Insights
Digital trends in a post-pandemic world
We are used to change in the digital age, but few of us could have predicted the changes and upheaval that the global pandemic has brought. The pandemic has completely changed how many of us live and work and some of these changes may be permanent.Recent research has identified technology trends for 2021 which fall into three themes:PeopleLocationResiliencePeoplePeople are our most precious assets. Many people are now working remotely, across business either individually or in teams. The people theme explores people’s behaviours, experience and privacy.Location independenceNew ways of working mean that employees, customers, suppliers an......
The Building Safety Bill
On the 20th July the government issued the first draft of the Building Safety Bill. The Bill responds to the independent review of building regulations and fire safety carried out by Dame Judith Hackitt following the Grenfell Tower disaster.Dame Judith’s report made over 50 recommendations. The government have subsequently accepted all the recommendations and principles which have informed the bill.There was a consultation paper, so we had a good idea as to what was going to be in the bill.It has taken a few days to get my head around the information. There are 8 documents on the .gov website relating to the bill.Firstly, there isn&rsqu......
The adoption of innovation
It cannot be denied that the contrition and property industry has been exposed to a wide range of innovation over the past 20 years as the sector has been going through a digital transformation.If we are going to continue to innovate and adopt new thinking we need to understand how and why people adopt new ideas, practices, and tools.This is a huge field of science; however, Everett M. Rogers provides a very useful overview in his book ‘Diffusion for Innovation’. It explains many things about why people behave the way they do and provides clues as to what we could do to change how people behave.Introduction & De......
Value Optimisation
As like most architects, SPACE has always wanted to maximise value for our clients. However, over the past 20 years, we have looked deeper into the meaning of value and how we can use innovation and research to improve outcomes for our clients.We call this Value Optimisation. We use proven processes and technologies to improve efficiency and reduce waste through design, construction and operation.The first step is to define value for a client. Value is different for everyone and the lowest cost is not necessarily the best value.Whilst all projects benefit from value optimisation, those with the potential for standardisation and ongoing p......
Digital Twin: The mind of a machine
The next largely unchartered territory for the property sector is that of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.Until now, buildings have not produced sufficient data to allow any data science to be of value. However, with IoT devices and connected digital twins, the opportunity is a reality.As the property sector data lakes grow over the years ahead, we will be able to learn from patterns in how we use buildings and how they perform. With this information, we can predict how spaces are used and how we can optimise their performance.For example, we will be able to carry out predictive maintenance or reduce energy costs based on anticip......
The story of the Golden Thread
One of the most frequently used terms in the digital construction and property sector currently is ‘The Golden Thread’.So where did it come from? What does it mean?We have done some research to try and get to the bottom of this.In Charles Dickens’ ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ he makes a reference to knitting!”Lucie weaves her golden thread through people’s lives, she binds them into a better destiny, a tightly knit community of family and close friends.“The dictionary definition is an idea or feature that is present in all parts of something, holds it together and gives value. It i......
Space Group launches Twinview: Digital Twin
Newcastle’s Space Group has launched its very own property technology platform, Twinview. It is to revolutionise the way that buildings are managed and perform in ways not seen before. It has taken 4 years to develop the platform and is powered by cloud-based, 3D digital twins (digital replicas of physical buildings). Its aim is to connect virtual and physical buildings with real-time analytical data.Up until now, all information and data held on a building has been kept as hard copy, which needs consistently updating if it is to stay correct and relevant. Twinview can integrate a property’s intelligence onto a single platform, al......
Optimising business outcomes with a digital twin
Over the past 12 months there has been much talk or even hype about Digital Twins. Typically, it is the technology which everyone gets excited about and they often overlook the problem we are trying to solve.At Twinview we are clear in our purpose, to help our clients improve business outcomes. Twinview allows our clients to achieve this in many ways and provides them with flexibility to use the information and data the platform gives them access to.In 2010, Building Information Modelling was in a similar position, where again, there was hype about the technology without a true understanding of the value a 3-D digital......
Digital Quadruplets
Throughout my life there have been things which I have become particularly obsessed with. In my early teens it was the CB radio and BMX bikes, a few years later, girls and alcohol.At university the fascination was having a good time whilst doing just enough to be able to stay for another year.At work I became fascinated by the impact digitisation could have on the construction sector which subsequently became BIM. Alongside this, with Spacehus, I briefly dabbled with offsite construction but gave up when I realised it was too soon.More recently it is Digital Twins which is exercising me and more specifically how a building data can make a pos......
Business of Zero Carbon
In December 2019, Space Group made a commitment to be a net-zero carbon business by 2023; a deliberately tight timescale to focus our efforts.We have been committed to sustainability for many years and are ISO14001 accredited, however we felt the accreditation does not go far enough. It provides a good framework for measurement but not necessarily reduction.For quite a few years, we have been advocating low-energy design to our clients – for example, designing a Passivhus School a number of years ago. However, as a business, we needed to demonstrate that we practice what we preach.After only a few months into our journey, our rese......
That was the decade that was...
Well that crept up on us. That’s the noughties done and dusted. As we start a new decade, we think back to what has happened over the last 10 years and as every decade passes you realise how much has actually changed.We started the decade with Gordon Brown as Prime Minister who was replaced by David Cameron later in 2010, with a little help from Nick Clegg. Teresa followed and now we have Boris but we still haven’t left the EU. January 2010 was the coldest January in 30 years (we hadn’t had the Beast from the East yet) and in April millions were stranded in the ash cloud. Including me, I was stuck in a lovely hotel......
BIM for Good
The theme for this year’s BIM Show Live is ‘BIM for Good.’We don’t just make these things up, believe it or not, some thought goes into it.We were going to do something around the Digital Twin but we felt this was a little predictable for BIM Show Live. The thinking behind ‘BIM for Good’ was that for a long as I can remember, as a sector, we have been critical on ourselves and looked internally as to how we make ourselves better.We have focused on digitisation and transformation. Transformation: change in form, appearance, nature, or character.However, if we look at the innovation curve, I would argue that......
The Queen's Speech
Towards the end of 2019, the Queen’s Speech identified recommendations made by the Hackitt report as a bill for the new parliament. Below is a little more detail as to what is planned. The proposals are largely aligned with the consultation and suggests a new regulatory body. There is also a particular focus on tenants.What are the key statements?- Dame Judith Hackitt’s independent review found that that the currentregulatory system is not fit for purpose in relation to high-rise and complexbuildings. All 53 of Dame Judith’s recommendations will be taken forward. - &nb......
The COBie Conundrum
This week’s thoughts have been around COBie, which may not be considered the most exciting subject and not something I would normally have an opinion on - but bear with me.I know I’m stepping into dangerous territory as there are many passionate about this area and know a lot more than I do. It also is an area which really gets people mobilized.My thoughts on all this BIM stuff is that anything we do has to start with ‘why?’ We need to understand the issues and talk to our clients about their issues. We must not fall into the trap of doing things just because they are ‘clever’ or ‘interesting.’T......
One From the Archives
Back is the early 2000s we stumbled across parametric software when talking to our AutoCAD reseller, Imass. They showed us a new product called the Revit Series and the rest is history.At the time, we were known as Waring and Netts Partnership and employed a Systems Integration Manager. This was a new role for us with the remit to implement Revit and document management across the practice, long before the term BIM had ever been mentioned.Recently, I caught up with Clive Hunt who was that very Systems Integration Manager and we reminisced about a very different time. Clive moved to London and now has his own consultancy, Robitect.com.At the t......
Creative Re-Use
Since Space was established over 60 years ago, we have brought many buildings back to life by creating new uses or enhancing their existing use.We refer to this as creative re-use. We have designed hotels, theatres, offices all within existing buildings with a growing number on the drawing board. All of these developments deliver far more than their functional requirements: providing additional social, economic and environmental value.For example, the recently completed Darlington Theatre regeneration encouraged additional activity in the town centre whilst the ongoing redevelopment of Stockton Theatre will also help the regeneration of Stock......
The Most Important Document in a Generation
There is nothing we like more in construction than a report. One of the most significant documents of the last two decades was published in June and it seems to have passed us all by. However, this report is far more reaching than the 2011 BIM mandate and is easily as impactful as the 1994 CDM regulations. Any idea what the report is? Well, last month, the ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published the Building a Safer Future consultation paper, which set out government plans to implement the reform of building regulatory safety system in advance of new legislation following the Hackitt report. The consulta......
The Value of Value.
Recently a colleague of mine asked me to take part in a “Procuring for Value” presentation. As it was a little while away I agreed to do it. I was to share the stage with Ann Bentley who sits on the board of the Construction Leadership Council and who leads the Procuring for Value stream. Clearly she would know her stuff on Value and there was a risk I would be exposed…As it got closer to the conference I thought I should have a look into the subject. This wasn’t an event where you could just dust off an old presentation.When I looked at the topic I realised how little I knew about value! Over the years I have he......
The importance of software
Over the past couple of weeks I have been talking to many software companies as part of the preparation for BIM Show Live 2019.What I have found is there is lots of innovation across the construction sector. Businesses are making big investments and taking risks to address the challenges and opportunities which are now apparent.Everywhere I turn there are new platforms, from start ups to established multi national businesses. My colleagues continue to find new software every week and blow me away with what can be achieved. The most powerful aspect is the pace and ease in which outputs can be delivered using cloud based platforms. All of......
Spotlight on Construction
I can’t believe it is six months since we were all trapped in the middle of the Beast from the East in Newcastle.Despite the weather BIM Show Live 2018 was another success and only a very few delegates were unable to make it. A few of our Scottish colleagues even stayed for an extra couple of days (not necessarily through choice!).We have started the planning for BIM Show Live 2019 and will once again return to the Boiler Shop, Newcastle on the Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th of February.This year during my state of the nation presentation I talked about the previous 12 months and that it had been one of the most challenging......
The report of all reports
The report the industry will rememberConstruction is renowned for its reports. We have had Latham, Egan, Vision 2025 and more recently the Farmer report. These are all great reports with lots of great ideas for the future.We have seen some change in the industry over the years. New ways of working have come and gone, for example partnering, it was adopted for a few years and then fizzled out. The industry has seen incremental change, but more needs to be done to modernise the industry. More recently The Farmer report has built momentum with offsite manufacture to address the unprecedented skills gap that has developed over the years; res......
Enjoy the journey not just the destination
The Space Group story started some sixty years ago. This year, 2017, is the 60th anniversary of when the Waring and Netts Partnership was first established. In 2007 when we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the company we changed our name to Space Group to reflect the diversity of the work in which we were involved.A few weeks ago we held a lunch for some of the partners who have been part of the business over the decades. Unfortunately, some are sadly no longer with us and others were too frail to attend, however, my early mentor and chairman Mike Douglas came along as did Richard Elphick.At nearly 70 Mike is still working with surveyo......
Same problem, same answer
I have just had the delight of reading the Governments white paper “Fixing our broken housing market”. It is a very aesthetically-pleasing document and overall, it’s an easy read.That's the good news.The bad news is that we have heard it all before from previous governments. This document is Theresa May’s attempt to address the issue. Unfortunately, there is absolutely no innovation or significant developments in policy or funding without which, nothing is going to change. There is little mention of any significant financial commitment but there is a lot of information about the perceived problems within the sector......
BIM is not the answer...
I know that may seem like quite a strange statement from someone like me who has been one of the biggest advocates of BIM over the last 15 years.We have moved mountains with new technologies but it still isn't enough.When we started to talk about BIM to a wider audience around six years ago, we used a presentation slide which had the words “people, process and protocol”. Level 2 has helped to set a framework for the protocol and process. The part which still needs more investment is the people element.As a bit of an old timer my interest in BIM has not been in just technology for technology’s sake but about the impact, i......
Industry 4.0
In the mid-2000s, the design community from within the construction industry coined the term “Building Information Modelling” or BIM as we now know it. This was a catch-all for 3D design and embraced software such as Allplan, Architype and Revit.This all-encompassing brand term was incredibly powerful and helped to align people behind one single initiative. Initially, this was embraced purely by the design community but following the government mandating BIM for all centrally procured projects the wider industry began to consider how BIM could support their workflows.Eventually, the term BIM became too limiting for what was happen......
Data driven artificial intelligence for construction
Since construction started its transition to digital, there has been a growing question; what can we achieve using the data we have collected and can this data transform how we work on a day-to-day basis.We all understand the importance of data and the need to have quality, consistent data throughout the life cycle of a built asset. But what if this data can be used in progressive technologies and reach beyond its current confines.Given that data is at the centre of Artificial Intelligence (AI), can we then argue that AI has a place in the construction industry.Several years ago most of us would have said this was not a realistic prospect, ho......
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