December 2011 - Wine Tasting Event

In her usual way Julia Trustram-Eve created a great evening of wine tasting on December 7th.  Julia never fails to entertain with her taste challenges and amazing knowledge of wines.  The quality of the wines that are produced in our green and pleasant land inevitably make a very welcome appearance.  Always surprising, always engaging. 


A great start to the Festive Season! 

LCEC at the Constructing Excellence Awards 2011

The committee members at the Constructing Excellence 2011 Awards.  A full account of the awards and the winners of the event can be visited from here when it is posted to the CE web site.

Clock wise from the left : Rajvant Nijjhar, Keith Maynard, Paul Brampton, Hugh Bantin, a guest, Barry Dobbins, Andrew Bowles, David Hucker, a guest, Kathy Bagster

November 2011 - Energy from Waste

One of today's key topics which concerns everyone. The challenges offered by the fundamental issues surrounding the generation of energy from waste in a eco-friendly way that can adapt to emerging technologies were outlined by Andy King, Energy & Waste Section Leader at Morgan Sindall. The subject is very relevant to the construction industry particularly at the design stage which was echoed by those attending, "very relevant" being the most used words!

Andy's presentation can be downloaded from Click here or watch the following:

September Event - Construction Act Webinar

A Webinar video to update the session on the Construction Act in September.  Paul Brampton takes you through the changes.

October 2011 - The East London Line

Andy Nettleton of Balfour Beatty (Balfour Beatty) took the meeting through the issues surrounding the redevelopment of the London Overground East London Line. The line threads through a dense urban landscape throwing up numerous challenges ton its constructors including finding space for new expanded & new structures as well as extending the reach of the line itself. The LCEC chair,Andrew Bowles, commented on "Andy's for a fascinating and informative presentation" Simulation of Shoreditch High Street Station - JSA Opus
Some asides from the evening:
"Another great evening" 
"Diverse questions illustrated the sheer breadth of the project's undertaking and achievements"
"A slightly different topic, but thoroughly enjoyable and very interesting" 
"My first event - I shall definitely be joining"

LCEC September 2011 Event - Construction Act Overview

Paul Brampton and Steven Hayward from the construction and engineering team at IBB solicitors presented the October 2011 changes to the Construction Act to a full house at the London Capital Club on 13 September 2011. The presentation included a look at the 'old' Construction Act and a more detailed consideration of the new regime and its practical implications. The presentation was very well received.

We have lived with the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (colloquially "the Construction Act") for over a decade. In 1998, when the law was introduced, the regime seemed quite alien and difficult to operate - Building Magazine (17/4/98) described it as “the most significant piece of legislation to hit the industry for decades” - but we all adapted our working practices accordingly with the result that it has become second nature to work within the confines of that legislation now.

Times change. Part 8 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 amends the Constriction Act. It applies to all contracts entered into on or after 1st October 2011 in England and Wales . New rules make it more difficult to hide behind the terms of a contract to delay making payments whilst at the same time enhancing the payee's right to suspend works in the event of non-payment.

Some commentators welcome the new rules as a victory for smaller companies protecting them from employers who stifle cash flow causing many smaller firms to go bust. Others say the changes are unnecessary adding to administration when the industry is on its knees and new building orders are at their lowest since the 80s. Seeking to avoid the new legislation, some construction companies are racing to get contracts signed ahead of October 1st, even if the building work is not due to start for several months.

Post presentation comments included
"The evening was very informative. The handouts produced ... were excellent"
"Made a somewhat dry topic interesting. Thank you"
"It was the first time I attended an LCEC event. It was informative, professionally presented, pleasant and a relaxed venue, above my expectations"
"It was combination of learning and networking"
"Excellent handouts - among the best I've received from an event"

LCEC July 2011 Event - Renewable Technology for the Built Environment On-site talk and tour of CEREB

LCEC - July 2011 - CEREB Site Visit from Mike Colquhoun on Vimeo.

Did you attend the event?  If so we would like to hear from you Click here to take survey 

CEREB is Located at roof level of the new London South Bank University teaching facility K2, the Centre has direct access to data from all the different innovative technologies providing the services to the working building. The data from the monitoring systems is available via web interfaces that will allow it to be used for collaborative research worldwide, which gives the Centre an important international dimension. There is also the ability to showcase developing technologies and to trial new products in a real life setting where the results can be closely monitored. This makes it an invaluable resource for understanding how to design, operate and manage technologies for future low carbon buildings - both new build and retrofit

The talk and tour was hosted by Ken Shaw, Centre Manager. There was ample opportunity to find out more about CEREB, its technologies and projects, what’s been working well and what hasn’t. Following the talk there was a tour to view some of the technologies together with the usual networking.

LCEC June 14 2011 Event - Heron Tower Visit The story behind the project

The club was delighted to be able to offer this fantastic opportunity to visit the latest tall building on the City’s sky line. The event was attended by over 70 club members which figure does not include hosts, speakers and club officers. A truly memorable and enjoyable event!

Over 200m tall and 46 storeys high the building offered an opportunity to enjoy breathtaking views of London from another vantage point. We were treated to a presentation from Paul Simovic of architects KPF and Jonathan Inman of Skanska who constructed the project, who spoke about the unique aspects of the design of the building for client Heron International and some of the technological innovations introduced and the challenges overcome. As always there was an opportunity to ask questions followed a chance to enjoy the view with a glass of wine and networking as usual.

LCEC May 2011 Event - The Practical Use of Social Media in Construction

LCEC May 2011 Event - The Practical Use of Social Media in Construction from Mike Colquhoun on Vimeo.

Did you attend the event?  If so we would like to hear from you Click here to take survey.

There was a full house for the event which followed on from the one Paul Wilkinson did for the club last year. Paul was joined by Philippa Grantham of Studio Klaschka in providing more insight into how social media can be applied in the contracting environment. Robert Klaschka, Studio Klaschka, supported Philippa and Paul during the Q&A session which followed the initial talk. A lively debate ensued demonstrating the level of interest there is in the ever evolving toolset offered by this medium.

LCEC April 2011 Event - The Retrofit Challenge

LCEC April - The Retrofit Challenge from Mike Colquhoun on Vimeo.

Did you attend the event?  If so we would like to hear from you Click here to take survey in addition you can use the survey to ask a question that wasn't answered at the event!

The event was very well attended - likely to be a record! Retrofitting and its many issues were outlined by the speakers - Richard Quartermaine, Ian Goodfellow, Alex Moody and Jonathan Brookes. There were lively discussions during the Q&A sections which carried on afterwards over a glass or two of wine!  Retrofitting and sustainability are hot topics which are likely to be revisited again soon.

LCEC March 2011 Event - The BIM Panel

LCEC March 2011 - BIM Panel from Mike Colquhoun on Vimeo.

Did you attend the event?  If so we would like to hear from you Click here to take survey in addition you can use the survey to ask a question that wasn't answered at the event!

There was a very full house for the March meeting which was an open forum on BIM with a panel composed of professionals from various disciplines with involvement in BIM technologies.   Asad Maqbool chaired the panel ably assisted by Dr Anne Kemp, David Throssal, Robert Klaschka and Campbell Williams.

Shortlisted for Be2Camp Awards

LCEC February 2011 - Integration & Collaborative Working - Hackney City Academy

LCEC February 2011 from Mike Colquhoun on Vimeo.

A full house heard Sabah Abed (Project Director, Willmott Dixon) and Andrzej Kusnell (Studio E Architects) talk about their Constructing Excellence award winning project - Hackney City Academy.
Why did they win the CE Award? This is why -

Hackney is the second of 3 Academies sponsored by the City of London delivered through collaborative partnered team working. Despite relocating sites midway through process and still completed on time and to budget

The challenges of a tight programme and complex site have been successfully met, whilst extending the collaboration to the community and end users by implementing an exemplar programme of “young client” engagement with the participation of the Sorrell Foundation. This approach has resulted in a striking contemporary building that has been delivered on time and to budget by a fully partnered team composed of the City of London Surveyors Department, Willmott Dixon Contractors, Studio E Architects, Max Fordham Environmental Engineers, Dewhurst Macfarlane Structural Engineers, Northcroft Cost Consultants, Subcontractors and The Sorrell Foundation Young Client Team.

A well honed team operating at maximum efficiency under the Partnering Contract, managed to recover the lost 6 months caused by moving sites to process designs, planning application and procurement in time for the construction start in January 2008. For a second time the partnered team succeeded, in spite of adversities, to deliver a quality result to time and to budget.

The confined nature and location of the site next to Homerton High Street meant that construction works had to be monitored and planned to minimise disruption in the area. With the number of workers on site reaching up to 240, arrivals and departure from site also required close management.

The sponsors and project team engaged with the Hackney Community through extensive consultations. With the aid of the Sorrell Foundation a young client group was created from two primary feeder schools, Berger and Morningside as well as the local Hackney Community College and the first City of London Academy in Southwark. These young people participated in the creation of a brief for the new Academy and then worked alongside the project team for two years. Through a series of workshops during the construction phase the client team were given the opportunity to investigate, understand and comment on the delivery of the building and how it was constructed.

In delivering the academy Willmott Dixon’s design team worked closely with studio e to develop the design with the practical input of specialist subcontractors and an in-house services manager, ensuring that the integrity of the design aspirations were not compromised.

Encouraging a sense of identification with the aspirational nature of the facility a hoarding display of the input of the client team was erected and apprentices were employed from local colleges to reinforce this sense of community shareholding.

The team integration continues through the post completion learning including a post completion workshop to evaluate how the partnered process assisted in an effective delivery, and how the process could be further improved.

The team built relationships and operating structures that were professional and respectful but direct, creating a decision making process that was very quick but not irrational. When problems occurred the group focused and overcame the problem. It was also agreed that the use of a partnered contract ensured that decisions were made in the interest of the project rather than in the interest of each entity.

A key element of the project had been the collaborative approach which allowed constructive criticism to be taken on board and solutions reached as a team.  Had this not been the case, the change of site and resulting contracted programme could have seriously impacted delivery of the project.

45% of the supply chain was appointed on a preferred or partnered basis which reflects the delivery team contract. Early appointment and involvement of the supply chain on design saved time and created cost savings. As a comprehensive value engineering exercise had not been able to take place due to contracted timescales, this was important in achieving the budget.

Members of the supply chain were involved in work with the Sorrell Foundation group. This provided them with opportunities to interact with the end users and many expressed how their connection to the project was deepened by the workshops.
(Abridged text)

LCEC January 2011 - Prospects for 2011 and beyond - Two Speed Market? & AGM

LCEC January - Prospects for 2011 and beyond - Two Speed Market? & AGM from Mike Colquhoun on Vimeo.