tomasetti

and there are various forms of emissions that must be considered by market participants: operational carbon and embodied carbon.

The past few decades have focused heavily on operational carbon in construction, which refers to the carbon emissions generated through regulated and unregulated use of lighting, heating, aircon and ICT. We’re seeing buildings becoming more operationally energy efficient over time, and sourcing power from w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

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“ IN ORDER TO DELIVER NETZERO BUILDINGS THAT ARE TRULY SUSTAINABLE, WE MUST ALWAYS CONSIDER THE WHOLE LIFE CARBON OF THE BUILDING FROM THE OUTSET” — Duncan Cox, Sustainability Lead, Thornton Tomasetti DECEMBER 2019

onsite and/or offsite renewable energy sources — with ‘net-zero energy buildings’ becoming more common.

My concern, and one that is shared by many others, is that the definition of a net-zero energy building often neglects to consider the other form of carbon emissions — embodied carbon. Embodied carbon refers to carbon dioxide emitted during the manufacture, transport and construction of building materials, together with end

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘UK GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL – ADVANCING NET ZERO’ 45 of life emissions. In order to deliver

educate our politicians and planners.

net-zero buildings that are truly

Whilst it is fantastic that such a target

sustainable, we must always consider

has been put firmly on the mainstream

the whole life carbon of the building

agenda in light of Labour’s recent

from the outset.

declaration of achieving zero-carbon

My belief is that a target date of

by 2030, it is imperative that all forms

net-zero by 2050 is too late in the

of carbon are considered when

future. For too long we have seen

enforcing new regulations. The focus

targets for the future set and ignored,

for Labour is on triple glazing for all

as the deadline is beyond the life-time

new housing but we must be certain

of those setting the targets. To

that this is the most practical solution.

instigate real change, we need to

An efficient façade may load a project

move swiftly.

with unnecessary embodied carbon

For example, if we are to achieve net-zero carbon goals we must

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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

FACT BOX

About the Author Duncan Cox is a London-based senior associate at Thornton Tomasetti. His role encompasses all areas of sustainability in construction and design, while working closely with both the U.S. Green Building Council and UK Green Building Council to raise awareness on the work that needs to be done to meet the challenges of greener approaches to construction. 46

Thornton Tomasetti Thornton Tomasetti optimised the design and performance of structures, materials and systems for projects of every size and level of complexity. An employeeowned organisation of engineers, scientists, architects and other professionals collaborating from offices worldwide, it supports clients by drawing on the diverse expertise of its integrated practices. Thornton Tomasetti is committed to being a sustainable and enduring organisation and

EMBODIED CARBON REGULATION We also need to push for regulation.

Whilst there are building regulations for the operational carbon performance of a building, there is no regulation that specifies the use of embodied carbon from the outset of planning. Through regulation and the desire to tackle climate change I think there will be huge demand on embodied carbon reductions in the very short term.

the global driver of innovation

It is becoming increasingly common

in the industry.

for major developers to approach

DECEMBER 2019

47

us at Thornton Tomasetti asking how

making huge strides to reach targets

they can make reductions, and I have

by 2030.

been personally involved in a number

Pressure needs to be placed on

of initiatives to ensure there is embod-

manufacturers to give designers more

ied carbon regulation at government

material options that are not ‘green

level. The London Energy Transforma-

taxed’, and developments and prod-

tion Initiative (LETI) is a network of over

ucts need to be rated on their embod-

250 built environment professionals

ied carbon performance and not just

who work together to put London on

their operational performance. We

the path to a zero-carbon future. The

need to put pressure on standards

voluntary group provides guidance for

committees to review codes that force

both designers and planners to help

over-designing and the over-specifying

them achieve net-zero, and they are

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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

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“ TYPICALLY, AT THORNTON TOMASETTI WE CAN ACHIEVE A 10-20% REDUCTION OF EMBODIED CARBON BELOW PROJECT BASELINE. HOWEVER, IN MORE AGGRESSIVE PROJECTS WE HAVE MANAGED TO ACHIEVE A 40% REDUCTION” — Duncan Cox, Sustainability Lead, Thornton Tomasetti

DECEMBER 2019

FUTURE FOCUSED Whilst arguments against net-zero whole life carbon tend towards a fear of the unknown, we can still think about the future. There is no one-size fits all solution. What may work on one project may not be the same elsewhere. It is important to get buy-in from everyone on the team that you are seeking to achieve a low-carbon structure, and taking advantage of periods of value engineering is really important. Traditionally an area where sustainable measures are dropped, this is now key to helping to reduce the embodied carbon load.

Typically, at Thornton Tomasetti we can achieve a 10-20% reduction of embodied carbon below project baseline. However, in more aggressive projects we have managed to achieve a 40% reduction. We have been collecting the embodied carbon data for all of our structural projects over the last eight years. As a result, we know that, for most building types, we must focus on slabs as the biggest contributor to embodied carbon.

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S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y

embodied carbon, and we are embracing technology by developing tools that help us quickly quantify the carbon in our projects at concept and design stage. This means that our engineers can have live feedback reporting to them on the carbon levels in their projects as they make design choices and changes.

Every building we design, we ask the question ‘what will this building be in 100 years-time?’ and we then design accordingly, through soft spots 50

in slabs to unconventional grid systems. The data we have collected has been shared with the wider industry so that we can begin to understand how much embodied carbon we find is associated with the materials in our projects. It is a database of information that has been the backbone to a number of academic studies and has led to the growing awareness and importance of embodied carbon whilst fuelling debate on how we can achieve reductions in our designs.

Thornton Tomasetti’s embodied carbon measurement tool is expected to be released to the industry and DECEMBER 2019

public for free by the end of the year.

Created for use in the Revit environment, the new tool is customised for structural engineers for embodied carbon optimisation, allowing users to measure how they are doing while they are in the midst of working on a project.

We were delighted to recently sign up for the UK’s Structural Engineers Declaration of Climate and Biodiversity Emergency. It is through groups like that we are able to collaborate with our peers, who have a mutual understanding that we must act quickly and radically. We must work openly and collaboratively to reach our shared goals and we encourage all to get in touch if you are interested in our research.

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H AV E Y O U S E E N O U R O T H E R T I T L E S ?

TECHNOLOGY

HS2 BREAKING BARRIERS WITH BIM-GIS INTEGRATION WRITTEN BY

54

DECEMBER 2019

GEORGE FLOROS

Construction Global hears from George Floros on why BIM and GIS integration has been critical for the Skanska, Costain STRABAG JV working on the UK’s High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) project

55

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TECHNOLOGY

The United Kingdom Department

the travel time from London to many

for Transport has embarked on a

northern cities by nearly half while

world-leading infrastructure project.

moving people and goods in a way

By the 2030s, London will connect to

that’s efficient and eco-friendly.

Birmingham, Leeds, and Manchester via a new rail line with 18 trains per

scope requires new levels of planning

hour travelling at speeds of up to

and design. It needs the integration

225mph. The line, High Speed 2 (HS2),

of two key technologies: building

builds upon more than 15 years of suc-

information modeling (BIM) and a geo-

cess of HS1, which carries 20million

graphic information system (GIS).

passengers per year through the Channel Tunnel to and from Europe.

HS2 promises to drive economic 56

A project of this complexity and

I work as a GIS data specialist with the Skanska, Costain, and STRABAG Joint Venture (SCS JV), the group

growth, redistribute opportunity to the

responsible for the London-portion

north of England, and support towns

of HS2 construction. In building the

and cities across the UK. It will cut

rail line from the centre of London to

DECEMBER 2019

northern parts of the city, the densely

If you understand exactly what

populated environment makes BIM

exists before you try and build some-

and GIS integration critical.

thing, you avoid accidents. Our team uses GIS to visualise details about the

DIGGING THROUGH THE HEART OF LONDON

location of above and below ground

Approximately 90% of SCS JV’s rail

networks and to analyse how dif-

line contract work will take place

ferent elements interact with each

underground in the heart of London.

other. They use BIM to get a model of

Keeping people and commerce flow-

buildings and structures with details

ing while the HS2 project threads

pertinent for the full life cycle of the

through the city over a five-year span

project. GIS can’t get into as much

will prove challenging. It’s imperative

detail as BIM, and on the other hand,

that the team has accurate data about

BIM cannot bring together the sur-

where current structures, pipes, and

rounding context. An integrated 3D

cables are located.

57

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TECHNOLOGY

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘HS2: UPGRADING BRITAIN’S RAILWAYS’ 58

“ An integrated 3D GISBIM environment, that we call GeoBIM, combines strengths and eliminate any weak points” — George Floros GIS Data Specialist, Skanska-Costain-STRABAG Joint Venture

GIS-BIM environment that we call GeoBIM, combines strengths and eliminates any weak points.

I have been working on GIS-BIM integration since 2014 and have developed algorithms that automate data conversion in GIS, BIM, and computeraided design (CAD) formats so that all information can be accessed in a common visualisation environment and to provide a data exchange platform.

“A shared platform allows anyone working on the project to use and access the geography of HS2,” confirms James Gasson, GIS manager at SCS

DECEMBER 2019

JV. “Everyone has a ‘shop window’ to

remarked that the environment really

browse all the data available to them.”

helped them to understand where they should place a crane, based on the sur-

IMPROVING INFORMATION FLOW Before they can begin construction,

rounding context.

In addition, everyone involved in

the design plans must be thoroughly

planning can see individual designs

vetted and approved. Right now, plan-

for the entire project. This level of

ning for construction is well under way.

awareness is exciting. On such a large

New applications for GeoBIM are con-

project, it’s very hard to understand

stantly being introduced by multiple

all the individual elements you’re

teams in the project, well beyond the

going to build from the aggregate of

use cases imagined before the release

spreadsheets and documents. Seeing

of this environment. Just the other day,

designs placed together within

a colleague from the construction team

the context of the city of London

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

George Floros Floros is a GIS Data Specialist in the Skanska-CostainSTRABAG Joint Venture working on behalf of HS2 in the United Kingdom. Floros holds a MEng. in Sur veying, a MSc. in Environment & Development, a MSc. in GIS and he is currently a PhD Candidate at University College London (UCL) in the field of GIS-BIM Integration. His dominant source of motivation is the generation of a more sustainable and ultimately smarter built environment by integrating Geographic Information Systems and Building Information Modelling (BIM) to accurately pinpoint current and future issues of the urban environment.

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TECHNOLOGY

60

DECEMBER 2019

“ S eeing designs placed together within the context of the city of London immediately helps you understand.

You get a wow in your mind — this is what I’m building!”

— George Floros GIS Data Specialist, Skanska-Costain-STRABAG Joint Venture

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TECHNOLOGY

62

DECEMBER 2019

immediately helps you understand.

You get a wow in your mind – this is what I’m building!

The power of visualising the whole scope of the project in 3D has also improved communication and community engagement. We recently used the model in a community event in central London to demonstrate to residents that the construction would not impact existing views. The model provides evidence. It’s not just saying, ‘don’t worry, everything will be fine’. We prove it and demonstrate it using scientific methods, which is the best argument.

ADDING DIMENSIONS The move to embrace 3D data in GIS provided the path for closer integration with BIM and CAD. Pioneering firms like SCS JV are pushing into additional dimensions. I’m working with our 4D specialists from our BIM team to integrate time and construction sequence.

It’s a very interesting challenge. We have the information from the planners – it’s a matter of bringing that information into our 3D GIS system.

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TECHNOLOGY

construction (AEC) industry has standardised a vision for several next dimensions: 5D for quantities, cost estimation, and budgetary tracking; 6D for energy consumption; and 7D for asset management in operations and maintenance, including component status and maintenance procedures.

It’s not a challenge to make the visualisation look pretty; the key is to focus on what questions added dimensions address. The purpose of the shared data platform is analysis, although it 64

also serves visualisation purposes.

REBALANCING THE NATIONAL ECONOMY In the lead-up to the HS2 project, a government report illustrated England’s unbalanced economy, cit-

the AEC space. This approach aims to

ing capacity constraints in the south

keep a handle on costs and address

and poor connectivity in the north. In

carbon emissions.

consideration for what the UK alone

The HS2 project and related

delivers to the world economy, England

Crossrail underground connections

has pushed a mandate that all its gov-

in London have earned the UK global

ernment projects use BIM. With this

respect for train modernisation and

drive for AEC, firms to deliver buildings

renovation. With many eyes on the

and infrastructure along with detailed

project, the ability to integrate data and

models, the government has spurred

models; visualise the full scope includ-

UK engineering agencies to take a

ing construction phases; and deliver

global lead on digital transformation in

a streamlined project on time and on

DECEMBER 2019

budget will firmly place the UK as a global leader in the delivery of large infrastructure projects.

The moment you see GeoBIM in action, it captures you, and you can see what’s happening. GeoBIM aspires to be the Digital Twin of the built environment, not just for planning and construction, but most importantly for operations and maintenance.

www.skanska.co.uk www.costain.com www.strabag-international.com

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Transform Build Innovate Build New Relationships.

Book Your Exhibit Space Today!

December 4 - 6, 2019 Metro Toronto Convention Centre

thebuildingsshow.com

T O P 10

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DECEMBER 2019

WAYS TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY Having the right tools to improve productivity and prevent losses is essential in today’s challenging business environment. Sander van de Rijdit, CEO and co-founder of PlanRadar, recommends 10 minor improvements that can result in a 70% increase in construction productivity WRITTEN BY

SANDER VAN DE RIJDIT

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T O P 10

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10

INNOVATE WITH TECHNOLOGY

The construction industry is one of the world economy’s largest sectors, employing around 7% of the world’s working population. Yet, while most sectors are increasing reliance on app-based technology, over 60% of construction companies rely on outdated admin techniques.

Old-fashioned reporting methods waste time and decrease construction productivity. Construction apps and management software allow the complete automation of construction documentation and defect management. What difference does it make? Project management platforms can increase project efficiency by up to 70% and provide a ROI of 900%.

DECEMBER 2019

09

REDUCE ‘LOST IN TRANSLATION’ MOMENTS

Construction and migration are strongly linked; the UK’s foreignborn workers account for 10% of the construction workforce.

Language barriers increase risk, leading to inefficiency. Technology advancements and skills training can add huge value. A Rosetta Stone survey on language gains showed a 64% gain in construction productivity as a result of enhanced language capabilities. When it comes to language barriers between project teams, the most important factor is to create a standardised language. A construction app can bridge this divide, with data input fields customised to each organisation’s needs, and efficient recording of text via the supported speech-to-text feature.

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T O P 10

08

MINIMISE UNPLANNED REWORK

Each construction or real estate project has a minimum one or two snags for every 10m2, with some seeing as many as 80,000 in total. This is the largest driver of escalating project costs and delays. Early inspection is critical to systematic risk management and productivity. For any construction inspector, it’s vital to keep a log of all contractor activities, manage installations to specifications, monitor and document all materials delivered and used onsite, prepare snag lists and maintain a presence at all project meetings.

Technology can help in these processes, ensuring completeness 72

of information across the whole project value chain.

DECEMBER 2019

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07

THE TALENT TRAJECTORY

Rising 20 places to 206 in Fortune’s list this year, Vinci’s revenues rose by 13.1%. Originally founded in 1899, the French construction group has over 200,000 employees designing, financing, building and operating infrastructure and facilities across the globe. It is the majority owner of Gatwick airport in the UK, where it has recently unveiled a five-year capital investment programme totaling £1.1bn.

Other projects include the Atlantic Bridge in Panama and the launch of 3D Printing company Concreative through its subsidiary Freyssinet.

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T O P 10

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06

USE PREFABRICATIONS

Prefabrications are proving to be a viable option for many construction companies. The process of manufacturing sections of a building off-site will enable quick assembly on-site. Prefabrication can streamline assembly by removing the unnecessary distractions and interference potentially found on-site. Doing so can take less than half the time when compared to traditional construction techniques, while multiple pieces can be assembled off-site at the same time for further time savings..

DECEMBER 2019

75

05

BIM (BUILDING INFORMATION MODELING)

The digital representation of physical assets connects different workflows across a project, allowing for sleek communication. BIM is considered an ‘active document’, enabling workers to prepare, keep and update all the essential documents, but using BIM in the design phase can prevent errors that could have occurred when compared to more traditional documentation on the design. Rising BIM adoption will lead to increased productivity, improved data management and a lower defect percentage.

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T O P 10

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04

CONSTRUCTION DIARY

Statista forecast 2.8mn people will be employed in construction by 2023. Consistent and accurate paper-based reporting is challenging but essential for clarifying facts and responsibilities, and when disputes need to be resolved in court. Replacing a paper diary with a digital construction log app can be a great way to increase adoption of the daily log; particularly useful if details are drawn from tickets and tasks as part of the project workflow. Digitising the construction diary can save up to seven hours per week — that’s 364 hours per year.

DECEMBER 2019

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03

OUTLINE GOALS

An integrated quality management plan, constituting both quality assurance and control, is proven to have clear, positive benefits on construction performance, such as greater managerial control and the recording and reduction of snags. In addition, nonconformance plans prepare alternatives and backup solutions for snags arising through the project delay. Keep an eye out for next generation solutions that are showing promising potential. These trends include machine learning solutions, SaaS, Cloud Technologies and 3D-Scanning. Access to these assets can add value to your project, today or in the future.

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T O P 10

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MINIMISE ADMIN, MAXIMISE VALUE

McKinsey states that in around 60% of occupations, at least one-third of repetitive tasks could be automated using substantial digital transformation. In the construction industry, most workers spend at least a quarter of their week working on repetitive tasks. The main processes cited were task management, snag management, due diligence, assessments and handovers.

DECEMBER 2019

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T O P 10

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DECEMBER 2019

01

TRANSMIT STANDARDISED INFORMATION

Creating a department that has a clear KPI on supporting centralised documentation and ensuring the smooth and clear delivery of tasks can be a quick fix to an immediate challenge and greatly improve productivity. Technology is the key to eliminating confusion and provides a level of standardisation that brings together contractors, trades and functions, ensuring the value chain is intact. Real-time content updates are also essential to avoid duplication or delays.

Moreover, data should be legally filed and secured in a safe place, so it is available in case of potential legal issues.

Credit: PlanRadar is a cloud-based app for documentation and communication to help project managers, site managers, construction workers and inspectors communicate through tech on-site. The Viennese company now operates in 43 countries globally and has over 5,000 customers, following its launch into the UK market in 2019.

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EVENTS & A S S O C I AT I O N S

The biggest events and conferences around the world for construction leaders EDITED BY DAN BRIGHTMORE

4–6 DEC 2019

82

22–23 JANUARY 2020

The Buildings Show

ProcureCon Facilities

[ TORONTO, CANADA ]

[ ATLANTA, USA ]

The Buildings Show is the leader in

ProcureCon Facilities gathers 150+

sourcing, networking and education

professionals in purchasing, sourcing

in Canada for the design, architecture,

and supply chain working across con-

engineering, construction and real

struction, facilities and real estate. The

estate communities. The event is home

two-day conference covers new facili-

to Construct Canada, Home Builder

ties technology, big data, outsourcing,

& Renovator Expo, PM Expo, Buildings

optimising spend, supplier relationships,

Connect and World of Concrete Pavil-

diversity and sustainability. Learn from

ion. The largest combined expo of its

45+ speakers at industry-leading com-

kind in Canada, more than 30,000

panies including IBM, Google, Procter

trade professionals attend the show

& Gamble, Home Depot, Porsche and

annually to discover new innovations

Philips. More than 20 hours of work-

across the building industry and source

shops and group sessions will be

the latest materials, products, tools

supplemented by the opportunity to

and technologies from more than

see how your peers are implementing

1,600 Canadian, US and international

the latest technology in their own work-

exhibitors. A comprehensive seminar

places via exclusive site tours offering

programme offers 350-plus keynotes,

a behind-the-scenes look at leading

summits and roundtables led by hun-

organisations with high tech and sus-

dreds of insightful industry leaders.

tainable facilities management.

DECEMBER 2019

4–7 FEBRUARY 2020

83

World of Concrete [ LAS VEGAS, USA ]

At World of Concrete, you will discover

Attracting 1,500-plus exhibitors,

all the products, resources and

World of Concrete (presented in

insights necessary to strengthen your

partnership with the likes of the

business. The commercial construc-

National Demolition Association and

tion industry’s first, largest and most

InfraRoi) welcomes 60,000 industry

important annual international event

professionals representing all seg-

for concrete and masonry professionals

ments of the construction industry

across the globe hosts original equip-

from commercial contractors and

ment manufacturers from around the

architects to engineers and precast

world and exclusive US distributors of

producers. The event is also home to

equipment, tools, products and ser-

the Mason Contractors Association

vices for the commercial construction,

of America (MCAA) convention.

concrete and masonry industries.

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EVENTS & A S S O C I AT I O N S

The biggest events and conferences around the world for construction leaders EDITED BY DAN BRIGHTMORE

84

3–5 MARCH 2020

Futurebuild [ LONDON, UK ]

Futurebuild brings together 27,000 industry influencers and opinion shapers to drive real change. A world class knowledge programme, alongside an immersive exhibition of 450 innovative and inspiring brands, and a host of networking events, will combine to explore the latest thinking and debate the biggest issues facing the built environment now and in the future. The event features over 200 hours of structured learning across six keynote stages. Check out the Big Innovation Pitch, where a host of manufacturers will offer radical solutions to six key construction challenges, brace for Digital Impact where visitors can discover all that the digital ecosystem has to offer the industry, and take the Innovation Trail in partnership with Geberit, Hadley Group and Smart Architectural Aluminium.

DECEMBER 2019

6–9 APRIL 2020

19–22 MARCH 2020

Megabuild, Indonesia

Building Innovation 2020 [ VIRGINIA, USA ]

[ JAKARTA, INDONESIA ]

The National Institute of Building

Megabuild was launched in 2014

Sciences (NIBS) eighth annual

and is Indonesia’s premier architecture,

conference and expo offers a platform

interior design and building exhibition

for all those who impact the built

and conference, organised by the

environment. It brings together labour

industry for the industry. Featuring six

and consumer interests, government

key segments (Construction Materials,

representatives, regulatory agencies,

Bathroom & Kitchen, Doors & Windows,

and members of the building industry

Roof & Flooring, Interior Furnishing

to identify and resolve problems that

and Building Materials) Megabuild

hamper the construction of safe,

runs over 21 concurrent seminars, with

affordable housing and commercial

CPD points awarded for professional

structures throughout the US and

architects. Megabuild welcomes over

beyond. Join the innovators sharing

38,000 visitors annually, making

ideas, initiatives, practices and policies

connections and gaining invauluabe

to optimise building performance

insights from 380-plus exhibitors.

and sustainability.

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HOW T5 DATA CENTERS IS WINNING THE QUEST FOR UNINTERRUPTED SERVICE FOR ITS HYPERSCALE AND ENTERPRISE CUSTOMERS WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE

DECEMBER 2019

PRODUCED BY

TOM VENTURO

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T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

T5 Data Centers is tripling its staff to support new projects for hyperscale, enterprise and colocation customers both in construction services and facilities management.

T

5 Data Centers (T5) is focused both on real estate assets and supporting services across the global data center

arena, serving hyperscale, enterprise and coloca88

tion customers. A developer of high-quality data centers in the best markets in North America, and worldwide, T5 offers a range of services to meet the needs of the most demanding companies. “That’s why we created our Facilities Management division (T5FM) and our Construction Services division (T5CS),” explains T5’s President & CEO, Pete Marin.

T5CS was established in 2014 and offers specialized construction services for missioncritical facilities and renewable energy solutions.

The division excels with turnkey data hall construction, facility infrastructure upgrades, equipment procurement, project management and consulting, and green energy projects. With more than 200 mission-critical projects completed across the US, T5CS currently operates in 41 states.

DECEMBER 2019

89

$100mn+ Approximate revenue

2008

Year founded

400

Approximate number of employees

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T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

“ The leading hyperscale users are building large solar arrays, so we’re developing that expertise and see it as complimentary business and part of the symbiotic relationship with everything we’re doing across the industry” 90

— Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5 Data Centers

Those green energy projects are supporting hyperscale and enterprise data center operators. “We’re ready to meet the demands of the latest initiatives,” assures Marin. “The leading hyperscale users are building large solar arrays, so we’re developing that expertise and see it as complimentary business and part of the symbiotic relationship with everything we’re doing across the industry. We are providing construction services to groups that actually own the purchase power agreements, and we’ll also look at investing in those in the future.”

T5 has partnered with Cherry Street Energy to expand its renewable energy expertise by adding solar array installation to its growing list of general contracting support services.

This will also help further develop T5’s leadership position on an important initiative gaining increased traction in the mission-critical industry. “The solar industry has come a long way over the last five years,” says Robbie Sovie, Executive Vice President for Development & Construction at T5.

“The systems have become more efficient economically and the footprint efficiency has also improved,

DECEMBER 2019

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘T5 DATA CENTERS – PETE MARIN, PRESIDENT & CEO, 2018 YEAR-END MESSAGE’ 91 allowing more watts-per-square-foot

design is so important; we always

in a given area. We anticipate green

make sure we utilize energy in the

energy will continue to expand within

most efficient way. If we have those

the mission-critical sector. We’re very

initiatives, then our customers are

excited to support Cherry Street

going to gravitate towards us because

Energy, and additional clients as

we compliment those initiatives. We’re

we implement solar solutions across

driving towards renewable energy to

North America.”

support data centers and help them

Among these projects will be the largest solar installation yet seen in

become more sustainable.”

T5’s award-winning Facilities

the state of Georgia. “We’re always

Management and Operations division,

focused on improving the plans and

T5FM was also formed in 2014 and

reducing the amount of wasted power

now provides third-party mission-

that goes into a data center,” confirms

critical data center management and

Marin. “That’s why cutting-edge

operations services, including remote w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

Nationwide Landscape Civil Engineers Architectures Planners Mission Critical Specialist: Lawson Fanney, P.E. Lawson.fanney@kimley-horn.com 404.201.6132 | 678.333.3387

DECEMBER 2019

hands, property and asset management,

Right now, we’re focusing on the

consulting, and training.

piece of gear that gets replaced the

The technologies T5 leverages in its

most, and that’s the battery. Knowing

data center operations help support

when they need to be refurbished

its mantra: ‘Forever On’. For a

or replaced, saves money and can

company in the space and cooling

reduce waste.” He believes we’ll see

business, Marin notes that T5 is also

more data analytics tools deployed in

in “the guaranteed lights will never go

the data center and T5 will embrace

out business”. Put simply, reliability

that, while improving BMS (Building

is everything. “We need to monitor all

Management System) and EPMS

of those systems,” maintains Marin.

(Electrical Power Management

“Among the technology initiatives

System) capabilities to guarantee

we utilize is predictive analytics.

100% uptime. T5 has served leading

Being able to predict when a piece of

companies in IT, finance, insurance,

equipment is going to fail is vital.

health care, and telecommunications,

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Pete Marin As President & Chief Executive Officer of T5 Data Centers, Pete is responsible for setting the overall strategy of the firm, maintaining client relationships, capital management, and creating and executing the firm’s vision for growth. Pete has more than 20 years of experience in the data center sector ranging from development, securing debt and equity capital, to tenant representation including site selection and incentives. Pete’s understanding of end-user needs has enabled T5 Data Centers to reduce project cycle-time and cost, which leads to successful relationships, and repeat business.

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T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

building a strong reputation for data center reliability as a serial recipient of The Uptime Institute’s Continuous Uptime Award for uninterrupted service.

T5’s Senior Vice President & Director of Sales, David Horowitz notes that, even though the data center industry is still in its infancy, five to 10 years from now many of the legacy facilities will be considered outdated.

He adds: “As enterprises continue to look to monetize their data centers, either by shifting to the cloud or adopting the wholesale outsourcing 94

model, being smarter in how we design our buildings and by utilizing improvements in technology will be a key factor for us when planning the future for T5.”

T5 has been investing in that future through its alliance with QuadReal.

The global real estate investment, operating and development company boasts a $27.4bn portfolio spanning across 23 major cities worldwide and was established to manage the real estate program of British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI), one of Canada’s largest asset managers with a $145.6 billion portfolio. In the past year T5 and DECEMBER 2019

QuadReal have joined forces by launching a $2.5bn fully integrated platform to develop, acquire and operate data centers. “We were able to raise capital with QuadReal with a long-term view across our differentiated platform of assets and services,” explains Horowitz.

QuadReal had been looking to invest in the data center industry for several years. Horowitz notes the company was attracted to T5 above its competitors for a very good reason. “We offer a full suite of data center services and solutions: asset-based development and leasing, construction services, and facility management and operations.

That’s our true differentiator that no other competitor in the data center business can offer.”

Marin adds: “There’s plenty of capital out there looking to invest in the data center space, but there’s a very short list of qualified management teams. Most of the providers are just aiming to construct and lease buildings, few also have the expertise to operate them. Our alliance with QuadReal is a game-changer for current and future customers in the w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

95

T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

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enterprise and hyperscale markets, allowing us to build the world’s most advanced and customized data center facilities faster and at scale.”

T5 is equipped to take on the challenges of a demanding marketplace. Marin explains it’s natural for the customer to want the highest quality product at the most competitive price. “Construction costs are increasing,” he adds. “We’re seeing upward pressure on labor costs but in the end, it’s all about our processes and our team. We have a tried and tested approach to managing the

“ We offer a full service: asset-based, construction services, and facility management and operations platform.

That’s our true differentiator that no other competitor in the data center business can offer” — Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5 Data Centers

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

David Horowitz David is Senior Vice President, Director of Sales for T5 Data Centers. David is responsible for overseeing business growth and promoting T5 Data Centers’ global portfolio and full services capabilities. David’s role includes developing the go-to-market strategy for new markets and leading the national sales team with its strategic initiatives. David has led multi-market searches for some of the world’s largest companies and has closed over 300MW and more than $1bn of data center real estate transactions. Prior to joining T5, David spent 10 years managing data center practice groups for commercial real estate firms.

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T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

C OM PA N Y S TAT S

• T5FM active in 15 US markets • T5 operating 28 data centers – mix of owned and third-party assets • 600MW of IT load managed • 200 mission critical projects completed across the US by T5CS

98

• $2.5bn platform launched with QuadReal to develop, acquire and operate data centers

DECEMBER 2019

people at each of our facilities and the strategy we have for delivering our products and services has proven to be successful.”

That success is leading T5 to nearly triple its staff (from 150 to 400) to support new projects. “After building data centers for more than a decade, we are seeing changes in the market, and so we are adapting our operations and scaling to meet the evolving needs of our customers,” says Marin.

T5 is committed to supporting veterans and “we were among the first in the data center industry to recruit former nuclear personnel from the navy,” he reveals. “We find that within that talent pool we’ve been able to identify great candidates to be retrained for the data center business.”

In August this year, T5 was nominated among the top ten places to work in Atlanta, so clearly Marin and his team are on the right path. “We’re a small, private company,” reflects Horowitz.

“But we have the communication and the collaboration across the business from our investors, down to the folks in the field, fueling a culture I believe is superior to any of our peers in the industry. We’ve developed this from w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

99

T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

CPGbeyondthecloud.com

the ground up by giving everyone on our teams a voice in how we grow the business, implement change and introduce tools to improve our assets while empowering them to speak to our customers.”

And, thanks to T5’s ability to provide customized real estate development solutions, the customers keep coming.

“After an extensive national search by a large Fortune 100 company, we were awarded a demanding build-tosuit project designed to meet a client’s exact specifications,” explains 101

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘HOW T5 SECURES LA COUNTY DATA’

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T 5 D ATA C E N T E R S

102

“ Our alliance with QuadReal is a game-changer for current and future customers in the enterprise and hyperscale markets” — Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5 Data Centers

Horowitz. “Because of our collaborative and transparent approach, the project was a great success and we exceeded expectations on all fronts – budget, schedule and now the operations on an ongoing basis.”

Moving forward, T5 will continue to ramp up its efforts. “We’ve been busy acquiring additional land holdings by investing out of our new venture with QuadReal to kick off developments,” reveals Marin. “We’ve purchased land in Portland, Oregon, in Atlanta, Georgia, and we’ve got land holdings

DECEMBER 2019

QuadReal & T5 – a data center alliance “The data center market continues to experience very strong growth, driven by the accelerating digitalization of information,” says Jameson Weber, Head of Special Situations for QuadReal. “This strategic investment ($2.5bn) puts us in a very unique position to participate in this growing market alongside a

trusted company with a proven track record in data center development, construction, and management. T5 Data Centers is the logical partner to help us build a long-term business in tech-related real estate while ensuring our users receive the highest levels of service and security for their mission-critical data.”

103

in Charlotte and in Colorado. We also

they too grow their footprint and, from

have an active data center in LA and

an operational perspective, put our

we’re getting ready to launch a new

T5FM stamp on those facilities and

project in Dublin, Ireland.” Meanwhile,

reap the rewards from the strong

the company will also focus on

platform we’ve built over the past

growing its services while looking for

decade.” T5’s platform for excellence

M&A opportunities that will support

in the data center industry looks set

the scaling of T5’s platform. “Right

to march forward, forever on.

now, we’re on target to boost our employee levels to 400 and I can see that growth triple in the coming years,”

F o r e v e r On .

says Horowitz. “We have a lot of growth in front of us. We’re ready to support the top hyperscale users as w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

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DECEMBER 2019

RANDALL: construction the right way

WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY

TOM VENTURO

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105

RANDALL CONSTRUCTION

RANDALL Construction is cementing its position as the leading self-perform in Florida by investing in innovative market disrupting products across an impressive portfolio of business units

T

he genesis of RANDALL Construction lies in a full-service plumbing company launched in Orlando, Florida back in 1986.

“We started the business out of my apartment,” recalls Jeff Condello, President & CEO. RANDALL’s 106

portfolio of business units has grown to include everything from electrical and engineering to BIM and fabrication. “The more complex a job, the greater value we bring,” pledges Condello. “We like to partner with construction managers and owners who value a well-managed, professional contractor for their specific solutions.”

It was the acquisition of Seminole Sheet Metal in 2010 that elevated RANDALL’s offering and triggered a period of extreme growth, positioning the business as both a major mechanical and plumbing company, as well as the largest sheet metal company for construction in Florida. “It was the largest non-union metal manufacturer in Florida,” remembers Condello. “Today, we’ve more than doubled the size

DECEMBER 2019

107

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RANDALL CONSTRUCTION

“ The more complex a job, the more value we bring.

We like to partner with construction managers and owners who value a well-managed, professional contractor for their specific solutions” 108

— Jeff Condello, President & CEO, RANDALL Construction

of the manufacturing facility to 20 acres.

We used the acquisition to enable us to offer in-house fabrication and grow our mechanical plumbing group. The reason for that growth is our aim to be a one-stop shop and provide value to our customers by working out of the same facilities to ensure our costs can be competitive in any market. Our ability to self-perform most of the work on a construction site has future-proofed our business model.”

During the last recession, Condello explains the company took advantage of the struggling economy and was able to expand the RANDALL family.

“Companies were shutting down,” he recalls. “We were able to take on many good people and fund new and innovative branches of our business. That’s how we started our concrete tilt wall company, which is now among the largest contractors of its type in Florida.”

DECEMBER 2019

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘RANDALL ENGINEERED PRECAST’ 109 Innovation is key to RANDALL

the general contractor. Through our

enhancing its capabilities as a spe-

design-build process, we offer a full

cialty contractor. “We aim to provide

turnkey service that ensures every-

solid, state-of-the-art service to make

thing is coordinated via a unified

projects more efficient for our clients,”

approach resulting in greater effi-

maintains Matt Reinders, Vice President

ciency.” By employing a vertically

of RANDALL. “Because we self-per-

integrated offsite construction

form, we can control our job sites

approach, RANDALL can reduce

– especially with the mechanical

labor on site by up to 50%. “Bringing

plumbing, electrical, and fire protec-

a prefab mentality to each project is

tion all in one unit. We can deploy

the perfect solution to meet the chal-

prefabricated solutions with ease, use

lenges of today’s tight market with

BIM models for more accuracy and

its labor shortages,” adds Reinders.

provide one point of contact for com-

“We’re tooled to be that subcontractor

munication which makes it easier for

in the marketplace.” w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

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As part of its strategy, RANDALL

attractive company to work for. “You’re

has invested in BIM technology to aid

not going to find another contractor that

its approach to pre-construction pro-

does approximately 70% of a total pro-

cesses, providing General Contractors

ject in-house and self-performed; from

and project partners the capability to

site work, tilt walls and precast to archi-

see what’s happening in real-time when

tectural, metal work and MEP-FP. Our

work on site begins. With 360-degree

innovative mindset is a differentiator.

cameras on the job sites, the ability

We’re taking that to the next level with

to deploy drones – and with most of

our modern approach to modular con-

its workforce connected with mobile

struction, using prefabrication to push

devices – technology in the field is

the possibilities to make construction

aiding collaboration by keeping all

sites safer and cleaner while producing

disciplines across a project connected.

less waste.”

Reinders believes RANDALL’s commitment to technology makes it an

Located in the heart of America’s theme park industry, RANDALL has

1986

Year founded

100,000

Square feet fabrication facility in Florida

1,300 Number of employees

w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

111

RANDALL CONSTRUCTION

formed partnerships with themed-

which minimises the challenges most

entertainment companies like Disney,

other companies in our industry face.”

Universal and Sea World to name a few.

RANDALL has found success with

“People like working with RANDALL,”

a diverse range of state-of-the-art

says Reinders proudly. “We have the

projects including a bio science labo-

resources, strength, safety progamme

ratory at a UF Research & Academic

and the reputation. No matter how dif-

Facility, Dr. Phillips Performing Arts

ficult, RANDALL is the go-to player in

Center in Orlando, several airport pro-

the South East marketplace that will

jects, Cabana Bay Resort for Universal,

exceed expectations and get the job

themed metal work for both Star Wars

done. Our business model is controlled

attractions in Anaheim and Orlando,

and our planned growth is strategic,

and The Land of Pandora for Disney.

112

E X ECU T I VE P RO FI LE

Jeff Condello Jeffrey S. Condello is an entrepreneur. Looking to break into the construction space, Condello worked for a plumber in Philadelphia, as his apprentice to learn the plumbing trade, before breaking away to begin his own company in 1980.

Shortly after, the Condellos moved to Central Florida and Randall Mechanical Inc. was born in 1986. Under Condello’s leadership, and with the full support of his wife, Debra, and his two children (who now work for the company), Chris and Danny, this once just-aplumbing company has grown into the largest self-performing subcontracting firm in Florida.

Condello famously shares words to live by as he encourages his employees to “do the right thing, every time.”

Sustainability is another important area of focus for RANDALL as the firm aims to identify ways it can lessen its carbon footprint. Thanks to an offsite, modular approach to construction, significant progress is being made.

For example, “engineered precast combines a two and half-inch thick concrete wall with a steel-stud panel and is a much lighter product, when compared to the traditional thickness of brick or concrete walls reducing the

“ We aim to provide a solid, state-ofthe-art service to make projects easier for our clients” — Matt Reinders, Vice President of RANDALL Construction 113

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Matt Reinders Previously an Operations Director at Balfour Beatty, where he worked on major construction projects for more than 20 years, Matt Reinders brings a wealth of experience to his role at RANDALL. During a decade of service at the company, he has helped oversee a period of sustained growth that has seen the specialty contractor develop its 10 self-performing business units to offer a one-stop shop for its clients. “We can do it all in house, it’s a big advantage that gives us control,” confirms Reinders, who is focused on meeting the challenges ahead. “Our aim is to achieve growth with our founding principal of finding solid leadership candidates to help RANDALL thrive.”

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amount of natural resources (water, sand etc) required,” explains Jessica Allen, RANDALL Brand Manager. “In turn, this makes a building’s foundations smaller. Lighter precast products further reduce the number of loads to be transported by large emission-producing trucks.” RANDALL’s approach is also helping owners and developers qualify for LEED green building credits, promoting greenier solutions across the construction industry. “In our precast yard, we recycle and reuse waste concrete,” adds Reinders.

“Broken down concrete from one DECEMBER 2019

project can be recycled as fill for another.”

Reinders sees a growing trend for

RANDALL is actively seeking suppliers

prefabrication and modular solutions

who can enhance this eco-friendly

across the construction industry leav-

approach. For example, the company

ing RANDALL well-placed to take

has teamed up with Kingspan as one

advantage of emerging requirements

of its few manufacturer distributors

for MEP and fire protection systems,

for the KoolDuct product. Kingspan’s

which it can deliver in-house. “We’re

KoolDuct System has a phenolic core

also moving towards offsite pod con-

and is a pre-assembled, pre-insulated

struction for bathrooms and kitchens

duct system for HVAC installations that

at our facility,” he adds. “They can be

is 70% lighter than alternatives avail-

put on a truck, delivered to site and

able and much greenier as it uses

craned into position.” Ultimately,

fewer materials.

RANDALL is able to increase the 115 C OM PAN Y FACT S

RANDALL is very familiar with virtual design construction (VDC) concepts, protocols and implementation, including Building Information Modeling (BIM). Utilising BIM is beneficial for its team to analyse physical building changes and improve overall building, design and structural changes as the project proceeds on schedule.

RANDALL has the expert personnel to fully engage and implement BIM, activating its

many benefits, including: •B uilding prototypes and analysed best options •P redictive logistics conf licts •B uild faster, smarter, more cost effective • Reduces risks • Controls cash f low •E liminates unnecessary costs •O ptimises scheduled activities, reduces construction time •F inds, fixes errors before they become expensive mistakes

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RANDALL CONSTRUCTION

116

“ Our innovative mindset is a differentiator” — Matt Reinders, Vice President, RANDALL Construction

DECEMBER 2019

projects’ speed to market, reduce risks and provide much needed alternatives to the traditional, antiquated methods of construction.

Condello affirms RANDALL is always looking to improve. “We always ask our people: ‘what are the problems in the construction industry?’. It’s always been done the same way for many years.” he laments. “A lot of companies aren’t happy with where they are and what they’re doing. The solution? Think differently and find better ways to achieve your goals. We do this by partnering with our manufacturer relationships and discovering new approaches to projects through the progress they are making with materials and technologies. We do facility tours and apply those learnings at RANDALL, both in the field and in our own workshop.” Under Condello’s watchful stewardship, the RANDALL family will continue to evolve, looking to redefine ‘the right way’ to achieve the best construction solutions.

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118

DECEMBER 2019

State-ofthe-art data centers in Canada WRITTEN BY

WILLIAM SMITH PRODUCED BY

TOM VENTURO

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ESTRUXTURE

Todd Coleman, eStruxture’s President and CEO, explains how the company is leveraging its knowledge of the Canadian market for data center excellence

C

anada’s eStruxture provides carrier and cloud neutral data center service across the country. The company is

experiencing rapid growth – this year alone, it 120

acquired its first facility in Calgary and its second in Vancouver, as well as upgrading existing facilities in Montreal and Vancouver.

Behind the company’s success is its keen attention to the specificities of the Canadian market, as Todd Coleman, President and CEO, explains: “What sets us apart from other data center providers is our 100% focus on the Canadian region, our ability to serve a multitude of markets and our willingness and ability to pre-deploy capacity to enable our customers to quickly deploy, even up to multiple mega-watts, in our state-of-the-art facilities.

We are Canadian owned and headquartered, and focus entirely on our region. Our mindset is not diluted with other out-of-region markets; we know how to get things done in the markets in which we operate, we believe in local customer touch at the DECEMBER 2019

121

2017

Year founded

60

Number of employees

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ESTRUXTURE

122 market level and, as data sovereignty

“ Our goal has always been to become the leading data center provider in Canada” — Todd Coleman, President and CEO, eStruxture

DECEMBER 2019

and foreign ownership issues increase, we are very sensitive to the Canadian regulatory landscape and how that may impact our customers.” eStruxture’s portfolio of data centers may be growing, but expansion is always carefully and responsibly considered. “We have a unique set of requirements that we look for in target acquisitions particularly around the facilities, requiring Tier III, concurrently maintainable architecture, redundancy across the electrical and mechanical systems, access to incremental utility

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ESTRUXTURE SHARES BIG NEWS AT TEX NYC 2019’ 123 power, close proximity to fiber networks

building, formerly a Montreal Gazette

and massively scalable power distribu-

printing facility. “We are confident that

tion within the facility up to 30kW per

this facility is the most scalable, state-

rack,” says Coleman. “The Calgary

of-the-art carrier-neutral facility in

acquisition checked all of our boxes

Quebec – and quite likely all of Canada,”

on the technical requirements and

says Coleman. “We considered every

included highly skilled employees and

detail of the design, architecture,

an expanded customer base. With this

equipment selection and operating

acquisition, eStruxture has positioned

model to enable us to serve our retail

itself as the largest carrier-neutral data

and wholesale customers in ways that

center provider in the market.”

are unique to the Canadian data center

The company is also constructing

industry. The facility was designed

brand new, state-of-the-art facilities in

around the fundamental tenet of high

Montreal and Vancouver. The former,

scalability, efficiency and sustain-

MTL-2, is situated in a repurposed

ability, which translates to 30MW of w w w.c o nst ruc t i o ngl o b a l. com

ESTRUXTURE

124

immediately available, hydro-electric

the area. “We announced earlier this

power; utilisation of free-cooling up

year the development of a new, 55,000

to 8 months a year; a power utilisation

square feet, 10MW data center in

efficiency that is designed for sub-1.2

Burnaby, just on the edge of the City

at load; the latest lithium battery, UPS

of Vancouver. This facility is being

technology; scalable and flexible power

designed and architected around the

configurations that support up to 30kW

basis of design we have developed for

per cabinet and 2N redundancy; and

our MTL-2 facility with focus on scale,

pre-deployed and built-out capacity

flexibility, efficiency and sustainability.

that allows us to deploy a multi-mega-

We are confident that this state-of-

watt customer in less than 90 days.�

the-art facility will be a game changer

The latter, Vancouver facility is being

for the Vancouver market offering

developed to take advantage of the

substantial expansion capabilities for

underserved data center market in

our retail and wholesale customers

DECEMBER 2019

125

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Todd Coleman Todd Coleman is the President and CEO of eStruxture.

Todd brings more than 25 years’ experience in the IT, data center and telecommunications industries.

Most recently, he was the Chief Operating Officer and co-founder of Cologix. Todd has also held several senior positions at Level 3 Communications, a global telecommunications company, including Senior Vice President of Data Centers, Senior Vice President of Media Operations and President of Level 3 Communications Europe. Todd holds a juris doctorate and a bachelor’s degree in computer information systems.

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ESTRUXTURE

126

“What sets us apart from other data center providers is our 100% focus on the Canadian market” — Todd Coleman, President and CEO, eStruxture

DECEMBER 2019

127

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ESTRUXTURE

with dedicated fiber access to our VAN-1 facility as well as the downtown Vancouver carrier hotel.” eStruxture ensures that a focus on sustainability is built into its facilities from the earliest design stage. “From a design perspective, our engineers work to design and develop the most energy efficient data center possible,” says Coleman. “We are constantly challenging to drive to the highest efficiency possible. Additionally, the customer IT and server equipment produces a significant amount of

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“ Our engineers work to design and develop the most energy efficient data center possible” — Todd Coleman, President and CEO, eStruxture

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ESTRUXTURE: PTC’19 EDGE CAPABLE DATA CENTERS’

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ESTRUXTURE

C O M PA N Y FACT S

• Constructing facilities in Montreal and Vancouver • In the last year, has acquired data centers in Calgary and Vancouver

heat that we strive to re-use through heat exchangers, either in our own building through uses like heating our office space and/or by providing 130

it to other adjacent buildings or businesses.” It’s also about making sure facilities run as efficiently as possible, with ramifications from both a business and sustainability perspective. “A traditional data center has total energy expenditure for cooling alone of 50% or more of critical IT load – sometimes significantly higher. In eStruxture’s case, we were able to achieve a yearly average power saving of about 70% through the use of air flow management, CFD analysis and air side economisers, allowing us to benefit from the lower ambient temperatures in Canada that enable us to achieve up to eight months per year of free cooling.”

DECEMBER 2019

eStruxture is confident in the path it is taking, while keeping an eye on upcoming industry trends such as edge computing. “With new technologies like AI and autonomous vehicles rapidly gaining traction, companies are beginning to need much more powerful and local compute, storage and networking resources than most current data center providers are used to deploying,” says Coleman. “As a result, interest in facilities located outside of traditional Tier 1 data center markets will continue to surge.

“Our goal has always been to become the leading data center provider in Canada, and we will continue to strive for that superlative,” he adds. “We will continue to expand, both into new markets and within our existing markets, and we will continue to be sure our customers have state-of-the-art technology at their fingertips all while receiving white glove customer service.”

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