Mackenzie Construction: The Knowledge

THE KNOWLEDGE NEWSLETTER | SUMMER 2021

05 ISSUE NO.

Welcome to our home for regular updates about Mackenzie Construction. Our team are at the heart of our success and this newsletter aims to ensure we celebrate our achievements and keep you informed of everything you need to know. #SafeInTheKnowledge

Contents

Message from Andy Dalrymple

Director’s message

02

Investors in People

03

Northumbrian Water Success

04

Union Canal Breach

05

20 Years of Scottish Canals

06 | 07

Smart Surface KTP

08

Net Zero Update

09

Irvine Meadow Club

10 | 11

Health & Wellbeing

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The last year has brought many difficulties for everyone at Mackenzie Construction, both at work and at home.

I am delighted to see that, despite this challenge, we have come together as one team, supporting each other and continuing to deliver for our clients. This team effort has ensured that we can now look to emerge from the trials associated with COVID-19 stronger and fitter than we have ever been, with workload (both current and projected) at an all-time high.

Despite the challenges of the last 18 months, we kept all head office functions working remotely, carried out emergency repairs to the breach of the Union Canal, delivered a high profile contract on time for a new client at Glen Mallon Jetty and continued with a major programme of tank repairs for Scottish Water whilst, above all, continuing to support one another.

As we look ahead, our company has many new opportunities and challenges for us all to consider. Opportunities in terms of our increasing client base, including new framework contracts with both Severn Trent Water and Northumbrian Water, along with the increased focus on Smart Surface via our partnership with the University of Strathclyde.

In terms of challenges, we will be focused on working with our clients to achieve net zero by reducing our carbon footprint, finding ways to further enhance quality on site with an ethos of ‘Right First Time’ and creating the right environment to release all the benefits which digitalisation (and the use of information technology) can bring in making us more efficient as a business.

I am confident, based on the hard work and commitment shown by our team, that everyone at Mackenzie Construction will rise to meet both the challenges and the opportunities of the next year to ensure we have a safe and successful time ahead of us.

Andy Dalrymple Managing Director

Investors in People:

Mackenzie Construction achieve Platinum and Gold awards

Mackenzie Construction is delighted to say that it has achieved Investors in People Platinum and has reached Gold status in its Investors in Young People award.

For nearly 30 years Investors in People has been recognised internationally as a leading people accreditation. With people at the heart of its success, Mackenzie Construction has sought to retain and improve its ‘We Invest In People’ accreditation since 2000 and has held the Investors in Young People accreditation since 2015.

The Investors in Young People Awards offer a framework of good practice that seeks to reward and recognise employers who have a track record in recruiting, developing and retaining young people.

Similarly, the Investors in People Award gives insights on how well the company is leading, supporting and developing its workforce to achieve business success with expert advice and action plans to support the evolution of its strategy. The process also allows employers to benefit from feedback on how they can improve strategies for managing, developing and supporting the workforce within their organisation.

Andy Dalrymple, Mackenzie Construction’s Managing Director said,

“Mackenzie Construction is dedicated to creating an environment for our people that allows them to progress, develop and thrive. There is no doubt that our people are our most valuable asset, and we are thrilled to have reached Platinum status on our IIP award and Gold in our IIYP accreditation too.”

“Although we have always been a business which firmly places people at the centre of our thinking, over the last few years we have maintained a clear focus on developing young talent. We know that there is always more to be done to support, inspire and develop young people and our team remains committed to doing everything§ it can do to ensure we keep attracting the best young industry talent out there.”

Nicola Dillon, Specialist and Pioneer at Remarkable said, “Achieving Investors in People Platinum is a fantastic achievement for Mackenzie Construction. Platinum is the highest level of accreditation available and recognises truly outperforming organisations and I would like to wholeheartedly congratulate

the Mackenzie team. Their leadership capability is highly advanced, as is workforce engagement, which allows the best decisions to be made for the business from a collective voice. There is strong culture of trust and ownership, supported by strong organisational values which drive decision making.

The team at Mackenzie Construction take ownership for their learning and development and embrace a commitment to continuous improvement to support positive outcomes and sustainable success for the company as a whole” “Achieving Investors in Young People Gold is a double achievement where there is a strong commitment to recruit, develop, lead and retain Young People.

Of particular note is the commitment to grow talent in the business and allow Young People to progress, to have a voice, to champion youth initiatives and be supported to develop to their full potential.”

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Northumbrian Water Ltd framework success for Mackenzie Construction Mackenzie Construction is delighted to announce its success in being awarded a four-year framework contract with Northumbrian Water Ltd (NWL) with the option to extend for two further two-year periods. This includes repair and refurbishment of service reservoirs, water towers, raw water retaining structures, aqueducts, river structures and water and sewage treatment works process tanks.

Northumbrian Water Limited is a water company in the United Kingdom, providing mains water and sewerage services in the north east and south east of England. In the north east of England, Northumbrian Water supplies potable and raw water as well as the collection, treatment and disposal of sewage. In the south east of England, NWL trades as ‘Essex and Suffolk Water’ in the supply of water services only. NWL’s vision is to be the national leader in the provision of sustainable water and waste water services and is constantly looking for more efficient, innovative ways to improve its services to make life even better for customers.

The works will comprise of internal and external repairs, application of coatings and linings to steel and concrete

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structures, together with other associated minor engineering works, including assets in Essex and Suffolk Water (ESW) operating areas. Having worked within several frameworks across the water sector over many years, Mackenzie Construction has built strong industry relationships and a reputation for safety and quality.

Managing Director, Andy Dalrymple, said “We are very pleased to announce our recent tender success with Northumbrian Water Ltd and to be growing our customer base into the North East and South East of England. Building on our extensive experience of working as a SR15 Tier One Framework Delivery Partner with Scottish Water and as framework

partner to Severn Trent and Hafren Dyfrdwy, Mackenzie Construction is well positioned to continue to serve the water industry across the UK with a focus on quality work, safety and building a more sustainable future for the communities in which we live and work.

He continued, “In the water sector specifically, our view is that business efficiency and overall performance can be improved through the establishment of best practice and the pursuit of opportunities for innovation. This is of particular importance as we focus on the path towards net zero carbon and where we are committed to supporting our water industry clients with their sustainability targets.”

A collaborative effort:

Responding to the Union Canal breach installation of new weirs, culvert clearing and lining and lock stock improvements to create embankment resilience.

As well as this, Smart Canal technology is being installed at 16 sites along the Union Canal involving weather sensors for water level management and automate the draining of the canal when heavy rainfall is anticipated.

Following a once in 240-year flash flooding event last August, Mackenzie Construction was contracted to emergency works at the site of an embankment breach on the Union Canal, near Muiravonside. The scale of the breach resulted in a 30m wide gap and a loss of around 75,000m3 from the canal.

Once the emergency dams were put in place and the water flow stopped, the priority was to establish a safe site for the embankment repair and a programme of resilience works to futureproof the

200-year-old Union Canal against future climate change events. This involved the installation of a 600m long haul road to the remote breach location.

The first step of the repair and refurbishment works was to work with our design subcontractors to establish the cause of the breach and enable the development of an effective geotechnical and structural design that will strengthen and protect the canal, a listed structure, for years to come. This involved the

The canal network usually shuts down over winter for general upgrading works with a spring reopening date so there were time pressures on the project for the canal to be rewatered by early March.

A collaborative relationship between the Mackenzie Construction team, our client Scottish Canals and our subcontractors facilitated clear lines of communication and a quick turnaround from the initial emergency works into a full refurbishment programme and canal reopening.

Danny Brown, Site Agent on the project said: “We’ve never seen a canal breach to this scale, so a huge effort was made by all teams, from the initial emergency response to stem the water flow and protect the surrounding areas right through to the repair and resilience works and canal rewatering. We hope to never see a breach to this scale again but if we do, we’ll be ready for it!”

Claypits project update Our team at the Claypits have been busy progressing with the final stages of the regeneration project at the Claypits Local Nature Reserve. Following on from the successful opening of Garscube Bridge last Autumn, we have been working on further development of the path network and a new activity centre and bump cycle track. As part of the path development, we have now completed the Panmuir Gate elevated walkway and new timber boardwalk and Ellesmere Gate to Garscube Bridge which is all open to

the public. We are now working on the last link path which will connect the local community of Maryhill to the Claypits and is due for completion early Summer 2021.

Contracts Manager, Robbie MacLean said: “We’ve had a great response from the public who have been utilising the spaces since the opening of the bridge.

It’s clear to see the regeneration of the reserve will have a big impact on the local communities in North Glasgow and we’re proud to have been part of that.”

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20 years of Scotland’s canals May 2021 marks 20 years since the reopening of Scotland’s historic canals.

As a key supply partner to Scottish Canals since 2015, Mackenzie Construction is proud to be celebrating this milestone anniversary having played a role in many of the key canal regeneration projects over the years. We look back on some of the project highlights from the past six years.

Fort Augustus and Kytra Lock Replacement Our project replacing the giant lock gates at Fort Augustus and Kytra on the Caledonian Canal saw Mackenzie Construction and Scottish Canals win the prestigious Scottish Civil Engineering Award for Heritage and Restoration in 2019. Opened in 1822, with repairs and improvements made in the 1840s, the Caledonian Canal was built to designs made by famous Scottish engineer Thomas Telford. It took twelve years to construct and the waterway’s 60 miles (96.5km) length includes lochs Ness, Oich and Lochy and 22 miles (35km) of canal with 29 locks. The project itself was no small task as it involved draining a 7,293m (23,927ft) long section of the Caledonian Canal in a process called dewatering, which involved closing some lock gates and locking them closed for the duration of the project.

The Bowline Works at Bowling Harbour will see the redevelopment of the former railway viaduct into the ‘Bowline’ a fully accessible linear park and pathway inspired by New York City’s High Line. Linking in to the Forth & Clyde Canal towpath and the National Cycle Network route, the Bowline is being developed to be fully accessible for all users and will transform the space for local people and businesses.

As Principal Contractor, Mackenzie Construction has been involved in the

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project since 2018, initially undertaking refurbishment works to the canal swing bridge at Bowling Harbour and then a further refurbishment project to the Dumbarton road bridge. This then developed into the Bowline project which commenced in Spring 2020.

Since then, we have had a great response from the public on the project progression and reached a milestone moment with the installation of a 40m steel ramp at the beginning of the year. We are now working towards the full opening of the pathway, scheduled for late summer 2021.

Applecross to Firhill Infrastructure Project The Claypits Local Nature Reserve in North Glasgow was originally the home of a clay quarry used when the Forth & Clyde Canal was first built in the late 1700s. Over the last few years, Scottish Canals, with Glasgow City Council and Friends of Possilpark Greenspace, have worked together to safeguard The Claypits’ future by having it protected as a Local Nature Reserve. They also secured £5m in funding to support the sensitive development of the site in partnership with the local community.

As part of the regeneration project, Mackenzie Construction was contracted for a range of works from environmental and landscaping improvements right through to the full design and build of a sliding pedestrian bridge which contracts to allow boaters to pass on the canal. The Garscube Bridge was opened in Autumn 2021 and the project has already won a Living Waterways Award in the ‘Engaging Communities – Large Scale’ category. Once complete, the area will provide much needed greenspace for the local communities of Firhill, Woodside and Maryhill.

North Glasgow Integrated Water Management System The North Glasgow Integrated Water Management System (NGIWMS) – Glasgow’s Smart Canal - has seen the creation of a pioneering drainage system to mitigate flood risk using the Forth and Clyde Canal, a scheduled ancient monument, with modern technology to support significant regeneration in North Glasgow. The creation of a ‘sponge city’ - a term used to describe how cities respond to surface water flooding - will see North Glasgow passively absorb, clean and manage rainfall intelligently. As Principal Contractor on the project, Mackenzie Construction worked in close collaboration with Scottish Canals, Glasgow City Council and Scottish Water as well as Principal Designer, AECOM and subcontractor

Fairfield Controls to transform this visionary concept into reality.

Without this scheme being realised, there would have either remained a significant constraint placed on development in North Glasgow or an increasing flood risk, within and downstream, of new developments around Glasgow City Centre and the M8 motorway network, which passes through the city. The pioneering digital surface water drainage system unlocks 110 hectares of land across the north of the city for investment, regeneration and the development of over 3000 new homes within two kilometres of Glasgow City Centre, providing quality places for people to live close to the economic heart of the city.

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Mackenzie Construction strengthens net zero offering with University of Strathclyde partnership Mackenzie Construction has successfully been awarded funding from Innovate UK for a Knowledge Transfer Partnership project with the University of Strathclyde to further test and develop its sustainable surfacing offering, Smart Surface™️.

Mackenzie Construction has extensively trialled its Smart Surface service with clients across sectors including Scottish Water and Scottish Canals. However, in order to further test and grow the offering, the business identified a need to enhance its capabilities in geomechanics and characterise and validate the performance of its binder product across a range of environmental profiles, to support development of a versatile, sustainable, road surfacing solution.

Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) is Europe’s leading programme helping businesses to improve their competitiveness by enabling companies to work with higher education or research and technology organisations to obtain knowledge, technology or skills which they consider to be of strategic competitive importance. The UK-wide programme is overseen by Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, and supported by 16 other public sector funding organisations.

Mackenzie Construction launched Smart Surface in 2018 as the conversation around net zero and driving down carbon emissions in the civil engineering sector gained

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traction. Smart Surface is a proven, fast and innovative binding solution that delivers an efficient and sustainable option for surfacing by stabilising existing ground conditions to create or repair paths, roads and hard standings. Where sufficient material exists on site it is possible to have zero importation of aggregates and zero off-site disposal of waste which greatly reduces the environmental footprint of projects and contributes to the circular economy. The service also delivers a range of other benefits for our clients such as enhanced productivity, lower costs and stronger community relationships through reduced disruption and lower environmental impact.

Having been made aware of the KTP scheme, the business then met with academics from a number of leading universities to discuss the potential partnership and their relevant skillsets. Through this process, Mackenzie Construction was introduced to Dr Matteo Pedrotti and Professor Alessandro Tarantino, based within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Strathclyde. It was concluded that their respective areas of expertise presented an opportunity to expand the current understanding on the use of soil binders to reinforce marginal soils, while supporting contribution to the development of low carbon climate-resilient road surface solutions.

The KTP application was then developed between Mackenzie Construction and the University

of Strathclyde to build a case for the project and the full-time employment of a specialist KTP associate who will be based within Mackenzie Construction, working under the supervision of Contracts Director, Mark Wilson and supported by Dr Matteo Pedrotti and Professor Alessandro Tarantino. Having been successful with the funding application in April 2021, the focus will now be on recruiting the KTP associate and setting out the road map for the project.

The KTP will embed valuable capability in geomechanics and hydromechanics to test and capture the performance characteristics of our binder under a range of environmental and loading

conditions, both in laboratory and field environments. This will generate robust evidence to demonstrate the performance and benefits of Smart Surface, across a range of environmental profiles.

Andy Dalrymple, Managing Director at Mackenzie Construction said: “Ultimately, our goal is to support our clients with their net zero targets by implementing sustainable practices and developing environmentally friendly services that facilitate carbon reduction. The KTP will enable us to offer our clients a more sustainable and circular surfacing solution and a progressive service resulting in greater reduction in costs, project timings, carbon outputs and environmental impact.”

Matteo Pedrotti, Chancellor’s Fellow at the University of Strathclyde said: “Our research group has been investing significantly towards the development of low-carbon design in geotechnical engineering via a range of novel bio-chemical technologies. We were excited to learn about the concept of Smart Surface from Mackenzie Construction and are looking forward to contributing towards its further development. Our research thrives on the synergy between Industry and Academia and this project will allow our research to make a tangible impact in today’s society.”

Net zero update From HSE Advisor and in-house Carbon Champion, Ryan Taggart

We continue to make progress towards our net zero targets and have been considering innovative ways to build more sustainable practices. We have been exploring options for in-house software solutions that are helping with our move towards ostensibly paperless sites over the next two to three years. As part of our digitalisation strategy, we have recruited software developer, David Payne, who has been working on developing a common data environment which will ultimately cut our carbon emissions versus traditional information sharing.

By building our software in-house we are able to tailor our systems to suit the needs of our people and our clients rather than relying on standardised software which often requires a degree of compromise.

We’ve also continued with agile working throughout the COVID-19 pandemic which has seen a dramatic reduction in our office power consumption and reduces the amount of traffic travelling to and from the office. We are aiming to have our head office running on fully renewable power by 2025.

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Supporting Irvine Meadow Football and Community Club With giving back to the local communities in which it operates a core principle of the Mackenzie Construction business, it has helped to improve and support many local causes over the last 40 years of its operations. One of these deserving local causes, is Irvine Meadow Football and Community Club.

Former Managing Director of Mackenzie Construction, Brian Lamb, joined the club in 2016 and took on the role of General and Commercial Manager of Irvine Meadow on his retirement. His commitment to the role over the last few years has brought much improvement to the club, which has become increasingly involved in supporting the local community in Irvine.

In 2016, Irvine Meadow Football Club moved from an Unincorporated Club to a Not-For-Profit Community Interest Club (CIC), with a renewed focus on creating tangible community benefits to the area. To further enhance this strategy, a Community Club (IMCC) was formed, with the doors of the stadium being opened for the local community to use.

In the early stages of this transformation, the facility required some immediate maintenance in a number of key areas and there were real concerns over security and safety for those using the club’s facilities. In order to engage with new groups, a range of upgrades and

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improvements were proposed, and Mackenzie Construction gladly stepped in to lend its support for the project. Whilst Mackenzie Construction is Glasgowbased, it has many long-serving and highly skilled employees from the Irvine area and therefore, the transportation of building materials and support from the team was easily accommodated.

One of the first tasks carried out, was to bring the playing surface up to standard.

For this, Mackenzie Construction donated turf and seed to patch up the surface, using excess from a recent environment project it had completed. It also arranged for one of its suppliers to provide grass cutting equipment. Excess hardcore was then supplied to fill potholes around the pitch, creating a usable and safe environment for club staff and players.

Another challenge which required immediate attention was that the main entrance gate pullers were unstable, and Mackenzie Construction provided the expertise of its Bricklayers to repair them.

In the months that followed, a former training area which had been neglected was returned to prime condition through external funding secured by the team at Irvine Meadow. Mackenzie Construction supplied some plywood Boards, sponsored large Stadium Boards and sourced new strips for the 1st team with sponsorship and backing from some of its key suppliers, who were also keen to support the initiative.

Another site of repair was the main stand, which was in poor condition with areas of cracked and crumbling concrete. The Mackenzie Construction structural repair division made quick work of this and repaired and sealed these areas, as well as replacing shattered glass panels with Perspex windows.

With the support from Mackenzie Construction and other local businesses to bring the amenities up to standard, The Irvine Meadow Community Club profile was enhanced, and this enabled more Community Groups to be actively involved in using the facilities.

By opening the facilities to the public, Irvine Meadow Youth was formed, and a network of Youth Football Teams began to thrive.

From ‘early kickers’ (under 5) to an Under 20 Development Team, all using Meadow Park as their base, an increase in involvement with local schools soon followed and included annual school competitions and soccer camps at the club.

Additionally, the social club within the stadium has also been upgraded, which was previously a fairly dark and uninviting space. Mackenzie Construction provided resources over several weeks to assist with the building of an extension with windows and, more importantly, a fire exit to create safe evacuation routes for those using the club. The extension was built with a combination of donations from Mackenzie Construction and recycled materials to complete the building.

For greater accessibility, a wheelchair access ramp and wheelchair shelter were supplied, and reclaimed blocks were recycled and used to provide a flat footway for wheelchair access. Mackenzie Construction also provided concrete blocks and the expertise of its Bricklayers to build the structure of a brand-new disabled toilet, to further broaden the use of the club for the Irvine community.

To increase the age range of users at the club, IMCC set up a senior gentlemen’s group - The Wednesday Club. This group has built a membership of over 60 people and arranged for attendance at events to be opened-up to local nursing homes. In addition to this, a local Memories Group was created to support this group of club users and works in conjunction with Dementia Scotland and the SFA Football Memories project.

Community project. The ongoing backing of the team at MCL has seen our club go from strength to strength. It has enabled us to build and grow a thriving hub of activity at Irvine Meadow, offering increasingly diverse opportunities and support to the surrounding area which makes a huge difference to our local community.”

Brian Lamb, General and Commercial Manager at Irvine Meadows said of the support, “Though there have been many areas of improvement to the Irvine Meadow facility since 2016, Mackenzie Construction has been our largest supporter in what continues to be an ongoing and ever-increasing

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Health & Wellbeing Corner: Marching through March Our Marching through March challenge for our annual nominated charity, My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, was a huge success with over 14 million steps walked across our 12 teams that took part. Our winning team was The Sole Sisters who achieved an amazing 2,063,874 steps so well done to Danny Brown, Frank Ferry, Steven McDonald (Snr), Edward Mitchell and Aimee Kyle. Overall, we managed to raise a fantastic amount for the charity that will go towards our 2021 My Name’5 Doddie fundraising pot.

We are currently running our natural photo competition where everyone is encouraged to enter any images captured of your natural surroundings whether this is at home, work or whilst out and about. Check out some of the great entries we’ve had so far!

David Hepburn Tinto Sunrise

Hugh McGuigan Loch Long, Glen Mallan

Willie Keegan Knockfell Stranraer

Thomas O’Connor Mull

If you would like to enter the competition, just send your photo to nina.devaney@mackenzieconstruction.com. The photos must be unedited and please only enter if you are happy for your work to be shown.

Thank you to everyone who has been getting involved with our health and wellbeing activities over the past few months. It’s great to see the team making an effort to prioritise their wellbeing by getting out and about and engaging with each other.

We’re looking forward to when we can organise some face-to-face events and, in the meantime, will continue to find ways to keep everyone feeling connected. If you have any questions or suggestions for the Health & Wellbeing Committee, please get in touch on hw@mackenzieconstruction.com.

Long service achievements We’d like to wish a very big congratulations to our team hitting their long service achievements with Mackenzie Construction!

15 years David Ruddy, Foreman

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15 years Jonny Hall Site Agent

15 years Andy Henry Foreman

20 years Francis Fox Skilled Operative