Construction & Civil Engineering Issue 180 October 2020

www.ccemagazine.com 180 OCTOBER

The gold

standard Having taken the leap from Continental Europe, Goldbeck Construction has grown into a complete turnkey provider in the UK See page 36

It’s automatic: MariMatic chosen to supply a new Automatic Waste Collection System F £10m contract: Esh Construction secures contract to transform the Hexham Bunker F

EDITOR

www.ccemagazine.com 180 OCTOBER

Chairman Andrew Schofield

The gold

Managing Director Joe Woolsgrove Editor Libbie Hammond libbie@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

standard Having taken the leap from Continental Europe, Goldbeck Construction has grown into a complete turnkey provider in the UK and is winning contracts from some of the country’s most well-known organisations See page 36

F F

It’s automatic: MariMatic chosen to supply a new Automatic Waste Collection System £10m contract: Esh Construction secures contract to transform the Hexham Bunker

Assistant Editor Will Daynes Art Editor Fleur Daniels Advertising Designer Rebecca Side Staff Writer Alex McDonald Operations Director Philip Monument

Innovation in action

Operations Manager Natalie Griffiths Research Managers Rachel Harper Jo-Ann Jeffery James Page Ben Richell Editorial Researchers Adam Blanch Mark Cowles Jeff Goldenberg Tarjinder Kaur D’Silva Sales Director Alasdair Gamble Sales Mark Cawston Alex Hartley Dave King Theresa McDonald Sam Surrell Web Sales web@schofieldpublishing.co.uk

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nyone who regularly reads Construction & Civil Engineering will know how much I appreciate a bit of nifty engineering or innovation!

That is why they won’t be surprised to see the feature on page 12 – which highlights a new logistics solution, where underground freight

systems provide a logistics backbone for future new smart cities. It sounds pretty revolutionary but with the arrival of Covid and the shock to the supply chain and delivery network that it brought, maybe it’s time to think big and well out of the box?

Construction & Civil Engineering Magazine

I also noted another pipe system, this time in the news pages and this one is going to be installed in Amsterdam. Waste from a new neighbourhood will be transported directly from buildings through an underground pipe network to a

@CCE_magazine

waste transfer terminal. Part of this terminal will even be made of glass so that the public can see the pneumatic collection in action! I look forward to reporting on it again when it’s up and running.

© 2020 Schofield Publishing Ltd Schofield Publishing Cringleford Business Centre, 10 Intwood Road, Cringleford, Norwich, NR4 6AU, U.K. Tel: +44 (0)1603 274130 www.ccemagazine.com Please note: The opinions expressed by contributors and advertisers within this publication do not necessarily coincide with those of the editor and publisher. Every reasonable effort is made to ensure that the

If you have a story of innovation to tell – do let me know.

Until the next issue.

Libbie Hammond Editor

information published is accurate, and correct at time of writing, but no legal responsibility for loss occasioned by the use of such information can be accepted by the publisher. All rights reserved. The contents of the magazine are strictly copyright, the property of Schofield Publishing, and may not be copied, stored in a retrieval system, or reproduced without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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REGULAR FEATURES 4

BIM

Building Information Modelling technology is modernising construction methodology

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and we are only still scratching the surface of what’s possible

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INDUSTRY CHALLENGES

Construction companies are finding themselves pursuing and even fast tracking digital transformation projects in order to survive this new normal

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SMART CITIES

A revolutionary freight transportation

Goldbeck Construction Ltd

system could change how logistics services are delivered in smart cities – via underground delivery pipes

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INTERIORS

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As offices reopen, changes are needed to become Covid-19 secure, which could make the workspace more pleasant and healthy for the future

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NEWS

Updates and information from the construction and civil engineering market

20 INFRASTRUCTURE

Thomas Plant Hire

Years of guaranteed work to help roll out a

Riwal Holding G

full fibre network would enable the UK to be competitive for generations

24 TUNNEL DEWATERING The choice of pumping equipment for

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tunnel dewatering operations can have a big effect on a scheme’s success

28 HEALTH & SAFETY Site managers play a very important role in maintaining health and safety on site as well as improving safety culture overall

30 WINDOWS There are a variety of considerations surrounding selecting and installing the correct windows on commercial projects

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GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd/ GSE Plant Ltd

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CONTENTS

COMPANY PROFILES

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Gripple

60

Aarsleff Ground Engineering

76

olding Group BV

82

Kapex Construction

98

Solus

Domis Construction Ltd

Rochford Construction Ltd

CLD Fencing Systems

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Merit 3

BIM

Exciting times

Seamus McFerran, Design Manager, Gilbert-Ash

Seamus McFerran tells CCE how Gilbert-Ash has embraced Building Information Modelling (BIM) and how it helps deliver efficiencies and ultimately better buildings

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s a company, Gilbert-Ash were quick to recognise that BIM has the

power to deliver transformative and wide-ranging capabilities at all levels of the construction process. But we had a reminder of just how useful and

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adaptable the technology can be recently when we utilised it to plan and model social distancing on several of our sites.

Within a very short space of time we had planned one-way systems, exclusion zones and modelled maximum occupancy levels which delivered a safer

working environment for our people and supply chain partners.

It was extremely reassuring to be able to ‘walk through’ the building virtually with senior managers to test our plans before instigating a safe return to work.

Our journey with BIM began over ten years ago and since then

Left: Mayhew Theatre at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London

we have been investing time and training budgets into effectively developing and honing our skills.

In addition, we have invested in software packages and hardware to keep us at the forefront of the industry, such as a digital imaging scanner, which captures point cloud data and allows us to

feed real-time date back into the design process.

During the past decade, we have witnessed the industry start to really embrace the technology. We have worked on projects, such as the Mayhew Theatre at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London,

and Cambridge Mosque, Europe’s first eco-mosque, where due to their complex mathematically generated geometry, their successful completion was dependent on the use of BIM technology across the design, manufacturing and onsite activities.

We have several projects, including the new Premier Inn at Ufford Street, London where, as part of internal staff development, we run the project to BIM Level 2 standards, even though this was not a requirement of the contracts.

3D BIM is the task of creating graphical and non-graphical information and sharing it in a Common Data Environment (CDE). Layers of additional information are added as the detail is enriched as the project progresses.

With 3D modelling delivery teams can quickly scrutinise the plans, bringing them to life and working through potential spatial or sequencing problems. Not only does this help to identify issues but more importantly it assists in being able to proactively find agreed solutions, so helping to mitigate possible delays Gilbert-Ash like to be involved as early as possible and are fortunate that around 40 per cent of our contracts are two-stage or negotiated. This allows us to shape and influence the design and really bring our experience of digital construction to the table.

At Gilbert-Ash we promote an ‘As One’ ethos which sees us working closely with our clients, the other disciplines and our supply chain partners. BIM really facilitates a partnership approach as all the information is shared in real time.

It creates platforms for all the disciplines to come together and negotiate and solve potential clashes and problems.

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BIM

Below: Cambridge Mosque, Europe’s first eco-mosque

From a health and safety perspective, construction teams are finding BIM is very beneficial.

For example, on one of our recent projects we had a concrete beam framing the top of a triple height void which would have required considerable temporary works.

Through the use of 3D modelling to plan the sequencing, this problem was identified early in the process and the beam changed to steel which removed the need for temporary works and mitigated a potential health and safety risk.

4D BIM increases the layers of information and helps in a number of areas such as monitoring the progress of the project and programme alignment. This brings planners closer to the project teams and allows them, from a

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very early stage, to influence and shape the designs to improve the methodology, sequencing and buildability.

It aids with sequencing the work and with the point cloud data allows for off-site construction which delivers efficiencies across time and budget.

Our work on the Citizen M Hotel in Victoria, London, will see us construct a tenstorey, 226-bedroom hotel fully fabricated off-site. This comprises double module bedroom units which form the entire structure of the building, these will be transported to the site, fully fitted-out and erected in a tenweek period. The accuracy of the modelling allows for this level of off-site construction and again

delivers measurable efficiencies.

With an industry shortage of skilled labour, any developments which can increase off-site construction capabilities will enable contractors to complete complex jobs on time and within budget.

In the last few years, we have developed 4D BIM capabilities within the business, which links the model to the programme timeline and enables us to demonstrate to clients, supply chains and stakeholders how the project is going to progress in real time.

Even at the tendering stage when companies are still in competition, this is a very visual tool to allow teams to demonstrate and give confidence

Below: BIM modelling at Gilbert-Ash

to potential clients how they are proposing to construct and sequence the construction of the building.

Like a lot of companies in the construction industry we have senior team members who have embraced digital construction later in their careers and really see the benefits of it and we have younger people coming to us with a lot of knowledge of the technology who have been able to mentor upwards.

It is a great combination of skills and experience which promotes a free flow of ideas and knowledge and enables Gilbert-Ash to work as one on traditional projects and more niche projects which require real innovation to succeed.

As a company, there is a lot of

innovation, we are looking ahead with expanding that knowledge and developing the capabilities of 5D and 6D within BIM Level 3.

5D BIM delivers detailed cost information on everything from capital costs including purchasing and installation of components through to quantities of materials.

With this information in 3D form it is easier to track the spend on the project.

6D BIM looks at the whole-life costs of a building and is geared towards facilities management.

Enabling decisions to be made at the design stage will help deliver savings.

The construction industry is changing at a rapid pace and BIM has played a central role in this.

Buildings are being constructed

now which would not have been possible before the onset of BIM. I believe we are still only scratching the surface of what digital construction methods can deliver and, for me, it’s an exciting time to be in the industry.

Seamus McFerran is Design Manager at Gilbert-Ash, an award-winning UK construction and fit out contractor with 180+ employees at offices in London and Belfast. The company works throughout the UK and has undertaken numerous projects worldwide in a total of 41 countries from Poland and Bahrain to China, Japan and Australia on behalf of the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

For more information, please see:

www.gilbert-ash.com

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INDUSTRY CHALLENGES

Digital

solutions Building the worksite of the future. By Burcin Kaplanoglu

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he construction industry is learning to respond to this new and unprecedented era of disruption.

From global supply chain issues to adopting strict physical distancing rules to keep sites open, it has resulted in a slower-than-usual progress on many projects.

While Covid-19 related challenges around health and

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safety brought further delays, it only reveals what the industry already knows – that it remains one of the least digitised industries. Many onsite projects are completed in the same way they were being done decades prior.

With the unpredictability around job sites, project managers must consider dependable construction innovation solutions

to achieve project delivery success in this new reality. In many cases, it may require adjusting the means and methods traditionally used when delivering projects in the past.

Here are a few solutions available that can help address current industry challenges, ensuring construction projects are progressing with as little disruption as possible.

Remote visual monitoring of construction sites In lieu of on-site inspections, construction companies have begun embracing a variety of remote visual tools, including drones, light detection and ranging technology (LiDAR), to remotely monitor the progress, quality and security of their projects.

By conducting field inspections

and scheduling reviews from the safety of workers’ own homes, these new technologies can enable teams to review what is there versus what should be there to sub-centimetre accuracy. This allows for social distancing and enables project teams to revise contractors’ work sequences to physically separate otherwise risky work interactions.

In addition, site cameras

can also provide real-time monitoring and security. For example, pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras let users monitor various areas of the site and zoom into areas of interest while creating panoramic images and timelapse videos. Site cameras use thermal sensing and edge-based analytics to sense motion, which triggers email/SMS/text alerts.

In addition, fixed cameras are

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INDUSTRY CHALLENGES

its travel path via user input and then scans at defined locations throughout the site. This enables remote design teams of architects and engineers to view details as they discuss project status, all while saving time and energy to focus on other aspects of the project.

Social distancing on construction sites

In the case that on-site inspections are necessary, construction companies have found success with artificial intelligence (AI) in improving jobsite safety and mitigating risk.

This is due to its ability to provide more safety coverage without sending additional people to the site

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increasingly leveraged to enhance remote collaboration between stakeholders while also capturing images and time-lapse videos to send regular updates.

Autonomous laser scanning of sites can also save workers the time and effort of going to locations to set up multiple tripods. At the Oracle Industries Innovation Lab, one of our partners, FARO Technologies, brought along Boston Dynamics’ robot ‘Spot’ to the site. Something of a social media celebrity, the autonomous robot ‘dog’ learns

In the case that on-site inspections are necessary, construction companies have found success with artificial intelligence (AI) in improving jobsite safety and mitigating risk.

This is due to its ability to provide more safety coverage without sending additional people to the site - creating automated reports to help with mitigation plans and documentation.

Automated gate readers can also help to ensure onsite safety, making contactless site deliveries possible. These can provide status of materials as they arrive onsite via digital packing lists. Equipping the materials with passive radiofrequency identification (RFID) tags can also mean teams are automatically alerted when materials arrive to eliminate the need for contact receiving.

With sensors attached to the workers, it is also possible to emit a progressively louder alarm as a reminder whenever workers are too close to each other. The alarm will serve to gradually change and improve the habits of workers to practice safe social distancing.

In addition, in the event that there is a confirmed case of Covid-19 on a worksite, an employer can use historical data captured passively by the worker’s device to gauge who may have been exposed.

Bring people, information, and processes together To protect teams, operations and ultimately project outcomes, it is important that all project schedules are updated throughout

the project. This means data silos and offline recordkeeping are minimised.

The update should be comprehensive, documenting a completed and in-progress status for all design, permitting, bidding, procurement, submittal, fabrication, delivery, and construction activities. This can be quite time-consuming, so a schedule management solution is ideal in this case to ensure a more seamless and efficient integration to log the data. Ideally this would be directed to a centralised centre.

Software which digitises invoicing, compliance, and payment management processes can also allow for accounting staff to safely work remotely without slowing down payments. Paying subcontractors electronically can

eliminate the need to print, sign, and mail checks, reducing any physical contact. Not only this, but this collaboration software can also help to reduce back and forth during the draw process, cutting the time it takes to approve invoices by more than 50 per cent.

It is remarkable that today’s high-tech buildings and infrastructure assets are contrasted with dated, low-tech processes. Yet as a result of the ongoing global crisis, construction industries are finding themselves pursuing – and in some cases fasttracking - digital transformation in order to continue to operate through this new reality. Whether it is to mitigate the direct impacts of Covid-19 on the worksites or new ways to approach project delivery, it is clear that the digital agenda cannot be ignored.

Burcin Kaplanoglu is Executive Director, Innovation Officer at Oracle Construction and Engineering. Asset owners and project leaders rely on Oracle Construction and Engineering software for the visibility and control, connected supply chain, and data security needed to drive performance and mitigate risk across their processes, projects, and organisation. Its mission is to transform the world and to make life better for owners and delivery teams that plan build and operate critical assets and to make that process Faster, Fairer, Smarter, Safer & Better.

For more information, please see:

www.oracle.com/uk/industries/ construction-engineering/products/

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SMART CITIES

Delivery in the

pipeline Phill Davies asks if logistics are the forgotten piece of the smart city jigsaw

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y 2050, more than six billion people1, or 75 per cent of the world’s population, is projected to be living in cities and therefore the need for this growing urban population to live safely and prosperously will require financial investment in disruptive technologies. Cities will need to operate more efficiently without compromising environmental issues associated with urbanization such as traffic congestion and air pollution.

Plans for future cities include a range of smart systems designed to provide a sustainable environment for

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its citizens to live in. Energy, buildings, infrastructure and governance are such examples.

Often, new developments tend to focus on the movement of people without considering the issues surrounding freight transportation and how to service these growing populations.

When we talk about the future of transport or smart mobility, the focus is often on measures designed to tackle rising traffic congestion, such as IT and communications technology, autonomous vehicles, congestion charging, car-pooling and traffic-free zones. While these are all sensible and worthwhile solutions, one aspect that is

often overlooked is how to improve logistics and reduce the number of freight deliveries throughout our cities. This issue is a significant contribution to air pollution and therefore presents one of the biggest barriers to local authorities reaching their net-zero goals.

Even in pre-pandemic times, the number of delivery vehicles on our roads was growing at an alarming rate. The Department for Transport reports that in the last 25 years, between 1993 and 2018, van traffic saw the fastest growth of any motor vehicle, almost doubling to reach a record high of 51.0 billion vehicle miles (BVM). These miles are clocked

Below: Phill Davies is Co-founder/Commercial Director, at Magway

up by vans and articulated vehicles delivering more than 2.5 billion parcels and an estimated one billion online grocery orders to homes throughout the UK. The dramatic rise in e-commerce has exacerbated urban congestion, while the global pandemic has accelerated this trend as societies adapt to working and shopping from the safety and comfort of their homes.

To reduce our reliance on the increasing number of delivery vehicles, Magway has developed a ground-breaking goods and services transport system that will rely on a network of underground pipes to initially deliver parcels between distribution centers

and consolidations centers and from there to large campuses such as airports; the aim being to substantially reduce vehicle emissions, accidents, maintenance costs and traffic congestion.

Underground freight systems could provide the logistics backbone for future new smart capital cities such as those planned in Indonesia and Nepal and other major international developments such as Dubai and Jakarta. Closer to home, there are several major infrastructure projects and greenfield new developments in progress or early proposal stages. For example, Fawley Waterside, billed as the

UK’s first ‘Smart Town’, Old Oak and Park Royal (OPDC), five garden towns along the OxCam corridor, HS2 and plans for new bridges such as the ‘Celtic Crossing’ could easily incorporate such pipeline delivery systems.

Within cities themselves, new apartments and office blocks have a ready-made receptacle for deliveries with underground car parking generally already incorporated into the designs.

With an expected decline in car ownership these, as well as underutilized car parks, present a great opportunity for smart cities to embrace such technology. In areas such as London, there’s potential to recommission and

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SMART CITIES

incorporate some of the unused infrastructure already installed beneath the city. The abandoned 6.5 mile ‘Rail Mail’ network is a prime example, as is some of the gas network, which is in the process of being replaced.

Working alongside civil engineering partners, Magway will use a combination of new and existing infrastructure where possible. Initial plans will be to provide short delivery routes

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to alleviate the stress on local freight traffic travelling in and out of major airport hubs, such as London Heathrow. Following this, construction work will commence around 2023 on the first of its longer routes of up to 100 kms that will ultimately form a network of delivery pipes connecting the UK, which will run either along motorways and A-roads and/or railways or alternatively under fields.

The strict Covid-19 lockdown measures witnessed throughout the UK’s major cities have perhaps provided a glimpse of what future cities might look like. Fewer cars and articulated vehicles on our roads, cleaner air and safer, more sustainable ways of moving from A to B, such as increased provision for cycle lanes, are at least a few positives to have emerged. Continuation of such environmental progress

will also require a step-change in our approach to reducing traffic congestion; one that embraces innovation and adopts a more visionary approach.

Like all revolutionary transportation systems, there will be challenges. We are at a crossroads where the interests of governments, the public and commercial organisations are aligned. What is clear is that a more holistic approach to

smart city design is required; one that should include provision for the construction of sustainable infrastructure to allow freight and e-commerce deliveries to be made in a safe, more efficient and environmentally friendly way.

https://assets.publishing.service. gov.uk/government/uploads/system/ uploads/attachment_data/file/526238/ Smart_Cities_Pitchbook.pdf

Phill Davies is Co-founder/Commercial Director, at Magway. Magway is a revolutionary e-commerce delivery system that improves air quality and congestion by removing significant number of parcels and the delivery vans that carry them, from highways and urban areas.

Combining its proprietary technology with existing tried and tested solutions Magway delivers goods more reliably, with greater predictability and at a significantly reduced operating cost.

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For more information, please see:

www.magway.com

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INTERIORS

The future of the office Ollie Plastow takes a look at creating Covid-ready workspaces

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s the UK government urged us all to head back to work in city centres, there were mixed feelings amongst employees and managers alike.

Almost 50 per cent of UK employees have been working from home either full or parttime over the last few months according to ONS - and many large companies have announced that they have no immediate plans to bring their teams back, with the likes of Google and RBS instead planning for a return in Summer 2021.

For many, the return to a central HQ is a welcome development both for business development and staff morale. The key is to do it right: those offices reopening will need to refer to government

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guidelines and plan thoroughly, to ensure that everyone is aware of the rules and knows how they are being followed.

In recent years, the ‘office’ has changed quite a bit - but we were already prioritising staff wellbeing through design; Covid has just made it all the more essential. Changes will need to be made but that doesn’t mean that style or good design needs to be scaled back, and it doesn’t mean you have to plan a complete recalibration. With some simple adjustments, your office interior can be fitted out to perform effectively and efficiently in time to welcome in the next era.

Kitchens It’s the number one communal area for most organisations - and whether your kitchen is a bench

with a kettle or a full canteen, there are ways to make it more Covid friendly. If there is space, consider creating a one-way system: in simple terms, this means duplicating everything.

Two sinks, two microwaves, two kettles, two fridges. Create a flow with a barrier down the middle, that way people can still socialise and engage safely. If your kitchen is smaller, a one in one out system will need to be managed, with clear signage communicating the rules. If you operate a larger canteen, then the creation of shifts and zoned areas will minimise the number of employees using the space at any one time. Floor queue points will need to be created, cashless systems put in place and increased cleaning after every use.

Bathrooms

Increase ventilation

The same rules apply for your bathrooms - you will need to apply the one in one out rule if your bathrooms are small. If they are larger, look to create a one-way system.

Signage will be key. Existing cleaning products will need to be supplemented with easy touch antibacterial dispensers and more waste disposal options and increased rubbish collection - and it will be vital to increase the frequency of everyday and deep cleaning.

Consider knocking walls through: many offices / workspace interiors have stud walls anyway and even if not, it’s actually quite simple to knock a wall down to open up a space.

Fresh air has always been healthier than air conditioning so if you have outside walls in your buildings, consaider adding more windows.

Meeting areas We don’t know whether there will be more waves which could all impact on our ability to socialise or meet indoors, so it may be worth reducing your general meeting and communal spaces for now, and encouraging your staff to head outside. If you have the option, create a more attractive outdoor area or challenge your team to have walking breaks and meetings.

Materials and details Think about anything that will be touched - keypads, grabrails, lift buttons, light switches, door handles, chairs - and adapt.

Enforce clear desk policies - IT equipment only - and fit vinyl flooring over carpets. Have hardwood chairs instead of fabric.

Fit push-open cupboards instead of using handles. These changes may feel a bit of an outlay, but in the long run, they are way more cost-effective to clean and maintain and will encourage a new hygiene-aware way of working that will soon become the norm.

There is no denying that postCovid, things are looking a little different - but this doesn’t mean you have to plan a complete recalibration. With some simple adjustments, your interiors can be planned to perform effectively and efficiently in time to welcome in the next era.

It could actually make the workspace a more healthy, pleasant place to be for the longterm, which can only be a good thing.

Ollie Plastow is project director at Consensus Workspace, an interior fit out company with offices in Greater Manchester and London.

Working across the UK, the team offers a full dedicated and expertly crafted solution to workspace needs and goals. Clients include infrastructure, transport and real estate conglomerate The Peel Group, commercial real estate services company CBRE, national top end serviced office provider Orega and accounting giant Deloitte.

For more information, please see

https://consensusworkspace.co.uk

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NEWS

Augmented infrastructure Optimised road transport ROSS Bauservice has successfully implemented the latest transport optimisation software from INFORM, a leading provider of AI and optimisation software that facilitates improved decision-making in building materials logistics.

ROSS Bauservice is a fast growing, medium-sized company, supplying aggregates and asphalt as well as topsoil and construction waste removal services to its customers in central Germany (Hessia and Rhineland-Palatinate area). The company operates a mixed fleet of its own trucks and external haulers.

“I knew INFORM’s transport optimisation software and the benefits that come along with it from my previous activities in the building materials industry,” said Thomas Gaul, Managing Director at Ross Bauservice. “So, the decision to use it here was a no-brainer.

“Since our dispatchers started to use INFORM’s algorithms during the transport planning and real-time phase, neither our customers nor my team have to worry anymore,” added Thomas. “New orders, cancellations, or delays at the construction site – the system constantly updates our delivery schedule, making sure that all orders are fulfilled at the end of the day.”

Version 10 of INFORM’s transport optimisation software comes with an overhauled user interface and is powered by the latest aggregates optimiser, combining 25 years of know-how in the building materials industry with cutting-edge AI technology.

High quality contract Skanska has won a contract to deliver the redevelopment of Norfolk House in central London, with work set to start in October 2020.

The project is scheduled to complete by September 2022 when the building will be handed over to Skanska’s customer.

The redevelopment of Norfolk House comprises the creation of a new eight-storey, commercial office building, including the reconstruction of two brick and Portland Stone facades. The project also involves additional excavation to create a deeper basement.

Internally, it will be finished to a Category A standard across all office floors. It will also include two reception entrances on St James’ Square and Charles II Street.

Skanska’s multidisciplinary team will draw on its expertise to install the mechanical, electrical and plumbing fit out services and install a bespoke entrance veil.

In preparing for the project, the team also drew on its knowledge and expertise to manage the specific acoustic and noise restrictions that are required given the building’s location.

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Ardian, a world leading private investment house, along with a group of business angels, has acquired a minority stake in Wintics, a French AI solution for smart cities.

Commenting on the deal, Mathias Burghardt, Head of Ardian Infrastructure and Member of the Executive Committee of Ardian, said: “Entrepreneurship is in Ardian’s DNA, and by investing in Wintics we are proud to support French innovation and contribute to the country’s smart cities technology ecosystem. We have been consistently impressed by what Wintics’ technology has to offer and by the know-how and leadership demonstrated by its founders. We look forward to supporting Wintics’ development and intend to leverage our partnership to create strategic synergies with our portfolio companies.

Wintics’ technology is indeed an essential brick in our vision of Augmented Infrastructures.”

Quentin Barenne, Co-Founder of Wintics, added: “We are thrilled about our partnership with Ardian. Working with Mathias and the team throughout the process, it was clear that our excitement for innovation and data is shared.

We are particularly pleased about the opportunities this opens up for Wintics’ next stage of growth and the strides this will enable across our R&D activities – ultimately allowing us to continue to support the development of smarter cities and roads.”

Wintics launched its fundraising process in the spring of 2020 with the aim to scale its technology and accelerate its development in France and internationally.

It’s automatic MariMatic has, through a public tender process, been chosen by the city of Amsterdam as the supplier of an Automatic Waste Collection System (AWCS) for the new residential area in Sluisbuurt.

The system utilises MariMatic’s unique energy efficient MetroTaifun® technology with non-corrosive pipe networks.

Sluisbuurt is a new neighbourhood in Amsterdam located on the Zeeburgereiland and it will comprise of 5500 new homes and include schools, shops and offices. In addition to the OAT system (Dutch acronym for automatic waste collection system AWCS), the area will be equipped with other kind of sustainable technologies, such as district heating from renewable energy.

Waste is collected and

transported directly from the buildings through an underground pipe network by using vacuum conveying to a waste transfer terminal, eliminating noisy and polluting traditional waste trucks from the area. Four different waste fractions are collected to separate containers located in the waste transfer terminal. The containers will then later on be picked up for further distribution to recycling centres etc.

The waste transfer terminal, which is part of the scope of the contract,

called ‘The Diamond’, will be located in the park. The building is designed with high sustainability in mind, including solar panels, rainwater collection and even a charging point for the service cars. Part of the walls will be glass, giving the public possibility to view the pneumatic collection in action.

£10m contract Station improvement Dyer & Butler, a part of M Group Services, has been appointed to deliver platform extensions at Cambridge railway station on behalf of Abellio Greater Anglia.

The programme of works will include a 40-metre platform extension along with fencing, drainage and platform end steps to allow Greater Anglia’s new, longer Bombardier commuter trains to call at the station.

In addition, Dyer & Butler will deliver circuit signal rehabilitation works; buffer stop relocation on the main tracks; overhead line strengthening; additional lighting; and additional CCTV cameras and public address speaker installations. The work, which is planned to start in December and finish in May 2021, will see Dyer & Butler work closely with Greater Anglia’s new trains project team throughout.

The platforms will be extended using EPS modular expanded polystyrene platform system blocks. The system can be installed in either standard engineering access hours or abnormal possessions and offers a number of benefits.

Esh Construction’s commercial build division has secured a £10 million contract to transform the Hexham Bunker into a 69-bedroom Travelodge and Lidl retail outlet.

Delivered on behalf of Union Property Development (Hexham) Ltd, the retail development will be based on land formerly used as a nuclear bunker and will also provide a new 250-space public car park for the town. The project will include significant works on the highways infrastructure which will improve access to the site and the safety of pedestrians.

Esh has been appointed as the design and build contractor to deliver the development, working in partnership with the design team – FaulknerBrowns Architects, Portland Consulting Engineers and kyoob.

The development is expected to create 60 new permanent jobs in the area and an estimated £2.16m visitor spending to Hexham.

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INFRASTRUCTURE

Build the future

James Thomas believes that digital infrastructure investment will unlock billions for industry and drive recovery

T

he outbreak of Covid-19 has raised many challenges for the construction industry, from

maintaining the welfare of staff, to keeping supply chains flowing, all while keeping a watchful eye on cashflow. However, now, as we emerge from the pandemic, big

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infrastructure projects look to be one way in which the governments of the UK aim to kick-start the economy again and herald a fresh wave of investment.

As has been the case in previous economic crises, Governments across the UK are turning to construction and infrastructure in a bid to kick start

job creation and supply chain activity. The UK Government, for example, has announced £100bn for green-recovery infrastructure, with the deadline for ‘shovel ready’ ideas just passed. This fund places an emphasis on projects that will support recovery in the ‘new normal’, while also maintaining the shift towards

lower carbon emissions triggered by lockdown. But there is another type of infrastructure investment that could play just as large part in mobilising the industry, greening up our communities and driving growth and productivity – digital.

Throughout the crisis, internet access has proven crucial in supporting the nation’s efforts

to adapt. A report by Ofcom even found that during the lockdown, British people were spending a quarter of their day online. Yet despite our reliance on connectivity, the latest research

by YouGov found that threequarters of people who said they had been using their household internet connection more during

the pandemic had experienced disruption to their service.

Part of the reason for this is that only around 15 per cent of the country currently has access to a full fibre connection and that is why the Government has set its sights on 100 per cent full fibre being available to every part of the country by 2025. In order to

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INFRASTRUCTURE

Now is the time to look forward and plan for a new future that learns from the Covid-19 experience. Technology is transforming every industry – and the need for infrastructure to carry it presents a new world of opportunity for the construction sector

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achieve this, we need thousands of boots on the ground now, rolling out many more thousands of kilometres of full fibre network nationwide.

This is the opportunity that is being presented to the construction industry today.

Years of long-term, guaranteed work to help roll out a full fibre network that will enable the UK to be competitive for generations to come. Extending national full fibre network coverage to the remaining 85 per cent of the country will be a huge feat requiring deployment at-scale across hundreds of locations simultaneously, with an estimated total investment required of

around £30 billion across the telecoms industry. Without a doubt, civil construction firms that are nimble and agile enough to work with network builders will be in hot demand, enabling them to create jobs and grow their businesses with guaranteed work for the next decade.

As the UK’s third national infrastructure platform, CityFibre is one of the network builders pushing ahead with full fibre roll out plans. At present, CityFibre has announced plans to build in 62 towns and cities, and is currently mobilising in 32 of them, with more than 19 different contractors rolling out over £1.2bn of investment. Organisations such as GCU and PMK in Scotland, and IQA, OCU, Heneghans, Granemore Group, CCN, Lite Access, Volker Highways and others across England are already working to deliver this huge project.

These are all firms with a local presence creating local jobs.

We want to work with partners who are as ambitious as we are and have a hunger for a good challenge, a problem-solving ethos and pride in a job well done. Many have already stepped up. Take East Midlands-based Granemore Group, for example.

It was the first contractor to secure a deal with CityFibre when we launched our flagship £40m Milton Keynes project in 2018. Now, as a result of the build quality and pace it has demonstrated to date, the firm has increased the value and scope of its work, delivering in four cities.

Likewise, others have shown similar promise, including Scottish firm, PMK, which is leading builds in Stirling and Renfrewshire, and Canada headquartered Lite Access, which has secured work totalling over £40m in less than 12 months for Bury St Edmunds, Lowestoft and Cambridge.

While CityFibre has grown alongside these partners, we need more as we extend our builds

into new locations. To ensure the majority of these projects are completed by 2025, CityFibre is currently running a procurement process that will award over £1.5bn in contracts across 30 more towns and cities nationally.

This is all part of the current phase of our Gigabit City Investment Programme, which will eventually create a private investment of up to £4bn across 100 towns and cities – representing up to eight million homes. This is money that is being invested today, and there is more to come when mobilisation in other towns and cities begins. These awards offer jobs that start immediately, at a time when the employment market is in a state of flux, and will guarantee employment for years to come.

Ultimately, this is a fantastic opportunity for the nation to ‘build, build, build’ in the words of the Prime Minister and leave a legacy that will establish a digital platform for future generations to prosper. However, we appreciate this is an enormous project to deliver, and that is why we are seeking to create genuine partnerships with the construction partners we choose to work with. We appreciate that assembling the right resources, talent and skills is no easy task, so to reinforce that effort we have launched a three-year recruitment and training programme to help fill the expected 10,000 jobs being created. This will help our partners as they fill critical roles in the construction of this full fibre network and help generate

employment opportunities up and down the country.

Now is the time to look forward and plan for a new future that learns from the Covid-19 experience. Technology is transforming every industry – and the need for infrastructure to carry it presents a new world of opportunity for the construction sector.

James Thomas is Supply Chain Director, CityFibre, the UK’s third national digital infrastructure platform. With existing networks in more than 60 towns and cities, CityFibre provides wholesale connectivity to multiple business and consumer service providers, local authorities and mobile operators.

For more information, please see:

www.cityfibre.com

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TUNNEL DEWATERING

Performance

and reliability

Pablo Garcia looks at how tunnelling operations can be affected by the choice of pumping equipment used for dewatering

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he advances in tunnelling technology in recent years have delivered shorter travelling times as well as safer journeys through mountainous areas and even under the sea. Tunnels can improve transport links, reducing freight costs and making road transport more cost-effective. They also help in the global strategy to reduce COâ‚‚ emissions by reducing journey times and opening new railway corridors, which offer a more sustainable solution compared to airfreight.

Taking the decision to construct a tunnel, instead of going over or around an obstruction, is based on many factors, not least the

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difference in construction costs between the options. However, long-term benefits and improved safety during inclement weather often mean that the tunnel option will be favoured.

Constructing a tunnel is one of the most challenging parts of an infrastructure project and as such, it is important that its progress continues on schedule.

With so many variables, including local geology and the weather, it is important to maximise the performance and reliability of supporting systems, such as dewatering pumping systems.

Water management From the outset, it is important

to understand that water plays a significant role in every tunnelling project. Mountain water, groundwater and drilling water all have to be handled properly to maximise the safety as well as efficiency of a project. Water management is a key consideration for all construction sites.

Engineering teams and geologists may have to extract significant volumes of water from the construction site to stabilise the ground or prevent the work area from flooding. As the build progresses, so the distance that the water has to be pumped will increase and this can affect the design of the pumping system.

However, the greatest challenge

is water contamination. Solids suspended in the water need to be removed and the pumps that are transferring the water to the treatment plants must be designed to handle the increased abrasion.

Similarly, as the depth of the tunnel increases, so the performance, or head, delivered by the pumps must increase.

Construction methods Although tunnel boring machines (TBMs) are commonly used for larger projects, the drilling and blasting technique is also used to remove materials and create the new tunnel structures. In both situations water is used for cooling the machinery, mixing with the

waste materials in the process and needs to be continuously pumped away to the surface.

The proportion of solids in the water can vary considerably and collection tanks may be used along the length of the tunnel to allow some of the solids to settle out. This reduces the solids loading on the pumps and can improve their reliability.

This can be especially beneficial when the local geology includes highly abrasive particles, such as granite. In addition, the construction method can also affect the levels of water contamination. Sprayed concrete residuals can add to the particulate loading of the water, whereas the

installation of precast concrete sections will have a minimal effect.

Tunnel design Shallow tunnels, typically installed in urban environments, normally use a variety of submersible drainage pumps and sludge pumps to transport the water away from the worksite. These can be grouped together at pumping stations that are installed at regular intervals as the length of the tunnel increases.

Depending on the solids content, pumping stations can be designed with settlement tanks that remove sediment or mixers, which keep the solids in suspension, ensuring the sludge pumps perform reliably.

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TUNNEL DEWATERING

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In most cases, the pumps will be arranged with some redundancy so that any maintenance issues do not impede progress. Standby pumps can be employed as a back-up or to rotate the duty cycle and extend the service life of the pumping station.

Pump selection Submersible drainage pumps are designed for water with a low solids content. Sludge pumps operate reliably with water containing low volumes of solids while slurry pumps can tolerate mud mixtures with up to 70 per cent solids. Making the correct choice of pump for each application is essential for continued reliability.

The performance requirements for pumps in tunnelling applications are varied. While slurry pumps can operate at low to medium heads, the highpressure pump designs required for deeper applications are prone to rapid wear if used with heavily contaminated water.

Pump design and the careful selection of materials are crucial to long-term reliability, especially in dewatering applications. Highperformance bearings can stay in service for more than 50,000 hours and a pump’s mean time between repair (MTBR) can be as long as one year. Selecting a less suitable pump may result in repairs after just a few weeks.

Efficiency Most tunnel construction schemes are long-term projects so the cost of ownership of assets used in the build is an important aspect to consider. In terms of the pumps, the combination of hydraulic and electrical efficiency can have a significant effect on the running costs of the pumping stations.

Using advanced liquid-flow modelling techniques and finite element analysis have resulted in optimised hydraulics and specialised coatings that enhance efficiency and keep erosion as well as corrosion to a minimum.

Coupled with high efficiency

electric motors, the combination of lower running costs and extended reliability offers long-term cost savings for the project.

These savings all help to minimise the life cycle costs of the assets. These are comprised of the initial purchase price, installation and commissioning, energy costs, maintenance and repair expenses as well as the cost of downtime in terms of lost production. As such, it is clear to see how optimised reliability and efficiency can reduce lifetime costs significantly.

projects around the world using local facilities.

Sulzer has a broad portfolio of pumping products and mixers that are specifically designed for tunnel dewatering projects.

With experienced personnel and flexibility to support this demanding construction environment, Sulzer has the design expertise and manufacturing capabilities to deliver the efficiency as well as reliability that can make all the difference in the construction of a tunnel.

Expert support As with any rotating equipment, support from the manufacturer is essential, for the design of the pumping installation, the selection of the most appropriate pump designs and maintenance support.

Onsite assistance with spare parts as well as additional assets to keep pace with the build schedule are equally important.

This process is greatly simplified if the pump supplier has extensive experience in tunnelling projects and is organised in such a way that support can be delivered to

Pablo Garcia is Global Business Development Manager at Sulzer. Sulzer is a global leader in fluid engineering. It specialises in pumping, agitation, mixing, separation and application technologies for fluids of all types. Its customers benefit from its commitment to innovation, performance and quality and from its responsive network of 180 world-class production facilities and service centres across the globe. Sulzer has been headquartered in Winterthur, Switzerland, since 1834.

For more information, please see:

www.sulzer.com

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HEALTH AND SAFETY

Improving safety

Forty people died in the construction industry in 2019/20, up from a record low of 30 in 2018/19. The increase in construction fatalities comes as work-place deaths across Great Britain decreased to the lowest number on record. Matt Powell-Howard shares his experiences and thoughts about how site management can play a significant role in overcoming these statistics

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efore I joined NEBOSH I worked as HSE Manager for a large buildings and aggregates supplier. We expected managers and supervisors to undertake site inspections and these were logged against their KPIs. It was one of my responsibilities to make sure these site inspections happened and that the KPIs were met. But what about the quality of those inspections?

That wasn’t recorded – if our KPI numbers were met then my bosses were happy.

Thankfully, my professional practice has grown significantly since then – and so has our profession as a whole, much to

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the benefit of workers around the world.

Yet, as the statistics suggest, the construction industry is a tough one. The multiple sites, many thousands of workers, high numbers of contractors, the high hazard work, strict budgets and ever-present deadlines make it a challenging sector. But, for me, the key to unlocking even greater health and safety improvements lies with site managers and supervisors.

Of course, there are safety professionals but site manager roles have a huge range of influences – they know the work well, they have the ability to communicate with the

workers on the ground and they set the priorities.

But these are also some of the busiest and most high-pressure roles on site. They also have to meet deadlines and budgets and report to senior leaders who may be further removed from the reality of that job or project. So where does that leave health and safety?

If we can give construction managers the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ to really influence the safety culture in their teams then the construction industry can build on the great progress it has already made and reignite a downward trend in those health and safety statistics.

How?

Why? When making the case for health and safety the strongest argument is always that it can save lives. You would think there is no better reason than that, but sometimes other things get in the way and we lose focus or become complacent. It’s human nature – ‘it will be quicker or cheaper if I ‘just’ do this’.

Research shows that by changing the way they do things businesses can save time, save money and be more resilient – a term more relevant than ever before as I write this during the Covid-19 pandemic – by doing things in a more safety conscious way.

One of the things I often hear by people outside of the profession is that ‘health and safety is for people with clipboards and boxes to tick’. Actually, health and safety is for everyone – every person on a site has a role to play in keeping it safe for themselves and for others. If site managers can influence every worker to take personal responsibility, then a positive safety culture can develop – and that is very powerful indeed.

Where to start? We should not assume that site managers are confident talking about safety so there is a corporate responsibility to equip them with the tools they need to really influence their workers. These could include: • Giving managers and supervisors confidence to ask the right questions One of the Health & Safety Executive’s best-selling products are the Safe Deal Playing Cards – sounds simplistic but they are really handy to get conversations started.

• Focus on quality Remember those KPIs I mentioned at the start of this article – move the focus

to quality conversations and meaningful information rather than a number or ticked box. Then really listen to what your workers are telling you – the best ideas usually come from the people actually doing the work.

• Use your safety professionals Regulations require that every employer shall have

access to competent safety persons – ask them for advice, coaching and guidance, it’s what they are there for.

• Leadership Set the standard – what is and is not acceptable?

Business leaders need to

Matt Powell-Howard

prioritise their people and give site managers the power to challenge their teams and their leaders and to stop work if it’s unsafe or could potentially cause damage to an individual’s health.

• Training The right education and training gives people skills and confidence they can use in the workplace.

NEBOSH has specialist construction and leadership certificates for people with wider responsibilities as well as shorter awareness courses for front line workers – there really is something for everyone.

This list is not exhaustive but hopefully it should provide construction leadership teams with a starting point to recognise and nurture the potential of their site managers.

Matt Powell-Howard is Head of Strategy for NEBOSH. NEBOSH is a leading global organisation, which provides health, safety and environmental qualifications. Its internationally recognised qualifications help to raise the competence workers at all levels in the workplace. Since its inception in 1979 over 400,000 people from around the world have gained a NEBOSH qualification.

For more information, please see:

www.nebosh.org.uk/qualifications

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WINDOWS

Windows

to the world

Russell Hand looks at how windows vitally impact commercial project design, and the aspects that should be considered by specifiers on these builds

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y their very nature, large-scale commercial projects require a high degree of consideration at all levels, from design and construction to on-going maintenance. Selecting products capable of enabling best possible performance and durability is therefore a huge priority for developers, and windows are increasingly being identified as an area in which to make marginal gains.

Arguably more than any other part of the building,

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windows must strike a balance between form and function.

Their ability to impact multiple building characteristics, including performance and appearance, has led to growing numbers of architects, specifiers and developers placing further emphasis on window specification. Taking into account the amount of considerations that must be made around selecting and installing correct windows for commercial projects, it is therefore crucial that specifiers make as informed a choice as possible.

Safe occupants The role windows play in fire protection is key, and has resulted in a generation of solutions that act as effective fire protectors and smoke ventilators in the event of a fire. There are many product features, testing conditions, and legislative requirements, which come into play for specifiers of commercial windows.

The material used in a uPVC window is ‘self-extinguishing,’ removing the heat source so the window will not burn or act as a fuel. As such, suppliers can

Government targets, window and door U-Values are also set to be reduced in the near future.

Sustainability Due to these environmental considerations, a growing number of developers are going further than insulation alone. Specifically, they are looking for manufacturers and suppliers that approach product development, delivery, and installation responsibly.

Contrary to myths, uPVC or ‘plastic’ windows can be highly sustainable. UPVC can be recycled and reintroduced into the supply chain to conform with Circular Economy (CE) requirements, proving a perfect solution for developers looking to ensure their commercial building is eco-friendly.

Key sector stakeholders have also further overhauled their PVC recycling offering, so fabricators and installers can access a responsible, cost-effective method of environmental protection.

REHAU’s subsidiary PVCR recycles old uPVC windows and doors, allowing businesses to manage their waste effectively while minimising disposal costs and reduce their impact on landfill. provide fire-rated fixed uPVC windows, tested and certified with various fire rated glass solutions from the major glass producers.

Energy consumption With people becoming increasingly conscious about the impact their actions have on the environment, there is more pressure than ever to reduce energy consumption. For this reason, windows play a vital part in ensuring a building is suitably insulated with the added benefit of keeping heating costs down.

To measure how effective a building is at transmitting heat between the outside and the inside of a building, the U-values have been established. The lower the U-value, the slower the heat can transfer through the material in question, and therefore the better an insulator it is. Approved Document L of the Building Regulations state that developers should to achieve a minimum U-Value of 1.6 W/m2K for windows installed in a retrofit scenario, or 1.4 W/m2K in newbuild dwellings. To achieve future

Aesthetics A window’s performance goes hand-in-hand with its appearance – as part of the building fabric, they need to contribute positively to the building’s aesthetics.

Architects therefore often seek windows with minimal sightlines, so the break between the external building material and any expanse of glazing is reduced.

It is also important to factor colour into building design, as it can reduce the impact of sightlines. White window frames

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WINDOWS

While every window enjoys its own performance characteristics, it will ultimately only perform as well as the quality of its installation. Using expanding foam tape to seal the perimeter around the window enhances both energy and sound insulation

tend to contrast with the building fabric or the glass, whereas darker shades often appear far subtler, reducing their impact on the building’s appearance.

Additionally, while it is commonly thought that aluminium windows achieve significantly slimmer sightlines than uPVC, there is actually very little between the two. Advancing foil technology means uPVC ranges enjoy greater colour choice than ever before, and includes certain options that have been designed to simulate aluminium.

Consequently, polymer-based window profiles continue to endure as an attractive option for specifiers, architects and building designers.

Minimising noise A key, final consideration to look at when choosing windows is the appropriate sound levels required.

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The World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for community noise specify less than 30dB in bedrooms during the night, and less than 35dB in living spaces to allow for adequate living and working conditions.

It is unsurprising that the constituent parts of a window all have a part to play in acting as an effective sound barrier. Generally, the thicker the glass, the better the level of sound attenuation.

However, thicker, heavier glass may not always be suitable for certain types of window or installation.

The level of ventilation required within a building can also dictate a window’s sound acoustic performance. For example, trickle vents allow small amounts of ventilation through the window to negate concerns like condensation, also allow certain levels of noise through as

well. Modern buildings boasting a Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) system are more likely to have windows that don’t open; making them much more soundproof.

The window frame itself will tend to enhance the performance of the glass up to around 3738dB, and this usually comes down to the frame material.

Multi-chambered uPVC frames, for example, can help reduce noise levels coming through the window. However, specifiers must still select solutions that have undergone stringent performance checks. This can include testing up to 47db using a triple glazed unit with varying thickness of glass, all contained within the window itself.

Finally, while every window enjoys its own performance characteristics, it will ultimately only perform as well as the quality of its installation. Using expanding foam tape to seal the perimeter around the window enhances both energy and sound insulation.

Russell Hand is Head of Product Management and Technical at REHAU Windows.

The REHAU Group is a polymer specialist and one of the world’s largest extruders of PVC-U window profiles. It offers a range of high-quality profiles for windows and doors in an array of colours, and boasts one of the industry’s first co-extruded profiles, using 100 per cent post-consumer waste in the core.

For more information, please see:

www.rehau.com

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PROFILE: GOLDBECK CONSTRUCTION LTD

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The gold standard A family-owned German contractor, Goldbeck Construction’s turnkey design and build services are proving increasingly popular in the UK

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With almost 8000 staff members, 74 branches in Europe, one in China and one in California, nine production facilities, and a turnover of close to €4 billion a year, Goldbeck Construction has firmly established itself as one of Europe’s most successful lean contractors. The brainchild of German steel maker Ortwin Goldbeck, the company was founded in 1969 and over half a century later, it remains family-run, known across Europe for high quality and consistent delivery.

A full turnkey design and build contractor, Goldbeck retains the majority of design in-house and manufactures its projects’ main structural elements in nine factories across Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Wherever it operates, the company is committed to hiring local businesses to perform complimentary or speciality services, such as groundworks, mechanical and electrical installation, interior fit out and specialist façade installations.

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PROFILE: GOLDBECK CONSTRUCTION LTD

Roadgrip

Eager to build on its 51-year legacy, Goldbeck turned its attention to the UK market and recognised a move towards efficiency and system building.

Based in Birmingham, the UK branch has been running for close to two decades, but has experienced significant growth over the last five years in particular. The expansion has been led by Goldbeck’s UK Director, Craig Davies – a man who has seen the UK branch’s workforce quintuple since taking up the role.

“When I joined the company six years ago we only had five members of staff,” Craig

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states. “We are 25 people today, including architects, structural designers, project managers, business development, and office staff. We have grown into a complete turnkey provider here in the UK, with system build we maintain a lean operation providing ultimate value for our clients.

“In Europe, we lead the market with our four core products,” he says, “Our main product is warehousing, with the new U Gigafactory for Tesla being a prime and very prestigious project for Goldbeck right now. Next is multi-storey car parks, which is our most popular product in the

As a trusted contractor of Goldbeck Construction, Roadgrip were brought in to manage the car park markings and surface coatings.

Known for their total car park solutions, Roadgrip have the in-house capability to handle end-to-end works from preparation to resin floors, waterproofing, decorating, expansion joints and more.

“It’s always a pleasure to work with an organisation that shares our values in quality with an equally deep knowledge of their field.

It makes for an efficient job and an excellent finish when you collaborate with the best,” commented Hugh Blackburn, Director at Roadgrip.

Celebrating 25 years in business, Roadgrip have built a global reputation for quality workmanship with an established clientele of construction leaders, airports, racetracks, retail and highways throughout the world. As specialists, they deliver with consistency and professionalism and can be relied upon to mobilise their own teams and fleet of machines quickly anywhere in the UK and abroad.

Visit roadgrip.co.uk

PROFILE: GOLDBECK CONSTRUCTION LTD

UK at the moment and the first to be introduced here. Our main focus right now is introducing more of our other main products onto the UK market. We offer various solutions for office blocks, the majority of which can be made with minimal resources required onsite, so they are perfectly suited to a Covid-19 world because it

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reduces the amount of people you need for construction. Finally, we can deliver schools, working through all stages of development from planning to handing over the keys.”

A key driver in Goldbecks success has been sticking to its system design and builds through off-site manufacturing,

whilst offering clients the best in quality, delivery and price. Not resting on its laurels, the company is at the forefront of innovation, collaborating on research to gain further efficiencies, reduce the use of natural resources, and drive forward carbon reduction.

Goldbeck has set an ambitious company target of being carbon neutral by April 2023. The company’s new office in Palo Alto, California serves as a search and cooperation hub for the smartest and newest construction techniques and technologies in the world, with close links to the CIFE Institute at Stanford University.

As a business established in Continental Europe looking to break into a new territory, Goldbeck has slowly impressed itself on the UK market and is beginning to attract contracts from some of the region’s most well-known organisations. The company has recently built car parks at various sites across the UK, including Bristol Airport, Gatwick Airport, and Warwick University, and more recently office block projects for one of the UK’s leading car manufacturers.

Opportunities presented by the global pandemic and Brexit have manifested in the warehouse market. Due to lockdowns and restrictions on movement, more and more people are doing online shopping right now and, in the UK, one third of all retail is bought online, which is higher than any other country in Europe. It means that the demand for warehousing space is very high at the moment and so we want to push our services in that area

MR Industrial Services We have a great working partnership with Goldbeck Construction, providing it with design, manufacturing and installation support on various projects throughout the whole of the UK. Our team has carried out a vast array of works, ranging from podium walkways and access staircases, to flashings and supports steels.

The project team at Goldbeck are always a pleasure to work with, demonstrating the highest level of professionalism at every level whilst still retaining an approachable and calm demeaner, all of which will ensure that Goldbeck will continue to grow at the same colossal pace as over the last several years.

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PROFILE: GOLDBECK CONSTRUCTION LTD

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“The UK is starting to realise that everything we do is of very high quality and because we are so lean and stick to our systemised off-site approach, you get good replication and fast delivery, at an excellent price,” Craig declares. “On our side of things, there is a big appetite for growth. I love this company and at 40, I am relatively young for the position I’m in. I want to grow the business over the next 20-to-30 years and there are a lot of people around me that want to do the same.”

Having previously delivered an average of two car parks a year in the UK, 2020 was set to be a record-breaking year in the region for Goldbeck. The company had secured a £30 million contract with Gatwick Airport and was on target

for an annual turnover of more than double that figure – that was, until the outbreak of Covid-19.

“Not long after the onset of the pandemic, the Gatwick contract was put on hold,” Craig reports. “Similarly, an office block project we were working on was postponed until the world gets back to normal. Despite all this upheaval, we’re proud of how the company reacted. Across Europe, we were united. By utilising our network of locations, we were able to provide regular updates

for our employees on what to do and what not to do. Our main parent company in Germany was not affected badly and as a wider business, the pandemic has actually helped us grow. Nobody is flying in aeroplanes and people are working from home at the moment, but the market is still there.

“Opportunities presented by the global pandemic and Brexit have manifested in the warehouse market,” Craig adds. “Due to lockdowns and restrictions on

On-Power Electrical & Mechanical Ltd During our working relationship with Goldbeck Construction Ltd we have completed a range of projects from multi-storey car parks to distribution centres. We are delighted to have been awarded our latest project and are privileged to be working alongside Goldbeck construction Ltd at Bentley Motors Offices, Crewe. Driven by the ethos of ‘working together’ since initially working with Goldbeck Construction Ltd back in 2014, it is paramount to On-Power Electrical & Mechanical Ltd to continue to build on this relationship.

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PROFILE: GOLDBECK CONSTRUCTION LTD

movement, more and more people are doing online shopping right now and, in the UK, one third of all retail is bought online, which is higher than any other country in Europe. It means that the demand for warehousing space is very high at the moment and so we want to push our services in that area. There is going to be a life after Covid-19 and Goldbeck is here to stay.”

As Summer became Autumn, Goldbeck saw a steady increase in sales with the changing of the leaves. Now, in October, the company is enjoying levels of business activity similar to what they were before the virus hit.

Backed by its ambitious and reliable parent company, Craig believes that Goldbeck’s UK branch is destined for more success.

“In Germany, Goldbeck is one of the main Tier One contractors,” he comments. “Despite its size, it is extremely financially secure because it has always been very sensible in the way it approaches things and that gives the UK business a really solid foundation to build on. The Goldbeck family want to invest in this region and

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they already have an investment business in London, with a number of office blocks to its name. The next step now is to grow the business and in the coming years look to install a UK production facility to manufacture some of our key elements, which will allow us to even better serve the UK market.”

Future growth As Craig suggests, for Goldbeck’s UK business, the next decade is all about growth. Undeterred and unimpeded by the Covid-19 pandemic, the company has recently set up a dedicated sales office in Runcorn, Cheshire, and has also hired a new business development manager to enhance Goldbeck awareness in the south and south-western part of the UK. “We’ve set ourselves up for growth after Covid-19,” Craig asserts. “We haven’t downsized; instead, we’ve looked to strengthen. We have enlarged our business development workforce to help increase the amount of hits and wins we are accruing because we know this pandemic will end, things will get back to normal, and we want to be ready for that.

“We are incredibly lucky at Goldbeck because we work for a company that allows us to prepare for the future because we are financially secure. Not one person in the entire company of 8000 people was put on furlough this year, which is an enormous achievement and something to be proud of. We have had to be flexible with initiatives like working from home, but the key thing is that everybody carried on working. Goldbeck has always looked after its staff and when people feel looked after, I think their appreciation is reciprocated

one of the top multi-storey car park contractors in the region, completing an average of threeto-four car parks each year.

Now, with its foot in the door, the company wishes to become the contractor-of-choice for customers across the British Isles.

“The UK is a big market, and over the last two decades we have built many great relationships with subcontractors of all disciplines, including architectural, design and consultant firms. We want to build on these relationships and expand our pool of resources in the UK. We are focused on providing clients with a great quality build in a fast time, at a good price. Up to 60 per cent of our current work in the UK comes through repeat clients, so we must be doing something right.

“The UK has a lot of history, far more than many other countries, and in a lot of ways it has become institutionalised, but slowly, clients are starting to see what Goldbeck can offer. When people want a multi-storey car park, an office, a warehouse, or a production, distribution or logistics hall, then we want them to come to Goldbeck UK, like the clients do in mainland Europe. The UK is realising that we provide fantastic quality products, at a great price, very, very quickly. They like what we do.”

Goldbeck Construction Ltd www.goldbeck.co.uk Services: Turnkey design and build services

in the work they produce.”

Having taken the leap from Continental Europe to a competitive and well-established UK market, Goldbeck has become

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PROFILE: GRIPPLE

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Gripple Terra-Lock system in use on a slope stabilisation project in Guatemala

To the wire A world-leading manufacturer of wire suspension systems for construction, employee-owned company Gripple continues to deliver time-saving and problem-solving innovation to customers across the globe

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hen CCE Magazine last profiled Gripple – manufacturer of the world-leading iconic wire joiner – the year was 2015. It was that very same year that the company would undergo something of a managerial shake up, appointing one of its senior managers, Ed Stubbs, as the new Managing Director of Gripple Limited at the relatively tender age of 32. Five years on, and the company has enjoyed a period of significant growth, averaging a yearly increase

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PROFILE: GRIPPLE

Ed Stubbs - Managing Director

Today, exports make up approximately 85 per cent of our sales, yet even in our more mature markets we believe there remains a lot of penetration and growth to achieve, particularly through the sales of innovative solutions

The Active Spring Company Ltd The Active Spring Company Ltd was started in 1980, and over this time the company has built a reputation for quality, reliability, excellent customer service and value for money. It is consistently investing in the most sophisticated spring coiling machinery available to its industry, and in its highly skilled workforce. It now has one of the most extensive wire range capabilities in Europe, being capable of forming wire from 0.152mm right up to 70mm; manufacturing wire forms, pressings, torsion, double torsion, compression, tension and conical springs.

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in sales of between 15 and 20 per cent, and more than doubling the turnover of the business in the process.

“The growth of the business has been supported by significant geographic expansion, not only into new markets, but also through investment in existing markets, including our manufacturing operations in the UK, in Sheffield,” Ed begins. “In that time, our workforce has more than doubled, we have launched a host of new products, and we have been able to turn increased profits into dividends that we have been able to pay our shareholders, who happen to also be our people as we remain a 100 per cent employee-owned company. This is a huge strong point for Gripple, as the fact that our employees are both personally and financially

invested in the business helps to drive performance and encourage going that extra mile for our customers every day.”

Gripple’s core business model revolves around the development of patented products designed to solve its customer’s problems, and then marketing them globally. “Today, exports make up approximately 85 per cent of our sales, yet even in our more mature markets we believe there remains a lot of penetration and growth to achieve, particularly through the sales of innovative solutions,” Ed adds.

“As a business, Gripple has a 25 per cent new product target, meaning that we target a quarter of our annual turnover each year to come from products less than five years old,” explains Gripple’s Communications Manager, Michael

Standard Hanger - wire rope suspension solution for building services

Hodgson. “This motivates and challenges us to identify and invest in new ideas, and reinforces the belief that we have companywide in the importance of not standing still.”

Innovative solution A large percentage of Gripple’s new product development centres on its efforts within the construction industry, which remains its biggest market. “The biggest innovation in recent years has arguably been the creation of

Atlantic Freight Limited Atlantic Freight Limited has worked alongside Gripple Limited for many years to provide transportation services by air and ocean freight to the US, as well as other worldwide destinations.

Atlantic Freight was established in 2001, offering logistic services by all modes of transport. We specialize in the North American market, where we operate our own weekly consolidation services directly into our US customs bonded warehouse in Chicago by ocean and air freight. We offer competitive rates, transit time, and are committed to providing a high quality service, which is paramount to Gripple and all of our customers worldwide.

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PROFILE: GRIPPLE

Above: Gripple’s Old West Gun Works production site Opposite page: Old West Gun Works Exterior

Fast Trak, a pre-fabricated trapeze bracket system for the installation of containment, pipework, ductwork and other MEP services,” Michael states.

Rapid growth As the Fast Trak system is presized, it removes the need for the cutting of threaded rod or channel on site, making installations many times faster than a standard fitting. Brackets can be moved up and down the tracks without the need for tools, and can be locked in place when the correct position is found. Fast Trak users also benefit from the fact that the product is subject to regular revisions and redesigns that are driven by customer feedback, with the latest iteration of the system set to be unveiled in early 2021.

“Providing pre-engineered, ready-to-use kits means that we make the installation process much less labour intensive and much more efficient,” Michael continues. “Fast Trak was originally developed to allow us to expand into more residential applications, such as high-rise buildings where

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existing facilities in Sheffield, which will open in the coming months.”

Another area in which Gripple is doing an increasing amount of work is in the civil construction side, where it has been working hard to develop its ground anchoring solutions.

This has resulted in the creation of its Terra-Lock System, a time and labour saving method of geotechnical engineering for erosion control, soil retention and slope reinforcement. The system uses anchors that can now achieve up to 32.5kN’.

“The basis of everything we develop revolves around making space is at a premium. Since then, use of the system has grown rapidly, resulting in us acquiring a dedicated manufacturing site for Fast Trak products close to our

Brightside Construction Approaching our 40th year in business, Brightside Construction are proud to have enjoyed a strong working relationship with Gripple over the last 12 years. We perform building works and maintenance at all of Gripple’s sites in south Yorkshire, and we look forward to furthering our relationship in the years to come.

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PROFILE: GRIPPLE

Fast Trak - prefabricated trapeze bracket system

labour, time and efficiency savings, whilst also enhancing health and safety on site,” Michael states.

“Alongside the Terra-Lock System, much of what we do for our civils customers is based on producing greener systems that reduce the amount of concrete on civil projects, reduce CO2 production by cutting heavy machine movement, and actively enhance vegetation regrowth. In the space of less than a decade, our civils business has grown considerably and we have worked on a number of large projects in the United The opening of Gripple Japan - 2019

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States, as well as in India this year.”

In a continued bid to diversify its market offerings, the company has also successfully spun out a dedicated bespoke automated manufacturing solutions provider, dubbed Gripple Automation.

Born out of its own engineers’ experience in working with – and maintaining – automated machinery over the years, Gripple Automation utilises the latest robotic and automation technologies to improve production processes, whilst reducing costs.

“Gripple has always been a growth driven company, and our geographic and market diversity is the result of our pursuit of growth,” Ed affirms. “That diversity, when considered in the context of challenging times in 2020, has created an amazing degree of resilience that has allowed Gripple to navigate both the good and the difficult times.”

This resilience that Ed speaks of has allowed the business to track alongside its growth figures of 2019 this year, even in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is a remarkable testament to Gripple, its products and its people. “Ours has always been a business that has made its own future,” Michael enthuses. “At the heart of making this possible has been our commitment to product innovation and our people, who we have always strived to protect, both economically and personally. It is those elements of the company that have helped to take it to the cusp of our plan to make Gripple a £100 million turnover business.”

Positivity and vigour The intention of Gripple moving forward is to continue to grow

in a sustainable manner, while also investing in its international facilities and regional sales offices.

At present, one of its biggest undertakings is a redevelopment of its Chicago facility in the United States, which will more than double in size to 58,000-square-feet and become Gripple’s largest single site. Expected to be completed in 2021, the facility will support continued expansion in the country, in partnership with other locations such as its recently opened Los Angeles distribution hub.

“The immediate challenge we face is to exit the current crisis surrounding Covid-19, and to resume our growth trajectory, however long that may take,” Ed reveals. “We are mindful of everything happening around us, but we will continue to invest in the diversity of offering that gives Gripple its strength, and make sure we are developing new products as aggressively as we have done previously, if not more. In the next six months, we anticipate launching more new

REAZN GROUP The REAZN GROUP is dedicated to manufacturing and distributing prime grade zinc alloys. REAZN pursues excellence in the products and services it offers to its partners. REAZN anticipates the challenges of a continuously changing world with great flexibility, and with the necessary creativity. REAZN is committed to investing in better processes and technologies. By working at the ongoing optimization of its proprietary recycling technologies, it is able to improve the recovery rate of zinc units and thus save valuable raw materials from the waste stream. REAZN has built a worldwide network of long-term relationships based on mutual confidence, and it committed to remaining its client’s fully committed and reliable zinc expert.

solutions than in the previous 18 months combined, so our sales personnel have the best opportunity to gain incremental sales and new customers, whilst also maintaining existing business.

“At the same time, we are excited to be making inroads into new, fertile markets, such as solar arrays and rail. We all know exactly what we need to do at Gripple in the coming years.

We will continue to meet any challenges that come our way with positivity and vigour, and we will do so whilst keeping the business strong so we can get on the front foot when conditions globally allow.”

Gripple www.gripple.com Products: Iconic wire joiners

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PROFILE: AARSLEFF GROUND ENGINEERING

Value engineering A

Characteristically resilient in the face of volatile trading conditions brought on by Brexit and Covid-19, Aarsleff Ground Engineering continues to bring confidence to those constructing the landscape of tomorrow 54

s Aarsleff entered 2020, everything seemed to suggest that the company could expect one of its strongest years to date. In the two years prior, the piling and foundations contractor had maintained its revenue levels, while focusing on a number of key end markets that offered - and continue

to offer - major growth potential.

Through this period of complete transition and progress, Aarsleff added complimentary services to its offering and developed its technical capabilities.

“In a nutshell, the last two years have been about realignment, fine tuning, and restructuring,” says Managing Director Kevin Hague.

“An example of this was when

Left: Fiege Bremen logistic warehouse

declares, before adding, “and then Coronavirus hit.”

Like most businesses, Aarsleff has felt the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Still, Kevin argues that the changes the company was making pre-Covid-19 – and subsequently implemented during Covid-19 – have all been positive.

Where other businesses might see the commonplace introduction of new processes and practices as a disruption, Aarsleff’s management team has seen them as a learning opportunity.

“Six to nine months ago we were in the office daily, as well as spending a lot of time on the road in the UK and Europe. What this pandemic has taught us,” Kevin explains, “is that we can actually

we made a strategic decision to bring an end to our ground beams service. It meant we had to absorb an exceptional cost to dispose of it out of our system, but it was better for the company in the long term.

We took the view that it wasn’t working, therefore we stopped and instead started focusing on the positive activity that actually works for the business.

“During this time, we also made key staff acquisitions to complement our services with the aim of getting to an ideal platform for our next level of growth. We then started to focus on some of the more technical projects, as well as the high profile, civil engineering, Tier One contracts. Everything we did was about setting ourselves up for a very busy year,” Kevin

do a lot of our work remotely and online. That doesn’t mean we will operate this way forever - being around other people is absolutely key for learning and gaining inspiration - but we are working on striking a balance between the two.

Our model is to increase employee freedom as we grow, rather than limit it, so we have a better chance of long-term continued success.

Results matter more than where we produce them.”

Benefitting from what Kevin describes as a ‘dynamic’ team with

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PROFILE: AARSLEFF GROUND ENGINEERING

Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor

Managing Director Kevin Hague

a ‘can-do attitude’, Aarsleff reacted quickly and positively to the Coronavirus outbreak in early 2020. Working in line with government guidelines and regulations, the company continued to support its valued clients through the completion of ongoing projects.

“We became resilient very quickly. It was almost like we went into survival mode in March and that got us through,” Kevin reveals. “We put together client and staff safety packs, implemented individual travel to construction sites, and changed the way accommodation was booked.

Our team became noticeably more productive immediately.

“We tried, and succeeded, in looking after everybody and by the middle of April we were back to around 60-to-70 per cent trading levels, and then in June and July

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we had two of the best months we have ever had as a business. We are grateful for the trust we received from our customers and for the lessons we’ve learnt along the way.

Longer term, I think all businesses are going to have to change the way they operate to an extent and

Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor

we are already exhibiting more flexibility.”

On a personal level, Kevin believes 2020 can be viewed as a chance to develop his skills and is confident that the experience he has gained from living, and working, through such unprecedented times will prove invaluable in the future.

“It’s been a lesson in true leadership,” he states. “It’s taught me about the importance of leading by example and leading from the front. There were some pretty interesting decisions we had to make, but on reflection, I think we did the right things at the right times and protected our workforce.

The outcome is that we have set ourselves up stronger for the rebound.”

The approach Aarsleff took in 2020, and the two years preceding it, has cemented its reputation as a piling contactor of choice, as well

as a trusted partner in e-commerce and distribution shed markets. Over the course of the last three years, Aarsleff has worked closely with a variety of just-in-time contractors in areas such as logistics, online shopping, ecommerce builds, and data centres.

“We work very closely with these clients and our complementary services work hand in glove with what their build strategies demand,” Kevin reports. “We have built up a portfolio and a deliverable service offering that is almost tailor-made to this type of industry.

We also work very well within the civil engineering and industrial marketplace, both complementing and servicing those end markets.”

Amongst its long list of former projects, Aarsleff counts the delivery of some of the biggest industrial units in the UK for one of the largest online retailers. More

recently, the firm secured a fouryear framework with the Coal Authority dealing with sub-surface mining related issues. Of all the company’s latest projects, Aarsleff is perhaps most proud of a highly technical ground engineering scheme currently underway in Sunderland.

“It’s what we would call an iconic project for the business,” Kevin remarks. “One of the biggest specialist ground engineering projects in the UK, it has involved some very challenging design requirements, which we selfdelivered, including around 1500 soil nails and 130 large anchors - all designed in-house.

“We are onsite right now executing the project, which has been well publicised in the press. It is a good platform to showcase our technical capabilities, but internally, one of the biggest success stories

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PROFILE: AARSLEFF GROUND ENGINEERING

Shiremoor Retail Park, Northumberland

Explore Plant and Transport Solutions Explore Plant and Transport Solutions work with Aarsleff Ground Engineering to provide general haulage for their precast piling business. From Explore’s perspective, Aarsleff is a customer that shares our core values around safety and quality, which we believe helps to make our relationship successful.

We have worked hard to understand their business, to ensure we provide the level of service and safety they expect, alongside a reliable delivery performance.

Aarsleff’s approach to working collaboratively with their supply chain has helped to build our relationship over time, and allows for open, honest communication and a partnership based on shared values.

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has been our team here. We’re a very strong, technically-led company with tremendous staff who are all focused on the needs of our customers. Everyone that works here has been hand-

picked for a reason. Everyone compliments each other.”

Driven by this skilled and spirited workforce, Aarsleff has become renowned as a values-led firm with a strong company culture centred around unity, hard-work and high performance people. It is a shared ethos that pervades all areas of the business – a fairly unique achievement in the modern business world. The company refers to this culture as ‘Step into the Blue’, an ongoing campaign designed to communicate its values, mission, and ethos across the entire company.

“Everyone understands the core values of the business and behaves consciously with those values in mind,” Kevin claims. “I’d be very surprised if you spoke to anyone

Shiremoor Retail Park, Northumberland

within the organisation who didn’t know our core values and I think that is key. In my view, health and safety should always be top, but core values and culture act as a natural extension of this because if you’re getting your core values and culture right, your safety record is going to be better and your commercial record is going to be better too. I think it’s a very different approach to a lot of companies in construction, but we see it as a big positive and we see the benefits daily.”

Having – up until now – successfully negotiated the pitfalls of a challenging and unpredictable year, Aarsleff is hoping to fashion a strong ending to 2020 for the business. Thanks to the company’s

sector. Scheduled to perform infrastructure improvements on HS2 and other rail networks in the near future, Aarsleff also sees the ecommerce market as a fertile area for future growth.

“In the UK at the moment, around 20 per cent of people regularly shop online, but we can see that demand growing and growing in the next few years,” Kevin asserts.

“We’ll also be introducing a larger rotary piling rig in the next few months, to meet our customers’ demands.”

In the longer term, Kevin hopes to develop Aarsleff into a position where it is the market’s first choice ground engineering firm. In order to achieve that goal, the Managing Director believes the company

flexible and diverse offering, Aarsleff is not as reliant on the housing market and can instead enjoy the resurgence of the commercial and civil construction

must stay focused on a strategy catered towards quality and speed.

“We don’t want to be the biggest, but we want to be first choice and remain niche at the

same time,” Kevin indicates. “We know we are not always going to be the cheapest, but in terms of speed, quality, and safety, it’s what we are set up to deliver – we are the perfect choice when it comes to delivering large driven piling projects quickly, accurately, and safely. At Aarsleff, we use the idea of strategic lighthouses to measure our progress over long periods of time, but our overarching laserfocus three-pronged approach to running the business is we are outward facing and always engaging with our customers, we are a low-cost base but high capability business, and we are quick and nimble to react.”

Aarsleff Ground Engineering www.aarsleff.co.uk Services: Piling, ground engineering, retaining walls and foundations contractor 59

PROFILE: DOMIS CONSTRUCTION LTD

Spaces that inspire

From modern apartment complexes to youth centres, Manchester-based firm Domis Construction is bringing to life some of the North West’s most ambitious developments

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ounded in 2017, it has taken only three years for Domis Construction to become renowned across North of England for its purposeful, solution-based approach to building. From concept to construction, the company’s ‘boutique’ operating model allows it to support every aspect of a project’s development journey with trademark reliability and attentionto-detail. The result? Spaces that inspire.

In June 2020, Domis celebrated the 12-month anniversary of the first residents moving into one of its most celebrated projects – Local Blackfriars. A £60 million residential development on Salford’s Trinity

Way, the scheme consists of two residential buildings – one of 16 storeys and one of 12 storeys – either side of a central courtyard and adjacent to the restored former Blackfriars Pub. Targeted at the sales market, the project offers 399 one- and two-bedroom apartments, including penthouses, and six townhouses. Facilities onsite include a private cinema, gym, launderette, cycling storage, and underground parking. According to property developer Salboy, on whose behalf construction was carried out, Domis completed the development in 104 weeks, putting the project 22 weeks ahead of schedule.

More recently, Domis found its work drawing praise from retail

tycoon and entrepreneur Theo Paphitis. The former Dragon’s Den star described the new Domisconstructed HideOut Youth Zone in Gorton, Manchester as ‘absolutely fantastic’. Proud to deliver a project that will have such a direct and significant impact on the local community, Domis worked closely with its client, Onside Youth Zones, as well as local businesses, to provide a youth centre for the 21st century, which will provide young people with ‘somewhere to go, something to do, and someone to talk to’.

Open seven days a week under normal circumstances - Covid-19 restrictions have been in place since March - the Youth Zone is a safe place where thousands

of young people across East Manchester can participate in up to 20 activities each night, as well as meet new friends and find a listening ear. With some neighbourhoods in East Manchester among the most deprived in the country, Domis was pleased that its work will help support young people in the area socially and emotionally, now and in the future.

No1 Old Trafford In order to pull off the complex projects for which the company has become famous, Domis prioritises the relationships it forges with people and organisations who share the firm’s passion and commitment to

service excellence and outstanding quality. For Domis, nobody is more important than the company’s clients, partners, and workforce, and this is reflected in the way the business provides customers and stakeholders with direct access to decision-makers and offers them the opportunity to influence key judgements. This ‘wholly accessible’ take on business is something the company believes sets it apart from many of its competitors and allows for a communal approach each and every time it steps onsite.

At present, Domis is hard at work on a major development close to Manchester United’s Old Trafford stadium. Designed

by Jon Matthews Architects, the

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PROFILE: DOMIS CONSTRUCTION LTD

214,000-square foot, 354-unit scheme is being constructed

by Domis on the waterfront at Trafford Park. No1 Old Trafford will include 139 one-bed, 211 two-bed, and four three-bed apartments across two towers of 15 and 18 storeys. These towers will be connected by a central reception area, which will be home to a cinema room and business lounge.

In September 2020, a key milestone was reached in construction at No1 Old Trafford as the new residential structures topped out, meaning the project is on track for its scheduled completion date in the spring of 2021. In the same week, property developer Cole Waterhouse announced that over 70 per cent of units had already been sold. The company’s CEO, Damian Flood,

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As the company continues to be a first-choice construction partner on pioneering new developments like No1 Old Trafford, it becomes more and more clear that a degree of the success Domis has experienced is derived from the firm’s experience and capabilities in design management, programming, compliance, safety, and commercial delivery was also full of praise for Domis.

“Domis has done a superb job adhering to the development programme whilst ensuring Covid-

safe working conditions,” he said.

“We have continued to see a high level of interest, in particular from international investors, but as we rapidly move towards completion next year, we are starting to achieve more direct sales to local owner occupiers, which is excellent news.”

High-profile development Cole Waterhouse previously revealed that 15 per cent of apartments at No1 Old Trafford have been reserved specifically for first-time buyers as part of the Government’s Help to Buy scheme.

The site’s perimeter, home to the popular Skyhooks sculpture, will also benefit from a £1 million public realm improvement package.

As the company continues to be a first-choice construction partner on pioneering new developments

like No1 Old Trafford, it becomes more and more clear that a degree of the success Domis has experienced is derived from the firm’s experience and capabilities in design management, programming, compliance, safety, and commercial delivery.

Each key discipline has a senior management lead with a direct report to the company’s Managing Director, Lee McCarren. These dedicated delivery teams for each project have helped to build the firm’s reputation as a complete service provider that prides itself on achieving the highest quality of service in the industry. Lee recently added his thoughts on the progress at No1 Old Trafford.

“The development is on schedule, to budget, and more importantly, is being constructed under safe systems of work,

Zest Bathrooms & Kitchens Zest are proud to have formed a strong and positive working relationship with Domis.

Together we have developed bathroom specifications showcasing exceptional brands, in harmony with the quality and design elements featured throughout their builds.

Domis are very professional and well organised. They communicate robust work schedules which facilitates the smooth running of projects to be completed in the desired timescale.

Zest have the pleasure of working alongside Domis, and look forward to doing so in the years to come.

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PROFILE: DOMIS CONSTRUCTION LTD

ensuring our people are protected throughout the challenges of Covid-19,” he said. “It’s great to be working on such a high-profile development for Cole Waterhouse and we look forward to providing an exemplary service through to completion”.

Future schemes Despite the challenges presented to the sector by this year’s Covid-19 pandemic, 2020 has been far from a lost cause for Manchester’s construction industry. It could be argued that the region is actually experiencing a construction boom.

While many people across the UK have been in quarantine or working from home, buildings have been sprouting up across the North West with companies like Domis making it happen – and it doesn’t look as though the work will be drying up anytime soon.

Alongside the completion of No1 Old Trafford, Domis has just completed a £25 million project on Tib Street in the Northern Quarter and a £35 million undertaking at Burlington Square, and is nearing the conclusion of its work at Local Crescent, an upscale development of more than 423 residential units in Salford for development partner Salboy. There are new projects on the horizon too. Domis has started preparing the sites of two residential schemes within Salford’s Greengate.

Having recently gained planning permission for an 18-storey apartment block containing 115 apartments, Salboy has confirmed that Domis will carry out construction of the Jon Matthews designed complex.

Work is expected to begin before the end of 2020 and is projected to be completed within 3 years.

Perhaps the most exciting upcoming development for Domis is the construction of Viadux, a £300 million residential and office scheme for which the company started earlystage works in March. A joint venture between Salboy and Ask Real Estate, Domis will be building the 40-storey residential tower and accompanying

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14-storey office site that make up the project. Having already completed minor drainage works, the company can now look towards beginning construction in earnest.

Scheduled to be built in phases, the residential block will be constructed first and when completed, will offer 375 apartments.

Domis is hopeful that Viadux can welcome its first new residents by 2025. The long construction programme is due to the complicated nature of the development’s design - the contractor will need to negotiate listed arches, as well as working around the Metrolink tram line.

Though the project is sure to be a challenge, Domis is confident that it is the ideal candidate to produce the desired results. A skilled, experienced, and resilient organisation with an ever-growing body of impressive work, Domis is certainly one to watch in the years ahead.

Domis Construction Ltd www.domisconstruction.co.uk Services: Construction company 65

PROFILE: THOMAS PLANT HIRE

A hire power A welcome story of success during a challenging year, Covid-19 has failed to derail Thomas Plant Hire’s rapid growth trajectory – and the company has even made time to celebrate 20 years in business 66

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n the midst of year-long 20th anniversary celebrations, Thomas Plant Hire took a moment to look back on two decades defined by tremendous growth. A familyrun operation to this day, the company has grown from a humble groundwork and contracting business to one of the UK’s leading providers of plant hire related services. Commercial Manager Lowri Thomas discusses the transformation in more detail.

“In the beginning, we didn’t do a lot of plant hire,” Lowri explains. “We

We have customers across the breadth of the region asking us to provide them with plant in South Wales.

Sending products from the North or Birmingham wasn’t ideal, so it makes sense to have a depot down in South Wales and attack the market from down there

focused on contracting first, before going on to purchase a wide range of machinery. It wasn’t long before we had customers asking if we would hire the equipment out and so we seized the opportunity and moved into plant hire quite heavily.”

The way the young company seamlessly incorporated plant hire into its offering was an early sign of the flexibility it continues to showcase today. When Thomas Plant Hire customers displayed interest in a tool hire service, the company quickly adapted to the needs of its clients

and satisfied their demands.

“Four years ago, we weren’t doing tool hire, but we started it up because the demand from our customers was there and it seemed silly not to,” Lowri reports.

“It is an area in which we’ve really excelled, so now we always stay open to new ideas. Flexibility and strong customer relationships have taken us into areas and fields that we weren’t previously in and the strategy remains profitable.”

Thomas Plant Hire applies a similar positive approach to the acquisition of businesses that it

thinks will support and complement its existing portfolio. One example of this was the purchase of SOS Hose Services, a local Deeside business specializing in hoses and hydraulics for plant hire and production industries. Offering 24-hour on-site vehicles and a trade counter stocked with hydraulic hoses, fittings, and accessories, SOS fit perfectly into Thomas Plant Hire’s offering and continues to ensure that plant at the disposal of Thomas Plant and its customers remains in perfect working order.

Following the success of additions like SOS, Thomas Plant Hire’s acquisition strategy was in action again in September 2020, when the firm purchased Manton sales and plant hire, a Wrexham-based company providing hire, sales, and servicing for diesel, LPG, and electric-powered forklift trucks.

“It all contributes to our ability to provide a full package service for our clients,” Lowri asserts. “We’ve got the plant hire, tool hire, SOS hose services, and in 2019, we set up a new sister company called On Grade Machine Control, which offers laser attachments for a variety of equipment and machinery. In the same year, we founded Thomas Plant Sales, which sells our assets and machines coming to the end of their life, as well as purchasing equipment to sell on.

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PROFILE: THOMAS PLANT HIRE

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“Most recently, in the last few months, we established First Grade Recruitment, which is effectively an agency company for some of our staff because we have over 200 machine drivers that work for us most of the year. First Grade Recruitment studies the market for opportunities and hires these team members out when the demand arises.”

Thomas Plant Hire’s expansion, and the acquisition trail that has accompanied it, are both clear signs of the company’s continuing success. It is a sentiment reflected in the way the firm’s turnover has increased considerably over the last three years, from around £25 million in 2018 to almost £38 million in 2020. In order to support this

to the facilities made available by our subsidiary companies like Manton, tool hire and SOS who have got their own depot.”

Lowri goes on to explain that the significance of the South Wales depot is that the new site will act as a ‘bridge’ to the southern half of the country. “At present, it takes us four hours to get down to South Wales,” she says, “and even from Birmingham to South Wales takes us two and a half hours, so the new depot will not only provide ease of access but, more importantly, it will give us more coverage.”

Though Thomas Plant Hire is a company that specializes in equipment and machinery, it is clear from talking to Lowri that people are also a vital part of the operation

her father. “He likes more work, more business, more turnover and more profit. As Managing Director, he is very aware of what’s happening in the sector and always ready to pounce on anything that drops down the line, such as new properties or businesses for sale. The new depots are all down to his hard work and drive. We have customers across the breadth of the region asking us to provide them with plant in South Wales.

Sending products from the North or Birmingham wasn’t ideal, so it makes sense to have a depot down in South Wales and attack the market from down there.”

Across the previous two decades, Wyn’s hard work has been supported by a strong, experienced, and skilled workforce that has made a sizeable

growth, Thomas Plant Hire recently invested in new infrastructure.

“We’ve had a good, solid year of growth and so we’ve been able open a depot in South Wales,” Lowri reveals. “It means that we’ve now got five depots - Birmingham, Widnes, Bolton, Holywell, and the new site in Wales. This is in addition

– none more so than Founder and Managing Director Wyn Thomas.

According to Lowri, it is Wyn that deserves most of the credit for keeping the business modern, forward-thinking, and hungry to succeed.

“He is very aggressive when it comes to business,” Lowri says of

contribution to the success of the business. Today, Thomas Plant Hire employs over 300 people that continue to further the firm’s reputation as a customer-focused company dedicated to the service of its clients’ needs.

“We’ve got really good staff here and it’s something for which

we are incredibly grateful,” Lowri states. “I can’t thank our team enough, especially in the context of everything that’s been happening this year. We were forced to place a number of people on furlough earlier this year, but the majority of them are back now. They are a strong, reliable team and they’ve just got on with it.

“Over the years, we’ve built up a really good track record for hiring great staff and it’s something that continues to benefit us. It’s good to have someone with experience in plant hire, but it’s more important that they have a great attitude.

We are very much a business with a focus on doing everything we can for our customers. Anything is possible when it comes to client requests; we never say no! That is the motto really: never say no.”

The company’s accommodating and cooperative nature is traceable back to its roots as a family firm.

With so many family members still present in the organization, it is no surprise that the company treats its customers with a level of care and attention usually reserved for relatives or friends.

“We don’t just talk about being a family business,” Lowri remarks, “we are one. My dad owns and runs the business, his wife is the secretary, my sister works in the Admin Department, and I work on the finance and transport side of things. Even my little brother comes to help with the mechanics in the term holidays It all makes for

work hard on those principles for the next 20 years,” she declares.

“We’re ambitious and we want to expand all areas of the business. We want to grow turnover, provide jobs, and increase our customer base.”

Thomas Plant Hire www.thomasplanthire.co.uk Services: Plant hire services

a really welcoming and supportive environment.”

As Thomas Plant Hire looks for a strong finish to 2020 that will move the company closer to next year’s target of £45 million in turnover, the firm is still taking time to reflect on the 20-year journey that led it to this point. Though Lowri is proud of the milestone, she is quick to thank all those that have contributed to the achievement.

“Fantastic customer support and great staff have got us to where we are today and I think it’s vital to remember that and continue to

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PROFILE: RIWAL HOLDING GROUP BV

Reaching new heights

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Riwal’s mission is simple, and that is to supply its customers with the right aerial work platform and ensure maximum uptime so that projects can be completed efficiently and effectively

P

edro Torres puts it as accurately and succinctly as possible when he describes Riwal as being a true specialist when it comes to the rental and sales of aerial working equipment. As Chief Executive Officer, it is Pedro’s responsibility – and pleasure – to lead what is a dynamic, customer focused, powered access provider, committed to delivering the best possible experience for anyone using its services.

The history of the business dates back to the late 1960s, as the Dutch-based division of British crane rental firm Richards & Wallington. Two decades later, the firm added aerial work platforms to its portfolio under the abbreviated name of Riwal and became the official dealer of JLG Industries in the Netherlands in 1995. Then, in 2001, it took its first international steps, and almost two decades down the line it now has depot operations in 16 countries, including several European nations, Kazakhstan, India, and in the Middle East.

Today, Riwal boasts a fleet of approximately 20,000 units, with its rental fleet consisting of scissor lifts, telehandlers, articulating boom lifts, telescopic boom lifts and spider lifts from leading manufacturers such as JLG, Genie, Holland Lift, Skyjack, Magni and more. While such a depth of available equipment is indeed a massive strong suit, what Pedro believes really sets Riwal apart is the level of service it provides.

“As a business, we strive to find ways to improve ourselves and our ability to better serve our customers each and every day,” he enthuses. “We always look to act with urgency,

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PROFILE: RIWAL HOLDING GROUP BV

To date, we have trained more than 2000 people on our VR simulators. This training can be delivered either at one of Riwal’s sites, or the simulator can be transported to a customers’ premises should that be requested

SmartEquip SmartEquip is the leading technology standard for equipment lifecycle management, service and procurement support for the construction industry. The Network provides a digital support library of more than 500 OEM brands, allowing for $1 billion+ in parts transactions annually. SmartEquip’s solutions increase equipment uptime, improve technician wrench time and transaction accuracy, while reducing the total cost of equipment ownership for over 4,000 equipment locations globally. SmartEquip is positioned to define tomorrow’s dynamic and evolving equipment industry.

working to identify solutions to our customers’ needs, all while ensuring safe, on-time delivery and that we can guarantee the maximum uptime of any Riwal machine.”

This culture of self-improvement has also resulted in the principles of safety, responsibility, integrity, engagement and teamwork becoming pillars that guide Riwal’s growth. The group calls this ‘The Riwal Way’. “This is a Lean-inspired program that we have created to standardise our operations across every element of our business,” Pedro explains. “It means that our customers have the peace of mind that they will receive the same quality products and service with each transaction, no matter what part of Riwal that they are working with.”

Customer portal & app Riwal’s determination to better itself can also be observed in the numerous innovative solutions and tools that it has developed in recent years to support its customers. One of the most important of these has been its My Riwal customer portal and app.

“An in-house creation, My Riwal allows customers to view their entire rental history online, to book additional machines online or offrent a machine,” Pedro continues.

“It also allows for the review of all Riwal key performance indicators such as on-time delivery performance and breakdown

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resolution time. Telematics are also integrated into the portal, letting users see data about how often a machine is used, view the exact location of every unit, and allows them to set up alerts to off-rent machines sitting idle for a specific amount of time. Through My Riwal, we can provide data on the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of diesel and electric equipment in use as well.”

An especially exciting addition to the My Riwal app came in April 2019, when a new augmented reality (AR) feature was included to integrate images of aerial platforms with real-life site settings. By using a mobile phone camera, customers are able to view a 3D model of a particular platform that they are interested in renting, projected onto a real environment. This feature allows

customers to see if a specific aerial work platform fits onto their respective worksites, and if the working height is sufficient for a certain task. Three-dimensional images of the machines can be moved vertically and horizontally, with screenshots able to be shared with remote decision-makers and amongst groups.

Technological solution Riwal has similarly embraced the use of virtual reality (VR), with its customers able to hire VR

simulators to enhance the impact and effectiveness of working at height training programs. The simulators, which come with a working basket for operators to stand in and a control panel with joysticks and switches that mimic those on real machines, are used to help design the safest method for completing projects without putting operators or equipment at risk. “To date,” Pedro adds, “we have trained more than 2000 people on our VR simulators. This training can be delivered either

Würth After years of successfully working together throughout Europe, Riwal and Würth are enjoying a very productive partnership, based on mutual trust and respect.

We, as is our standard at Würth, seek to constantly optimize Riwals processes and work flows, in order to support them in the best way possible.

Thus, we do not only deliver high quality goods, but also supply vending machines, storage and supply chain services, and custom tailored solutions. We handle your supplies so you can handle your business.

We congratulate Riwal on its ongoing success and look forward to many more years of proudly being part of it!

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PROFILE: RIWAL HOLDING GROUP BV

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at one of Riwal’s sites, or the simulator can be transported to a customers’ premises should that be requested.”

Further advances made by the group that continue to facilitate its growth include the offering of a free, online library of Building Information Modelling (BIM) machine models from its fleet, and the increasing rate in which it is converting its fleet from diesel propulsion to 100 per cent electric.

Focus on sustainability In the case of the former, using BIM allows construction professionals to plan and manage projects with greater efficiency, and anticipate problems before they occur. “We have a full range of 3D models available, and the benefits of utilising these are considerable,” Pedro states. “These include being able to choose the most suitable piece of machinery for the job, to more effectively plan where machines are needed onsite, achieve increased efficiencies and cost savings across large scale projects, and lower the failure risk by identifying work site problems – and solve them – before construction begins.”

As alluded to above, electrification of the group’s fleet is another big area of focus.

Riwal has a strong focus on sustainability, and the company is working in many ways to reduce the environmental footprint of its activities and fleet. “We have invested heavily in the last several years, not only in acquiring 100 per cent electric machines, but also in converting existing dieselfuelled units,” Pedro adds. “The latter activity is something that is incredibly unique to Riwal, in that no other rental company in the world today is able to provide electric machines up to 43 meter working height. This is something that we have highlighted as presenting a big opportunity for the group, particularly as more of our machines are finding

themselves being put to use in reduced or zero-emission environments, and we also see it as a hugely important contribution that we as a business can make towards a greener future.”

Despite the successes the group has experienced in recent years – during which time Pedro estimates that Riwal has invested over €250 million in its fleet – the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic had an understandable impact, requiring it to refocus its efforts on ensuring the wellbeing of its employees around the world.

Calling upon the ethos promoted by ‘The Riwal Way’, the group was quickly able to create open lines of communication between its various global teams, and ensure that best practices could be easily shared in order to combat a rapidly changing situation.

With economies now emerging from the lockdowns and other restrictions placed on nations at the height of the pandemic, Riwal also finds itself plotting a course forward, and it is clear from speaking with Pedro that continued innovation will play a fundamental part in this. “Our long-term goal is, of course, to push forward in terms of revenues and profits, but for now we are definitely having to think strategically about what we want to achieve in the coming years. For now, we need to consolidate the situation that we find ourselves in by stabilising the group in what is now a different world.

“Once this has been achieved, we have every intention of going further with improving technologies such as BIM, the My Riwal portal, AR and VR, and we have other product development ideas in the pipeline as well that we are excited about.”

Riwal Holding Group BV www.riwal.com Services: Aerial work platform and telehandler rental and sales 75

PROFILE: KAPEX CONSTRUCTION

Constructing a reputation A fast-growing company that has already completed some significant projects, Kapex Construction is a North East based principal contractor delivering an innovative approach within the industry

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H

aving only been established four years ago, Kapex Construction could be considered a fledgling to the industry.

However, with a management team that can draw upon over 150 years of combined experience, this young and ambitious company hit the ground running in 2016 and in just four short years it has already completed several significant contracts, with many new schemes on the horizon.

It was father and son team Brian and Gary Morton that joined forces to create Kapex Construction’s parent Morton Group as a property development, construction and real estate company. Alongside Kapex Construction, the Group includes Curtis PDC, LOK Developments, and Regents Gate Homes, and this arrangement means that it can act as both

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PROFILE: KAPEX CONSTRUCTION

We are quoting on repeat work now, where customers have been impressed with our speed and quality of delivery, they have seen our ability to get a job done and that we work with clients in a very non-confrontational way. We are a young business, with a wellestablished team, and the ambition is to achieve £25m-£30m turnover this year and beyond that, to be honest, the sky is the limit!”

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developer and contractor on building projects. Identifying what sets the Group, and Kapex Construction specifically, apart from the competition, Chris Nunn, Business Development Director noted that the company’s workforce is employed directly across all disciplines from apprentices through to master craftsmen, and this brings multiple benefits.

“By carrying a lot of our own trades, we can turn around a job more quickly than others or we can look to self-deliver packages rather than sub contract out, meaning that self-delivery is a big thing,” he said. “We were also ambitious when recruiting our management team, but that experience has really helped us, with our directors being well known in the north east, and bringing exceptional knowledge with them. We are now trading at

a level where we can justify those overheads, but we were forwardthinking in the fact that we brought those people in early.”

Chris also highlighted Kapex Construction’s approach to client relationships as a differentiator, and he gave an example of this in action. “We work very closely with our clients to give them a solution, and a job in Durham illustrates how we do things a bit differently,” he said. “Other contractors had previously priced this particular scheme, and because the design side wasn’t to the right level, they had to factor in a lot of risk, and as a result the cost was coming in at £4.1m. We managed to work very closely with the client and explain how they needed to spend a little bit more money on the design and investigations into the ground to get a more accurate price. We are now delivering

that project for £3.7m and our client has a job that he can take forward at around £400k-£500k less than other people were pricing because the risk has been reduced.”

Close-knit culture Having worked in the construction sector for many years prior to founding Morton Group, Brian and Gary Morton had a clear vision of what clients need from a contractor and reflecting their insight into the market, the Group’s turnover has consistently risen as its name and reputation gather momentum. Chris gave a bit of extra information on the other two divisions, LOK Developments, which specialises in acquiring land and buildings, and Regents Gate Homes, which is a home provider. “LOK Developments have got three

developments on site at the moment that are our own and within Kapex Construction they will account for £17m of turnover this year, and one of these, Regents Plaza, is just across the road from our office, and was a key milestone from the group,” said Chris. Regents Plaza comprises 70 apartments in Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, and the existing building is part of the extensive regeneration of a once exclusively commercial area.

What makes Regents Plaza, formerly Eagle Star House, so interesting is that it involves the conversion of a concrete framed office building into luxury residential apartments, which are being sold by Regents Gate Homes. Chris pointed out that this type of scheme benefits from a government planning policy called permitted development

rights. “These rights make it easier to obtain planning permission to convert from an office into residential,” he said. “As long as you are not scared off by taking on an existing building, and the floor plate works for a conversion, then you can benefit from the existing structure, depending on its state and what it is made of. A concrete frame is a good starting point as you are unlikely to see deterioration in the structure. It is not an area that we are specifically focused on, but we have already learned a lot from the two jobs that we have nearly finished [the second being the £6.6m redevelopment known as ‘Eldon House’ being delivered for a client] and we are expecting to pick up a few more opportunities too.”

Not intimidated by unusual or complex projects, Kapex Construction is able to think out

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PROFILE: KAPEX CONSTRUCTION

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of the box to find fresh solutions to old problems, unconstrained by traditional approaches and methods. This not only requires a variety of technological solutions – in Chris’ words: ‘not many businesses our size use our level of software’ but also a very strong team ethos. This includes a focus on team activities, as well as a dedication to ‘growing its own’ – developing and training staff to add to their skill sets. “We work hard to bring in people who buy into the company and can see the worth in us investing in them,” agreed Chris. “We have five full time personnel who are at University on day release, and we believe it is important to invest in

managers started 15 years ago as a plasterer with Gary and Brian at their old business, and he is now at University doing his degree!”

Given its close-knit culture, it was second nature for Kapex Construction to prioritise the safety of its staff in response to the Covid-19 outbreak, closely following government guidance and focusing on external activities where people were working in the open air. “We shelved any internal works until we were able to implement safe working practices around the appropriate guidelines,” added Chris. Like the rest of the sector, the pandemic caused what Chris describes as a ‘dent in turnover in April and

staff and training because at the end of the process it gives you a very skilled and loyal member of the team. One of our project

May’ but he was happy to report that activities have ‘ramped up to pretty much normal now’. “It’s a shame as this will be our best year

to date, but April and May will have lessened it a touch. Some jobs have been delayed, but I think we will recover the turnover – things are looking really rosy and we are still planning to double our turnover again this year.”

and quality of delivery, they have seen our ability to get a job done and that we work with clients in a very non-confrontational way,” he stated. “We are a young business,

with a well-established team, and the ambition is to achieve £25m-£30m turnover this year and beyond that, to be honest, the sky is the limit!”

Bigger value schemes As Kapex Construction and the rest of the Morton Group look to the future, Chris predicted further expansion and entries into new areas, as its starts working on some small educational jobs, pharmaceutical jobs, commercial jobs, office fit outs and some industrial new build work. “We are also starting to look at schemes in the public sector, which is a much more competitive marketplace than private sector,” he added.

“In time, we are also looking to expand out a little bit further beyond the north east, with one of the jobs we are talking about in Yorkshire, and we have looked at projects further afield with existing clients, down towards London, but we haven’t committed to anything like that yet.

We are pricing a lot of work at the moment and it will be interesting to see how it goes this year.”

The management team at Morton Group also has its sights set on bigger value schemes – with the personnel having previous experience in much larger contracts, they understand what is required to deliver higher price work, and as Chris noted, by gradually expanding in this area, turnover will increase naturally, rather than continually adding more and more smaller projects.

With its plans for the future illustrating that Kapex Construction will continue to rise to new heights, Chris concluded by pointing out that however complicated a project may be, and however simple it sounds, overall the most important deliverable is doing ‘a really good job’. “We are quoting on repeat work now, where customers have been impressed with our speed

Kapex Construction www.kapex.co.uk Services: A leading building contractor offering complete building and civil engineering solutions 81

PROFILE: CLD FENCING SYSTEMS

To protect and secure For several decades now, CLD Fencing Systems has brought world-leading innovation to the physical perimeter security industry, and continues to revolutionize the market with both its permanent and temporary solutions

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PROFILE: CLD FENCING SYSTEMS

T

he roots of CLD Fencing Systems can be traced back to 1969, when the business was first established by the Wells family.

Since then, it has evolved into what is now the UK’s largest manufacturer and supplier of rigid mesh fencing systems and security gates, with the family still very much involved in its day-today operations.

Working with architects, main contractors, local authorities, and Government organizations such as the MoD, the Royal Air Force, and leading security consultants, CLD Fencing Systems has risen to become one of the main drivers of innovation when it comes to the concept of perimeter security systems. “CLD Fencing Systems was among the first companies to bring rigid mesh fencing to the UK market, and since then it has remained the core ingredient

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of all of our perimeter security fence systems and our range of temporary fencing products,” explains Chief Executive Officer, Russell Wells.

“Where we excel,” Russell continues, “is in producing fencing systems designed to deter and mitigate intrusion, that are aesthetically pleasing, yet never compromise on delivering the highest of security levels that our clients wish to acquire. When we design and manufacture any mesh fence system, we will typically have it comprehensively tested independently by the British Research Establishment (BRE), who will certify said system to determine key characteristics such as its cut-through properties.

This rigorous process has resulted in the creation of a range of products that are used in a wealth of different sectors, and our work can be seen in projects of all kinds, from individual

schools, warehouses and distribution centers, to large scale infrastructure projects such as HS2. With the latter, we continue to supply temporary fencing products to its various sites, while also working with its architects to devise a permanent fence system.”

Headquartered in Sandbach, Cheshire – home to a 4.5-hectare site that includes the company’s manufacturing facilities – CLD Fencing Systems also has satellite offices in London, Sydney and Dubai, as well as distributors around the world in more than ten countries. Further to this, in 2017, the company became the first UK entity to export rigid mesh fencing systems to China for a number of specialist sports projects.

“Our global presence enables us to have the necessary skills and expertise available in multiple time zones, and to service needs at a local level, which are particularly attractive commodities to have

when supplying international clients,” Russell states. “It is important to remember also that the UK is still upheld as being a global leader in the manufacture of security products and standards, which makes a UK manufacturer such as ourselves a go-to when international clients are seeking products and standards to accompany their security infrastructure.”

Significant investments As Russell goes on to detail, in the last five years alone the company has doubled in size, achieving an average of 20 per-cent year-onyear growth in that time. “As of today, we are manufacturing over three kilometers of high security fencing products every single day, and to support this growth we have invested significantly in new floor space. This includes a new 9000 square foot, two-story office building in Sandbach, which we

moved into in January 2020, and a brand new five-acre distribution center in Middlewich, Cheshire, which opened its doors in June 2020.”It is from these new facilities

A prime example of the former is CLD Fencing Systems’ collection of temporary security products that fall under its FenceSafe brand.

“With our FenceSafe products,

that the company has been able to increase production of some of its newer product ranges, and invest in ever-more efficient processes.

we truly believe that we have revolutionized the temporary fence sector,” Russell enthuses. The system was the first temporary

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PROFILE: CLD FENCING SYSTEMS

Rivetwise Rivetwise are proud of their working partnership with CLD Fencing Systems and applaud their innovation and growth over the last 40 years.

As application specialists and recognised for their technical knowledge and expertise, Rivetwise are importers and distributors of high quality and competitively priced fastener and fixings products.

They serve a wide range of customers including traditional light manufacturing, automotive, rail, aerospace, electronics, domestic appliance, HVAC, building and construction. Their dynamic team deliver a high level of service with good attention to detail and can offer a one-stop-shop, provide many cost-saving solutions as well as value-added services such as tool hire, maintenance, repair and tool sales. Committed to quality, Rivetwise is an ISO 9001:2015 registered company. Rivetwise is currently adopting 14001 Environmental and AS 9120 Aircraft Parts Stockist to its current ISO standard and is a certified strategic partner of Stanley Engineered Fastening products for the United Kingdom and Ireland.

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fencing range to use the same rigid mesh panels and posts that are used in the rest of the company’s permanent range, but in a format with zero ground strike.

At present, the company’s temporary fencing solutions are being utilized across a wide number of the UK’s Covid-19 testing centers. These sites have been ring fenced with secure temporary fencing systems from its FenceSafe range, enabling the operators to remain confident of having a well-protected boundary.

It also allows for the erecting of debris netting, shade netting and anti-vision screens, all of which can ultimately be taken down and removed from site once no longer in use.

Today, a dedicated R&D team continue to work to create quicker, faster and more efficient ways of developing and deploying temporary security fencing that can suit an increasing number of needs

and/or specifications. Furthermore, in the summer of 2020, the company will also be establishing a new business called FenceSafe Hire, which will provide customers with the ability to hire out CLD Fencing Systems’ temporary fencing products. “We see huge potential in this field, and we feel that the ability to offer customers rental agreements on either a short or long-term basis – as well as the ability to purchase our products outright – will help make us an even more flexible and versatile proposition,” Russell declares.

Another recent innovation that the company is keen to highlight is the development of an entire new hoarding system. “Your typical hoarding system nowadays tends to incorporate traditional materials such as timber,” Russell says.

“What we have done is design a reusable system, which makes use of recycled composite plastic for its main board, and is supported by a

network of steel uprights and rails that allow it to be taken down and redeployed as necessary. Where this differs from timber alternatives is that these tend to be scrapped after just a single installation, whereas our reusable system could give users as much as ten-to-fifteen years of reliable service.”

Meanwhile, within the confines of the company’s manufacturing premises, the most up-to-date machinery aids in the creation of its products and systems in an effective, timely and accurate manner. Alongside the usual CNC machinery that one would expect to find, the company also makes use of fully automated picking systems. These include the LeanLift automated in-house picking solution, and the WinMan Go service, which forklift drivers and pickers can access on handheld devices to scan individual products onto and off delivery vehicles.

While the business may have continued to grow in size, scope and reach, the management of CLD Fencing Systems has nevertheless endeavored to retain the family values and atmosphere that have served it so well for more than 50 years.

“To this day, the Wells family remain very hands-on, helping to oversee the activities of every department,” Russell affirms. “As Covid-19 began to spread across the UK, they joined the rest of the board of Directors in plotting a course for the company in which the safety of our employees was the foremost priority, ahead of the prosperity of the company and ultimately job security. This forward thinking helped us to trade and remain profitable throughout the months that the UK was in lockdown – in a socially distanced manner with no outbreaks of the disease amongst our workforce – which I think was a massive achievement.”

Moving forward, the company expects to maintain its recent growth rate of around 20 per cent year-on-year, thus doubling again in size in five years’ time.

“This is the pattern of growth

that we are forecasting, and in achieving this we hope that we can go on to solidify a reputation as being the global market leader in the manufacture and supply of innovative, secure fencing systems,” Russell concludes.

CLD Fencing Systems www.cld-fencing.com Products: Rigid mesh security fencing systems

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PROFILE: GSE BUILDING & CIVIL ENGINEERING LTD/GSE PLANT LTD

Family first

From left: Josh Healey - Group Director, Tony Bowles - Managing Director and Darrell Healey - Chairman - GSE Developments

Following a management buyout in the summer of 2020, GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd and GSE Plant Ltd have their sights set on the future, and the opportunities that await these integral components of the wider GSE Group 88

A

family-run, Kentbased business, GSE Group has been providing civil engineering, construction and plant hire services across the South East of England and London since the mid-1980s. Originally established to meet a shortfall in good groundworks contractors, the

group has expanded in response to its customers’ growing needs, and now provides plant and machinery across Kent, Sussex and Surrey, alongside its civil engineering services. Acting for national building contractors – as well as local firms – GSE Group has shown itself to be the perfect partner for groundworks projects, taking on high quality commercial, residential and retail developments ranging from £250,000 up to £8 million in value.

In July 2020, it was announced that the man who spearheaded the expansion of the group – GSE Developments’ Chairman

Main image: Willmott Dixon University of Kent

health and social care, commercial and office development, as well as prisons and other public sector projects including airports.

Projects completed include the Willmott Dixon University of Kent, Dover Leisure Center and the Chapel Down, Curious Brewery facility.

Lasting a total of 34 weeks, works at the Willmott Dixon University of Kent included site clearance, reduce level excavation, mass pouring of concrete pad foundations, and the forming and pouring of 1394-square meters of reinforced structural concrete slab, involving formwork and steel fixing of reinforced steel.

From there, it was tasked with the construction of a lift pad involving formwork and steel fixing of reinforced steel, and of concrete upstands. Other works included the installation of a utility service route, the installation of foul and surface water drainage systems, external works such as kerb installation, and the creation of an access road, pavement and cycle way.

Value & quality

Darrell Healey – had agreed to sell his shares in its building, civil engineering (GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd) and plant hire (GSE Plant Ltd) divisions following a management buy-out. The men to purchase said shares are the group’s Managing Director Tony Bowles and Group Director Josh Healey. Darrell will remain as a nonexecutive director and continue to head up the group’s property and developing division.

GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd sits right at the very heart of the GSE Group, and was the first division to be formed in 1986.

Having grown both organically and

through acquisitions in the time since, and with the vast majority of the division’s 100-strong team being permanently and directly employed, it has worked on many significant projects, supporting principal contractors including BAM, Baxalls, Castleoak, Kier, Willmott Dixon, Wates, and many more.

GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd supplies all aspects of the civil engineering requirements to projects valued between £250,000 and £8 million, and prides itself on the level of repeat business it secures. Today, its teams are on sites across many sectors, including education,

During the construction of the Dover Leisure Center, GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd carried out all of the associated foundations, drainage and services – from start to completion – which occurred over a period of 72 weeks. It also formed a 25-meter long swimming pool that holds 630,000 litres of water.

In the case of the Chapel Down, Curious Brewery project, it completed all of the foundations, groundworks and landscaping, and installed specialist drainage materials to cope with the chemicals used to wash down the brewing tanks. It was also very proud to have built an Artic Lorry Turntable, which enables gas lorries to be rotated 360 degrees to gain easy access onto and off the site.

Another unique element to the project was the need to reinforce the ground upon which the brewing tanks were to sit on. It overcame this challenge by utilizing a Cordek Filcor (expanded polystyrene)

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PROFILE: GSE BUILDING & CIVIL ENGINEERING LTD/GSE PLANT LTD

system, which was then covered with reinforced concrete to make it suitable for supporting the aforementioned tanks.

Involvement with its clients at an early stage in the project makes best use of the skills belonging to GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd, ensuring value engineering, opportunities, sequencing and program are discussed prior to the contract starting, giving its clients best value and quality service that they have grown to expect when working with GSE. This is further complimented by value engineering each aspect of its services to deliver each project as required.

The GSE Development, Waterbrook Park is making good progress. A mixed-use development of commercial property, Waterbrook’s 140-acre site, located close to junction 10 of the M20 in Ashford, will become home for up to 400 new homes, new commercial space that will provide approximately 750 jobs, and a new Ashford International Truckstop with increased capacity for secure overnight parking for 600 HGV’s – making it the largest truckstop in Europe. As well as landscaping that is carefully designed to create natural buffers between the new homes, commercial zones and truckstop, a linear park will run through the centre of Waterbrook, creating a natural habitat for a wide variety of plants and wildlife Announcing the management buyout, Darrell Healey said: “GSE Group is firmly established as one of the leading companies in the construction industry in Kent and the South East. It has continued to

Waterbrook Park

by the division includes excavators, dumpers, dumptrucks, rollers, telehandlers and attachments, with maintenance and repairs of all equipment taking place in-house, ensuring that the highest levels of quality and reliability are upheld at all times.

Family business

Dover Leisure Centre

grow through some of the most challenging times the sector has ever faced and enters this new chapter of its history on a firm footing.

“The Waterbrook project has taken many years of hard work and determination to get over the line. With work having started on the site, I feel the time is right to take a step back and let Tony and Josh take the business forward.”

Support for builders In the case of GSE Plant Ltd, it too is located in Ashford, Kent, from where its plant team efficiently supplies clients across the county, as well as East Sussex, Surrey and Essex. This service also extends to external hire clients. Operating a £4.5 million portfolio of plant and machinery, GSE Plant Ltd supports groundworks teams for many of the region’s small independent residential and commercial builders, independent builders’ merchants, and larger main contractors. Plant offered

Having joined GSE Group 20 years ago and having worked his way from a groundworker role through the ranks of the business to site foreman and site manager, before heading up the project management and contract teams, Tony Bowles has as good of an understanding of the business and its future potential as anyone. At the time of the announcement of the management buy-out, he stated: “I am looking forward to working with Josh, and to the opportunities and challenges ahead, especially having seen the company evolve over my 20 years within the business alongside our loyal office and site based staff.”

Josh himself has more than ten years’ experience in the construction industry, and has an unrivalled knowledge of the industry in Kent and the South East, having lived and worked in the region all his life. He added: “It is important to us that GSE Group remains a family business. Over the years, we have built a loyal customer base and an excellent reputation and Tony and I will give our all to continue that tradition.”

GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd/ GSE Plant Ltd www.gse-group.com Services: Civil engineering and plant hire services

Stewart Brothers Concrete Limited Using our vast experience of over 35 years - coupled with our team of expert consultants - we are constantly endeavouring to innovate and improve our products and processes to produce and supply exceptional quality concrete products, exceeding the compliance criterion required of our BSI Kitemark and ISO9001 standards. This ensures that our services are always tailored to benefit every customer’s needs.

During the years of working alongside GSE Building & Civil Engineering Ltd, we have always strived to finely tune the highest possible quality of concrete products and customer service.

Supplying to GSE, we have assisted with the construction of the Waterbrook Park development in Ashford. We have also aided in construction of the new Barton Manor School project in Canterbury, along with establishment of the new state of the art GSE headquarters. Going forward, we are excited to further cement our working relationship for years to come.

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PROFILE: SOLUS

When supply meets demand A family run business with a desire to be recognized as the trusted market leader in the supply of tiling solutions for the specification industry, Solus is navigating its way through 2020 thanks to a forward-thinking mindset and a set of well-defined core values

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Marcus Bentley

T

he founding of a now prosperous business from one’s own front room or garage is not a new phenomenon, however, to do so whilst recovering from major surgery such as a kidney transplant is altogether less common. These, however, are precisely the circumstances under which Peter Bentley established the company Solus Ceramics (now Solus) back in 1995. Fast forward to 2020, and the company has grown to become one of the most successful and trusted distributors of ceramics to the architectural specification industry.

“Here at Solus, we supply a huge catalogue of ceramic wall and floor tiles via architects, builders and interior designers, as well as a wide variety of bespoke tile cutting services and comprehensive technical information,” begins Managing Director, Marcus Bentley, son of founder Peter. “The clients that we work with typically specify our products for the projects

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PROFILE: SOLUS

Pavigrés Cerâmicas SA

that they are working on, and these can range from leisure and hospitality developments, to retail spaces and car showrooms.”

Although it is best known for supplying tiles to commercial projects in the UK, Solus also has a vast amount of experience working with international brands, shipping products to all sides of the globe, from South America to Asia. What gives it the ability to stretch its wings so wide, and helps set it apart from its competition in the marketplace is the fact that it works in partnership with around 200 different tile factories, carefully sourcing material from some of

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the biggest and most reputable suppliers, predominantly in Italy, Spain and Portugal. This allows Solus to bring to market products of superior aesthetic quality and impressive technical performance, in a range of colors, sizes, surfaces and special pieces to enable the widest choice of solutions, combinations and applications.

“Such a network of suppliers gives us access to an almost infinite array of tile products and styles, which means that we are consistently able to meet the design briefs of our clients, irrespective of the criteria,” Marcus continues. “Over the years, we have supplemented the growth

Pavigrés Cerâmicas SA is a privately owned Portuguese company with 700 employees and an installation capacity of 10,000,000 sqm. Established in 1978, it produces porcelain tiles, glazed vitrified tiles and wall tiles in sizes ranging from 9.7x9.7cm to 89x89cm.

Since inception, Pavigrés has been an exporter, an activity which now represents more than 92 per cent of its turnover. Its brands - Pavigres, Grespor, Cerev, Pavigres 21 and Feri & Masi - are currently available in more than 85 countries.

Pavigrés and Solus, one of the UK’s leading suppliers of commercial floor and wall tiles, share a special relationship forged over two decades of continual trading, from 200x100 vitrified wall tiles initially to the 900x900 triple loaded porcelain which Pavigrés manufactures today.

Pavigrés supplies Solus with exclusive ranges, which it uses to create stunning designs for a host of commercial spaces, from shopping centres to hotels, bars, restaurants and offices.

PROFILE: SOLUS

of this network, by also investing heavily in our own infrastructure.

In addition to our Birmingham headquarters, three years ago we opened up a flagship showroom in the heart of Clerkenwell, London. The two-floor building gives architects and designers the opportunity to look for tile inspiration and develop design schemes and has really helped

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to raise the profile of the Solus brand.”

Business values The negative effects of the global Covid-19 pandemic on businesses are well documented, and Solus – like every other entity – has not been immune. During the UK’s lockdown this year, trading was down by around 50 per cent in

terms of sales, but there have been signs of improvement during June and July 2020. By keeping its cost base low, the company has been able to successfully keep its wheels turning and trade comfortably within its range.

As Marcus is keen to point out, part of the reason for this was the company’s adoption – in late 2019 – of a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, called SAP Business One, which aims to automate key business functions in financials, operations and human resources. “SAP Business One is an all-encompassing system that covers everything from finance and accounts, to order processing, customer relationship management and warehouse management, and replaces our previous Sage 200 software,” Marcus details. “Being a cloud-based system, all that our employees need to access our entire system is a laptop or computer and an internet connection.

“As you can imagine this proved absolutely vital during

lockdown when our employees worked from home, as they could continue to process orders without interruption. These orders are then sent electronically to our warehouse teams, appearing digitally on their individual scan guns, who are then able to dispatch products to our customers without the need for any physical paperwork. The system formally went live in December 2019 and has been invaluable in allowing Solus to continue to trade throughout 2020.”

Being a second-generation Managing Director means that Marcus has also been tasked with maintaining the family feel, culture and atmosphere of the business, even as it has grown in size. “Retaining our culture has always been incredibly important to us as a whole, and indeed for me personally,” he confirms. “One of the ways in which we have done so in more recent times is to introduce a set of core values into the business, which was carried out in conjunction with our employees. Collectively, we asked them to identify what they felt made Solus special, and from their responses we eventually emerged with seven key words that we feel best describe what Solus is all about as a business and represent its DNA.” These values, which are instilled throughout the business are as follows: Experts – We are experts in our market, knowledgeable in our products and skilled in our individual roles within the business.

Progressive – We are constantly evolving, change is viewed as a positive trait and we are at the forefront of innovation in our market.

Adaptable – We are nimble, able to react positively to changes in our market and have the flexibility required to meet client needs.

Proud – We share and celebrate

our collective success, and take satisfaction for our individual contribution to the business.

Energetic – We do it with passion, energy and drive.

Ambitious – We show a strong desire and determination to succeed and demonstrate high personal aspirations to achieve.

United – We work together to achieve our goals, and cooperate our efforts together in the interests of the business.

Going forward, the highest priority for Marcus and the rest of the Solus team is – understandably – to negotiate the coming 12 months or so, which he admits will be the most difficult time that the company has ever faced. “Having been here through past crises such as the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the 2008 financial crisis, I can still safely say that what we are going through right now is the most challenging period any business – not just ours – has likely ever encountered,” he states. “Our

place we are extremely confident that we can continue to do so.

From there we will work as hard as we possibly can to grow the business back up to where it was pre-Covid-19, which is our ultimate aim at present.”

Doing so will no doubt require the company to focus on many of the areas of business that were gaining particular traction during the latter stages of 2019.

“Internationally, we had been witnessing strong demand, with healthy relationships being forged with customers in the Middle East – particularly in Dubai and Abu Dhabi – and in the United States as well, so it would be great to see such endeavors continue to grow in the months and years to come,” Marcus says. “Similarly, our corporate client bank was steadily growing pre-lockdown, so that is another area of the business that we will be striving to get back on track too as we move forward in a positive direction.”

primary goal at this time therefore is to successfully protect the business and navigate through this prolonged spell, and with the aforementioned ERP system in

Solus www.solusceramics.com Services: Leading specialist supplier of tiling products 97

PROFILE: ROCHFORD CONSTRUCTION LTD

Hitting the ground running Working across all sectors including housing and residential, retail, health and leisure and education, Rochford Construction Ltd has earnt itself a credible reputation for excellence and delivering on its clients’ expectations

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stablished in 1986 by the Rochford family, Rochford Construction Ltd (RCL) has spent the last 34 years building for itself a trustworthy, well-earnt reputation within the groundworks and external works sectors. With its status built upon a proven ability to succeed in delivering projects that are not only within budget, but also within program and to specification, RCL is a company that truly values repeat business and long-term working relationships with its many clients.

RCL has continued to thrive as it has grown consistently in its primary sectors of activity. The first of these is the housing and residential market, where it works on a range of housing projects, from local authority housing associations to high-end residential developments. The company works effortlessly with its clients to meet a range of

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PROFILE: ROCHFORD CONSTRUCTION LTD

challenges, including particular requirements around noise, hazards and potential disruption in different residential areas.

Working closely with its clients, RCL ensures that all such projects are delivered on time and within budget.

“Our reputation as a business is founded on consistently delivering projects to the highest of standards,” states Director, Gerard Rochford. “Being recognised for being a company that cares about the work it undertakes means so much in this industry, and this is reflected in the efforts of our highly skilled people, a number of whom have been with us since day one and remain absolutely integral to our success.”

In the education space, RCL works with its clients to develop all types of educational

establishments, from primary schools to universities. As one would expect, the company’s main concern is to ensure that its work in this sector is fit for the future, and that innovative techniques and the highest of safety standards are employed

at all times. Meanwhile, when it comes to health and leisure, the company has displayed continued excellence, despite the fact that the development of public facilities including hospitals, clinics and leisure centres entails working within unique constraints. For its part, RCL works to guarantee that its performance measures – which include cost efficiency, timely development, health and safety, and local environmental impacts – are all factored in to the project to meet the end-users needs.

Expert partner Last, but by no means least, RCL has also found itself working on various retail and commercial projects, primarily across the South East of the UK, where its ultimate aim is to make sure its client’s goals are reflected in the finished project. The company’s team’s ability to drive any project forward, along with their proactive approach to problem solving, helps to deliver tangible results in a timely manner.

Over the years, RCL has been able to support the above list of sectors by cultivating its own collection of different specialist services, including groundworks, hard landscaping, civil engineering, RC frames and plant hire. With its own in-house plant division, the company has the capabilities necessary to take on all groundworks packages regardless

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of size or value. Services offered in this area include, bulk excavations, enabling works, raft foundations, pile caps, ground beams, trend and pad foundations, contaminated ground disposal and remediation, cut and fill, dewatering in deep excavations, drainage, and general earthwork support. When it comes to the hard landscaping space, RCL is able to provide granite, yorkstone and precast concrete paving, resin bound, resin bonded and tarmac surfacing, bespoke furniture, bollards, fencing, soft landscaping, timber decking, and walls and retaining walls.

In terms of civil engineering, RCL’s extensive team of engineers offer its clients the highest levels of service. While the company’s expertise in civil engineering has continued to grow, its aim has remained the same, and that is to be an expert partner to its clients, providing industry-leading staff, technology and skills in order to exceed all expectations.

Other business areas include the delivery of reinforced concrete frames and plant hire. In the case of the former, RCL’s management team boasts extensive experience in the RC frames industry, in which it offers a wide range of services such as architectural concrete feature finishes, basements, multistorey RC frames, in-situ stairs, and pre-cast concrete beams, columns, floors and walls.

No matter the task at hand, health and safety is at the heart of all that RCL does. The company believes that taking the extra care in the planning of each project positively correlates with minimizing HSE risks as much as physically possible.

The RCL team monitor and review what it believes are the fundamentals of this; training and quality management. The safety bulletins and briefings show its commitment to ensuring that health and safety is in the forefront of everybody’s mind, every day.

Site operatives and management hold trade specific CSCS/CPCS cards, obtained by undertaking the relevant NVQ. RCL is confident in the knowledge and experience of all of its workers and is proud that they have achieved several safety awards throughout the years. The team at RCL is equally as proud to have achieved and maintained accreditations across health, safety, quality and environmental disciplines. This is a vital part of the work it does each and every day.

Exciting projects Examples of said work include eye-catching constructions such as Camden Lock Village and the Brocklebank Retail Park. The Camden Lock Village package – valued at £6.5 million – consisted of extensive hard landscaping, soft landscaping, bespoke furniture and final drainage connections.

The site itself was spread over an area of approximately 7000 square meters, with original granite cobble sets that RCL had to extract and preserve in alignment with imported granite.

Despite being a logistically challenging undertaking – due to the close proximity of a live

railway line and a working canal – the works were delivered to the high standards expected of RCL. The Brocklebank Retail Park required a full groundworks package, with works including site strip and piling attendance, formation of pile caps and ground beams, and several deep drainage attenuation tanks. An innovative technique was also used to reduce the volume of muck away waste from site. The material was then re-used and converted to CBM material, which was used for all sub base build ups to the main building, roadway, car parks and footpaths.

More recently, RCL has continued to be involved in several exciting projects, for instance completing a groundwork & landscaping contract on the Greenwich Peninsula redevelopment project.

This landmark, £8.4 billion transformation program will see over 15,700 new homes created across seven new neighborhoods along a 1.6 mile stretch of the River Thames. It is such works that RCL will strive to tend for in the coming months and years.

Having established long-lasting relationships with a host of premier clients over the years, and having remained fully operational throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, RCL now finds itself well positioned for a period of growth that it expects to coincide with a number of delayed projects restarting soon in the UK. “While 2020 has clearly been a challenging time for everyone, our secure pipeline of work helped to see us through the lockdown period in the UK, and we will continue to work with our clients to deliver quality projects in 2021 and beyond, ” concludes Gerard.

Rochford Construction Ltd www.rochfordltd.co.uk Services: Specialist groundworks, external works and landscaping 101

PROFILE: MERIT

Judged on its merits

With innovative thinking and industryleading technology at the core of its strengths, Merit continues to defy the odds by growing not only in size, but also in the strength of its capabilities 102

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t its heart, Merit is and always has been seen as a dedicated engineering and construction company. Yet, as it is proud to confess, the skills of its people and its unrelenting

drive to excel has allowed it to become a provider of an everincreasing range of services to its clientele. These range from design and build to prefabrication and modularization, and from installation and validation of process systems to mechanical

and electrical services.

An award-winning business with offices located throughout the UK, Merit’s Managing Director Tony Wells has been in the role since 2002. “Back then, I was actively looking for an existing business that had the potential to be

turned into a tier one, clean room design and build entity, capable of taking on more complex, technical turnkey projects, and Merit more than fit the bill,” Tony begins.

Together with an entirely new management team that he brought into the company,

Tony and the team welcomed a dramatic growth period with turnover increasing ten-fold to approximately £20 million in the space of six years, taking in work both at home and abroad in Europe, Asia and Australia.

Following the financial crisis

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PROFILE: MERIT

of 2008, Merit consolidated much of its activity back into the UK, focusing its clean room services on industries such as the healthcare sector, which proved profitable.

“In 2015, we undertook what I would call a complete rethink of our existing business plan in order to determine how we could best position Merit for significant future growth,” Tony explains. “It was at that time that we made a commitment to only be a tier one contractor, working exclusively with project owners. This would give us the added security of payment and the ability to really affect the design of said owner’s projects in a truly positive way.

“We also elected to eliminate two tier suppliers from our business model, meaning that today we only work directly with imbedded tier three suppliers or handle the supply element ourselves. Our capabilities include self-delivery of complex packages of work such as clean

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and dry room installation as well as M&E services installation.

This has resulted in a significant ramping up of our BIM and offsite manufacturing capabilities.

More recently, Merit has begun moving into the realm of CFD analysis, which will mean that we can effectively design buildings digitally, thus making us a fully vertically integrated company, which is something very few other players in our space can claim to be.”

Among its growing list of contracts, Merit can today be found providing new build

and refit projects for high-end manufacturing and clean services in the health, pharmaceutical and bio-pharmaceutical sectors. “Here, we are delivering design and layout solutions for clean room and dry room facilities, in a pre-designed and pre-manufactured format, three-quarters of which is created within a factory environment,” Tony details. “This process is somewhat revolutionary within this area of the construction industry, and has allowed us the opportunity to greatly increase Merit’s productivity.”

To support this, the company has made sure to invest capital back into its own infrastructure.

“One of the things we have done is increase the capacity of our factory by 40 per cent, and we would like to double our existing capacity again in the short-term,” Tony adds.

“As we are now also doing things like fabricating and manufacturing proprietary dryer delivery systems for HVAC duct work, we have also purchased a number of new pieces

of equipment, such as a brandnew CNC bender to improve the efficiency of our fabrications.

Meanwhile, to support the increase in BIM activities we have purchased a new factory building opposite to our existing facilities, which our team moved into recently and will be used primarily for tending and design

the business had also just been shortlisted for the Offsite Awards in the category ‘Best Use of MEP and POD Technology’ – up against

some very large contractors.

Tony then returned to the topic of his staff and finding the best people. “When it comes to

operations.”

Award winners Merit’s efforts over the years have been recognized by a number of industry bodies in the form of several prestigious awards.

Among these have been the North-East Business Awards’ Northumberland, Tyne & Wear Company of the Year, in both 2008 and 2018, and the 2014 CIBSE Building Performance Awards’ Refurbished Project of the Year (value over £5 million) for its work on the HVAC roof infrastructure of Harrod’s flagship Knightsbridge store in London.

“Obviously, receiving any award is a fantastic achievement, provides a wonderful morale boost for our people, and helps us to raise the profile of Merit to a broader audience of potential clients, and also allows us to attract new talent into the business,” Tony enthuses, before revealing that

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PROFILE: MERIT

recruiting new members to our team, we are completely open as to whether they are male or female, young or old. Our focus is not so much on what kind of experience they have – although this can of course be taken into consideration – but rather whether they have a can-do attitude, are pro-active when it comes to their work, possess strong intelligence, and show a real passion for innovation. It is those individuals who meet that criteria that have shown themselves to be so integral to our increased productivity and growth. In short, if someone considers themselves to be hardworking, pro-active and keen for a challenge, then Merit is definitely the place for them!”

New business venture Turning our discussion to some of the more recent projects that Merit has been involved in, there are two that definitely stand out in Tony’s mind. “In a speech made by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson back at the start of 2020, when

he was talking up the country’s drive to be at the forefront of new technology and innovation, he made specific mention of gene therapy and the electric vehicle battery market. As fate would dictate, Merit was already responsible for building the UK’s flagship facilities for both of these sectors.

“In the case of the former, Merit was chosen to the deliver the second and third phase expansion of the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult (CGTC) manufacturing centre in Stevenage, England. This has proven to be a tremendous opportunity for the company to demonstrate our offsite construction expertise in a biopharmaceutical environment, alongside a tremendous client to work for.”

Merit also now finds itself in the midst of providing the fit out for the clean rooms and dry rooms within the UK Battery Industrialization Centre (UKBIC) near Coventry. This flagship facility for bringing battery

manufacturing to the UK forms part of the UK Government’s Faraday Battery Challenge, which is designed to ensure that the country leads the world in the global transition to a low carbon economy.

“We have been tasked with building all of the technical spaces around the battery manufacturing process, and we currently find ourselves in the midst of the commissioning phase,” Tony says. “As with our work on the CGT Catapult, this is being executed via higher levels of offsite manufacturing and construction, utilizing pre-designed elements that allow us to deliver facilities that would traditionally take one or two years to go from inception to completion, in a matter of months.”

As mentioned in passing above, the focus of the business in the coming three-to-five years is to significantly increase its manufacturing volumes and thus also the number of projects it takes on. One of the ways it hopes to achieve this is through the forthcoming launch of a new business venture, Merit Health.

“This will be a business that will be solely focused on our clients within the healthcare space and on providing whole hospital delivery,” Tony proclaims. “We have high expectations for it, and hope that within five years’ time it is turning over around £250 million, which would be a very sustainable, profitable level. Its success will also make a step change improvement in infection control in the hospital arena, delivered through 75 per cent offsite manufacturing.

Together with our work in the gene therapy and battery manufacturing spaces, Merit Health will play a critical role in the expansion of the wider Merit operation, and we look forward to meeting our many aims.”

Merit www.merit.co.uk Services: Offsite construction specialists 106

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