Month: October 2015

Innovation through challenging times

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YorkshirePost

The Yorkshire Post and Leeds Beckett University invite you to join the next Innovation Network event on the 26 November 2015.

This new series of quarterly breakfast events features inspirational speakers and covers topics that we hope will be of relevance to you and your business. The event is free to attend and is aimed at Growth SMEs and Corporate Businesses. We hope you will join us to hear from our speakers, take part in discussions and to gain new business contacts.

Innovation through Challenging Times

Date: Thursday 26 November.
Time: 8.30am – 10.30am.
Location: 4th Floor, Yorkshire Post, No1 Leeds, 26 Whitehall Road, Leeds.
Refreshments and light snacks will be provided.

Pictured: Helen Oldham, Managing Director, Johnston Press Yorkshire.

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Innovation is a key driver for growth within our region, and on a business level can help you achieve the competitive advantage. Join us to find out how to drive the competitiveness of our region by developing innovation within your business, and how to do this in the most cost effective way.

Our speakers are:

  • Simon Brereton, Head of Innovation and Sector Development, Leeds City Council: The regional innovation agenda and innovation within the public sector during times of austerity.
  • Helen Oldham, Managing Director, Johnston Press Yorkshire: The changing face of the Yorkshire Post and regional press.
  • Tom Hainsworth, Managing Director, AW Hainsworth: Innovation as a driver for growth within AW Hainsworth, a 260 year old Yorkshire-based and family owned textile company.

The event is free to attend. Book your place here.

CEYH returns to Hull for a Construction Act Update with Gosschalks Solicitors

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Hull

Join us in Hull for our first breakfast seminar for the rejuvinated Constructing Excellence Humber sub-region

12th November 2015, 08:00-09:30

For our first breakfast event in the Humber region we are pleased to have partnered with Gosschalks solicitors to bring you this FREE update on the Construction Act.

Led by an experienced team of contentious and non-contentious lawyers, this event will focus on a number of significant and recent case law developments which affect payment under the Construction Act and will provide you with useful tips to follow in order to avoid some of the most common and costly pitfalls.

Attendees will gain an overview of the current legislation on payments, entitlements under interim applications and tactical tips on drafting contract ammendments to protect your position.

If the prospect of free legal advice isn’t mouth-watering enough, those kind folks at Gosschalks are also providing breakfast butties (with a choice of sauces!) to help kick-start your day.

Click here to book

Gosschalks Solicitors, Queens Gardens, Dock Street, Hull

East Yorkshire, HU1 3DZ

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On twitter? Follow the hashtag #CEYH2015

Making it Happen: Measuring, Mentoring and Monitoring at our Social Value breakfast seminar

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At our breakfast event on 28th October we will hear from Rob Wolfe, Executive Director at Renew who will be introducing his proposal for a new Constructing Excellence social value task group that Renew’s Construction and Housing Yorkshire team are in the process of developing alongside CEYH.

Set up in response to the Social Value Act, a key priority for both public and private sector clients, the aim of the task group is to indicate, scrutinise and share best practice in the development, delivery and management of social value whilst offering practical advice, guidance and tips on achieving social value throughout the supply chain.

This seminar will look to explore the objectives of the task group and share best practice in achieving social value (local jobs, skills, training, apprenticeships and supply chains) through major construction projects. In addition, Rob will also give a brief overview of Renew and the work they do in supporting the Construction Industry to deliver and demonstrate social value by meeting, measuring and evaluating their employment and skills targets.

Join us for what will be a highly informative session and help shape the development of a new working group for this vital topic.

RobWolfe

To get involved join us on 28th October 2015 at

Addleshaw Goddard LLP, Sovereign House, Sovereign Street, Leeds, LS1 1HQ

(If you are using a satellite navigation, please use the following postcode: LS1 4BJ)

  08:00-09:30

£35

Click here to book your place!

Constructing Excellence Members’ Forum – Autumn 2015

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Details have just been released about this year’s members forum event which is taking place on 14th October at Pinsent Masons LLP in London.

Date: Wednesday 14 October 2015
Venue: Pinsent Masons LLP, 30 Crown Place, Earl Street, London EC2A 4ES
Timing: 12.30 – 4.30pm (including lunch)

This Members’ Forum will focus on our members’ theme groups and aims to help members get more value from these. Last year we held a similar event to showcase the groups and consult on any new topics which members felt should be theme groups. This year we again want to showcase the groups’ work, and attendees will hear about new outputs being launched from the Asset Management, Procurement and Collaborative Working groups. Other themes currently include Sustainability, BIM, Funding & Finance, and the Nuclear sector. Our objective is to improve members’ engagement with these themes, and to ask whether these are the right topics for 2016. We look forward to an interesting afternoon and hope as many members as possible will be able to attend.

Please note that, as usual, in the morning we will have a meeting of our members steering group. Each member is entitled to nominate a rep to attend these meetings, they are not a closed shop and new people are welcome at any time. The meetings are always in the morning of the forums (i.e. 3 per year), take 2 hours or so, and are where we develop and direct our work programme to add value for members. Please contact the office if you would like to attend or to be included in the distribution list for future meetings.

Please also note that our Annual Conference will take place at Lord’s cricket ground on 11 November. Each national member is entitled to two free places (additional places and non-members attract a fee). The theme will be learning from other industries, with speakers from IT and aerospace amongst others. You can book for the Annual Conference on EventBrite.

AGENDA

1. Welcome and Introductions Don Ward, Chief Executive
2. Innovation in Practice Demo project Öppen – John Rich, SRA Architects
3. New outputs from our theme groups; 3.1. Asset management John O’Brien, LCMB 3.2. Collaborative working Kevin Thomas, Visionality
4. Breakout session and plenary feedback See below for details
5. Glenigan – KPI findings Tom Crane, Glenigan
6. Close Murray Rowden, CE Chairman

BREAKOUT SESSION “WHAT MATTERS ABOUT…”

Prior to the afternoon’s breakout session, attendees will be invited to add their thoughts to flipcharts on what is important to them about Asset Management, BIM, Collaborative Working, Funding & Finance, Nuclear, Sustainability and Procurement.During the breakout session, the Theme Group Chairs will each facilitate an individual session during which they give a brief update on their group, and use the flipchart data to prompt further discussion/ideas, and help to prioritise and shape the work plans for the next year. Attendees will be free to move amongst as many tables as they wish during the course of the session. There will also be a table for “Missing Theme Groups/New topics” for those who want to discuss or at least propose new topics for CE attention. To book onto the event, please contact Deborah Hynes on 07968 206 115 or deborah.hynes@constructingexcellence.org.uk

UPCOMING MEETINGS

Sustainability Theme Group Meeting – 8th October

Members Steering Group – 14th October

Members’ Forum – 14th October

National Awards – 23rd October

Annual Conference – 11th November

BIM Theme Group meeting- 2nd December

Collaborative Working Champions Meeting – 3rd December

Nuclear Theme Group Meeting – 10th December

Parliamentary Reception – 15th December

 

University planning experts to help neighbourhoods shape their future

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Planning experts at Leeds Beckett University will be working with community groups across Leeds to help them shape the look and feel of the places they live.

In a series of workshops, Leeds Beckett’s planning department within the School of Built Environment will be working with neighbourhoods to help them plan their future and have a say in the development decisions that affect them. The workshop series is free for neighbourhood planning groups in Leeds.

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The first workshop will be held on Saturday 7 November at Old Broadcasting House, Woodhouse Lane from 10am onwards and will showcase the experiences of neighbourhood planning groups in the city on the theme of ‘turning your ideas into reality’. The workshop will start with presentations from groups in Leeds at an advanced stage in neighbourhood planning followed by small group workshops to encourage communities to learn from each other and share experiences.

Planning lecturers and practitioners will be on hand to provide ideas and advice on policy, planning law and development plans and to point groups in the best direction. The workshop will highlight what it is possible to achieve through neighbourhood planning and suggest other options available to communities to help them meet their goals.

Hosting the workshop is Senior Lecturer in Planning and Housing, Dr. Quintin Bradley. He said “This is an opportunity for academics at Leeds Beckett University to lend our expertise and experience and help local communities plan their future. We can provide impartial advice that neighbourhoods can draw on to help them realise their ideas. This is the first of a series of workshops that will deal with the core practical issues facing neighbourhoods and planning experts will be on hand to give help where it’s needed most.”

Speakers confirmed so far include:-

Jill Bolton – Linton Neighbourhood Plan,

John Unwin / Doug Morley – Kippax Neighbourhood Plan

Dawn Carey Jones – Hyde Park Neighbourhood Plan

Howard Bradley – Seacroft Neighbourhood Plan

 
Bookings can be made via the eventbrite page at the following link

 

Planes, Trains and Automobiles – Is this the Future of Infrastructure in Yorkshire?

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Guest Post by Stefanie Stead, Chair of Constructing Industry Council Yorkshire and Humber

The Northern Powerhouse is everywhere.  It even has its own Minister, seeking to address the North-South divide which is as strong as ever in our post-recession construction economy.  However, the government’s focus appears to be rather Manchester-centric, which is all well and good, but many do believe that what is great for Manchester is not necessarily the right thing for Yorkshire and the Humber.

So what does this mean?  Are we talking about Manchester as a capital of the North, or is it about the North working together, akin to the Northern Way of the Blairite era?  Some people argue that the Northern Powerhouse is little more than a concept, but it is a concept that is gaining momentum and encouraging spending across the region.

The thing is, Northern cities are disparate.  It’s all very well encouraging the cities of Leeds and Manchester to band together and collaborate, but have you ever been on the Transpennine Express at 5.30?  It’s all very well encouraging businesses to invest across the region when high speed broadband is still a dream for far too many.

We can all agree that whilst London attracts 4 times as much spending on infrastructure, but the North cannot attract the investment it needs when there is a lack of serious infrastructure spending in the region.  And many believe that HS2 is not the answer.  There are just too many questions.

But it finally feels like Westminster is starting to listen and has announced at least £6.4 billion of transport investment in Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.   However, how joined up is this investment?  You can make it to Leeds Station, but trying to get to Leeds Bradford Airport is an adventure in itself.  Connectivity through infrastructure is critical to the growth and strength of the large geographical area covered by the Yorkshire and Humber Region.  But how do we ensure appropriate development in our rail, road, airports and bus transport, as well as sustainable green transport options (including cycling and pedestrian routes)? And has there been enough joined up thinking on integrated transport plans, public transport, effective utilisation of airports and clear consideration as to how region to region connectivity can be improved?

This raises a further question.  The need for new housing and greater transport links undoubtedly results in a greater demand for public services such as hospitals and schools, but it is debatable as to whether there has been enough investment in this social infrastructure. Centralisation of resources has advantages for both industry and public services but does this have a negative impact on communities with increased traffic, costs, and loss of time travelling long distances for work, schools, and healthcare?  Does the high speed internet compensate for this or does it fragment communities and isolate people further?

Investment in both these sides of infrastructure is, quite frankly, brilliant, but by the time new roads, trains and HS2 have been delivered, will the needs of the region have moved on?  In the same way that we are educating children for jobs that do not exist yet, are we designing infrastructure to serve jobs and lifestyles that have yet to be invented.  And if this is the case, is it all a waste of money? Although the internet of things, artificial intelligence and the collaborative economy sound like fringe ideas, the fact that the Chancellor has allocated £40million to the idea reinforces the fact that  this is very much the future.  But how does this new infrastructure affect the construction industry and the communities we build?  How does this affect our homes, our carbon footprint and our future workforce?

This in turn raises yet another question.  What about the ghosts of infrastructure past?  Our roads follow the routes of drovers paths, airports are former RAF bases and railways rattle on Victorian routes.  But is it more sustainable to start again, replace what is there or just give up altogether?  The impact infrastructure has on the environment, whether we are considering roads, railways, power stations, wind farms, waterworks, heating systems, flood barriers or hospitals, is huge. What are the environmental costs of decommissioning past endeavours?  What are the implications of future needs?

So, going back to the Northern Powerhouse and the investment in the infrastructure – the economic skeleton, so to speak, of the region,  Hull is a brilliant example of how a city can use its backbone to re-invent itself to face the future with a wonderful sense of confidence.  Since the 12th century, Hull owes its existence to its port and its prominent position facing Northern Europe. By first exporting monastic wool, the port expanded in response to Yorkshire’s industrial revolution. And when Hull was not exporting Yorkshire’s goods, it was feeding the nation with fish from the North Sea.  Automation of shipping and the Cod Wars put paid Hull’s fortunes in the 1970s and by the 1990s it was considered one of the poorest towns in the UK.  However, Hull’s ‘old’ infrastructure is having a rebirth, with the port city becoming the centre for green industries, energy imports and remains a key gateway to Europe.  Can such a rebirth be a lesson to other post-industrial cities of the North and what does this mean to Yorkshire?

I realise that I have piled question upon question, but at the Construction Industry Council, we believe that it is necessary to encourage a debate and pose questions that get us all thinking. Come join us at our fifth annual conference on the 12th November at the Yorkshire Air Museum to explore these questions with a range of experts and – hopefully – come out a bit more informed about what infrastructure investment means to Yorkshire and the Humber.

For more details, please go to http://cic.org.uk/events/event.php?event=2015-11-12-trains-planes-and-automobiles

And for our speakers, please got to http://cicyh.co.uk/planes-trains-and-automobiles-speaker-announcement/

I look forward to seeing you there amongst the planes of the Yorkshire Air Museum.

Stefanie Stead

Chair of the Construction Industry Council Yorkshire and Humber