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07120_001_WAV_NCE FoD Ad_AW2.indd 3 02/01/2018 13:11 New Civil Engineer CARILLION COLLAPSE HIGHLIGHTS SKILLS DEFICIT
MARK HANSFORD EDITOR
t all comes back to skills. There are many theo- operate more effectively on a global stage. In contrast, the UK contrac- ries about what caused the spectacular demise of tors (who retreated to the strong UK market in the 1990s) are smaller Carillion and we examine them in this issue. But and less able to roll with any punches that come their way. I ultimately, and as the business select committee of MPs This explains why every major bridge project, and major project, to put it so succinctly, it comes down to a complete failure a certain extent, in the UK for the last 25 years has been led by a Euro- of business planning: bad management. pean technical giant, with a UK management contractor in tow to keep And ultimately, that comes back to skills. There is a startling con- the supply chain in order. trast in the recent fortunes of Britain’s two biggest contractors and their equivalents across the Channel. While Carillion has been put into liquidation, Vinci has announced “excellent” results with a declared You don’t hear many French double-digit profit margin. It is a undoubtedly a question of scale and diversification. Carillion engineers moaning about a lack turned over £5bn. Balfour Beatty, Britain’s biggest contractor, turns over £8bn. Neither are in the same league as the likes of Vinci and of respect or recognition. I wonder why? Bouygues who both have turnovers well in excess of £35bn and are hugely diversified, owning and operating everything from car parks, There are important parallels between the Carillion collapse and the autoroutes, railways, airports and even TV stations. genuinely tragic and genuinely catastrophic Grenfell Tower fire. In both But it goes deeper than that. Another area that is markedly different cases one can point to management failure, and in particular failure of when comparing the great European contractors with the most major “management to detect and understand the technical risks, as key factors. UK contractors, is the level of technical skill and expertise. The issue is Now running in the wake of Grenfell is the ICE’s review into the raised often, but rarely provokes more than a shrug. risks of infrastructure failure. Professional competence is a key issue Its time to look again, more seriously. Here are the facts. Whereas under investigation, this work being led by ICE past president Richard UK contractors have gone towards management contracting, where Coackley. It is a hugely important piece of work and it, coupled with the risks are mostly sub-contracted to specialists, our French, German another review of skills needs being conducted by ICE vice president Ed and Spanish friends have maintained very considerable technical skills McCann, could and should lead to some very challenging questions in-house. Many have design teams with technical strengths that would about what a professional civil engineer looks and acts like. put most UK consultants to shame, never mind UK contractors. In the year of ICE 200, This Is Engineering and the Year of Engineer- With high levels of technical skill and experience you can control risk ing campaigns, much energy is being put into making the profession very effectively – projects that appear risky to a UK contractor, only look more exciting and “sexy” to young people. All very worthy. But used to managing projects, appear much less risky to a technically it is vitally important to remember that as well as being exciting and strong team. The Chernobyl Arch, for example, by Vinci and Bouygues, “sexy”, civil engineering is highly technical, deadly serious and, as a is pretty much the same weight and technology as used by Vinci on the result, demanding and earning respect and reputation. You don’t hear Clackmannanshire Bridge in Scotland. So, it would not scare them in the many French engineers moaning about a lack of respect or recognition. same way it would terrify a UK player. I wonder why? As a result, the European contractors are larger, more confident and l Mark Hansford is New Civil Engineer’s editor
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 3 Contents NEW CIVIL ENGINEER MARCH 2018 MAGAZINE OF THE INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGINEERS
03 Comment, 35 World View Report: Analysis & News Structures Restructured
06 Lighthouse: Shared data is the key to consistent performance
08 The Edit: High Speed 2 station design contracts awarded
12 Analysis: Liverpool car park blaze exposes design regulations gaps
14 Analysis: Cape Town’s water crisis
22 Your View: Defi ning civil engineering
24 The Interview: Scape Group’s Victoria Brambini on her £2bn framework
26 Industry View: Thomas Gobau says tech investment is lagging
16 Carillion Collapse
With space in urban areas at a premium and the costs of building from scratch rising, engineers are increasingly looking to reuse and extend existing structures. This report looks at ways buildings are being rethought and reengineered to meet society’s changing needs.
36 Overview: Getting more from 44 Consultant Alan Baxter specialises existing buildings in the sensitive modifi cation of old buildings 40 Taking it higher: How AKTII engineers added extra storeys onto 46 Engineers have radically 16 The poor business planning that a London South Bank restructured and transformed a brought down Britain’s second Cape Town grain silo biggest contractor
4 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER MARCH 2018 New Civil Engineer Get news delivered daily Weekly Wrap and analysis delivered weekly with our newsletters. Sign-up at newcivilengineer.com
Story of the week: A technical investigation into bridge collapses in South East Asia 30 Business 50 Tech CONTRIBUTORS Culture Excellence
Katherine Smale p12 Liverpool car park blaze [email protected] Twitter @katsmaleNCE
Jess Clark p18 Carillion report 30 SME profi le: Waterco’s Peter Jones 50 Contractors working on the Bank [email protected] on starting your own business station expansion project face a series Twitter @jclarkjourno of logistical and technical challenges 32 Future skills: World beating designers on a series of constrained sites
58 NCE 61 ICE Live Record Emily Ashwell p24 Victoria Brambini [email protected]
Jackie Whitelaw p35 World View Report
61 Pitch 200 competition, 200 People Fiona McIntyre 58 New Civil Engineer’s Festival of p50 Bank station Innovation and Technology: Enter and Projects programme gets underway, fi [email protected] your projects and people now new SuDs guide for engineers Twitter @fi onaMcNCE
MARCH 2018 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 5 Lighthouse ICE VIEWPOINT Shared data is the key to consistent performance
ata – not sexy but human factor of embarrassment at crucial to changing reporting poor performance. We do our future fortunes. At present we do not even have not even D It is no surprise to a consistent terminology for risks, anyone working in a standard way to measure them or have a consistent the construction industry that we visibility of where they sit across don’t apply the data we have in an a project we are involved in. Do terminology for risks effective way. We are notoriously we hold it or does the client? It is opaque in how we operate, driven BY ART WE unsurprising then that construction by commercial sensitivities or a MASTER is seen as risky business, where “we all currently hold was pooled to short term task-focused mind-set WHAT WOULD margins are low and companies fail. create a standard benchmark cost without seeing the bigger picture. MASTER US We are working in the dark. for certain outcomes, you could There is much discussion A lot of the culture we have in set a project off with that clear and stargazing about digital today’s construction industry performance baseline. transformation, with the headline- can be traced back to this lack of This would state what “good grabbing articles on Terminator- visibility; the endless “reviews” performance” looks like and provide style robots taking over jobs; or the and “reports” picking apart the clarity on any changes affecting that Internet of Things helping assets to problems are only an indication of during the delivery phase. communicate. Actually, the bigger our inability to share and use data. Immediately then, you see how prize is getting the basics right – If we had a standard way to measure this might remove some of the unleashing the power of the data productivity that was valued by overkill of process attached to we already hold in little silos close the politicians all the way through procurement. to our chests for fear of the impact the business models to the furthest Instead of waiting until the sharing it might have. reaches of the supply chain, we procurement process begins to Take decision making at corporate would all know where we stand and demonstrate “value for money”, it board level. Imagine a dashboard what was good or not. is established much earlier, and the which clearly and consistently sets There is no consistent collaboration can start to beat the out risk profiles across the portfolio performance measurement or performance baseline. Because you and automatically highlights reporting to define what good looks know anything an investor or client areas for action, removing the like. Too commonly, scope increases receives that is better than this is and costs soon follow. That is value for money. not necessarily down to a worse There is an opportunity to There is no performance of the supply chain; it change this culture, with the could equally be poor performance government indicating a willingness consistent of the decision makers who move to engage through the Transforming the goal posts. Infrastructure Performance performance But that is not the story that is Programme and a future rewrite reported in the press; it is a case of of the Government Construction measurement or no evidence to support the truth Strategy. But ironically, it relies on reporting to define and rebut the PR-grabbing headlines all of us taking our step forward and of cost increases. Take project releasing our own data hordes – a “what good looks like initiation as an example. If the data data amnesty.
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MU22417 - CEM 2018-20 NCE Advert.indd 1 17/11/2017 11:14 MORE NEWS TRANSPORT CONCERNS More EXPRESSED ABOUT The Edit coverage NEW STONEHENGE ESSENTIAL NEWS & INFORMATION online at TUNNEL DESIGNS FROM NEWCIVILENGINEER.COM newcivil engineer.com Heritage groups have raised concerns over Highways England’s plans to bore a tunnel near Stonehenge as part of the £1.6bn A303 road improvement scheme. Proposals were released last month as part of the public consultation for the controversial project. Initial designs for the 13km A303 road scheme show the twin-bore tunnel running for 2.9km past Stonehenge, with a new junction between the A303 and A360 replacing the existing Longbarrow roundabout. The bypass would run north of Winterbourne Stoke village with a 210m, multi-span viaduct running over the Till valley. But heritage groups including English Heritage, the National Trust and Historic England have voiced concern about plans to link two byways, introducing a new route for vehicles close to Stonehenge after the tunnel is built. WSP and Arup win High Speed 2 BUSINESS KEY STATS CIVIL ENGINEERS station design contracts beating CALL FOR THE ICE £1.6bn CHARTER TO BE Jacobs, Motts and Arcadis Cost of A303 ALTERED upgrade including Civil engineers want to modernise HIGH SPEED 2 shortlisted for Old Oak Common. part of the Institution of Civil WSP and Arup have won deals worth The newly appointed designers will Stonehenge Engineers’ (ICE) charter to reflect up to £70M to design the stations take the stations up to planning tunnel environmental challenges facing the for the first phase of the High Speed 2 permission before they are handed profession today. In January ICE rail line. over to the contractors to progress patron Prince Andrew referenced the Arup is to design Euston and the design. 1828 charter’s definition of civil Birmingham Interchange stations. engineering as “the art of directing the WSP will design Old Oak Common and great sources of Power in Nature for Birmingham Curzon Street stations. The newly the use and convenience of man” Unsuccessful bidders were Jacobs, in his New Year letter to members. Mott MacDonald and Arcadis. appointed Now 13 ICE leaders including several Shortlisted contractors for the two former Presidents want to change London stations have also been designers will take the passage to read: “the art of announced. Costain/Skanska JV, working with the great sources of Mace/Dragados JV, Bechtel, Bam the stations up to Power in Nature for the use and Nuttall/Ferrovial Agroman JV, and a benefit of society”. They say the new Canary Wharf Contractors/MTR/Laing planning permission definition better reflects engineers’ O’Rourke JV are on the Euston “ environmental and societal shortlist. before they are responsibilities. The ICE was founded Balfour Beatty/Vinci/Systra JV, handed over to the in 1818. This year it is planning a Mace/Dragados JV, Bechtel and a Bam series of events to mark its Nuttall/Ferrovial Agroman JV are contractors bicentenary (see Your View, page 22).
8 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 TRANSPORT HS2 COLNE VIADUCT REVEALED
High Speed 2 project promoter HS2 Ltd has revealed the concept design for a controversial 3.4km long viaduct which will pass through the Colne Valley Regional Park. Detailed design is currently being carried out by Bouygues, VolkerFitzpatrick and Sir Robert McAlpine, which make up Align, the civils contractor for that phase of the route. It has architect Grimshaw working on the design and New Civil Engineer understands this could be substantially different to the design published by HS2 Ltd.
TRANSPORT TRANSPORT TRANSPORT HIGHWAYS ENGLAND UPDATED HEATHROW KEY STATS SKANSKA TO CUT LAUNCHES NEW AIRPORT EXPANSION 3,000 JOBS AND FRAMEWORKS FOR PROPOSALS INVOLVE £8.7bn RESTRUCTURE ROADS PROGRAMME MOVING M25 Value of EUROPEAN BUSINESS Highways Highways England has launched a Heathrow Airport Ltd has kicked off England’s Skanska is to cut 3,000 jobs and carry new £8.7bn Regional Delivery the 10-week public consultation into out a major restructuring operation Partnership framework, which will be its expansion proposals, with a raft of first new following difficulties in its European a cornerstone of its relationship with updated ideas. Plans to move a Routes to business. In a trading update released the supply chain for the second UK section of the M25 150m to the west, in mid-January, the Swedish firm Road Investment Strategy (RIS2), shared with delegates at New Civil Market said it expected to earn SKr 5.3bn which runs until 2024. The new Engineer’s Airports Conference last framework (£487M) in operating income for contract model has been developed year, have been officially revealed. 2017, £261M less than the same as part of the wider Routes to Market Part of the motorway will be lowered period for 2016. More than £90M was programme and will replace the by 7m and put into a tunnel and the £2.5bn spent on restructuring costs and collaborative delivery framework new runway will be raised to carry Estimated charges. Outside its Nordic business, (CDF), which reaches its headline aircraft over it. In October, Heathrow which Skanska said had performed value in 2018. Under this, it will expansion director Phil Wilbraham Heathrow well, there had been a “thin project appoint regional delivery integration told New Civil Engineer that expansion expansion pipeline” for European infrastructure. partners. The first framework under could result in driverless pods, rather savings The firm said it would restructure its this model is worth £8.7bn and will be than an underground transit system, Polish construction business after a divided into eight geographical lots, which could take passengers between resulting poor performance led to £36M project each with its own budget. The terminals. Several options are being from new write downs for the fourth quarter of contracts will be run under the NEC4 put forward for new or expanded 2017. “We are continuing to work on standard terms and run from 2018 terminals, which Heathrow has said plans improving performance across the until 2024, with successful bidders could cut £2.5bn from the £17bn UK operations and focusing on our guaranteed an initial package of work estimated expansion cost.The core business is fully aligned with that under each lot. consultation will run until 28 March. strategy,” said Skanska UK.
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 9 The Edit
TRANSPORT TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE KHAN WITHDRAWS TRANSPORT FOR KEY STATS REPORT IDENTIFIES SUPPORT FOR WALES INVITES CYBER ATTACKS ON METROPOLITAN LINE BIDS FOR £700M RAIL £284M INFRASTRUCTURE AS EXTENSION FRAMEWORK Value of KEY THREAT FOR 2018 Metropolitan Plans to extend the Metropolitan Line Transport for Wales (TfW) has Line Cyber attacks on infrastructure are to Watford Junction have been left in invited bids for a £700M framework one of the biggest risks facing the limbo after London mayor Sadiq Khan for rail works, including the capital extension world this year, according to the rejected an extra £73M funding from works for the South Wales Metro. TfW project World Economic Forum’s (WEF’s) government. Work on the project wants to put together a framework annual report. Attempts to disrupt key stopped last year after Transport for of specialist rail civil contractors infrastructure, such as the attack on London (TfL) revealed that millions of to provide engineering design, £5bn Ukraine’s power grid in 2015 that shut pounds in extra cash would be construction and maintenance Value of down 30 substations, are becoming needed on top of the project’s original services to enhance and maintain rail increasingly likely. Marsh global risk £284M costs. This was partly due to a services. The framework includes Welsh and and digital president John Drzik said supply chain price hike. Powers to the capital works for the South Wales Borders cyber attack is the number one risk build the line are due to expire in Metro, part of the £5bn Wales and and the “most likely to get worse in August. Khan’s latest cost estimate for Borders franchise. It also includes franchise 2018” as the WEF Global Risks Report the project is £357.8M, showing a design and implementation of other 2018 was published in January. £73.4M funding shortfall, which the rail enhancements and design Concerns about digital security government was prepared to provide. and development of transport jumped in this year’s report and cyber However, he does not want TfL to take interchanges between rail and other attacks and massive data fraud both the risk for the scheme, citing transport modes. The framework ranked in the top five global risks concerns that London taxpayers suppliers will work for the firm by perceived likelihood. Transport would have to bear the brunt of which wins the £5bn Operator and and energy networks are especially further cost increases. Development Partner (ODP) contract. vulnerable to attacks .
TRANSPORT DRONES FOR ITALIAN ROADS
An Italian smart highway programme is using drones and sensors to improve safety and traffic management. Architects Carlo Ratti Associati and road operator ANAS have developed the support infrastructure, which will be installed on more than 2,500km of roads. It comprises poles with multiple sensors and wi-fi connection services which can collect and send useful information to drivers.
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Max Frank Ltd. T: 01782 598041 [email protected] www.maxfrank.co.uk Structures Analysis KATHERINE SMALE Liverpool car park blaze exposes flaws in design guidelines
he conditions exposing the reinforcement in large that allowed a fire 1,309 areas. In other fires, the structure to rip through a under the cars would generally T multi-storey car Number sustain the most damage, he says. park in Liverpool in of cars A reason for this could be that December, destroying 1,300 cars, cars are now designed with plastic have been described as a “perfect destroyed in fuel tanks, says Beal. These burn storm”. the Liverpool through more quickly than steel Alasdair Beal, principal associate car park fire tanks, and could have released fuel civil and structural engineer at onto the structure of the car park. civil engineering consultancy A natural deflection at the mid Thomasons, says he believes span of the structure would then changes to the way cars are have caused the fuel to run into the designed could have made current centre and pool, further fuelling the structural design guidelines for car fire in that area. parks need updating. An increase in the use of diesel “It’s an accumulation of a whole cars would be different to the string of changes in the construction assumptions on which the design of cars and car parks,” says Beal. guidance for the structure was “Each one is not a big change, based, Beal adds. In a fire, he says, It’s a warning but when you add them up, it has diesel tends to form burning pools the combined effect of turning and rivers rather than vaporising – if it could something that was practical and and exploding like petrol. This worked [the existing guidelines], would also have enabled the fire to happen once, it could into something that is impractical spread more easily. and doesn’t work.” Wider cars with more flammable happen again No one was hurt in the fire, which components and bigger fuel tanks occurred on New Year’s Eve, but are all now factors in managing fire it destroyed all 1,309 cars in the risk in car parks, Beal says. “before, and that applies to new and seven storey car park and damaged The engineer says the Liverpool existing car parks. the reinforced concrete structure fire should act as a warning and “Something that you also have beyond repair. At the time, the that the guidelines should now to be looking at is changing the car park was full as an equestrian be reviewed. He also warns that management of the existing car event was underway at the nearby changes to design guidelines could parks and what can you do to those conference centre. take years to come into effect and to decrease risk.” Beal said his first observation would not affect the existing car Liverpool City Council said was that the car park was full. He park stock. it was still awaiting a report on says this would have maximised the “It’s a warning – if it could happen the condition of the car park potential fire load and the risk of the there once, it could happen again,” from structural engineers, but fire spreading. says Beal. “If the analysis is right, investigations had been complicated The blaze also burned through then it means that the risk of fire by the lack of access to the unstable the concrete in the central roadway, is now much greater than it was structure.
12 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 Street Water Analysis KATHERINE SMALE Draconian water restrictions as Cape Town supplies run out
o run out of water in largest city been allowed to get to a major, modern city this point? sounds unthinkable, 200 Specialist water consultant T but in Cape Town, litres per day Ricardo’s director for water and South Africa the Cape Town’s environment practice Daressa threat is real. To impress on the Frodsham says: “The lesson learned city’s residents just how serious the per capita is: don’t be complacent. I think situation is, the authorities have water there was an assumption that these named the day when it will happen. events are impossible and people If residents do not severely curb consumption couldn’t imagine it happening.” their water usage, the taps will be pre- water use So could the UK ever see a cut off on May 11. After this date, restrictions situation like Cape Town’s? The UK water will only be available from drought risk is 1 in 500, compared around 200 collection points and to Cape Town’s current 1 in 300 Cape Town city bowl with the Molteno limited to 25l per person, per day. 25 event. In the UK, Frodsham says Reservoir before the water crisis The date is moveable, as it water levels are monitored carefully depends on how much water has litres per day and should they start to drop, been used the week before, but the Maximum procedures would be implemented The lesson current deadline is a year since a water use per to conserve water supplies when learned is: drought was formally declared after trigger points are hit. three years of high temperatures person per “It’s always difficult to manage don’t be complacent and a lack of rain. Dams supplying day when the drought as no one can predict the city were 25% full as New Civil when rain will fall,” says WSP water Engineer went to press. restrictions strategy director Mike Woolgar. “But, At the end of September last year, come into it should focus on trigger points So, what do engineers think the water restrictions on residents were force relating to storage in reservoirs “Cape Town authorities should do? increased to target a city-wide use of or groundwater which require Ricardo head of international only 500M.l per day. Before residents actions to be taken such as demand water business development were using around 200l each, every management to reduce the pressure Mohsin Hafeez bases his opinions day. At the time, water usage in the on the resource. In addition, leakage on work undertaken in Australia. He city was around 618M.l per day, but control activity must be addressed. suggests Cape Town needs a better today the usage still stands at around These steps must be taken to understanding of rain catchment 608M.l, with only 41% of people maximise the effective use of the areas, and the installation of adhering to the 87l a day personal available water.” rainwater tanks to collect water allowance. This allowance dropped to In Cape Town, evidence suggests to use in toilets. He says a more 50l on 1 February and a higher price leakages have not been tackled. holistic approach to seasonal for water is now being charged. Government minister for water and rainfall forecasting could also help. The South African Government sanitation Nomvula Mokonyane has For now, he says speeding up is now coming under fire with urged the city to “address water construction of Cape Town’s new opposition parties claiming the losses due to leaks as a mechanism desalination plants and changing water crisis has been mismanaged. to further prevent unnecessary the people’s attitudes to water use So how has South Africa’s second water losses”. is key.
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PCL-18-419 RXL Tank and Chambers Campaign Quality 265x210mm.indd 1 06/02/2018 15:31 Carillion Collapse One massive corporate failure will not bring down an industry
Where Now? excuse to take their money and invest it somewhere else. Mark Hansford IN THIS The share prices of Carillion’s REPORT peer group have not fared well in the weeks since its collapse. Yes, some he collapse of Britain’s have problems of their own, such second biggest con- Overview: as Interserve. But others, such as tractor has been the Balfour Beatty, Costain and Kier are T only item on the news The way minding their own business, picking agenda in 2018 so far. forward up work and getting on with it – and To an extent this not surprising, as p16 could really do without being labelled its collapse was and is terrible news as the “next Carillion”. on four major contracts. for many – for the thousands of small Yes, the industry needs to change. l On the Midlands Metropolitan Hos- and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) What went Yes, it must embrace better procure- pital, it commissioned a design which and self-employed workers reliant on wrong ment, more technology, more indus- became a unbuildable l it for their incomes, and for the thou- p18 trialisation, more creativity, more It completed the Royal Liverpool sands of pension plan members who diversity, and more things besides. Hospital project without detecting were and are similarly dependent on But is the whole market broken? serious latent defects it for their retirement. Impact on the “No, of course not,” asserts one l On a late running project in Qatar it But now industry leaders who industry industry insider. agreed to extremely onerous payment have spoken to New Civil Engineer are “This is not Dutch Elm disease,” terms. In Qatar it reached a stalemate seeing a real danger that all this talk p20 says another, senior advisor. “There is over payment for its work on the is talking the industry into oblivion. not a succession of Carillion’s waiting Msheireb Downtown redevelopment In the immediate wake of the collapse to happen.” l On the Aberdeen Western Periph- experts, industry bodies and others The clear view is that Carillion was eral road project it lacked a strong leapt on Carillion as evidence of how just a badly run company. And its col- enough supply chain to deliver the the industry model is broken and that lapse is just what happens in the free work on time we are all doomed without change. market. Well run companies prosper. These were compounded by the “Sad and shocking,” one said. “A Badly run ones fail. industry’s low margin cash-flow good company falling victim to an “Companies go bust all the time. focus, but ultimately, these four industry model that doesn’t work,” It’s what happens. Move on,” another issues would not have brought down was another. It must serve as a wake- industry insider tells New Civil a well-run company. Chairman Philip up call to clients and the need for Engineer. “Bad companies fail. It’s Green admitted as much to the com- them to drive industry change, said business,” says another. mittee. “When a business collapses another. What happened to Carillion was because of three bad contracts and This talk is dangerous; it gives quite simply explained by its failed one withheld payment this is com- clients like the government an excuse directors in front of the MPs on the plete failure of business planning isn’t not to commit to projects; it throws Commons work and pensions and it?” he was asked. “Yes,” he replied. the industry into a bad light globally; business committees. They encoun- The inquiry’s co-chairs Frank Field and, worse, it gives shareholders an tered a series of avoidable problems MP and Rachel Reeves MP summed
16 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 Companies go bust all the time. It’s what happens, move on
“Carillion-style. It’s about key leaders from Crossrail and its supply chain teaming up to export the upfront project conception, initiation and governance skills. The venture has already landed its first, albeit modest commission in Australia and Morgan, for one, is passionate about its future. “For me, this is about trying to grow that cadre of British engineers to go out around the world once again,” he urges. With that ambition in mind, how can we as an industry allow Carillion to drag us down? Already there are ominous noises. As one research organisation in dialogue with a government funding body says: “We’re talking to them about our bid. They’ve seen we’re in construction. ‘But isn’t that industry struggling?’ they ask.” That’s a bad sign. the business’ executives up succinct- brink. The overall message should be, MPs said that So let’s get a grip. Carillion’s ly as “a series of delusional charac- must be, that this industry remains Carillion was a demise came as no surprise. If you ters who maintained that everything ready and able to deliver what is business built want evidence of that, look at its was hunky dory until it all went sud- asked of it. on sand and run peers. How many of the UK’s leading denly and unforeseeably wrong… as That is the clear view of industry by delusional contractors have JV’d with Caril- “people who built a giant company on insiders who have spoken to New characters lion in recent times? Not Skanska. sand in a desperate dash for cash”. Civil Engineer. Not Costain. Not Bam. Not Morgan In over three hours of grilling from “There is a wave of excitement Sindall. Industry insiders tell us that MPs not one Carillion director tried around things like the Sector Deal they’d all worked out long ago that to blame the industry model for their for construction, and major projects Carillion was not to be touched. collective failure. Indeed, axed chief such as Crossrail and High Speed Look wider even, and look at the executive Richard Howson actually 2. We can’t let that be knocked off fund managers. The market generally defended it, referencing the fair and course by the collapse of one compa- knows what’s going on and it had prompt payment it received for its ny,” says one. been short-selling Carillion stock for work on Crossrail. Just look at what has been months, going on years. Howson was more eager to focus achieved by Crossrail. As Crossrail In fact the only people taken by on the £200M Carillion was owed for chairman Terry Morgan told a recent surprise seems to have been its its work in Qatar, simply highlighting lecture in London: “In the last two clients, who kept awarding it work the problem of trying to play in a years, 200 trade delegations have long after everyone else worked out global market when you are not big visited us. They are so impressed it was a dead man walking. Which enough. with what we’ve done. There is no probably says more about them than It is for that reason that most world city today that is not looking anything else. More on that to come, other UK contractors retreated to at metros to cater for its expanding we suspect. the strong UK market in the 1990s. It population. That is why we have set So, shocking? No. A sign of an made them smaller and much more up Crossrail International to export impending wider industry collapse? parochial, but stronger and safer. some of the expertise we have devel- No. We need to be clear. This is an The collapse of Carillion should not oped for the first time.” industry that can still be world class. be allowed to be seen as a sign that Crucially, Crossrail International And is getting better, not worse. In the entire industry is teetering on the is not about exporting construction, short, look at Crossrail, not Carillion.
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 17 Carillion Collapse The projects and decisions that destroyed a construction giant
Mistakes Made hospitals, a road in Scotland and a development in the Middle East. Jess Clark KEY FACTS MPs from the Commons work and pensions committee and the busi- ness, energy & industrial strategy ormer Carillion boss £200M committee, are investigating the Richard Howson last Amount firm’s collapse. Howson was chief month laid bare the Carillion executive from 2012 until July 2017. F firm’s problems to a was owed An unpaid debt of around £200M project set it back by more than six committee of MPs. from Qatar’s for work on Qatar’s Msheireb Down- months and increased costs by a He gave accounts of scores of trips town redevelopment contributed to further £20M. “If I had walked you to the Middle East in an attempt to Msheireb Carillion’s financial woes, Howson round the Royal Liverpool a year bring in cash and explained how the Downtown claimed. The project was originally ago, it looked finished, paint on the discovery of a cracked beam on a project meant to finish in May last year and wall, ceiling tiles in, carpet down,” hospital project sent timescales and is now not expected to be completed Howson said. costs spiralling. £845M until December this year, Howson After the discovery, Carillion Previously, other senior Carillion told MPs. investigated the whole structural Value of asset executives had cited interest rates, On-demand performance bonds frame of the building using indepen- Brexit, foreign exchange markets, writedown were written into the contract dent engineers and found a total of advisors, the General Election, announced by Carillion signed, and the client also eight cracked beams. The remodel investors and suppliers as factors in Carillion last had the power to bring in a new took two months and it took a the company’s collapse. year contractor to complete the work further four to five months to fix the Carillion went into compulsory at Carillion’s expense if it failed to beams. liquidation on 15 January, with complete the job. Howson added that Carillion an order appointing the Official £1.5bn “Working in the Middle East is should not have bid for work on the Receiver as liquidator. On the day, Value of very different from working any- Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route Carillion told the stock market that, Carillion’s where else in the world,” Howson and that problems with the building “despite considerable efforts”, debt when said. He revealed that he had made services design of the Midlands last-ditch discussions with lenders almost monthly trips to Qatar for Metropolitan hospital in Smethwick “have not been successful”, and that it went into several years in an attempt to bring in led to rising costs and delays. the board had therefore concluded liquidation the money, saying: “I felt like a bailiff In total nine problematic projects that it had no choice but to take just to try and collect the cash.” were cited in a business plan the steps to enter into compulsory Client Msheireb Properties is firm put before lenders in the days liquidation. reported to have challenged before its collapse. After weeks of silence, ex-chief Howson’s claims, saying that it had The problems came to light early executive Richard Howson finally continued to pay Carillion, but last summer, as Carillion issued the outlined the projects that in part alleging that the firm failed to pass first of three profit warnings in July. brought the construction giant to its funds on to its supply chain. These included a £845M writedown, knees at a hearing before a commit- The discovery of a cracked beam of which £375M related to the UK tee of MPs. These projects were two on the Royal Liverpool Hospital and £470M to overseas markets.
18 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 A series of delusional characters maintained that everything was “hunky dory
paid our suppliers, we had cash flowed our suppliers, we had funded the project to the end and then the cash came in and that’s normal.” The directors were quizzed about the introduction by Carillion of clawback condition changes to make it harder for the company to reclaim bonuses in the event of the company’s collapse. After being pressed individually on whether they would repay bonuses they received in the years leading up to Carillion’s failure, none would con- firm they would willingly return the cash. Work and pensions commit- tee chairman Frank Field said: “All The company was toppled by recognise” Carillion’s reputation for Problem four of you have done rather well a combination of too much debt, poor payment to suppliers which jobs: Midland out of a company that you helped which stood at £1.5bn when it went reportedly stretched up to 120 days. Metropolitan to crush.” into liquidation, and the problem They said it paid most of its Hospital (top Following the hearing, the contracts, chairman Philip Green suppliers within 45 days and only left); Aberdeen inquiry’s co-chairs Field and Rachel told the board. He admitted that “outliers” would have waited for the Western Reeves said: “This morning a series “because of the level of [Carillion’s] full four months before receiving Peripheral of delusional characters main- debt we didn’t have the capability payment. (bottom left); tained that everything was hunky to withstand the knocks that we The former bosses also defended Msheireb dory until it all went suddenly and took…we didn’t have that wiggle company culture and insisted that Downtown unforeseeably wrong. room.” the board had been rigorous in development “We heard variously that this was The rot set in when Carillion challenging executive decisions and the fault of the Bank of England, the acquired Alfred McAlpine in 2008, seeking advice. foreign exchange markets, advisers, in a bid to de-risk its business by Howson gave an example of how Brexit, the snap election, investors, moving further into facilities man- the UK market compared to the Mid- suppliers, the construction indus- agement. This resulted in Carillion dle East, citing a Crossrail contract try, the business culture of the Mid- taking on millions of pounds in at Paddington station. dle East and professional designers pension deficit. He said: “My example is our of concrete beams. Everything we The Alfred McAlpine pension defi- contract on Crossrail which we won have seen points the fingers in an- cit was £110M, eight times higher in 2012 and had a value of £30M. We other direction – to the people who than Carillion’s at the time. Within a had to finish that contract by end built a giant company on sand in a year Carillion’s own pension deficit of 2014, by the end 2014 our costs, desperate dash for cash.” had gone up 348% to £61M. our liabilities were in the mid high The company itself had acknol- Other former directors from the £90M and we had been paid £76M. wedged some of its failings. In the firm were also hauled before the As was normal we had had to fund recovery plan Carillion put to lend- MPs, who challenged them about the construction of the project up in ers days before its crash in January the company’s reputation for late to the end. it said: “The group had become too payment. “Within two months of the end we complex with an overly short term These included former finance di- sought to settle our final account focus, weak operational risk man- rector Richard Adam and remunera- and settled our account at just over agement and too many distractions tion committee chairwoman Alison £100M, and cash came in. outside of our ‘core’.” Horner, who said they “did not “In the interim period we had In the end, it ran out of time.
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 19 Carillion Collapse Jobs lost and fears for suppliers as effects of collapse are felt
Sector Impact payments in the months before the collapse, have been left struggling Jess Clark KEY FACTS without the anticipated income from their contracts with Carillion. Industry figures say the full im- f one of the larg- 930 pact on the supply chain has not yet er construction Number of become apparent. The extent of the companies were to damage could take months to come I fail, the consequenc- Carillion to light as the effects of the collapse es for small and employees trickle down the tiers of suppliers. Bypass, and Galliford Try tempo- medium sized enterprises (SMEs) made “The early signs are that a lot of rarily stepped in until a permanent and their supply chains could be the distress we thought would arise replacement was found. disastrous,” Peter Aldous MP said redundant immediately upon Carillion’s demise Carillion was one of four contrac- as he introduced the Construction since collapse has not materialised,” says Special- tors on the £1.5bn A14 Cambridge Retention Schemes bill to the House ist Engineering Contractors Group to Huntingdon improvement project of Commons on 9 January. chief executive Rudi Klein. However, and was also in a JV with Galliford Just a few days later on 15 70% he warns that the full effects have Try and Balfour Beatty on the January, the UK’s second largest Drop in yet to be felt and could result in £550M Aberdeen Western Peripheral construction company, Carillion, hundreds of insolvencies. Route contract. filed for compulsory liquidation. Carillion The government has defended its Short term support from banks The collapse came nine months share price decision to keep handing Carillion was recognised by industry figures after it’s finances were given a public contracts after a July profit as being efficient and flexible, but clean bill of health by KPMG, which following warning triggered a 70% drop in the there are concerns that as the situ- audited the accounts as it has done July profit company’s share price. It said it only ation plays out it will be harder to since the company was established warning awarded the struggling company protect smaller businesses further 19 years ago. The construction work as part of joint ventures, includ- down the supply chain. and services business was £1.5bn ing work on High Speed 2 (HS2), to A spokesman for the Federation in debt, employed 19,500 workers mitigate against potential failure. of Small Businesses says: “We ac- in the UK and was involved in 450 In the days after the collapse tually think we will probably never public contracts. companies in JV with Carillion know the specific number [of busi- As New Civil Engineer went to announced they would take over nesses affected] because it may be press, the Official Receiver con- the contacts. Kier confirmed that it that you get so far down the supply firmed that 930 Carillion staff have would step in to replace Carillion chain that someone who a business been made redundant. More than on its HS2 joint venture with Eiffage supplies isn’t paying them, but they 1,200 more jobs have been safe- and on all Highways England jobs don’t realise that three or four steps guarded on infrastructure, con- where it was in JV with the failed up the chain is Carillion.” struction, central government and contractor. “If they [a small business] local government contracts. Firms Lincolnshire County Council haven’t got a piece of paper that in the supply chain, many of which ended its contract with Carillion proves they directly had a contract had already reported issues of late to build the £96M Lincoln Eastern with Carillion, could they still go to
20 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 It is risky putting so many public contracts in the hands of so few giants “like Carillion “It is risky putting so many public contracts in the hands of so few, giants like Carillion, because clearly it can go bust and the ramifications can be huge…It should be easier for smaller businesses to apply for public contacts,” he explains. He suggests that big contracts are broken down and offered individually as separate, smaller contracts to make it easier for SMEs to bid for them. He also calls for the procurement process to be made simpler. Carillion had delayed payments to smaller suppliers by several months, the FSB said in a statement at the time of the company’s collapse. The organisation wrote to Carillion in July about late payment and said that its members had waited up to their bank and say, ‘it’s our custom- One way issues that must be addressed if the three months to be paid. ers, customers, customer that was to protect industry is to change repeatedly refer- “If it had been very unusual for Carillion’?” he adds. Civil Engineering businesses encing procurement and payment. that kind of thing [late payments] to Contractors Association (Ceca) chief further down “Now is the time for our indus- happen, then alarm bells would have executive Alasdair Reisner says, “If the supply try to face up to the problems our started ringing about the state of Caril- the tier two gets into trouble, does chain would be traditional approach to delivery lion’s finances, but they weren’t really that have an effect on tier three?”. for clients and and contracting has created, and to because so many businesses treat their One way to protect businesses contractors to make a change,” says Anglian Water suppliers that way,” Soady says. further down the chain would be continue to work director Dale Evans. Evans, as chair One solution to the late payment for clients and contractors to contin- with suppliers of the Infrastructure Client Group is problem, and one that is backed by ue to work with suppliers that had that had already leading Project 13, the ICE-led initia- most trade associations is to use proj- already been given work by Carillion, been given work tive to move the industry’s business ect bank accounts. Soady says. by Carillion model away from payment for volume Another solution to protect the After the short-term issues caused of work done towards payment on supply chain is the Construction by the collapse are resolved, there outcomes achieved (see p28). Retention Protection Scheme that was has to be a “radical way of restruc- “The construction industry’s launched in Parliament a few days turing the industry,” says Association poor track record for productivity before Carillion fell into liquidation. for Consultancy & Engineering chief and reliability is unarguably behind In the aftermath of the collapse, executive Nelson Ogunshakin. other sectors. The recent collapse Build UK, Ceca and the Construction “We need leadership from industry of Carillion, which has seen thou- Products Association (CPA) urged players, clients and the suppliers, and sands of jobs and a number of major the government to abolish retention to say: ‘how do we make our industry infrastructure projects put at risk, payments. Carillion held an estimated sustainable?’ Because right now it’s has shone a light on the health of £800M in retentions when it went into questionable”, he says. contracting generally and demonstrat- liquidation, according to the various Klein adds: “The Carillion disease ed that our current delivery model is trade bodies. could spread and that, to me, is a unsustainable,” says Evans. CPA chief executive Diana Mont- really big worry at the moment. The “We need to accept that it [the gomery says: “The issue of retention banks are going to be looking very procurement process] is broken,” is part of a larger issue of the reform carefully at the balance sheets of Ogunshakin adds. required around construction pro- other companies.” Too many contracts go to the same curement and delivery, which recent Experts point to wide-ranging large companies, adds FSB’s Soady. events have thrown in to stark relief.”
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 21 significant projects elsewhere around the country, achieving I would think, much more in the way of economic benefit and relief for the traffic vital for the country’s prosperity. If we must have a Your View tunnel as originally mooted, then a simple “cut and cover” should cost LETTERS TO THE EDITOR considerably less, albeit it might AND COMMENTS ONLINE involve some unsightly temporary soil heaps. However, I really cannot see why a tunnel is needed at all. A BUSINESS CULTURE has to overcome numerous hurdles, carefully designed vertical and EXPLAINING AWAY including demonstrating financial horizontal alignment which lowers stability, when seeking to gain the carriageway could render it CARILLION COLLAPSE @ access to even modest government visually and aurally invisible as was contracts, but it appears that major achieved at the A55 crossing of the You argue that the Carillion collapse players can bypass these. River Conwy in North Wales. With is just a natural part of healthy What is the ICE policy on such a suitable landscape architectural capitalism, without exploring matters? indeed, does it even have a fundamental arguments to the policy? And if not, why not? contrary. Anthony Bates anthony@ To ignore or dismiss off-hand the Read more anthonybates.co.uk questions raised about privatisation letters at of basic state activities, cost-driven www.newcivil BUSINESS CULTURE procurement, corporate governance engineer.com rules and needlessly long complex CARILLION’S AUDITORS supply chains and paint this as a IN THE SPOTLIGHT picture of healthy Darwin-esque competition seems disingenuous. If someone can explain how a set It is time the ICE questioned of accounts can be independently some of the fundamental issues audited, giving a company a clean underpinning our industry, and bill of health four months before a considered how engineering can crippling profits warning revealing better contribute to society – the huge losses then I would welcome status quo is going to be shaken up some insight. Stonehenge tunnel: A necessity? and we should be at the forefront of Companies regularly issue profit input, I am sure the road could change, not banging the drum for a warnings; these are not always the be made to “disappear” into its broken model. indication that a company is going surroundings, and with no detriment Mark Button, posted online on to fail, but in this case the hole to Stonehenge, leaving people article headed “Comment | that has opened up was enormous. wondering why it could not have Carillion collapse: Hogwash and Surely it should have been visible to been done years ago. hyperbole” the auditors? David Price (F) david.price1@ Editor’s note: The ICE is currently Jon Livesey, posted online on mypostoffice.co.uk.com leading a review of the industry’s article headed “Comment | standard business model. More on Carillion collapse: Hogwash and p28 hyperbole” TRANSPORT DON’T BURY THE A303 BUSINESS CULTURE TRANSPORT AT STONEHENGE
BROKEN PUBLIC WHY A TUNNEL AT I wholeheartedly agree with PROCUREMENT STONEHENGE? the views of Derek Godfrey, expressed in the February edition I do not seem to have seen any The Editor, In the February issue of New Civil of this magazine. prompt reaction from the ICE to the New Civil Engineer a letter from Derek Godfrey Apart from the enormous cost of disastrous collapse of Carillion. caused you to invite the views of the Stonehenge tunnel, which surely Engineer, This will affect hundreds of our other readers on the proposed A303 cannot be justified in the present Telephone members and almost certainly Stonehenge project. Here are mine. economic climate, the construction result in the failure of many sub- House, In my belief the original £500M of such would deprive today’s contractors and suppliers. Clearly 69-77 Paul estimate was an obscene amount travellers of a view which has been there is something fundamentally Street, London, for this scheme, let alone the now enjoyed and revered by countless lacking in the government EC2A 4NQ estimated £1.6bn, an amount which generations over the millennia. procurement process. Email: nceedit@ will surely rise again. This huge Why should this be taken away? Our small specialist consultancy emap.com sum would be sufficient for several To hide the highway in a tunnel will
22 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 MAIN POINT DEFININGYOUR CIVIL VIEWS AND OPINIONSENGINEERING
In his congratulatory message to the ICE Membership, our Tredgold would surely approve. new patron, Prince Andrew, ushered in the ICE’s bicentenary This 21st century definition arose during the course of year, and alluded to Thomas Tredgold’s definition of civil an ICE Council Task Force to develop the guidelines for engineering which appeared in the original 1828 charter. This embedding sustainability into engineering education. described civil engineering as being “the art of directing the As the ICE celebrates its first 200 hundred years and great sources of power in nature for the use and convenience looks forward to the next 200, and with the UN Sustainable of man”. Development Goals as a key driver, perhaps now is Tredgold’s words were evocative, expressive the time to make a subtle but telling change to the and eloquent. They also claimed dominion of definition of civil engineering in the ICE’s Charter. man over nature and a narrow definition of the Professor Paul Jowitt, ICE President 2009-10 beneficiaries. Quentin Leiper, ICE President 2006-07 In his ICE/Halcrow Sustainability Lecture Professor Peter Guthrie, former ICE vice (New Civil Engineer 9 February 2012), Prince president Charles picked this up and queried the modern Keith Clarke, former ICE vice president relevance – and implications – of Tredgold’s Karen Britton, member, ICE Council definition of civil engineering and urged us to David Caiden, member, ICE Council bring it into the 21st century. Kate Cairns, member, ICE Council In fact, a simple way of doing this, without losing Teresa Frost, member, ICE Council the elegance of Tredgold’s words, had been proposed Davide Stronati, chair, ICE sustainability at the ICE President’s Conference in Belfast in 2003 and leadership team published in the ICE Proceedings in 2004. Judith Sykes, editor, ICE Engineering Sustainability Journal It involves changing just three words and modifying Nigel Sagar, former member of the ICE sustainability Tredgold’s definition of civil engineering to the “the art of guidance panel working with the great sources of power in nature for the use Josh Macabuag, president’s apprentice 2009/10 and benefit of society”. Tom Wilcock, president’s apprentice 2009/10
serve no purpose whatsoever. flowing both ways. of the proximity of other vehicles John Robson (M) jandjrobson@ By all means promote the UK’s and the lack of a sprinkler system. yahoo.co.uk commitment to research and The intensity of the fire was Editor’s note: Thanks to Anthony, development at home, but honestly, eventually beyond the capability John and the eight other readers who anyone might think that you would of the fire service to suppress with expressed similar views. Perhaps the prefer to pull up the drawbridge and water. question should have been: “do any opt out of the wider community. Press photos of the structure readers believe that the Stonehenge Giles Waley (M) [email protected] taken some days later showed conundrum cannot be solved by du- [email protected] extensive structural damage with alling the existing road (with modest bare reinforcement and deposits vertical realignment)?” of spalled concrete. The scene was STRUCTURES similar but on a smaller scale to CAR PARK BLAZE RAISES that which I saw following Channel STRUCTURES Tunnel fires. DESIGN QUESTIONS Although no lives were lost, TECHNICAL EXPERTISE the message to those in the civil IS EXPORTED AS WELL Isobel Byrne Hill wrote on the engineering community designing subject of failure with loss of life urban developments with integral AS IMPORTED (Your View, last month). Learning or basement car parks should be from failure where life is not lost can clear – do not underestimate the To those who advocate be just as important. fire loading from large numbers of protectionism and a strategy of UK Take the recent fire in Liverpool parked vehicles and the structural companies first for UK projects, and which destroyed a multi-storey car damage which can result from a fire. for those who lament perceived park along with reportedly 1,200 to Donald Lamont (F) donald@ dependence on the expertise of 1,400 vehicles in it. hyperbaricandtunnelsafety.co.uk others, I say get over it and get The blaze started in a single Editor’s note: More on the real about the balance of expertise vehicle and rapidly spread because implications of this fire on P12.
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 23 Victoria Brambini BY EMILY ASHWELL Unlocking public sector clients
n just under a year, ready to submit their pre-qualifica- Scape Group’s four tion questionnaires by 9 March. It year civil engineering applies to their supply chains too. I and infrastructure The new frameworks will require framework agree- 85% of subcontracted spend to be ment with Balfour Beatty comes to with small and medium enterpris- an end. The framework has so far es (SMEs), and there is a strong covered 117 projects let on behalf emphasis on supporting local firms of 56 clients and has been worth a and labour. “There’s a suite of key total of £1.1bn. performance indicators (KPIs)
The Interview The Scape has just issued the contract within all frameworks which say the notice to appoint civil engineering winners must commit to using local firms to two new, single supplier, labour,” says Brambini. four-year frameworks which will So, what are Scape framework replace it: a £400M framework to contractors and their supply chains cover Scotland and another worth framework, to a new partner for expected to deliver? The answer is £1.6bn for the rest of the UK. Scape to work with and a steep a lot more than just shovels in the Scape Group, to the uninitiated, learning curve for an organisation ground. is a procurement body that allows of Balfour Beatty’s size – through When putting together the frame- public sector clients to commission working in a different way, more work, Brambini is not just asking works through various frameworks collaboratively with public sector public sector clients what they want that offer a fast route to market and clients, and also collaboratively to see, she is also directing those the ability to use early contractor with our other framework partners clients whose outlook is not as up engagement to deliver the best and learning from them,” she says. to date as others. She does so by value solutions. This bar does not just apply to ensuring the frameworks are aligned Scape’s frameworks are currently firms which are currently getting with current government policy, used by public sector clients rang- such as that laid out in the recent ing from local authorities to schools Industrial Strategy. and hospitals. The total value of A key element for the winning all of the live frameworks currently The people bidder and supply chain is stands at £13bn and in December collaboration on different levels. there were 930 active projects, that get placed For example, Scape brings the worth an aggregated £2.4bn across national directors of each frame- 500 different public sector clients. on Scape framework work partner together once a month Victoria Brambini is managing to discuss how they can work better director responsible for procuring projects, are chosen and be more innovative. This also these two new second-generation happens on a local level. civils frameworks. With four years’ because of their “Many clients are still hung up on experience, she is expecting the bar “ the processes of procurement and beliefs and their to be set high. the fear that a contractor is there “It has gone from no previous behaviours to be contractual. The people and
24 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 The Perth Transport Futures project on the A9 was procured under a framework set up by Scape
organisations that we engage with Our change perceptions and attitudes. on the framework, and the people The two frameworks will be evalu- KEY FACTS that get placed on Scape framework frameworks, ated 40% on price and 60% on quality. projects, are chosen because of their The aim of giving a single supplier beliefs and their behaviours and their £2bn using the NEC form one or both of the frameworks is to attitudes towards partnering,” she says. encourage the winner to invest mon- But firms cannot simply claim to be Combined of contract, impose ey it would have spent on mini-bids or collaborative on their bids, they must value of new competitions on areas such as social prove they uphold Scape’s values. no retentions allowable value, innovation and skills instead. civil and “We want to partner with organisa- “by the client “That’s what leads the market to be tions that can demonstrate they have infrastructure strong in their bid in terms of value, the same values as Scape: that they frameworks in terms of the rates, but also allows believe in the public sector needing them to commit to doing so much efficiency and value; and that they being ering them. It has calculated that Bal- more,” she says. believe in the investment they make procured by four Beatty has added £60M of social On time and on budget is an “abso- in the added value [of their work], value through the framework so far. lute given” for Scape, and Brambini and in the commitments they give to Scape Another key element of the frame- says that while Balfour Beatty has a communities,” she says. “This makes works will be a fair payment KPI. 100% record for this on the current them partner of choice. They will Scape expects framework holders to framework, it will not be enough on then give client satisfaction, and they pay their supply chains just 19 days its own for it to win the next one. will get repeat business.” after work done has been validated. But winning a framework is not Community benefits such as meet- “Our frameworks, using the NEC the end of the story for contractors. ing environmental targets, community form of contract, impose no reten- Throughout the lifecycle of the frame- engagement, investment in skills, tions allowable by the client and main work, targets will be stretched, with school visits, and donating time or contractor, so ultimately the supply the aim of achieving a high standard money to community projects will be chain gets paid for the work it does,” throughout delivery. measured during the framework cycle. she says. The quality standards on And for Brambini, what happens Scape has been working with the the projects mean defects are zero to on the ground is key. “I’ve spent Social Value Portal, a firm which has minimal, she adds, meaning reten- time with a subcontractor and he set up an online system that places tions are simply unnecessary. explained to me how he does ‘toolbox a monetary value on these benefits. “On a partnering arrangement, talks’ in terms of getting through to There will be 47 of these added collaboration gets the job done well his team what the job’s all about. value measures in the new frame- and ensures commitment to snag- “He’ll say you’ve not just come here work,grouped under themes such as ging without the need to withhold a to lay bricks, what you’re building is local skills and employment, growth, standard industry norm percentage,” this facility, which will do this for this healthier safer communities and the she says. local authority, which communities environment. Brambini says even if a client pre- are going to use this way. And if you Scape will collect information at a fers to sit on a retention for as long engage with your people who are, local level from each of these projects as possible, once trust is established, putting up the steel, pouring the con- and measure how the framework more modern methods of contracting crete, whatever they’re doing, you’ll holder, and its supply chain, is deliv- and the benefits realised begin to get pride in the job and a quality job.”
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 25 Thomas Gobau APROPLAN “European construction technology investments seem to have fallen off”
he World Economic powerhouses perceive funding in Forum predicts that two vastly different ways: where a 1% rise in produc- the US embraces risk and critical T tivity could save the mass growth processes, Europe as a construction indus- whole is more cautious and startups try $100bn (£70bn) a year. Accord- need to generate revenue earlier in ing to McKinsey, if the construction order to prove worth and value. sector adopts new technology and These polar opposite VC digital ways of working, £1.1tril- approaches have caused a gap be- lion could be added to the global tween the US and Europe. The hes- industry. Now, venture capitalists itation and discretion that defines Industry View Industry (VCs) are clued in to this and, as a European investing will only cause result, the top 20 construction tech an even larger imbalance. funding rounds – investment fund raising operations – since 2012 have LEFT BEHIND BY THE AMERICANS totalled almost £700M. ground floor of companies looking And between innovative construc- Unsurprisingly, these big-money to revolutionise the slow-to-adapt tion companies and well funded rounds are taking place exclusively construction industry. startups, it’s no wonder America in the US. But not for long. With is leaving Europe in the dust. It’s a GDP more than double that of INVESTMENT DECLINE been well documented that large the US, the European construction Unfortunately, European investments amounts of VC money can create industry is poised to become the in construction technology seem to a market of booming startups and torchbearer. have fallen off in 2017: there were motivated corporates. If you build only 36 funding rounds raised com- it (and hire a sales team to fill the BIM LEGISLATION pared to the 47 that were raised in pipeline), they will come. In many European Union states – 2016. All of which were well under the European companies need to including the UK, Finland, Denmark, eye-watering £90M mega-round raised wake up if they want to spark Germany, and the Netherlands – by tech firm Katerra in April 2017. tangible interest in digitisation and forward-looking technology such as This story of Europe’s VCs trailing to raise funds comparable in size to building information modelling (BIM) behind their American counterparts their American counterparts. If the is or will shortly be required by law is well known. Also, the two global European construction sector wants for contracts on public works. to get on an equal footing with the Compare this to the US, where US, more VC money is crucial. only the state of Wisconsin took a Major construction companies similarly bold step of requiring BIM and technology startups will need implementation for public projects It’s no wonder to take a page from America’s play- (to be fair, Wisconsin‘s economy is book and show venture capitalists almost the size of Finland’s). that America the potential of the market. For these reasons alone, you’d is leaving Europe in think Europe’s venture capitalists Thomas Goubau is founder and chief would be rushing to get in on the the dust executive of software firm Aproplan 26 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 “ Water Management StormBrixx
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performance benefits, Business Culture Project 13 SHAPING THE FUTURE This Spring the ICE-led Project 13 initiative that seeks to create a new delivery model for the infrastructure sector will move from talk to action. Mark Hansford reports.
n May this year, the ICE-led delivery model is unsustainable,” he Project 13 initiative is going to insists. publish something that it hopes KEY FACT Clearly not all civils contractors will transform the way the civil are in the same financial ill-health engineering sector works forever. 120 as Carillion, and it would be hard to Its “Blueprint for the Future” argue that Project 13 principles would will offer organisations information Number of have resolved its woes. But beyond Iabout how their behaviours, organisations that there are some unarguable processes and commercial pooling their challenges facing the sector. arrangements will change when Evans says these are: operating in a Project 13 world where knowledge l Poor productivity, borne of a performance is incentivised, and for Project simplistic emphasis on reducing the assessed on the delivery of agreed capital cost of work and a lack of outcomes. 13 business emphasis on delivering the outcomes Anglian Water director Dale Evans model customers want heads the initiative as chair of the l The fact that construction is Infrastructure Client Group. He is centred on negotiating project-by- totally convinced that Project 13 is project transactional deals that the way to go. “Now is the time for our industry to face up to the problems our traditional approach to delivery Now is the and contracting has created, and to make a change,” he asserts. “The time for our construction industry’s track record in productivity and reliability is industry to face up unarguably behind other sectors. “The recent collapse of Carillion, to the problems our which has put thousands of jobs and a number of major infrastructure traditional approach to projects at risk, has shone a light on “ delivery and contracting the health of contracting generally and demonstrated that our current has created
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generate unsustainable returns with Outcomes little opportunity for investment in skills and innovation provide the l Increasing demands on the infrastructure system caused by starting point for population growth l The significant disruption that engagement and digital transformation is set to bring. Project 13, established by the creating alignment Infrastructure Client Group (ICG) and “ the ICE is an industry-led response to these challenges. It identifies the more than 300 individuals who need to move from the traditional are testing and developing tools transactional approach to one that represent the best of this new based on developing integrated and approach,” says Evans. “This means collaborative. we have representatives from over There are some key features that 120 organisations pooling their differentiate this enterprise approach knowledge to develop a model that from previous initiatives, says Evans. will change the way we do business.” For a start, Project 13 focuses on Evans is keen to stress that, while customer outcomes. This, says Evans, ICG members are overseeing this ensures the voice of the customer is work, change must be owned and clearly articulated and investment is developed by the whole industry. focused on its needs. “That is why we have adopted a “Outcomes provide the starting community approach,” he says, “and point for engagement and creating why we have also brought together alignment between the owners of a panel of future leaders who are infrastructure and the deliverers,” he constantly reviewing our plan and says. ensuring that what we aim to deliver The Project 13 philosophy is in May will be fit for purpose and fit WHAT IS PROJECT 13? also based on earlier engagement for the future.” between infrastructure owners It is also important that An industry-led response infrastructure investment. and integrated supply chain teams. government is engaged and to infrastructure delivery How is it different to what Evans places emphasis on the word supportive, and Evans points to models that do not only else is out there? integrated here. the prominence Project 13 was fail clients and their l The infrastructure owner “These integrated teams can given before Christmas in both the suppliers, they also fail is central and leading the then support the application of Infrastructure Projects Authority’s the operators and users of enterprise innovative technology and more Transforming Infrastructure infrastructure systems and l The focus and reward productive methods of delivery, such Performance report and the networks. mechanisms are based as manufactured solutions, thereby Department for Transport’s Transport on outcomes and team enabling continuous improvements in Infrastructure Efficiency Strategy. What does it set out to performance productivity,” he says. So Evans sees reasons for spring achieve? l Suppliers have direct Finally, says Evans, Project 13 2018 to be a significant one. “Our To develop a new relationships with the will promote a more sustainable Project 13 website will go live in May business model – based owner construction industry. It aims this year,” he says. “We are currently on an Enterprise, not on l An integrator actively to change the business model preparing a roadmap, blueprint traditional transactional engaging and integrating connecting infrastructure owners and and maturity assessment that will arrangements - to boost all tiers of the supply chain their supply chains to one that jointly be available through the Project 13 certainty and productivity l The key suppliers, incentivises performance; aligns website, enabling all parts of our in delivery, improve whole owner, advisor and reward with delivery of outcomes, industry to share the benefits of our life outcomes in operation integrator all work as one not on volume of work done; and work. and support a more team develops longer term collaborative “These early successes are sustainable, innovative, So what happens next? relationships. the foundation upon which we can highly skilled industry. This Suite of Project 13 Most of this was set out in the build a new approach that will tackle new model will provide products, tools and formal launch of Project 13 last our sector’s productivity problem,” better value for money for guidance – the Blueprint September, itself coming after he says. taxpayers and consumers for the Future – will be a soft launch and over a year of l Project 13’s Blueprint for the who ultimately fund launched on 1 May. preparation. Since then, Evans says Future will be launched in May the Project 13 team has been busy at the ICE. Join the Project 13 testing the concept. community by contacting “We have built a community of [email protected].
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 29 Business Culture Profile
SME care. larger consultancies. But that strategy Jones started Waterco in 1998, at didn’t last long. KEY FACT Insight the age of 46, when Hyder closed its “We started out in the early days office in Alltami, north Wales. At the thinking our market was the major £2.1M time he feared he would not get a job consultancies, and that our role was hen Waterco Waterco’s anywhere else, partly because the to be a sub-consultant to them. That managing director bigger consultancies wanted younger was a flawed idea because the major Peter Jones was annual graduates. consultancies will only outsource deciding whether turnover He says he did not find it difficult when they’re desperate and then it’s a to start his changing from the technical side to short, peaky workload and you get no own business, running a business: “I’m not sure it is continuity at all,” he says. the biggest risk he considered was 51 that different,” he observes. “When Instead, the firm found itself Wlocation. Total Waterco working for a client you’re always going directly to the client, with its Would civil engineers want to come staff balancing what you’re designing early reputation built on delivery. and work in rural north Wales? “It was against the cost of it.” “In the early days, like most SMEs, perceived as the middle of nowhere,” Jones’ initial vision was for a micro- when the client said: ‘jump’, we he recalls. business, offering specialist skills to said: ‘how high?” It was that, that Fast forward 20 years and the got us a foothold, as we were seen Ruthin location is now one of the as a can-do consultancy that would firm’s strong points – the quality of deliver quality on time. We were life and good schools means the firm The major seeing clients who were used to being has high staff retention rates – and promised the earth by companies the business’ outlook could not be consultancies who then failed to deliver.” further from parochial, providing That has changed over the years, its water and flood risk consultancy will only outsource says Jones, and what is now sought skills to clients UK-wide. is the firm’s specialism in all things It is also far from a backwater when they’re desperate water – water engineering, drainage innovation-wise, with the firm and then it’s a short, design and flood risk – through data recently taking the bold move to assessment, options modelling and ditch timesheets in the name of client “ solutions design. peaky workload RIDING THE WORKFLOW A desire for a rural life pushed Peter Jones into setting up water and flood management consultant Waterco. Emily Ashwell reports on a growing, innovative firm.
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Clients are utility companies such Jones gives an perception, but there’s something More and more as Dwr Cymru Welsh Water and impression of a about the timbre of your voice. When developers, which have an increasing man with a steady you’re busy you have a confidence clients like to need for flood risk advice. hand a the helm, about your voice that people pick “Drainage and flood risk are two but that belies up on, when you’re quiet there’s a see fixed fee proposals; critical things to a development some radical desperation,” he says. and clients have to make sure that thinking The firm has a management team they like a financial that is right at the outset, before of nine, including Peter’s son Pedr, they commit serious money to the who is commercial director. It is Pedr line in the sand project,” says Jones. And that means who has driven many of the firm’s “ bringing in experts. business management innovations Jones’ asked themselves whether “What we’re seeing is clients such as the radical decision to get rid a person’s charge out rate had any prepared to assemble a team of of timesheets. impact on whether the right people specialists, rather than simply offload By taking away timesheets, Waterco were getting attributed to the right it all to a one-stop-shop,” says Jones. aims to cut out a stressful part of job; whether timesheets contributed Today the firm employs 38 people the week for staff; encourage staff to to corners being cut when the project at its Ruthin office, eight in Chester collaborate to solve problems and cost ceiling was near; and how far and five in Manchester. It has been ultimately, says Jones, deliver a better the timesheets were really used in a steady expansion, with Jones service to clients. benchmarking a new job’s costs. keeping a prudent eye on cashflow, It also ends the cycle of when a “When we did that soul searching but nevertheless making sure that staff member asks a colleague for we realised all our clients really marketing is not overlooked – even help, they reply: “OK, but who do I want is the job delivered on time when busy. charge that time to?” and within budget. We didn’t think “It’s an easy one to miss, but the The firm made the decision after we were encouraging it, because best time to be marketing is when taking a frank look at timesheets and if the job was running on a bit, the you’re busy,” says Jones. whether using them really reflected perception was ‘well it’s not our fault, “People make the mistake of the financial performance of any it’s just taking a bit longer’. By taking waiting until they’re quiet and then given job; whether hours were getting the timesheets away, we’re now expecting it to happen, but it doesn’t allocated to more successful projects focused on delivery and that’s what happen overnight. And this is just my to mask those not doing so well. The the client wants at the end of the day,” says Jones. “More and more clients like to see fixed fee proposals; they like a financial line in the sand where they know the projects are going to face certain costs, so what we do in the background was not really of huge significance to them,” adds Pedr. Alongside this innovation, the firm has also put in place measures to help staff deal with stress – personal or work-related, including giving staff access to a confidential counselling service from an external provider. Staff members who have genuine passions for activities such as cycling and walking have engaged their colleagues to take part in events such as the Dwr Cymru Water Industry Bikeathon. The result of an increase in staff cycling or walking to work is fewer sick days, but the approach is for a gentle, organic attitude to work rather than a manufactured corporate one Jones gives the impression of a firm, steady hand at the helm of a family-orientated firm, but this belies some radical thinking which is why Waterco is definitely a company to keep an eye on. N
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 31 Business Culture Skills CREATIVE CONTROL The skills needed by professional engineers of the future are currently under review. So what does it take to be a world leading designer? Jackie Whitelaw reports.
ike Archimedes and his faculty to work together to use design eureka moment when thinking to tackle some of society’s working out how to KEY FACT biggest problems. measure volume, Arup Carfrae is the mind behind many deputy chairman Tristram Social change beautiful projects including the Carfrae has all his best Design is a Beijing 2008 Olympics Aquatic Centre ideas during a morning bath. and Singapore’s Marina Bay double LIt is a moment when, after wrestling universal way helix bridge. with an engineering design problem of tackling At the RSA he follows on from the day before, and after a good designers as diverse as Barnes Wallis night’s sleep, his mind is clear and problems and Vivienne Westwood. uncluttered, and the next steps “To me, design at its essence, is present themselves. simply a better way of doing things The bath option may not be for and anything can be designed everyone of course, but the ideas To me, design because it is a process,” Carfrae says. of thinking time and reflection are “What differentiates good designers critical for good design, the Arup at its essence, is that they keep more possibilities deputy chairman believes. open for longer whereas others try His skills as a designer have is simply a better way to narrow the options as fast as recently been recognised by the possible. Royal Society for the Encouragement of doing things “Hard work is necessary but it of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce cannot be a continuous activity. (RSA), whose faculty of royal Allowing yourself thinking time and designers for industry has appointed “the added urgency that the creative changing what you are doing to allow Carfrae as its master for the next thinking that is a hallmark of good reflection is necessary. What I am two years, taking over from fashion design will be the human element of trying to wrestle with is the fear of the designer Betty Jackson. that work in the future, as machine unknown that prevents people from He is planning to use the role to learning mops up the repetitive being creative.” promote the concept that design as detail. At the same time he wants Carfrae has evolved a two day a general process can be taught, with to encourage the design hive at the course at Arup to teach creative
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Hard work is necessary but it cannot be a continuous “activity lead to a change in the balance of what engineers are taught, Carfrae believes. “Engineers will need the physics, to understand why structures stand up, but the maths should diminish and softer skills introducing empathy and communication should be added in. Many of my contemporaries are reluctant to accept this, but I remember in 1981 when I presented designers with computers the response was ‘over my dead body’ and we’ve come a long way since then.” Carfrae believes that design should Carfrae designed be taught in school, detached from Singapore’s double the aesthetics of art etcetera. helix bridge “Over the last 10 years I’ve become certain that design is a way of thinking, a universal way of tackling design with support from Expedition problems that are intransigent and CHANGING ENGINEERING ROLES Engineering director Chris Wise. too large to comprehend.” “Engineers are classified as In his role as master of the faculty problem solvers,” says Carfrae. of royal designers for industry he has “They are taught maths; they like met a good response to his proposal Engineers must improve as a series of steps then things with one answer and problems that his fellow members work their digital and the machines will do it…an that have contained answers with together and apply their skills to communication skills to awful lot of what our people the objective defined. But the problems in fields outside their own avoid becoming subservient do is going to go.” world needs more designers who experience. to machines, according Later McCann argued can look at the issues and come up “As you get older as a designer you to ICE vice president Ed that an industry shift with a range of solutions. Designers learn to second guess yourself and McCann of Expedition. towards much larger will need to be able to deal with it prejudices your solutions. When McCann, speaking at companies puts more unconstrained problems with an you set your mind to an issue outside “New Civil Engineer’s” pressure on engineers infinite number of possibilities and your field, you can better use your NCE100 Future Engineer to become better find the best.” creative ingenuity. Breakfast Club in London communicators. Engineering designers are working “As designers, there are so many in December, warned that “Skills in the future are in a rapidly changing environment, issues we could think about – from recent innovations in digital going to be much, much Carfrae points out. the impacts of population growth technology put swathes of more about communication “Machine learning will evolve and with 3bn extra people in Africa alone traditional engineering roles in complex organisations handle more of the detailed design in the next 50 years to the wealth gap, at risk, particularly those than they are about solving and documentation which will free affordable housing and disaffected which work with complex equations ,” he said. us up to spend more time on ideas. I teenagers. calculations. McCann is leading a believe that with building information “It is important to remember we are “Things which are easily six-month review into what modelling simulations and big each part of an even more powerful described as a series of skills the industry needs data, clients will realise that value design community. Whether we work sequential actions, are and how the shortage is will no longer lie in the reliability as designers in fashion, architecture being automated and wiped being tackled. Findings will of outcomes but the ideas that go or computing, we help to improve out,” he said. be presented to the ICE in into them; that not all engineering people’s lives. Now more than ever, “If you can write it down April. services are the same. the world is relying on us to provide The rise of the machines will answers.” N
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RENEWING AND EXTENDING EXISTING BUILDINGS / PAGE 36 ADDING EXTRA STOREYS TO THE SOUTH BANK TOWER / PAGE 40 ENGINEERING RENEWALS FOR HISTORIC STRUCTURES / PAGE 44 CARVING A NEW BUILDING FROM A GRAIN SILO FACILITY / PAGE 46
MARCH 2018 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 35 REFRAMING THE FUTURE Modern buildings could last 1,000 years. Understanding When the how to renew and reinvent them will stretch the skills of structure is engineers, starting now. Jackie Whitelaw reports. good, often reuse and renew can be the best solution in terms skills that allow these structures “ Structures of programme, price to be continually reborn to meet Restructured KEY FACTS the standards and economic needs and planning of many future generations. Why 1,000 years destroy something if it still has value f you are looking for an example and still has a use? of long term reuse and renewal, Potential That approach to building then arguably the Tower of life of tall refurbishment has always happened London is an interesting one. – the Tate Modern art gallery was Since the White Tower was buildings Bankside Power Station, the Musée erected for William the Conquer d’Orsay art museum in Paris was in 1078, the structure has been 10% a railway station. But now it is not Iexpanded and adapted. Over more structures primarily with historic than a millennium it has been used as Potential merit that are being preserved, a fortress, a palace, a prison, a zoo, a to increase expanded and given a new use. mint, a public records office, a tourist Everything is worth considering. attraction and a concert venue. loading on “It’s only in the last 40 or 50 years In the modern era many of the tall modern office that our first thought has been to towers in the capital could potentially buildings pull down redundant or out of date have as long a life as the Tower itself. buildings,” says Simon Allford, Our descendants, barring disaster, director of architect Allford Hall could in the year 3018 still be using Monaghan Morris. “The Georgians the Shard, the Gherkin or any of the hid old Tudor buildings behind new high rise structures appearing on façades for instance. There has the skyline not only in London but always been reuse. around the UK and indeed the world. “In the history of the world there have only been four buildings taller than 150m that have been demolished on purpose,” says consultant WSP There have director Bill Price. “Tall buildings are so strong, so only been four robust and so expensive to bring down, that they are potentially here buildings taller than for 500 or 1,000 years.” 150m that have been The key to their survival will be adaptability, enabled by engineering “demolished on purpose 36 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 Going up: AKTII is engineer to the Finsbury Tower, where CHOOSING A BUILDING TO REUSE 13 floors are being added to a 15 storey London block (inset) almost doubling its size Simon Allford, Allford from the 1960s do, much greater chance of Hall Monaghan Morris then that is often too survival and successful has some tips for low to bother. Buildings renewal. selecting or creating a with high ceilings, lots Is there something building for successful of light and generous in the building that reuse. frames are the best bet. makes it special that a Do people like it? developer would want Frame It is a quarter to Most people walking to retain? This could be a third of the structure past your structure a courtyard, a special of a building and will would never go in, staircase or the sense of have the greatest but if it has endearing a promenade through impact on its survival. If characteristics and the front door and a structure has a floor suits the district it through the building to height of 2.4m as many sits in then there is a the roof.
“But what we want to do now is stock is widely accepted politically reinvention, find the essence of the and within the bounds of what most original, draw it out and transform it structures can accept. so it is better than it was before. And “It is often possible to justify the when we look at a new site, we always addition of a couple of floors to many start with looking at what is there office buildings especially from the already and what can be achieved 1970s and 1980s,” Price says. with that. If there is a decent frame “At that time, office-imposed floor we are unlikely to want to break it loadings tended to be over specified. down and release all that embodied The issue when weighing up the energy.” options for a conversion is whether Price agrees. “The first part of the there are primary structural elements conversation we have with many ‘in the way’ – how the building is put clients is: ‘can you really not keep together and what are the critical this building?’” Price says. “There factors that keep it standing up. are many blocks from the 1960s to “Usually engineers are good at 1980s that are just really poor and understanding the value equation there is no viable case for retaining and helping to achieve cost effective, them. But when the structure is good, sustainable solutions.” often reuse and renew can be the best Foundation capacity is critical. solution in terms of programme, price “For an existing building in good and planning as well as environmental condition that has already undergone or carbon issues.” initial settlement deformation, a 10% He points to the decision to add increase in foundation loading is 11 new storeys to the South Bank usually a reasonable starting point,” Tower in Central London, rather than says Expedition engineering director demolish and rebuild. This meant the Julia Ratcliffe. development was ready for the peak “If you have original piling records of the property cycle (see page 40 ). or can confirm the dimensions The idea of adding two storeys of bearing foundations, there is to existing structures to get more sometimes the opportunity to get capacity out of existing building a bit more through detailed ground analysis. Also you can take load out of a building by stripping out heavy finishes, partitions or cladding and Too often we replacing them with light weight options.” are brought Most important, she says, is for engineers to be involved in the early in too late and discussions for a development, when the commercial decisions are being opportunities are made. “Too often we are brought in too missed. I like getting late and opportunities are missed. “ I like getting involved when things involved when things are marginal and when people don’t are marginal realise the additional capacity and
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 37 World View Structures Restructured
Work in Expedition has added three floors this field to Clifton House on London’s demands a different Euston Road to kind of creativity create new office space
“floor area that could be generated through infills or vertical extensions. Clients can be reluctant to invest in design when they are planning, but it can yield a good return.” Expedition has recently added three floors of grade A office space to an existing seven storey structure built as a warehouse in 1936 on London’s Euston Road. And Ratcliffe herself has turned a rather unprepossessing 1960s building into the striking new headquarters of the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) including a library, lecture theatre and feature glass staircase. CASE STUDY: 22 The reinvention of the old 1960s BISHOPSGATE building has not only reinvigorated the structure but has had a positive effect on the client’s membership. A building’s fabric is not “Opting for a full refurbishment the only thing that can be for our new HQ has created a real reinvigorated AHMM connection with our membership,” reinvented an says IStructE chief executive Martin For 22 Bishopsgate in the City unloved 1980s Powell. of London consultant WSP has office block into “Members can see the engineering used 100% of the foundations the modern Angel in the form of a bridge, feature and 50% of the basement building with an concrete wall, and the staircase and built for the previous tower extra 100,000 ft2 they can identify with the creativity on the site – the Pinnacle, of space that has gone into it. It has helped construction of which was people feel really confident about halted during the banking their profession.” crisis before it got out of the Reviving tired structures can be ground. a good workout for engineering This new landmark 22 creativity, offering engineers Bishopsgate tower will be the chance to make a satisfying the second tallest in London difference. (278m) after the Shard. It will “You need to do forensic work to accommodate around 12,000 establish the potential of a structure,” people working for up to 100 Ratcliffe explains. “That allows you companies. to highlight which factors are critical The developer’s ambition and to look at how they might be is to create London’s first developed. “vertical village”, providing “It’s really interesting and you a wide range of facilities learn from how historic buildings throughout the building are constructed. Work in this field including retail, restaurants, demands a different kind of creativity fitness centres, an auditorium and sometimes a very inventive and spaces for a variety of response is often demanded by the leisure and learning activities. constraints of capacity, dimension and condition.” N
38 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 REINVENTING 28M HOMES “We have 30 years to fix our housing stock and cut its energy use by 50%”
The reuse potential of commercial and public buildings is one strand to the reinvention debate.
Another is renewal of Britain’s housing stock, which over the next few years will increasingly need engineering input above the norm to improve energy efficiency. “Every scenario says that to hit the requirements of the Climate Change Act of an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, we have to halve the UK’s energy consumption. Around 30% of all energy consumed is in people’s homes. And over 80% of the UK housing stock of 28M homes will still be standing in 2050. “We have 30 years to fix External wall insulation will have to be added to up to 28M homes our housing stock and cut its energy use by 50%,” says their boilers serviced every has recommended that the Arup’s global buildings retrofit year can reduce their energy government funds the upgrades leader Chris Jofeh. consumption. If thermostatic of homes in fuel poverty for To achieve the target “whole radiator valves are installed and reasons of social justice and for house retrofits” will be needed, set correctly, more energy can more pragmatic ones. which will include a blend of a be saved. “The UK has about 4M number of possible measures “In planning for the large- homes in fuel poverty; if they including: scale retrofit of homes, the were upgraded over 10 years l Installing external or internal UK should look to Germany, not only would we end the wall insulation where accredited engineers scandal of people living in l Improving loft insulation are required to sign off freezing conditions during the l New glazing and draught- plans for home upgrades winter but we would also create proofing as a prerequisite for very the demand at scale that would l Installing new energy- low interest loans from give industry the confidence to efficient appliances KfW, a government-owned invest, innovate and drive down l Installing smart energy development bank,” says Jofeh. costs,” Jofeh says. controls It all sounds expensive, “The general public would, l Installing renewable energy so how can homeowners be I hope, see the benefits and technologies, with energy persuaded to pay up? In its choose to invest in low energy storage report “Towards the delivery retrofits for their own homes.” “In the short term, of a national residential energy “It’s a huge target, but needs homeowners simply having efficiency programme” Arup to be taken seriously.”
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 39 Structures Restructured 5 7 Exiting 1970s concrete 1 frame structure
Waterloo & City line tunnels 2 run directly beneath the site 4 New basement excavated and loads 3 redistributed above Waterloo & City line
Steel frame adds extra 11 storeys to main 4 tower and three to the podium building
Extended concrete core 5 supports the new steel frame
Existing podium building, 6 T-shaped in plan
Insitu fin walls 7 provide rigidity
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40 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER MARCH 2018 TAKING IT HIGHER Existing high rise can go higher as London’s South Bank Tower has proved. AKTII’s engineers explain the key elements that made adding an extra 11 storeys possible to Jackie Whitelaw.
ith space in Image: Timothy Soar noise and the dust of demolition or urban areas the bigger issue of sustainability. And at a premium developer CIT would have missed the and the cost property cycle. Values are dropping of demolishing in London now, we had the space and building ready for the peak.” from scratch rising, engineers are AKTII has worked out the key Wincreasingly looking to reuse and elements that made the project extend existing structures. Work at possible. Extending the existing the South Bank Tower in London is structure meant it used design and one of the most ambitious schemes construction solutions it had never to date . tried before, but now the work has Consultant AKTII last year added been done successfully, the fi rm an extra 11 storeys or 155m to the anticipates that there will be many 31 storey 1970s offi ce block at the more tower extension schemes. same time as it was converted into “As well as saving developers time residential apartments. and money, communities suffer less The new storeys comprise a disturbance, architects are able to structural steel frame wrapped use historical context to enhance around an extended concrete core their design and a city gets to keep above an original concrete framed more of its history. The engineering structure. is also a lot of fun and it is a more Also part of the circa £200M project sustainable approach to design,” says was a three storey upward extension AKTII design director Ed Moseley. to an adjacent six storey structure King’s Reach Tower on London’s South “South Bank Tower was designed that has been refurbished for offi ce Bank was originally built in the 1970s by architect Richard Seifert and space and to connect the two engineered by Arup. It was a high buildings. quality building. Opened in 1972 as “From a client’s perspective, the King’s Reach Tower, the headquarters main benefi t of doing this is time,” for publisher IPC, the then 111m high explains AKTII design director Hanif The engineering building was a landmark on the South Kara. “At South Bank Tower, one is also a lot of Bank of the Thames from the day it option would have been to knock was completed,” says Moseley. down the original structure, but fun and it is a more The record drawings were it could have taken three years to available, bought by the developer get the planning permission for a sustainable approach from Arup, with the client on record replacement which couldn’t have as saying it was the best money he been guaranteed, never mind the to design ever spent.
“ MARCH 2018 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 41 Structures Restructured South Bank Tower
“We evaluated the drawings and the archived articles of the building’s design and used our judgment as to what would be feasible for the concept at the beginning rather than doing site investigations – they came during the work,” says Moseley. “Original planning permission was for a six storey extension to the tower but we knew there was scope for more. “As residential values went up in London, so the decision was made during construction to add 11 storeys, and take the building to a height of 155m in total, which created 18 more apartments than the original 173 proposed,” he explains. “In hindsight, we could have got a couple more floors out of the foundation capacity but not out of the structure. Ground consolidation over the building’s life helped the engineers. “We were fortunate with our timing,” says Moseley. “The tower was founded on clay and this had had 45 years to consolidate and get stiffer as the pore pressures increased under the weight of the structure.” This meant the load on the 79 under-reamed piles could be increased by up to 25%, from 5,000kN per pile in the original design to nearly 7,000kN. This coupled with detailed analysis meant that the tower extension could be delivered with no additional piles. The associated low rise T-shaped in plan podium building sits on a The tower’s podium building were over designed. “This worked in our favour when it mixture of piled foundations and a core extension “It was designed of its time, came to adding height, enabling us to raft foundation where it passes over was slipformed using the software available for an evaluate redundancy in the original the Waterloo & City line. This means on top of the expressive, brutalist architectural design and utilise that, avoiding areas that extending the tower involved a existing one, vision that governed the design of that were already highly stressed, he degree of complex load redstribution. which had been some of the structural elements. says. “The cores too, were designed “To enable us to extend on top built with better The building has exposed precast for the big, heavy lifts of their time of this raft foundation we had to verticality columns that don’t reduce in size and we were left with residual take some weight off to balance the than would be the higher up the building you go for structural capacity due to this. This loading effects, so a new basement specified for new instance,” he says. helped to drive their location within was dug to about 10m above the builds the extended buildings.” tunnel and a slab quickly put over The podium building had originally that, engaging the weight of the been designed for cellular offices, all existing structures to help hold the It was with window space, arranged around tunnel down,” says Moseley. a central core. Part of the project was The stiffness of the clay meant designed of to convert the office space into an that this mixed mode of foundations open plan arrangement. – some existing raft, some new raft, its time, using the “In modern office design, open some existing piles and some new plan is the norm, with light and views piles could be balanced to control software available for available from wherever people sit, relative movements. an expressive, brutalist so we studied how we could move Moseley disputes any suggestion the stairs and lifts outside, create an that the original tower and associated “ atrium inside and some extra floor architectural vision
42 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 tower too. These were caused by the original tower’s staggered, stepped elevation generated by steps in many of the columns. These steps affected any proposed increase in load. However, because of the plan configuration there were four locations where there was no stagger and AKTII could add weight to the columns to create the floors. “Fortunately they were on the orthogonal axis of the structure. Our solution was to create four, six storey insitu fin walls branching at right angles from the core to the full height columns of the building with steelwork for the glazed walls connecting the fins and creating the walls,” says Moseley. This concept enabled the existing and new structures to remain structurally separate with the exception of the fin walls and the core. Hangers were used to tie the new floors together, limiting inter-storey movement and creating a combined stiffness to hold the extension still before the cladding went on. Getting the construction sequence right was the next challenge. Because there were few structural connections between the outer edge of the new steel frame and the existing structure, it was expected that the floors would deflect as the cladding was added. To counter this and to prevent the glazing from cracking, the consultant decided to preload the floors with space,” says Moseley. structure that are causing a proposed Inverted water filled barrels, which were Positioning was worked out modification to fail. Where they are steel corbels gradually removed as the cladding with contractor Mace to make identified, be they a connection detail strengthened the was added. the cores easier to build, with on a particular column, the team one weak spot “We had barrels of water filled to access requirements for piling rigs looks to find ways to make loads in the podium represent the proposed loads and driving some of the core location bypass structural design work. So we building once the glass was in on each floor we considerations. try to find a way to short circuit the emptied the water out of the barrels. Some delicate strengthening work fuse and release the potential of the It allowed building and cladding to was also required at the second building. go ahead concurrently, freeing up storey, where the building envelope There were fuse points on the main any programme constraints,” says stepped out, creating a weak spot by Moseley. interrupting the vertical load transfer “The tower was a significant through the building. proportion of the floor plate. As work “This was the only weak spot in To enable us to progressed, and we got used to the a structural design that otherwise building, we realised that we could had been sized to look similar to the extend on top modify it more than we had originally tower,” he says. thought possible and put bathrooms “We strengthened it by installing of this raft foundation in some of the core space to improve inverted steel corbels on the inside the apartments,” says Moseley. “We face – it’s not a detail I have seen we had to take some took almost 30% out of the core anywhere else. AKTII calls these weight off to balance concrete overall, reducing its stiffness design critical locations ‘fuse points’ significantly, but still had the capacity – limiting factors in the original “ to add the extra storeys on top. N the loading effects
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 43 REMAKING THE PAST Engineers renewing old buildings need the skills of a surgeon and an understanding of when less intervention can be more. Jackie Whitelaw reports. At Somerset House, a historian unearthed vital structural clues
Structures fibrous plaster ceiling of the Seaman’s structure you have to get a feel of Hall from beneath. This was the its anatomy and condition. If the Restructured obvious solution to the problem, but patient is old and delicate, a heart it is one that would have been very transplant could be too much, better damaging to important historic fabric. to give them a tablet. It’s the same iving a building a fresh The trust was nervous and asked us to with buildings. If engineers don’t lease of life does not consider whether some other solution understand what they are doing, the always have to be might be possible.” operation they intend to carry out complicated,” says This is where the Baxter approach could cause more problems rather consultant Alan Baxter to historic building renewal kicked than solve anything.” senior engineering in. “A lot of engineers judge an old Alan Baxter employs director Michael Coombs. He points to building by modern standards and conservationists and a historian to Ga little model of a long wooden beam come to the conclusion that it shouldn’t research old buildings before the spanning between two uprights. The be standing up. But a vast majority of engineers get to grips with the issues. beam bounces when pressed, but building stock is old. You can’t condemn At Somerset House, historian Robert insert a simple wedge at each end, these buildings because they don’t Thorne did the research that enabled and it becomes stiff. comply with modern standards; you the consultant to conclude that the “This was the solution to problems have to understand why they are original double beam construction at Seamen’s Hall in Somerset House in standing, how they perform and the was not the problem. London,” says Coombs. The hall forms construction techniques of the time,” On-site investigation revealed that the entrance to the Georgian building Coombs says. timber shrinkage at the beam ends, and above it, designer Sir William “I like to use medical analogy dislodged the original timber wedges, Chambers conceived a large open – when you first come to an old causing the bouncing. “We concluded meeting space, the Portico Room. He that it was possible to reinstate the had to design the long span floor of continuity of the main supporting the Portico Room to span clear over beams by reinstating the wedges the Seamen’s Hall below. If engineers which we did with steel wedges,” Over time the Portico Room had Coombs explains. “Quick, simple,” and been divided into smaller rooms, don’t he adds with a smile, “cheap”. and when the Somerset House Trust Somerset House is one example decided to remove the later partitions understand what of many historic structures that they found a series of steel hangers Baxter has worked on. Its forensic supporting the timber beam under the they are doing, the approach has given the firm a creative floor which had sagged and become reputation in a difficult field, so it bouncy. “The engineers dealing operation they intend is often selected for tricky jobs – with the removal of these hangers “ particularly when combining old and to carry out could proposed to replace them with large, new structures such as at Damien long span steel beams cut into the cause more problems Hirst’s Newport Street Gallery in
44 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 Why do we service our cars every year and not our buildings, when “they are much more valuable?
London which won the 2015 Stirling Prize (see box). International bodies come to its doors for ground breaking work such as the restoration of Al Zubarah fort in Qatar – a World Heritage site. Old records and drawings are often key, and Coombs is horrified at the cavalier way they are treated by many clients and engineering firms who have often simply thrown them out. “We are quite unusual in that we keep all our records in a well-managed archive. And that includes old software that we think we might need to read electronic records.” Building information modelling (BIM) is of course, supposed to be the answer to the problem of lost records. CASE STUDIES “It’s a wonderful idea, but will the BIM models be maintained in the way people say?” Coombs asks. “When AL ZUBARAH FORT, QATAR NEWPORT STREET GALLERY, LONDON things are not built quite as the model, The fort was built in 1938 to protect the coast The project involved the development of a series who adjusts it?” from raiders from Bahrain and was constructed of Victorian warehouses at numbers 1-9 Newport Construction techniques from the from local limestone, set in a mud mortar and Street. Three buildings in the centre were Grade 1960s and 1970s are another challenge rendered. The original render has been retained, II listed for their use in scenery painting. The for those looking to reuse and renew. carefully consolidated and repaired. Decayed machinery was documented and removed which “The problem with most modern timber lintels and beams were replaced like for enabled a new use for the buildings as part of a buildings is that you don’t know like and heavily used suspended walkways were scheme developed with Caruso St John, to create what is inside the concrete. You hope re-laid with a reinforced limecrete, replicating a unified gallery space. that there is enough reinforcement, as far as possible the original materials used in The design incorporated polished concrete floors, but you don’t know; you can the building’s construction. A new staircase and which had to be capable of carrying very high occasionally find a drawing, but even platform were designed for one of the corner loads without cracking, and two new geometrically so the only reliable option is carefully turrets to give visitors a panoramic view of the complex feature stairs. The new facades to to open up selected areas of floor and World Heritage Site, Persian Gulf and desert. numbers 1 and 9 are constructed in unjointed solid have a look,” says Coombes. Client: Qatari Museums Authority/University of masonry to relate to the adjacent listed buildings. “And it is a fair bet, that no one Copenhagen Client: Damien Hirst has ever done any maintenance. Why is that? Why do we service our cars every year and not our buildings, when they are much more valuable?” “Most buildings need a thorough overhaul after 100 years, building services engineering every 30 years,” says Coombes. Baxter’s current challenges include adding new space to the 1820s almshouses that form the Geffrye Museum in east London and the Anglican cathedrals of Liverpool and Coventry. “These structures were designed when engineers were trying new things and testing the limits of their knowledge. It’s going to be fascinating.” N
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 45 The grain storage facility is now an art REMAKE museum and hotel REMODEL Proving what can be done to reuse existing assets, a disused grain silo has been reborn as a museum in Cape Town, South Africa. Jackie Whitelaw reports.
Structures Included in the development is 2 KEY FACTS over 6,000m of exhibition space Restructured in 80 galleries, a rooftop sculpture garden, storage, conservation areas, a 4,600m2 bookshop, restaurant, bar and reading ack in 1920s South Africa, rooms. Cape Town’s 57m high Size of the “On hearing of the architectural grain silo was the tallest new atrium vision for the buildings, we visited the building in sub Saharan site and studied the archive drawings Africa. Over the decades and photographs,” says Arup it became an icon of the associate director Francis Archer. city’s skyline. The complex fell out of “As the existing buildings were near Buse in 1990 and was left derelict but 100% structure, both concrete and was still an important backdrop to steelwork, we developed some basic Cape Town’s busy V&A Waterfront structural principals with Heatherwick with its blend of commercial and, Studio to apply across the project. residential developments, cruise These can be summarised as ‘re- terminal, and entertainment all in a use or strengthen where possible’, modern day working harbour. but also unashamedly ‘demolish Thanks to some extremely inventive and build’ bold new sympathetic reuse and renew thinking, the grain structures to enable the vision of a silo will now add to the mix as it functioning gallery and hotel.” has been reborn as the new Zeitz Though the concrete building looks Museum of Contemporary Art Africa like a single structure, it has two and Silo Hotel. It includes a stunning parts: a grading tower and a storage gallery atrium scooped out of the annex of 42 cellular silos. A concept tightly packed silo tubes to form the building’s heart. The team behind the reuse and renew project for client Victoria & The storage Alfred Waterfront were Heatherwick Studio and Arup, working with local annex matrix of structural engineer Sutherland. The 2 42, 30m high tubular £30M, 9,500m , not for profit public The silo structures have museum project is a partnership silos was carved away been sliced to create between the V&A Waterfront and internal space German entrepreneur Jochen Zeitz. internally
46 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 “ was developed to carve out the atrium Cape Town Stadium at the museum’s heart, to provide access to the gallery floors organised around it and tie these two structures together. “The grading tower was a multi- storey steel structure that was robust and generally in good condition. New V&A Waterfront cores were needed both for escape stair, lifts and risers but also for stability as the original perimeter THE SILO HOTEL concrete wall panels were to be removed to open up the building at N CAPE TOWN low and high levels,” Archer explains. 400m Original filler joint floors were strengthened with a reinforced topping slab, and new reinforced The idea of concrete slab floors added within the lower silos. Three primary columns resleeving were cut away at lower levels, as part of the atrium cut out at the interface with a layer of with the adjacent tubular silos annex. The column loads were transferred reinforced concrete through major reinforced corbels into the new cores. was developed, thus “ The storage annex matrix of 42, “ creating an entirely 30m high tubular silos was carved away internally to create a multi- new building structure storey gallery to the east, as well as the large atrium cut out to the west,” in and around the old Archer explains. “The remaining silo walls were no longer structurally integral but needed building’s external structure was to be held in their original form. The the pillowed glazing panels that are idea of resleeving the cylindrical inserted into the existing geometry of forms with a layer of reinforced the grain elevators’ upper floors. The concrete was developed, thus creating glazing has turned the tower into an an entirely new building structure in illuminated beacon creating irregular, and around the old and able to hold sparkling patterns and acting as a the old in place.” lantern for the harbour and the city The huge cut outs were designed beyond. to look like scaled up grains of corn. “Financial feasibility, and To create the 27m high shapes, construction sequence were key to thousands of co-ordinates were this ambitious scheme and we worked pinpointed within each silo’s tube closely with the contractor WBHO, and mapped out physically with nails quantity surveyor MLC and project to guide the formwork. The brittle, manager Mace, as well as Cape 170mm thick concrete tubes were Town-based Sutherland Engineers then lined with partial inner sleeves of to whom we passed on the scheme reinforced concrete to the exact shape design for detailed development and of the new atrium. construction,” Archer reports. The new concrete sleeves created “The idea of turning a giant, a stable composite structure 420mm disused concrete grain silo into a new thick, and provided a cutting guide kind of public space was weird and for removing portions of the old silos compelling from the beginning,” says which were pared back to reveal the Studio Heatherwick founder Thomas curved geometries of the 4,600m3 Heatherwick. Images: Heathwick Studio atrium. The cut edges were polished “The technical challenge was to give a mirrored finish that contrasts to carve out spaces and galleries with the structure’s rough concrete from the 10 storey honeycomb aggregate. without completely destroying the Each of the carved tubes was authenticity of the original building. capped with a 6m diameter panel of “The result was a design and laminated glass that brings daylight construction process that was as into the atrium. The remaining much about inventing new forms of internal tubes were removed to make surveying, structural support and room for the gallery spaces. sculpting as it was about normal The greatest change to the construction techniques.” N
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 47 World View INSPIRING CIVILS ACROSS THE GLOBE NEWCIVILENGINEER.COM/WORLD-VIEW
AFGHANISTAN SWECO WINS AFGHAN CIVILS SUPPORT WORK
Sweco has won a contract to support infrastructure projects in north west Afghanistan. It will advise and support the planning, tendering and awarding of medium sized provincial and district level projects. It will also help supervise road construction, flood protection, irrigation, school construction, and power supply projects. Sweco has previously worked on projects in northern Afghanistan, including flood protection, urban roads and irrigation canal reconstruction. The projects are being funded by the German government and state owned development bank.
CHILE CHINA CHINA CHILE SOLAR ENERGY MOTT MACDONALD ENGINEERS URGED TO HELP PLANT TO BOOST IN CHINESE CIVILS HONG KONG BOOST ITS CLIMATE ECONOMY BY £220M COLLABORATION RESILIENCE AND TECH SKILLS
Spanish contractor Acciona has Mott MacDonald has signed claimed its Chilean solar energy collaboration and framework plant will save the country $21M agreements with China Gezhouba (£15M) each year in greenhouse gas International Engineering costs, while boosting the economy Corporation, a subsidiary of by £220M. Consultant EY compared Energy China Group, which the 246 megawatt peak (MWp) El designs, engineers and builds Romero solar photovoltaic plant power plants, dams, roads, and with a standard coal fired plant, bridges and other civil engineering which was found to boost Chile’s projects in China and other GDP by just over £105M over its 40 countries. Mott MacDonald power year life cycle. By contrast the solar director Aijuan Wang said: “The PV plant was shown to contribute company was the main contractor Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam has urged civil almost double over a 35 year life on the 22,500MW China Three engineers to redouble their efforts to help it become cycle. Acciona claims the plant, the Gorges hydropower plant, the more climate resilient and embrace smart technologies. highest capacity solar energy plant world’s largest hydro scheme. These Lam was addressing delegates at an ICE innovation in Latin America, will save Chile agreements will strengthen the summit in Hong Kong.“These are important goals that £15M each year in costs related to relationship between our two need the support and participation of all sectors of the greenhouse gases and 2,854t of companies and facilitate community, not least our skilled professionals in civil polluting gases each year. collaboration.” engineering,” she said.
48 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 BOOK YOUR TICKETS TODAY AT UTILITYWEEK.LIVE/TICKETS
NEC Birmingham | 22nd and 23rd May 2018 www.utilityweeklive.co.uk Tech Excellence Bank Station Upgrade CROWD CONTROL Cramped sites and complex underground work characterise the project to expand Bank Tube station in the City of London. Fiona McIntyre reports.
n the centre of London’s fast- time, 12 new escalators and two 176X240 paced financial district, Bank travellators will provide direct routes Tube station often grinds to between Bank’s four Tube lines, plus a halt. As the capital’s third the District and Circle line station at busiest interchange station neighbouring Monument station. Bank serves around 100,000 To make space for the new passengers over a three hour peak concourse, the Northern line Ieach morning. southbound running tunnel will be Crowd control measures are replaced with a new one, currently common: passengers are held behind under construction. This will allow barriers and trains queue in tunnels the existing running tunnel to be to give the clogged-up platforms a converted into a wider concourse chance to clear, delaying journeys between the north and southbound across the network. platforms. Demand at Bank has risen by For the most part Bank will remain more than 50% in the last 10 years. If open to passengers throughout nothing is done, temporary closures the works, making the upgrade will increase and trains will have to run through the station without stopping, further inconveniencing passengers. We are under To combat the crisis London scrutiny a Underground (LU) is carrying out the six-year, £623M Bank Station capacity upgrade. lot. We do therefore By 2022 a new Cannon Street entrance will provide a new, central feel that we need to exit for the congested station. A demonstrate that we spacious Northern line concourse will boost capacity. At the same “ are delivering value
50 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 Preparing to raise the 200t gate
a fiendishly challenging scheme. Left; The main travellators rather than lifts, which This, coupled with the fact that the access shaft is have less capacity. project is pioneering the use of a new a tiny11.4m by “Dragados came up with that procurement approach – an approach 7.3m rectangular solution because it understood the that was not without its controversy opening problem that we were trying to solve. – means that LU programme manager Above: All How do you move people within Andy Swift feels the intense industry excavated material the station environment quickly?” gaze keenly. is removed via the explains Swift. 176X240 “We are under scrutiny a lot. We For the new section of Northern access shaft do therefore feel that we need to line running tunnel, Dragados was demonstrate that we are delivering also the only bidder to suggest value. But I think the proof is in what squeezing in an access shaft at Arthur we are achieving,” he says. Street, a narrow lane just off the LU’s pioneering procurement northern approach to London Bridge. exercise, known as Incentivised This was chosen as it provided Contractor Engagement (ICE), optimum access for tunnelling attracted attention when it was used and would sit outside a strict in 2013 to select and contractor. conservation perimeter. Selection was based on promised But when the team started at the added value to customers in the form site in early 2016, the challenges of of reduced journey times through the working in such a confined space station, rather than lowest cost, or set the project back and helped other traditional output measures. push up costs by £19M to reach an It definitely delivered an improved estimated £642M. Live utility cables solution on LU’s reference design, were discovered and rerouted. but it was also very time consuming Archaeological discoveries also and expensive for bidders. To compensate for that it also pledged to pay unsuccessful bidders for useful innovations developed during procurement, but that payment was a It takes a fraction of the cost of bidding. In the end design and build while, but now contractor Dragados won LU over with its simple travellator solution, we’re in full tunnelling which modelling shows will speed mode we have plenty passengers through the station. It was the only bidding team to suggest of space
MARCH“ 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 51 Tech Excellence Bank Station Upgrade
DISUSED KING WILLIAM ST STATION PROPOSED NEW SOUTHBOUND PLATFORM AND TUNNEL
Further set of triple excalators landing at Northern Line level Existing southbound platform converted into passenger concourse CENTRAL LINE Upgrade to lift providing step free access to DLR Access shaft at Arthur Street
New triple escalators rising P R I up to Central Line level N C E N ’S Bank of England ET S TRE T S R E LE 6-8 E ED T NE Prince’s St AD RE P TH OUL TRY CORNHILL
DLR Bank
LO MB AR D
K I S N TR G EE W T PROPOSED NEW I L New station entrance L Temporary worksite I SOUTHBOUND A M on Cannon Street S PLATFORM & TUNNEL T NORTHERN LINE New Central Line link R E New entrance to E with pair of moving T Bank Station CAN NON walkways STR Escalator box with new triple escalators to EET intermediate level and new lift providing Cannon step free access from street to Northern Line Street DLR Access shaft New triple escalators from New Northern Line Monument Northern line EET TR S Northern Line to DLR level southbound platform Central Line UP R PE U R T H Circle Line HA T ME R District Line S A STRE DLR ET 100m Waterloo & City Line
Above: The you need to dig the tunnel,” explains track. Line speed would have had to Without a moving walkways Commins. “It takes a while, but now be slower, affecting plans to increase and banks of three we’re in full tunnelling mode we have Northern line services. doubt sinking escalators will plenty of space.” “There’s a balance between the the shaft – just the speed passengers Since tunnelling began in May last short-term risk around working on through the year, the programme is back on track that building’s piles, versus the long- start of the shaft – station and work has progressed smoothly term train speed on the Northern along the 600m drive, which was line,” says Swift. was the hardest part thought too short for a tunnel boring “It’s all about track alignment, and “ machine (TBM). you can’t have sharp curves because Instead, excavators are digging a that slows the trains down, therefore disrupted construction. 4m diameter tunnel 27m deep, lined you’ll never be able to get your 32 “Without a doubt sinking the shaft with sprayed concrete. trains per hour on the Northern line.” – just the start of the shaft – was But a major challenge is looming. Instead a complex and unique the hardest part,” says Dragados This summer, the running tunnel will engineering solution was required. construction manager John Commins. intersect with what Swift describes The tunnel will crunch through four Although the shaft is constrained at as “a forest” of 3.4m diameter, end- of the end-bearing piles, but will be the top by buildings on either side, it bearing piles underneath 6-8 Prince’s used as a transfer structure to carry bells out underneath to provide more Street, an eight-storey building the building’s loads through the space for plant. opposite the Bank of England. tunnel. The shaft is an 11.4m by 7.3m Constructed in the 1980s, the To make this work, the normal rectangular opening supported by end-bearing piles are close to the running tunnel diameter of 4m will sheet piles. This gives way to an Northern Line running tunnels. They be enlarged to 6m at this point. The ellipsoidal excavated space with were chosen to avoid spreading loads space will be filled with extra-large a maximum height of 14.6m and a into the surrounding ground, possibly reinforced concrete ring beams to maximum depth of 9.5m. affecting the Northern line tunnels. provide additional strength. To begin with, the team Now the team is facing the It will not be straightforward. encountered a chicken and egg challenge of navigating the tunnel “That is quite a complex piece of situation: it was difficult to begin through these piles without affecting work as we try to mine through the tunnelling without all the necessary the building above. piles, and then break the piles out plant, but to get the plant down the Initially the team attempted to and support them, to make sure that shaft, enough space was needed at align the tunnel to miss as many of we maintain the loading capacity of the bottom. the piles as possible, but this would the building above us,” says Swift. “You need space, and to have space have required a tight curve on the The piles will be tackled one at a
52 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 DISUSED KING WILLIAM ST STATION PROPOSED NEW SOUTHBOUND PLATFORM AND TUNNEL CANNON STREET STATION ENTRANCE
Further set of triple excalators landing at Northern Line level Existing southbound platform converted into passenger concourse CENTRAL LINE “The revised sequence will Upgrade to lift providing step free access to DLR Access shaft at Arthur Street New triple escalators rising improve excavation efficiencies, P R I up to Central Line level N C E N ’S Bank of England ET S TRE T S R E E DL 6-8 E E and will improve site safety” T NE Prince’s St AD RE P TH OUL TRY CORNHILL
DLR Bank Robert Bird Group was engaged by Dragados accommodate construction vehicles and to act LO MB AR D to develop the Bank Station structural works as a ground level working platform. A temporary
K I S N TR G EE from concept stage through to detailed design platform was designed to extend the ground level W T PROPOSED NEW I L New station entrance L Temporary worksite I SOUTHBOUND A and on to the construction phase. A key early platform over the future escalator void. This M on Cannon Street S PLATFORM & TUNNEL T NORTHERN LINE New Central Line link R E New entrance to design challenge for Robert Bird was an efficient prefabricated steel platform extension allows a long E with pair of moving T Bank Station CAN construction sequence for the complex Cannon reach hydraulic excavator to be positioned directly NON walkways STR Escalator box with new triple escalators to EET Street station entrance structure. over the excavation. intermediate level and new lift providing Cannon A swept path analysis of the excavator bucket step free access from street to Northern Line Street The structural scheme for the new station entrance was performed to optimise the location of the DLR Access shaft New triple escalators from New Northern Line Monument involves a combination of raft slabs, piled shoring platform and temporary shoring props below, within Northern line EET TR S Northern Line to DLR level southbound platform Central Line UP R PE U walls and vertical shafts cascading downwards from the excavation. R T H Circle Line HA T ME R District Line S A STRE DLR ET 100m Cannon Street. The resulting piled “basement Using this revised construction sequencing Waterloo & City Line box” and tunnelled shafts will provide improved strategy will allow haulage vehicles to enter the site, passenger access to the Northern line platforms receive loads from the excavator and exit the site time to avoid leaving that part of the and ultimately to the Docklands Light Railway 35m with minimal reversing. building unsupported for too long, below street level. Consequently, the revised sequence will improve as this could lead to movement and Working under the Incentivised Contractor excavation efficiencies, and will improve site safety damage to the structure. Engagement contract, Robert Bird collaborated by minimising complicated vehicle movements. While detailed modelling has been closely with Dragados, tier two contractors Byrne The elimination of soil ramps and platforms also carried out to give the team the best Brothers and Keltbray, and other specialist design helps limit the spread of muck by construction idea of how to approach the piles, consultants to deliver a coordinated solution within vehicles and avoids double handling of materials. there are a number of unknowns – this challenging area. The construction of the ground floor and working such as the exact location of the piles The baseline construction sequence inherited platform are currently progressing well on site. – which will be dealt with as work by Robert Bird sought to complete excavation progresses. as quickly as possible by limiting the amount of “The trouble is, because it’s structure constructed during the first phases of the never been done before, you’ve got project. no actual data to compare it to,” Excavation was to be enabled through provision explains Swift. of temporary soil ramps and platforms to give It means, he adds, that you cannot haulage vehicles access to the constrained site. say, ‘well we know if we do this, that Excavators were to be positioned adjacent to the happens’, so we’re modelling it very excavation and haulage vehicles would have had to theoretically.” enter the site backwards and reverse down ramps Swift says contingency plans are for loading. This approach resulted in a significant in place in case things do not go to amount of excavation and construction being plan. deferred until late in the programme. In particular, “If we find when we do the cut removing the temporary soil ramps and platforms it’s not behaving as we thought, we to enable construction of the permanent structure would then stop, rethink what we’re would only have been possible after most of the doing, and then we’d take a very excavation work was complete. different approach.” After interrogating the construction programme By the end of this year 90% of the alongside Dragados and its sub-contractors, Robert tunnelling will be complete. The last Bird identified opportunities to accelerate the 10%, to link the running tunnel to construction of the site entrance structure to The above cross section through the new station the rest of the southbound line will ground level early in the programme. entrance developed by Dragados’ BIM team be carried out by hand during a five- The ground level slab and associated vertical illustrates how the street level slab and platform at month blockade of the Northern line and foundation structures were redesigned to the right of the image improves site logistics in 2020. N
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 53 Tech Bites NEW INNOVATIONS THAT WILL TRANSFORM YOUR PROJECTS NEWCIVILENGINEER.COM/TECH-EXCELLENCE
STRUCTURES MPS COULD BE REHOUSED IN USED FERRIES SAY ENGINEERS
Defunct ferries could act as a temporary home for MPs while works are carried out to repair the Houses of Parliament, according to a new scheme proposed by marine engineers. The scheme to convert three ferries into a floating temporary parliament for six years has been proposed by marine engineer Tim Beckett from Beckett Rankine. The Woolwich ferries are due to be sold off by owner Transport for London later this year, when they go out of service. Beckett said they could be transformed by the end of 2019. He said reusing them would help the government mitigate some of the cost of renovating the Houses of Parliament.
STRUCTURES MATERIALS TRANSPORT HUMAN SPINE IS US RESEARCHERS UK TO UNDERTAKE MOST AMBITIOUS BASIS FOR NEW DEVELOP DRIVERLESS CARS TRIAL TO DATE BRIDGE DESIGN SELF-HEALING CONCEPT CONCRETE
The human spine has inspired Binghamton University in the a new, resilient, low-cost bridge US has used a type of fungus to design. Researchers at produce self-healing concrete Southampton University have which could be used to repair developed the concept, using and protect ageing the human skeleton as the infrastructure. Binghamton basis for their proposal for a University assistant professor durable, low maintenance, low Congrui Jin said the team had cost bridge. They examined how experimented by mixing fungal the spine’s intervertebral discs spores called trichoderma Driverless cars will take part in the government. It will involve provide flexibility, dissipate reesei and nutrients into a 30-month trial during which the most complex journeys energy from body movements concrete. These lay dormant they will travel 320km of ever attempted by an and absorb and transmit forces. until they were exposed to routes through live traffic and autonomous vehicles in the It is hoped it will make bridges water and oxygen as a result of under natural conditions. The UK, according to the better able to withstand a crack opening up, they “woke “HumanDrive” trial, led by Transport Systems Catapult, a environmental impact and up”, ate the nutrients and grew, Nissan’s European Technical technology research centre climate change effects. filling the cracks. Centre, has been backed by overseen by Innovate UK.
54 MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER
Macrete NCE 1-2 page March 2016-paths.indd 1 17/03/2016 11:11 The British Construction Industry Awards are unique THIS YEAR’S JUDGES INCLUDE in the way they assess excellence through the whole lifecycle of a project: from conception, through development, design and delivery and into use and end user satisfaction.
10th October 2018 | Grosvenor House Hotel, London To assess this, the awards draw on the wisdom and knowledge of a truly exceptional group of judges, representing architects, designers, contractors, clients and, crucially, funders and end users. Andy Swift Anne Kemp Chris Newsome OBE Darren Colderwood programme director, chair, director of asset management development director, ENTRY DEADLINE: London Underground UK BIM Alliance Anglian Water Heathrow Airport This blend of expertise and knowledge ensures that 23 MARCH all angles are taken into consideration when picking the truly excellent projects that become award winners – and is what makes winning a British Construction Entry enquiries Industry Award such an achievement. Sheridan Collard 020 3953 2099 [email protected] Duncan Wilson Ian Corder Isabel Liu Jon Kerbey chief executive, cost and carbon manager, board member, head of management systems, Sponsorship enquiries Historic England Environment Agency Transport Focus HS2 Francis Barham 020 3953 2912 [email protected]
Kate Mavor Kelly Bradley Maggie Brownexecutive Malcolm Taylor CEO, legacy and community innovation manager, head of technical information, English Heritage investment manager, Tideway EDF Energy - Hinkley Point C Crossrail
Nirmal Kotecha Peter Molyneux Sadie Morgan Steve Crofts director of capital programme and major roads director, commissioner, head of health, procurement, UK Power Networks Transport for the North National Infrastructure Commission safety and wellbeing, Tideway
@BCIawards #BCIAwards
Headline sponsor Sponsored by Brought to you by Media partner bcia.newcivilengineer.com The British Construction Industry Awards are unique THIS YEAR’S JUDGES INCLUDE in the way they assess excellence through the whole lifecycle of a project: from conception, through development, design and delivery and into use and end user satisfaction.
10th October 2018 | Grosvenor House Hotel, London To assess this, the awards draw on the wisdom and knowledge of a truly exceptional group of judges, representing architects, designers, contractors, clients and, crucially, funders and end users. Andy Swift Anne Kemp Chris Newsome OBE Darren Colderwood programme director, chair, director of asset management development director, ENTRY DEADLINE: London Underground UK BIM Alliance Anglian Water Heathrow Airport This blend of expertise and knowledge ensures that 23 MARCH all angles are taken into consideration when picking the truly excellent projects that become award winners – and is what makes winning a British Construction Entry enquiries Industry Award such an achievement. Sheridan Collard 020 3953 2099 [email protected] Duncan Wilson Ian Corder Isabel Liu Jon Kerbey chief executive, cost and carbon manager, board member, head of management systems, Sponsorship enquiries Historic England Environment Agency Transport Focus HS2 Francis Barham 020 3953 2912 [email protected]
Kate Mavor Kelly Bradley Maggie Brownexecutive Malcolm Taylor CEO, legacy and community innovation manager, head of technical information, English Heritage investment manager, Tideway EDF Energy - Hinkley Point C Crossrail
Nirmal Kotecha Peter Molyneux Sadie Morgan Steve Crofts director of capital programme and major roads director, commissioner, head of health, procurement, UK Power Networks Transport for the North National Infrastructure Commission safety and wellbeing, Tideway
@BCIawards #BCIAwards
Headline sponsor Sponsored by Brought to you by Media partner bcia.newcivilengineer.com NCE Live Tech Fest
Awards will be presented at the CUTTING gala dinner on 19 September EDGE TECH New Civil Engineer’s Festival of Innovation & Technology will showcase and celebrate the latest thinking which can transform civil engineering. Mark Hansford reports.
nnovations and new Five of the live judged categories technologies are now being are for the best use of technology sought for showcasing at New KEY FACT (see box). They recognise companies, Civil Engineer’s Festival of projects or teams that are developing Innovation and Technology on 19 15 innovations, technologies, apps or September. Award technology led-products that are The Festival is the place to be for award winners will be announced at driving best practice in infrastructure Itechnology and innovation-hungry categories a gala festival dinner in front of an design, delivery and operation. Each civil engineers. will showcase audience of 500 industry leaders. category will focus on a specific It takes place in London in Judges include Transport for industry change initiative. September and seeks to showcase innovation and London head of technology Matthew Judges will be looking for innovations and technologies that technology Hudson. innovations and technologies that will drive the industry forward, and There are 15 categories, with six raise the bar and serve as best help civil engineers deliver better judged live in front of the festival practice case studies for the industry. outcome-focused solutions that audience. Shortlisted candidates will be impact on society. interviewed by a panel of judges in The festival is a celebration of an open session at the event on 19 excellence and a place to learn new September. All will feature in New ideas and be inspired by a range of Judges will Civil Engineer, so entrants must be inspirational speakers drawn from prepared to share their concept with beyond the civils sector. Awards be looking a wide audience. for excellence are a key part of One further category is live judged the programme, and many will be for innovations and – the StartUp of the Year Award. judged live during the day, allowing As with last year, the shortlisted attendees to learn and be inspired technologies that raise contenders for this award will get the by their peers. Entries are now being opportunity to pitch their big idea sought. the bar and serve as on the Festival’s main stage, and be The awards are free to enter and “ judged by the judging panel and by best practice case companies and teams can enter as audience vote. many categories as they wish. All studies for the industry The award recognises startups
58 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 FIND OUT MORE AT TECHFEST.NEWCIVILENGINEER.COM
that are driving innovation and technology in civil engineering. Judges are looking for young, fast- growing, agile businesses. There is no defined size or age of the company but to be eligible, firms should be able to demonstrate how they are growing rapidly and have a vision for where the company will be in the next three to five years. Three more categories are judged face to face ahead of the event. They are the Innovation of the Year categories, which showcase game- changing technologies, apps or civil engineering innovations with categories focusing on three key sectors. Judges will be looking for innovations and technologies that are seeking to change the game and serve as best practice case studies to the rest of the industry. These innovations and technologies should be deployed on real projects as a trial or as a fully-fledged product. But these projects do not have to be complete; what is required is evidence that the innovation or technology is addressing the specific initiative in a new way and that its success can be measured or THE CATEGORIES quantified. The remaining categories will be assessed by the panel of judges in a round table debate, including the LIVE JUDGED AT THE FESTIVAL flagship Supreme Award. l Best Use of Technology: Health, Safety & This will recognise the individual, Wellbeing company, research or project team l Best Use of Technology: Carbon Reduction that is doing most to drive the l Best Use of Technology: Driving Efficiency industry forward through technology through Design adoption, with specific reference l Best Use of Technology: Productivity in Delivery to the challenges set out in the l Best Use of Technology: Enabling Smart government’s Digital Built Britain Infrastructure strategy for moving the industry l Start-up of the Year beyond building information modelling Level 2. JUDGED BY FACE TO FACE INTERVIEW Digital Built Britain seeks to digitise l Innovation: Transport Systems the entire lifecycle of built assets l Innovation: Water Systems finding innovative ways to squeeze l Innovation: Energy Systems more capacity from existing social and economic infrastructure. Above ASSESSED BY JUDGES’ ROUND TABLE all, it will enable citizens to make l Research Impact: Application in the Industry better use of the infrastructure we l Research Development: Creating the Future already have. l Environmental Impact Award Entries to all other awards l Technology Driving Whole Life Performance categories will be considered for this l Technology Provider of the Year award, but specific entries are also l Judges’ Supreme Award – Digitisation for Digital welcomed. Built Britain l Find out more at techfest.newcivilengineer.com
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While you are enjoying this informative issue of New Civil Engineer, your colleagues aren’t and that doesn’t seem fair to us. To help your team keep up-to-date with the latest developments, best practice and thought-provoking opinion in the construction industry, contact us today: Telephone: +44 (0) 203 033 2948 Email: [email protected] Institution of Civil Engineers Record
FLOODING New SuDS guide for flood engineers is launched
Drainage products manufacturer Aco and the ICE have teamed up to produce a new set of tools for engineers working on sustainable drainage systems (SuDS). The set of eight detailed ICE/Aco SuDS route maps was produced by ICE’s SuDS Task Group, following a survey of over 400 professionals which showed a clear need. They are professionally reviewed by 19 reviewers throughout all of the Key project: Falkirk Wheel UK nations. ICE SuDS task group chair David Smoker explains: “We’ve ICE 200 covered the main phases of SuDS delivery, from pre- planning through to adoption ICE’s 200 People and Projects and maintenance, developed clear route maps for each phase to show the main tasks web programme gets started involved, and added live links to resources such as regulations, guidelines and case studies.” The first 40 of the ICE ’s 200 Government Year of the proposed Hyperloop high Smoker hopes that “though People and Projects have now Engineering envoy Stephen speed transit system. The latest the regulatory context for been unveiled. Metcalfe MP hopes that the two projects to be added include SuDS is not yet ideal in any Nominated by ICE members campaigns will work in tandem the Falkirk Wheel, London’s of the devolved regions”, the and selected by an expert panel, to encourage people to take up Underground and the work of route maps will enable more the 200 projects from around engineering careers. Engineers without Borders in professionals to deliver SuDS. the world, and the people He said: “It is fantastic to sustainable development. ● The downloadable pdf of the behind them, show the breadth have the support of the ICE… “Our research has shown route maps is available on the and depth of civil engineering’s with Year of Engineering and that the majority of adults and ICE website at www.ice.org.uk/ impact. ICE’s 200 People and Projects young people don’t know what sudsroutemaps The programme is part of ICE running in parallel during 2018, a civil engineer does and most 200 bicentenary celebrations I hope that we will soon see can’t identify a single UK civil and supports the government’s more and more young people engineering project,” says ICE Year of Engineering. The ICE is choosing a rewarding career in engineering knowledge director publishing the chosen projects engineering.” Nathan Baker. throughout 2018 on the What The projects unveiled “We aim to change these Is Civil Engineering? pages of so far include both the perceptions with 200 People and the ICE website, adding to the historically significant and the Projects, explaining not just the existing library of case studies. futuristic, ranging from Joseph importance of civil engineering Each month, 20 new projects Bazalgette’s 19th century but how it has directly will appear on the site to London sewers to Hyped, transformed people’s lives.” provide inspiration for those the University of Edinburgh ● All the projects can be found hoping to pursue a career in team which has designed the at www.ice.org.uk/what-is-civil- SuDS: New route map from ICE civil engineering. UK’s first prototype pod for engineering
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 61 Institution of Civil Engineers Record
ICE 200 Engineers compete to explain work to public
Pitch 200 regional heats begin competition as a way to help this month, with shortlisted ICE “inspire the next generation of members competing to explain budding engineers.” their work to members of the “Civil engineering is not public in only 200 seconds. widely understood by the Competitors will go head to public, even though it has head in Northern Ireland, East a major positive impact on & West Midlands, Yorkshire & people’s daily life. With Pitch Humber and the South West. 200, we’re challenging our Using props and presentations members to see how creative competitors will bring to life they can be when sharing their their chosen engineering passion for civil engineering concept. and to explain clearly how The audience will then have it makes a difference for the chance to grill the engineers people around the world,” on their presentations and gain she says. an insight into civil engineering Other UK and international Members of the public watch and the science behind it. The heats will follow throughout a Pitch 200 presentation presentations will be judged and the year. the winners will go on to the Each regional winner will next round of the competition. go on to compete in the Pitch ICE director of UK regions 200 Grand Finale at One Great Wendy Blundell describes the George Street in November.
INFRASTRUCTURE SUSTAINABILTIY PROFESSION PROFESSION ICE hosts post- ICE to run Ecobuild ICE seeks nominations Special themed Brexit infrastructure water and energy for its 2018 Annual issue of ‘Municipal discussion with MPs discussion Awards Engineer’
The ICE is hosting a panel The ICE‘s plans for this year’s The 2018 ICE Annual Awards Municipal Engineer, one of discussion for the All-Party Ecobuild show support are now open for nominations, ICE Publishing’s journals, Parliamentary Group on the event’s focus on the with categories for individual will be producing a special Infrastructure, to explore the United Nations Sustainable achievements and projects. themed issue about driverless challenges that infrastructure Development Goals (SDGs). The Edmund Hambly cars this month. The journal interconnectivity faces during The main Ecobuild programme Medal celebrates design for will include the latest and after Brexit negotiations. will feature an ICE panel sustainable development; research on public attitudes Chaired by Stephen Hammond session, which will discuss the Chris Binnie Award is for to autonomous vehicles (AVs) MP, the event is on Wednesday clean water and sanitation, as sustainable water management, and an article on the Venturer 28 February, between 3.30pm well as affordable and clean and the Brunel Medal is for project, which is trialling an and 5pm. It will bring together energy – two of the SDGs. international excellence. AV on urban roads. Other leading government and Delegates will also discuss the Submissions deadline is 6 April. articles in this month’s edition industry figures to discuss critical relationship between Separately, the ICE London will cover shared use and the issues including physical the two. The ICE will also host Civil Engineering Awards, in socio-economic, energy, safety, infrastructure, standards and a dedicated ICE Infrastructure association with SNC-Lavalin, congestion and land-use impact learning, as well as financial ties. Theatre at the show, offering are open for entries until 23 of AVs. Municipal Engineer is For more information, email attendees a three-day thought February. Visit the ICE website available online and in print on [email protected]. leadership programme. for more details. 21 February.
62 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 MORE ICE NEWS GO TO NEWCIVILENGINEER.COM/ICE
SUSTAINBILITY VIEW JOIN THE SUSTAINABILITY CONVERSATION
Engineers by their very nature seek to Everybody should be solve real problems. Civil engineers aspire able to contribute to and to solve real societal benefit from economic growth problems that have a profound impact on communities and outcomes and progress are fundamental to our Davide the environment. modern society; we in civil engineering have Stronati Therefore, we need “the knowledge and the responsibility to provide to recover the central evidenced-based solutions that tackle inequalities role that engineering within communities. Everybody should be able to and civil engineering have in progressing contribute to and benefit from economic growth. sustainability. There are various initiatives and committees The ICE has a very meaningful Charter for with the central aim of making the construction Sustainable Development that we need to industry greener and more sustainable. keep paramount in what we do. But instead of As chair of the ICE sustainability leadership considering sustainable development central to team (SLT), I am working to ensure the ICE civil engineering, I advocate that we make civil and the SLT play a pivotal role in connecting engineering central to sustainable development and collaborating with them. I’ve been joined PASS LISTS, BYLAW 15 and to the United Nations Sustainable by Expedition Engineering director and chair Development Goals (UNSDGs). Civil engineering is of the editorial panel at the ICE’s Engineering As New Civil Engineer is now uniquely placed to be able to provide the answers Sustainability journal Judith Sykes; Crossrail head published monthly, the names and solutions needed to achieve multiple UNSDGs. of sustainability and consents Rob Paris; and Arup of candidates recently awarded a It is vital to re-energise the ingenuity of chartered civil engineer Shanshan Wang. professional qualification with ICE engineers in developing solutions that bring We play our role as thought leaders in the will only be published online at financial, social and environmental value for all – infrastructure sector in the UK across the whole www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/ the communities, ICE members, the whole of the value chain – governments and policy makers; icenews. They will no longer be UK and abroad. Firstly, this will require the right asset owners and client organisations; designers; published in the print edition. mix of backgrounds, skills and capabilities. We contractors; suppliers and manufacturers.
need to attract an increasing number of diverse The SLT will continue to aim to provide the The pass lists will also be published students to the profession of civil engineering, right ideas and energy to progress in this journey on ICE’s website, along with the harnessing and triggering this aspirational desire towards a better society for all. I hope you will names of all candidates applying to provide a positive contribution to our society. join us in this aspiration by offering your active for professionally qualified Secondly, we need to expand what we mean contributions. The SLT would be delighted to hear membership (Bylaw 15). Both by sustainability. Low carbon and climate from ICE members with knowledge in and passion can be viewed at www.ice.org.uk/ resilient projects are becoming accepted as for sustainability in the infrastructure sector. bylaw15 under “newest qualified the best whole life cost projects, considering Together we can ensure that civil engineering can member”. Lists will remain on the the short as well as the long-term views. But and does provide answers. site for 28 days. To view lists on we also need to increasingly consider inclusive l Davide Stronati is global sustainability leader the New Civil Engineer website, social and economic elements at each stage of at Mott MacDonald, and chair of the sustainability visit www.newcivilengineer.com/ the infrastructure asset’s life. Socio-economic leadership team at the ICE. latest/icenews
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 63 Institution of Civil Engineers Record
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EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES Email: [email protected] Editor | Mark Hansford DRAWING BACK (020) 3953 2821 mark.hansford Deputy Editor | Alexandra Wynne (020) 3953 2822 alexandra.wynne Associate Editor | Emily Ashwell (020) 3953 2094 emily.ashwell Technical Reporter | Katherine Smale THE CURTAIN (020) 3953 2044 katherine.smale Technical Reporter | Fiona McIntyre (020) 3953 2870 fi ona.mcintyre News Reporter | Jess Clark (020) 3953 2876 jess.clark Chief Sub Editor | Andy Bolton When we fi rst engineering project or concept to a general (020) 3953 2823 | andy.bolton designed the ICE 200 audience, the competitors will be showing off Technical Editor Emeritus | Dave Parker programme, we knew their creativity and ingenuity. This is a unique dave.parker that there would be no chance to demystify civil engineering for the better way to inspire wider public, explaining the science behind it in MARKETING SOLUTIONS Head of Sales | Francis Barham the public than to have a fun and engaging way. (020) 3953 2912 | Francis.barham our members tell their Further pulling back the curtain on civil Wendy own stories. engineering, members have helped us to compile ONLINE ACCESS ENQUIRIES Blundell With ICE 200 now the 200 People and Projects which illustrate the Email: [email protected] well and truly under real life impact of their work. way, the level of Each in-depth case study not only showcases EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD enthusiasm and commitment from members has the engineering work involved but outlines Rachel Skinner (chair), Bill Grose, been overwhelming. the tangible benefi ts, such as boosting the Andrew Mylius, Martin Knights, Mike Napier, Miles Ashley, Rob Naybour, Tim As our Invisible Superheroes exhibition shows, local economy and improving quality of life for Chapman, Tony Gates, Zakiyya Adam, Aimi communities. civil engineers are at work every day, shaping Elias, John Dillon, David Caiden,, Fay Bull, the world around us and solving some of the key By incorporating these into the What is Sophie McPhilips, Stephen Wells, Jennifer problems our society faces. Civil Engineering? campaign, the dedicated Cooke, Simon Creer Members from across the UK and around careers information and guidance portal on the world are now sharing that knowledge and the ICE website, we’ll be using these projects Magazine of the experience directly with the public and helping beyond 2018 to showcase the range of creative, Institution of Civil Engineers to encourage the next generation into the rewarding and fun career paths available and 1 Great George Street, London SW1P 3AA 020 7222 7722 | www.ice.org.uk profession. inspire the next generation to follow in our The Café 200 programme, which allows members’ footsteps. ICE MEMBERS’ ADDRESS passionate and committed engineers to Please look out for these projects on the CHANGES/ SUBSCRIPTIONS engage with community groups, is a great ICE social media channels over the course QUERIES way to put a human face on a profession of the year and share and retweet so that as www.ice.org.uk/myice to update your which is too often seen as simply a hard hat many people as possible can learn about these address quickly online. For subscription and a high-visibility jacket. amazing examples of civil engineering. queries, please phone 020 7665 Our Institution was founded in a London ICE 200 is off to a great start and that has 2227, or email [email protected] coffee house in 1818, when such coffee houses only been possible thanks to our members. But SUBSCRIPTIONS were hotbeds for the exchange of new ideas. with many more months to go, this is only the For subscription queries contact; dsb.net Ltd, 3 Queensbridge, With this activity, we have gone back to our beginning. Northampton NN4 7BF roots to exchange new and interesting ideas with Check with your ICE regional team to fi nd out Telephone: 01604 828 705
people throughout the country. Encouragingly, what is happening in your area and lend your All rights reserved © 2018 New Civil Engineer. we’ve already had fully-subscribed events and support. We hope members will continue to get Published by EMAP Publishing Ltd; the schedule will only become busier as the year involved over the course of the year, reminding Printed by Precision Colour Printing Ltd, Telford. Registered as a newspaper with the goes on. the public of the important work they do and the Post Offi ce ISSN 0307-7683; Issue No: 2059 Members are also rising to the challenge difference it makes. Statements made or opinions expressed in New Civil Engineer do not necessarily refl ect the in our Pitch 200 competition, with four of the Only with your continued passion and views of ICE Council or ICE committees regional heats taking place this month. enthusiasm can we make ICE 200 a success. With only 200 seconds to explain a civil ● Wendy Blundell is ICE director of UK regions
64 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018
Classified CONTACT EMMA PHILLIPS 020 3953 2221 [email protected]
GEOTECHNICAL TESTING & INVESTIGATION COURSES
Geotechnical MATERIALS investiGation & CONSULTANCY desiGn, RadaR & UKAS-ACCREDITED otheR Geophysical LABORATORIES seRvices STRUCTURAL GeoenviRonmental INVESTIGATION & assessment TESTING UKas-accRedited ROPE ACCESS & laboRatoRies CONFINED SPACE Remediation SERVICES Training Courses seRvices EXPERT WITNESS SERVICES Tel: 01442 437500 www.rsk.co.uk www.rsk.co.uk Design of Retaining Walls to EC7 [email protected] [email protected] Heathrow: 22 Feb; Bristol: 2 May; Glasgow: 5 Jul; Cardiff: 25 Jul Tel: 01442 416673 NEC4 - Introduction Cardiff: 1 Mar; Manchester: 27 Mar; Belfast: 3 May; Heathrow: 23 May
Concrete Technology – Introductory Course Belfast: 2 Mar; Glasgow: 18 May
Ground Investigation 1 – Ground Investigation Report Glasgow: 7 Mar; Belfast: 21 Jun
Commercial Appreciation Old Old Manchester: 14 Mar; Bristol: 6 Jun; Glasgow: 22 Nov Old Sheet Piling & Cofferdams - Construction Heathrow: 22 Mar; Belfast: 20 Apr
Environmental Land Drainage Law for Non Legal Professionals Birmingham: 28 Feb; Cardiff: 21 Mar; Manchester: 9 May
SuDS – Engineering Aspects: Introduction Manchester: 14 Feb; Heathrow: 8 Mar; Birmingham: 19 Apr; Bristol: 20 Jun Old Drainage Design (Foul & Surface Water) Glasgow: 22 Feb; Cardiff: 19 Sep
Flood Risk Assessments Bristol: 1 Mar; Cardiff: 7 Jun; Glasgow: 4 Oct
Health, Safety & Welfare Legislation Glasgow: 1 Mar; Birmingham: 7 Jun
Regulations & Codes Birmingham: 7 Mar; Glasgow: 23 Mar; Bristol: 12 July
Role of the Temporary Works Coordinator/Supervisor Manchester: 21 Mar
Highways (Endorsed by CIHT & IHE for CPD)
Highway Drainage Design - Overview THE NCE APP WILL END ON NOW AVAILABLE TO READ WHENEVER Belfast: 21 Feb; Bristol: 18 Apr; Glasgow: 25 Apr
Highway Drainage Construction & Maintenance THE NCE APPTHE WILL NCE END APP13 ON DECEMBER WILL END 2017 ON NOW AVAILABLENOW TO AVAILABLEAND READ WHEREVER WHENEVER TO READ YOU WANTWHENEVER Belfast: 22 Feb; Glasgow: 26 Apr
Practical Highway Design - Introduction 13 DECEMBER13 2017 DECEMBER 2017 AND WHEREVERAND YOU WHEREVER WANT YOU WANT Cardiff: 28 Feb; Birmingham: 10 May Simply download any of the monthly issues or supplements from THE NCE APP WILL END ON our newNOW digital AVAILABLE library and readTO READ them at WHENEVER your convenience Pavement Design using the DMRB Bristol: 7 Mar; Glasgow: 12 Apr 13 DECEMBER 2017 Simply download any of the monthlyAND issues WHEREVER or supplements YOU WANT from Simplywww.newcivilengineer.com/the-magazine download any of the monthly issues or supplements from Asphalt Technology - Introduction our new digital library and read them at your convenience Belfast: 9 Mar; Cardiff: 3 May; Glasgow: 22 Jun our new digital library and read them at your convenience www.newcivilengineer.com/the-magazineSimply download any of the monthly issues or supplements from www.newcivilengineer.com/the-magazineIf youour have new any digital questions library and or readcomments, them at pleaseyour convenience contact us on 01446 775959/[email protected] Tel: +44www.newcivilengineer.com/the-magazine (0)20 3033 2626 Email: [email protected] www.symmonsmadge.co.uk
If you have any questions or comments, please contact us on If you have any questions or comments, please contact us on MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 65 Tel: +44 (0)20 3033Tel: +442626If (0)20 you Email: have 3033 any [email protected] questions 2626 Email:or comments, [email protected] please contact us on Tel: +44 (0)20 3033 2626 Email: [email protected] Careers CONTACT EMMA PHILLIPS 020 3953 2221 [email protected]
Creating what matters for future generations
We are driven to make the world around us work better. You see it in the things we made yesterday, the projects we manage across the globe today, and our vision for making a better world tomorrow.
We are recruiting civil, structural and geotechnical engineers to join our award-winning teams across the UK. Help us to leave a legacy and create what matters for future generations. Look no further.
opusinternational.co.uk/careers Opus International Consultants is now part of WSP
Civil Engineering Project Manager Permanent
Head Offi ce - Port Glasgow Area - West Coast of Scotland and Western Isles CMAL Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd Principal Engineer (Associate Designate) Competitive salary and benefi ts Stòras Mara Cailleannach Eta Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) provides vessels and harbour We have a vacancy for a Principal Engineer who is infrastructure for West of Scotland ferry services. This position offers an exciting chartered with MICE and/or MIStructE to join our busy opportunity in a client role to be involved with asset maintenance and projects relating to CMAL’s harbours. The role will involve frequent travel across Scotland offi ce located in Harrogate; a Spa Town named the best and the Western Isles.
place to live in the UK three years running. With a degree in civil engineering or equivalent, and Incorporated or Chartered status, you will have extensive project and/or asset management experience and You will be reporting to a Partner and be responsible for preferably a background in marine engineering. the management of projects, representing the company Reporting to the Head of Civil Engineering, you will oversee the development, at meetings, liaising with Clients and planning the procurement and implementation of capital and refurbishment projects for port infrastructure. You will be responsible for delivering a number of projects and will work workload of your design team. with consultants, contractors, the port/ferry operator and local communities/groups.
Knowledge of Scottish Government procurement routes is desirable. You will also Salary £50 000+ and to include a generous relocation have a proactive approach and excellent communication, organisational and allowance; fl exible working hours; private health care problem solving skills. The role will require site meetings and inspections, sometimes in the evening or at weekends. package; company pension scheme. Prospects of early A driving licence and a fl exible approach to work are essential. Salary is dependent progression to Associate level. on qualifi cations and experience, with benefi ts including a defi ned benefi t pension scheme, life assurance and healthcare. Send your CV to [email protected] A job description and person specifi cation is available on www.cmassets.co.uk or from [email protected] or Victoria McAleese on 01475 749920. www.hillcannon.com Closing date for applications: Midday, Friday 2nd March 2018
66 NEW CIVIL ENGINEER | MARCH 2018 Careers CONTACT EMMA PHILLIPS 020 3953 2221 [email protected]
Searching Executi ve Talent Globally
MiddleAfrica East MiddleMENAI EastRegion MiddleAsia East
COUNTRY MANAGER – INFRASTRUCTURE COUNTRY MANAGER – RAIL METRO, LIGHT, HIGH-SPEED, MONO RAIL Tanzania India Across Southeast Asia £90k - £100k PA (Tax Free) + Package Up to £192k PA + Benefi ts £Negoti able PA + Expat Package A large European Engineering Consultancy is An Internati onal project management organisati on is Rail Systems, Signalling/Train Control, Trackwork, seeking a qualifi ed and experienced Civil Engineer seeking a Country Manager to be based in India. You Tracti on Power, Mobile Communicati ons (CMTS), with experience of managing a large consultancy will be responsible for the design and constructi on Platf orm Screen Doors, AFC, Interface/Integrati on, offi ce. The role involves managing the Tanzanian supervision of major Railway related projects, RAMS/System Assurance, T&C, Planning, operati ons, overseeing projects (which includes develop and grow the fi rm’s turnover, profi tability, Constructi on Operati ons, Project Design, Alignment/ Transportati on, Water and Social Engineering), resources, project control and reporti ng systems. PWay, Tunnelling, Architecture, Requirements, business development, preparing tenders and report A BSc degree in Engineering with a minimum of Depots, Viaducts, Overground/Underground Stati ons into the main offi ce Nairobi. You should be degree 15 years’ experience in a similar role developing and more. These are LIVE projects which need key qualifi ed, have at least 20 years’ experience, at least new projects and establishing client relati onships staff to mobilize Q1. 5 years in a similar role and possess knowledge of the throughout India is preferable. Eastern African region. [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
HEAD OF CIVIL INFRA (HYDRO/DAMS) PROJECT DIRECTOR – RAIL PRINCIPAL BRIDGE ENGINEER South Africa / Kenya Qatar Southeast Asia / Island Locati on £90k - £100k PA (Tax Free) £223k PA + Benefi ts £70k - £85k PA + Bonus & Benefi ts A large Engineering Consultancy is seeking a Senior A top-ti er project management organisati on is An Internati onal Engineering specialist requires Manager to lead the Civil Infrastructure (Dams, Hydro looking to hire a Project Director of Rail to be based a Principal Bridge Engineer with a Civil/Structural and Civil Works) business across the African region. in Qatar. The role involves advising the client’s engineering background with strong experience Duti es include developing and implanti ng business representati ve on any potenti al variati ons to in the Bridge design engineering fi eld in either plans, assisti ng business development and managing supervision work. An Engineering degree is required post-tensioned concrete, structural steel, or steel- civil infrastructure opportuniti es. You must be degree with a minimum of 18 years’ experience in managing concrete composite. You must have at least 10 qualifi ed with MSc being advantageous and possess a multi -million dollar rail project. years of relevant experience and Chartered status over 15 years’ experience managing large dams is preferred. You will be working within a multi - and hydropower projects with clear progression Prior ME experience is preferred but not essenti al. discipline team of engineers and other professionals from technical to senior management roles. Must to develop bridge engineering designs from concept be English speaking and have previous experience to detailed design and specifi cati ons. working in the region. [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER – RAIL LEAD MECHANICAL ENGINEER SENIOR AIRFIELD PROJECT MANAGER East Africa Saudi Arabia Singapore £120k PA + Expat Benefi ts £150k - £160k PA (Tax Free) + Package £70k - £100k PA (2 year contract) A reputable Engineering Consultancy is looking to A well-respected Engineering company is looking to Global Engineering Consultancy requires an Airfi eld hire a Senior Project Manager - Rail to be based hire an experienced Lead Mechanical Engineer to Project Manager to lead airside infrastructures in East Africa. You will provide support to facilitate oversee a large project based in Riyadh. The project design and planning acti viti es on a world class delivery of constructi on, coordinati ng logisti cs, will involve the mechanical design of a large-scale airport development. 8+ years of experience on permitti ng, commissioning and handover acti viti es to Desalinati on and Power Plants. The Lead Mechanical commercial aviati on projects with recent airside contractual technical, budget, schedule and quality Engineer will liaise extensively with the client and will exposure, a good understanding of ICAO standards requirements. A minimum of 15 years’ experience be responsible for the overall delivery of the design and IATA regulati ons, and either a Civil Engineering, with a BSc degree in Engineering is required. schemes. This is a live requirement for an urgent Aeronauti cal or Project Management degree are start and the role is on a 2 year contract basis with an necessary for this role. att racti ve, tax-free, salary provided accommodati on and contract completi on bonus on off er. [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
We have a wide variety of Internati onal vacancies available so if you are seeking your next overseas assignment please email [email protected] for a confi denti al discussion.
www.menasaandpartners.com
MARCH 2018 | NEW CIVIL ENGINEER 67 Uretek has changed its name
But not its approach to ground engineering 0800 084 3503
Uretek, the original pioneer of ground injection solutions, has rebranded its name to Geobear.
Geobear is a ground engineering contractor providing innovative solutions and increased efficiency to UK infrastructure schemes. www.geobear.co.uk