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BUSY REPORT SEASON FOR SCSI

It has been a very busy three months on the report front for the SCSI, starting with the launch of the ‘Real Cost of New Housing Delivery’ in late July. The report found that the average cost of building a threebed semi in the greater Dublin area is €371K, an increase of €41K since the previous report was published in 2016. It found the rise was mainly due to an increase in hard costs, which made up 48% of the total. In contrast to the private sector model, the cost of delivering a public sector house was estimated to be between €210K and €230K. Micheál Mahon, then incoming SCSI President, pointed out that the housing crisis would not be resolved until the critical balance between affordability for consumers and viability for developers was addressed. The report was widely covered in the print and broadcast media –Micheál was interviewed on RTÉ Radio One’s Morning Ireland as well as Newstalk’s Breakfast Business – and led to meetings between the SCSI and officials in the Department of An Taoiseach, as well as with opposition spokespersons.

Special Covid-19 Residential Report Once the property market reopened in early June the Society was keen to gauge the impact of Covid-19. In August it published its ‘Special Covid-19 Residential Report’, which found that two out of three estate agents believed property values had largely remained unchanged compared to pre Covid. Almost three-quarters of those surveyed said the level of enquiries had remained the same, while 10% of property sales were renegotiated due to Covid-19, with the average price reduction being 3%. Vice President TJ Cronin said the survey showed the resilience of the market, but also warned that the outlook remained challenging. The survey received strong coverage in the media and TJ was interviewed on Newstalk’s Breakfast Business.

Pre-Budget Submission 2021 The SCSI’s Pre-Budget Submission was sent to both the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe TD and Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Michael McGrath TD in mid September. In his letter to both ministers, SCSI President Micheál Mahon pointed out the areas the Society believes need to be prioritised:

n increasing the supply of affordable housing; n ensuring that the Government’s ambitious retrofitting plan has the resources to hit its targets; n availing of competitive tendering to deliver key capital projects; n helping local authorities to rejuvenate our town centres; and, n investing in the future by developing a construction tech hub.

Key elements of the submission were reported in The Sunday Times, Irish Independent and Irish Examiner.

Covid-19 has ‘sharp and immediate impact on tender activity and prices’ The latest Tender Price Index, which was published by the SCSI in early October, showed that construction price inflation slowed dramatically in the first half of the year due to Covid-19. According to the Index – the only independent assessment of commercial construction tender prices in Ireland – the national average inflation rate increased by just 0.9% in the first half of 2020, down from 2.8% in the second half of last year. This brought the national annual rate of inflation down to 3.8%.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Micheál Mahon said Covid had had a sharp and immediate impact on the level of tendering activity, and in turn tendering rates, as many construction firms focused attention on securing projects for 2021.

SCSI PwC Ireland Construction Monitor In the SCSI PwC Ireland Construction Monitor, surveyors warned of a challenging outlook for the construction sector due to Covid-19, but also pointed out that opportunities existed. Because of Covid, surveys were taken in February and June and the findings showed the sudden impact the virus had on the sector with sentiment regarding activity levels, profit and outlook shifting dramatically from positive to negative. Micheál Mahon said that while the sector had done well to weather the initial impact of Covid-19, the findings raised serious concerns: “Because of the long-term nature of construction projects, the sector places a huge value on economic certainty and consumer confidence. Unfortunately, both have been badly hit by Covid-19 and that is why it is so important that the Government continues to invest in the strategic objectives as outlined in Project Ireland 2040”.

Sincere thanks The President, Micheál Mahon would like to thank everyone who contributes to the Society’s reports and surveys throughout the year: “Whether you are the Chair of a group, a member of a group, or a member who participates in a survey, we would like to thank you sincerely for giving up your time and playing an active role”.

NEW SCSI MEMBERS

On September 24, the formal election of successful APC trainees took place, confirming them as full professional members and Chartered Surveyors. The SCSI extends congratulations to all newly qualified Chartered Surveyors, and looks forward to all they will contribute to the Society and the profession in the future.

New Members: Robert Hefferon – Valuations Stevie Grehan – Valuations Matthew Finnegan – Valuations Paul Nalty – Commercial Seanna Gill – Commercial John Reynolds – Commercial David Mulcair – Commercial Megan Pilkington – Commercial Eoin O’Toole – Commercial Niall Crowley – Commercial Ciara O’Donnell – Commercial Robert Cruess Callaghan – Commercial Sophie Beattie – Commercial Rebecca Breen – Commercial Daniel Sweeney – Facilities management

MEET THE SCSI BOARD

The SCSI recently welcomed two new members to its Board. Paul Mooney, Treasurer Paul Mooney is a Chartered Surveyor with over 25 years’ experience in property management. He is Head of Commercial Asset Management at Cushman & Wakefield. Prior to that, he was Managing Director of Benchmark Property. He was author and lead researcher of the Housing Agency and Clúid report on owners’ management companies. Paul was appointed to the board of the PSRA in 2012, and re-appointed in January 2017. He is Chair of the Society’s PMFM Professional Group and a member of the Finance Committee. He lectures on property management for the SCSI/Technical University Dublin. Paul has delivered a number of CPD lectures to industry, has contributed to The Irish Times and the Surveyors Journal, where he also serves on the Editorial Board. Ken Cribbin was a proud Chartered Quantity Surveyor and dedicated a lot of time to the Society over a period of 20 years, serving as Chair of the Junior Organisation, the 25 Club, and the Quantity Surveying Division, before being elected President in 2009, a role he carried out with dedication and distinction. Ken started his professional career with Brendan Merry & Partners and worked there from 1986 to 2012. During this time, he gained a reputation as an expert in healthcare and educational facilities in particular, but more importantly as someone who was professional, honest and truthful, and could be relied upon in a crisis. In 2012, Ken mentioned that he was considering a change and would like to manage a major project overseas. When Linesight got an opportunity to manage a major project in Israel, I asked Ken if he would be interested. He agreed to become our Israeli Commercial Director, despite never having been to the country. This was very typical of Ken. He loved a challenge and nothing fazed him. The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland has awarded four new Fellowships to members who have achieved distinction in the profession, and are active members of the SCSI. The new Fellows are: n Norman Jackson, Housing Agency – Quantity Surveyor n Lily Ellis, JLL – PMFM Kevin James, Second Vice President Kevin is owner/Managing Director of Cogent Associates specialising in project and cost management and consultancy services. Prior to this, Kevin was Managing Director of Gardiner & Theobald (Ireland) for eight years. With a career spanning over 25 years, he has been involved in a wide range of developments across all sectors. Some notable projects include: Adamstown SDZ; Cork School of Music PPP; Herberton Regeneration; Google EMEA HQ; and, Central Bank of Ireland HQ. Kevin is a past chairman of the Quantity Surveying Professional Group and SCSI representative at the Construction Industry

OBITUARY – KEN CRIBBIN

Council (CIC). After a couple of years in Israel, Ken returned to Dublin to the role of Managing Director of Linesight Project Management. He reorganised the business and grew it from approximately 15 project managers to almost 100 throughout Europe today. Then in 2018, we asked Ken to take on the role of Chief Operations Officer. Ken researched this role and made it his own, travelling to London, New York, San Francisco, Dubai and Mumbai to connect with our teams. Ken was a very hard worker but he was also a very social person and loved to mingle, whether at internal functions like our Summer BBQ or at client functions. He was a great lover of sports, particularly rugby and golf. The outpouring of grief and sympathy throughout the construction industry, both at home and abroad, at the tragic news of Ken’s passing has been truly amazing. He was respected and loved by his colleagues, peers, clients, contractors, consultants and everyone he came across.

Derry Scully

FOUR NEW SCSI FELLOWSHIPS ANNOUNCED

Group President, Linesight n Aidan O’Connor, Limerick Institute of Technology – Quantity Surveyor n Eugen Niculae, Technological University Dublin – Geomatics The Society Fellowship grade of membership represents a prestigious award that reflects the career achievements of a special group of property and construction professionals. Attaining the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland Fellowship is a true mark of distinction. The SCSI extends its congratulations to these new Fellows.