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Skills crisis leaves historic buildings at risk

Britain’s beloved historic buildings are at risk, due to a restoration skills crisis that threatens the future of some of our best-known national treasures, warns a RICS and YouGov survey.

  • 9 in 10 British people identify historic buildings, like those featured in Channel 4’s Great British Buildings – Restoration of the Year* as important symbols of national heritage.
  • 89% of the British public believe it’s important to preserve these national treasures and 42% said the responsibility to invest and maintain these structures lies with the government.
  • However, despite the public’s passion for historic buildings, the majority don’t understand the specialist skills needed to preserve them, at a time when the entire construction industry is facing a skills shortage.

Restoration of the Year

Despite over a million people tuning in to Channel 4’s latest series Great British Buildings – Restoration of the Year, and a new YouGov survey commissioned by RICS finding that 91% of the British public believe historic buildings are symbolic of Britain’s heritage, young people have little awareness of the specialist professions and trades essential to their preservation, suggesting that as people retire, the current skills base could be all but wiped out.

Preserving iconic treasures

According to the survey, 9 in 10 people (91%) agreed that buildings such as Windsor Castle and Kensington Palace are symbols of the country’s heritage. This sentiment is strong across all age groups, including millennials, with 89% of 18-24 year-olds appreciating the importance of historic buildings.

The vast majority of the population (89%) also believe that that these iconic treasures should be preserved for future generations and place the responsibility for maintaining them firmly at the door of the government (42%), followed by industry organisations (16%) and the general public (14%).

Appreciation for historic buildings is particularly strong in West Midlands, with almost two thirds (65%) saying that it’s ‘very important’ such buildings are preserved, while around 2 in 5 respondents (42%) from Scotland say the same.

Skills shortage

However, despite the public’s love for these buildings, the majority don’t understand the specialist skills needed to restore and preserve them. For example, 83% are not knowledgeable about what a historic building surveyor does, and 80% do not know what a roof thatcher’s job entails. Awareness of age-old building professions is fading away amongst the younger generation, with only 1 in 10 18-24 year-olds able to describe the job of a stonemason, and only 16% know what a glass blower does.

This lack of awareness comes at a time when the industry as a whole is facing a skills shortage in the built environment, with the latest figures from the RICS Construction Market Survey showing that the skills gap reported by professionals across the construction sector increased from 2% in 2012 to 43% in 2016.

A pipeline of talent

To ensure that these crucial skills are not lost and cherished historic buildings don’t fall into disrepair, a stronger pipeline of talent is needed. It’s important that craft skills are developed in addition to the continual promotion of professional skills, as the two skillsets are intrinsically linked to create any successful construction project.

RICS is calling on the government and industry bodies to continue to concentrate their efforts on inspiring young people to pursue a career in the sector and educate them on the importance of mastering and maintaining the skills needed to preserve our historic buildings.

Kevin McCloud, British designer and presenter said “Historically listed buildings form part of the fabric of our rich cultural heritage and today’s findings from RICS highlight that so many Brits are genuinely passionate about protecting the physical legacy that these buildings represent. I’m very pleased to be hosting Channel 4’s Restoration of the Year programme, which shines a spotlight on the care and craftsmanship behind preserving these national treasures.”

Matthew Howell, RICS Managing Director for UK & Ireland added “It’s fantastic to see that so many people care about our historic buildings, especially young people. However, without a pipeline of talent developing expertise in these specialist areas, these landmarks could be left in ruin. We need the next generation to understand the role of a historic building surveyor, and the craft of a stonemason or glassblower to preserve this heritage for the future.

“The government and industry bodies must continue to work together and raise awareness of the wide-range of opportunities available in the industry and create more routes into the sector for young people, including investing in quality apprenticeships that lead to roles such as qualified building surveyors who specialise in conservation projects.”

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Hold fire on Parliament restoration, urges Treasury Committee

The House of Commons Treasury committee have urged that they be permitted to complete their own enquiry before any decision is made on the refurbishment of the Palace of Westminster.

The Restoration and Renewal of the Palace of Westminster is likely to be one of the largest major restorations in the history of the public sector estate. The consultants have estimated that the cost, if carried out over the minimum period of 5-8 years, will be between £3.5 and £4 billion.

Rt Hon. Andrew Tyrie MP, Chairman of the Treasury Committee, said “This is one of the largest major restorations in the history of the public sector. Apparently, it is likely to cost at least £3.5 billion over 5-8 years.

“This can only be justified to taxpayers if Parliament and the public see the evidence required to make an informed decision.

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“The Committee’s inquiry into this hugely expensive project will challenge and assess the work and conclusions of the existing reports.

“Until such work has been carried out, it would be imprudent for Parliament to commit to a specific option.”

What work needs to be carried out?

Since 1992, every effort has been made to maintain what is ultimately an outdated and increasingly unsuitable infrastructure. Services such as heating, cooling, water, sewage, electricity and cabling have been kept semi-functioning, but have not been modernised. Astoundingly, there has been no real general renovation of the building and its services since the partial rebuild of 1945-50 – some of the services even predate the war. The original basements and vertical shafts that litter the building are now completely filled with pipes and cables, making further work difficult to carry out – which results in further expense.

Reports illustrate that asbestos features heavily throughout the palace and although asbestos remains safe if treated with great care in compliance with safety regulations, it makes any intervention so much more difficult. Another issue is that most of the work undertaken over the last 50 years is largely undocumented and since many areas are inaccessible, the state of dilapidation and subsequent risk is mostly uncharted. The building is completely at the mercy of fire, with little modern safety practices in place and fire compartmentation considered almost impossible.

The original roofs are no longer watertight and there are many areas plagued with penetrating damp, damaged by interior leaks and flooding.

The cost

So now at the crux of the issue, how much does it cost to renovate a 150 year old Grade I listed building which is partly sinking, contains asbestos and has outdated cabling? The short answer is ‘a lot.’ The sheer amount of work and the sensitive nature of refurbishing a World Heritage Site results in a sky-high estimate of between £3.5bn and £5.7bn, with some suggesting the sum could rise to as much as £7.1bn.

A 2012 report warned that “major, irreversible damage” may be done to the building unless significant restoration work is carried out soon, making the refurbishment one of the most urgent and arguably important renovation projects in the UK today. Some feel that the whole thing is a needless expense to the taxpayer and a vanity project for British Parliament. Another previous report concluded that the maintenance costs alone are so astronomically high that if the Palace of Westminster was a commercial structure of no historical significance, it would be far more cost-effective and efficient to demolish it and rebuild using modern methods of construction, such as modular offsite building.

Whatever you stance, the Houses of Parliament are of national, historical and cultural importance and refurbishment will happen. It should therefore be imperative that efforts are made to soften the bludgeoning blow to the taxpayer’s pocket, shouldn’t it?

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Kemmlit’s monopoly on quality proves a winner for prestigious Leicester Square project

48 Leicester Square in Central London is a landmark building which has been totally revamped at a cost of over £40 million to provide high end retail and office space over 8 floors.

Dating back to 1920, part of the original façade has been retained by the developers with the addition of an added upper story and an elegant curved roof.

In keeping with the high specification requirements of the building, Kemmlit’s Classic Cell floor to ceiling cubicles with a black finish were specified by Make Architects for each of the eight floors toilet blocks.

In addition, 70 of Kemmlit’s high performance IXOS lockers were also specified and installed in the building’s basement locker room.

Classic Cell has a timeless elegancy and purity of form. The smooth surface door fronts, concealed edges, 42 mm thick dividing walls and doors with bi-colour options and quality of construction make this the cubicle of choice for many architects and building owners.

IXOS lockers are robust, durable and secure, and are available with a choice of two door fronts – 8mm toughened glass or 13 mm solid grade laminate and can be configured to suit individual requirement.

Classic Cell cubicles and IXOS locker systems are part of a comprehensive range offered by Kemmlit including a design and installation service.

For more information please visit www.kemmlituk.com.
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Forbo brightens up new Urgent Care Centre at Chorley Hospital

The patients and staff of Chorley Hospital’s Urgent Care Centre can view the colourful life of the ocean’s coral beds, thanks to Forbo Flooring Systems’ digitally printed vinyls that allow designers and specifiers to create completely bespoke floor coverings without compromising on quality.

David Simmons, Interior Designer at Frank Whittle Partnership said: “We wanted to create a stimulating and vibrant environment for the patients and staff of the hospital, and one that they would be proud of. A range of Forbo’s floor coverings was specified for the project including Eternal and digitally printed vinyl, as the vibrant colours and the ability to create bespoke designs fitted the brief perfectly.”

For the children’s waiting area, an underwater scene of colourful tropical fish was digitally printed onto vinyl flooring to create a playful environment for the young patients to enjoy, and to distract them at what could be a traumatic or upsetting time.

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Throughout the corridors, reception and main waiting areas of the centre, David chose to use Eternal in Silver Chestnut, because of its heavy wear resistance and superior appearance retention – key requirements for a busy hospital environment. The natural wooden aesthetic of the floor covering acted as a backdrop for the contrasting bright and vibrant Eternal colourways installed in the wards and consulting rooms of the centre and at the reception desks. Shades such as Petrol Sparkle, an eye-catching blue, and Honey Sparkle, a mustard-like tone, were installed to brighten up the wards and create a very individual environment.

David continued: “We also interspersed blocks of bright Eternal colours throughout the waiting areas. These blocks matched colours used in rooms on the wards as well as the reception desks and other furniture.

“We are very pleased with the overall design of the hospital and we were very fortunate to have a forward-thinking client that was brave enough to embrace the colourful design scheme.”

Forbo’s Eternal range is coated with a PUR Pearl finish which makes floors easy to clean and ensures low lifecycle costs – ideal for hospitals where budgets are tight and where staff and patients require a hygienic environment in which to work and be treated.

For more information please call 0844 822 3928, email info.flooring.uk@forbo.com or visit www.forbo-flooring.co.uk/healthcare.
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Birmingham’s New Street Station crowned UK’s Project of the Year after £1bn revamp

Following a major £1bn redevelopment, Birmingham’s New Street Station has been crowned UK Project of the Year at the 2016 RICS Awards Grand Final.

The national RICS Project of the Year accolade is presented to the scheme which demonstrates outstanding best practice and significant benefit to their local area and wider economy. The redevelopment of Birmingham’s New Street station and Grand Central triumphed over 90 of the UK’s most impressive property schemes to gain the top award.

The Birmingham Gateway & Grand Central project – delivered by a team including Mace, Network Rail, Birmingham City Council and Turner & Townsend – was described by our judging panel as the most significant investment in regenerating Birmingham in a generation.

The new Birmingham’s New Street station and its former Pallasades shopping centre opened as Birmingham Grand Central in September last year. The £1bn scheme has transformed it into a popular retail and leisure destination and world-class station – five times the size of the original station – with a striking soccer pitch-sized atrium. Meanwhile, the new shopping centre – above the station – is now home to the biggest John Lewis outside of London and a mix of premium high street brands and eateries.

As one of Britain’s largest and most important cities, Birmingham deserves a station and shopping and leisure destination of this remarkable calibre. This investment in the city has created around 10,000 jobs and is expected to deliver around £2bn in economic benefits.

David Tuffin FRICS of Tuffin Ferraby Taylor LLP said “It is the catalyst for further regeneration in other parts of the city centre, which will create even more jobs. The team behind Birmingham Gateway and Grand Central should be extremely proud. 180,000 passengers continued to use the station during the works, yet they still managed to create a visually striking, yet practical international gateway into Birmingham, on time, from which the city, its residents and visitors will prosper from enormously.

“Each of these schemes is of an exceptional calibre. I’d like to extend a huge well done to the teams behind them as these projects are all positively contributing to their local communities and our country’s economy.”

Category winners from each of the 12 regional RICS Award ceremonies – held earlier this year – competed to win the national accolade in their respective category, with host, Gethin Jones, Broadcaster and TV personality announcing the winners.

The Grand Final winners:

  • Building Conservation: Mount Stewart, Newtownard (Northern Ireland)
  • Commercial: Landrover BAR America’s Cup HQ, Portsmouth (South East)
  • Community Benefit: Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool (North West)
  • Design through Innovation: Black Rock Quarry, Portishead (South West)
  • Infrastructure: Emergency Care Centre, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Gateshead (North East)
  • Regeneration: Birmingham Gateway & Grand Central, Birmingham (West Midlands)
  • Residental: Romilly Quarter, Barry (Wales)
  • Tourism & Leisure: NT Future, South Bank (London)
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A new Apple campus at Battersea Power Station redevelopment

Battersea Power Station has now confirmed that Apple has agreed to lease office space within the historic Battersea Power Station.

Apple will be the largest office tenant at Battersea Power Station occupying approximately 500,000 sqft., across 6 floors of the central Boiler House inside the historic icon. Apple is expected to move into the Power Station in 2021.

Battersea Power Station will be Apple’s new London campus and its office will account for circa 40% of the total office space in the whole development.

Apple has today said it is looking forward to opening its new London campus at Battersea Power Station in 2021. 1400 Apple employees from existing offices around London will relocate to this magnificent new development at one of London’s best known landmarks. Apple has added, that this is a great opportunity to have its entire team working and collaborating in one location while supporting the renovation of a neighbourhood rich with history.

Dato’ Johan Ariffin, Chairman of Battersea Holding Company Limited, said “We are delighted to welcome Apple, the world’s most valuable brand, to Battersea Power Station, London’s most iconic development. This move by a brand of such calibre will serve to generate even more interest in Battersea with its vibrant mix of commercial, exciting retail and residential offerings in a cultural setting designed to drive innovation and enterprise. Apple can only strengthen this formula for success.”

Rob Tincknell, CEO of Battersea Power Station Development Company added: “We are delighted that Apple has chosen to make Battersea Power Station its home in 2021. It is testament to our fantastic building and the wider regeneration of the 42-acre site which offers a carefully curated mix of homes, businesses and leisure amidst extraordinary open spaces and new transport links. It has always been our clear objective to create one of London’s most thriving new communities and this commitment from Apple will undoubtedly help us achieve our goal.”

Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London commented: “I am delighted that Apple is moving into Battersea Power Station‎, helping to generate new jobs and economic prosperity for Londoners. It is a further sign that London is open to the biggest brands in the world and the leading city for trade and investment.”

Cllr Ravi Govindia, Leader of the London Borough of Wandsworth said: “I’m very pleased to give Apple a warm welcome to the London Borough of Wandsworth. Apple will become the largest employer in the Borough and we are hugely excited that they will play a keen and active role in our local community.”

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CMS wins Aberdeen art gallery redevelopment contract

Leading window, door and curtain walling designer, fabricator and installer CMS Window Systems has been appointed to work on a £30 million project to redevelop the prestigious Aberdeen Art Gallery.

Working for main contractor McLaughlin & Harvey, CMS is tasked with providing curtain walling as part of the two year project designed by Hoskins Architects which will transform the city’s Art Gallery, Cowdray Hall and Memorial Hall. This will create new educational facilities, upgrade performance and reflection spaces and provide 21 new galleries in what was previously unused space.

A significant part of the project will be to alter the building envelope and create a new rooftop extension by removal of the existing pitched roofs and skylights, together with a new build extension to the rear. CMS will provide the solutions for this part of the project.

The company, which is based at Castlecary near Glasgow, will fabricate and install nearly 150 sq. m of curtain walling using Metal Technology’s System 17 SP (Silicon Pointed). This structural glazing system’s classic visual appearance provides a continuous and expansive external glass face to the façade in order to meet the contemporary design of the new building elements.

The curtain walling features 32mm insulating glass units (IGUs) which incorporate a 6mm SECURIT glass outer skin, a 6mm PLANITHERM low e glass inner pane and a 20mm cavity with warm edge spacer bar, silicon sealed with toggle glazing insert. The façade on the west elevation offers additional solar control with the inner pane on these IGUs being 6mm COOL‐LITE SKN 174 to manage solar gain in peak sunshine. The façade also features spandrel glazing created with a 6mm EMALIT ceramic painted inner skin insulated with 75mm foil faced rigid PIR.

Aberdeen Art Gallery was handed over to the main contractor in July and CMS is scheduled to begin installing the windows, doors and curtain walling in September. This comes as the gallery continues to raise the remaining one third of funds required for the project, which is already backed by The Heritage Lottery Fund and Aberdeen City Council who have each granted the project £10m.

A public fundraising campaign is helping to bridge the gap, which will see donors digitally acknowledged and anyone wishing to donate can visit: www.aagm.co.uk or call 01224 523670. Donations can also be made by texting AAGM001 to 70970 to donate £5, and AAGM001 to 70191 to donate £10.

Find out more about CMS at www.cmswindows.com.
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Creating homes from disused offices

Giacomini UK is on a mission to create homes out of underused office spaces around the country!

In recent months Giacomini has been involved in many projects that transform commercial office units into residential areas. The latest project is on a site in Crawley, called Babcock House, where 185 apartments are being created in a disused eight storey office block.

The Babcock House site will create 185 units comprising of studio accommodation as well as one and two bedroom flats – all designed to a very high specification, along with having excellent communal facilities.

The work will involve re-roofing the building, renovating the external façade and installing 185 of Giacomini’s twin plated heat interface units to allow each apartment independently controlled, efficient heating and hot water in the multi-dwelling building.

Since regulations surrounding planning permission were altered, meaning that Class B1 offices could be converted to Class C3 residential dwellings without the need for specific planning and development permission, there has been a noticeable growth in projects of this nature.

Matt Lowe, Giacomini UK’s managing director, commented “The planning permission policy change for projects like this aims to support an increase in housing supply, bring empty properties into productive use and encourage regeneration of office space. The Crawley development is the latest project we have been involved in where we are utilising disused space to bring revenue and housing to the local economy whilst complementing the buildings’ existing features.”

The project, estimated to cost £16.5 million, is due to be completed by September 2016.

For more information on Giacomini, and its heat interface units, please visit www.giacomini.co.uk.
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The regeneration of London’s 2012 Olympic Stadium

Balfour Beatty, working with Populous, Buro Happold and the London Legacy Development Corporation, have repurposed the iconic London 2012 Olympic stadium, originally built to host London’s 2012 games. Their latest video (see below) talks us through the redesign, highlighting how they are championing sustainable practices throughout the project.

According to the video, the stadium, which is now home to West Ham United FC, will have a capacity of 54,000 people for football matches and 80,000 for athletics events and music concerts.

Sustainability and skills building

Sustainability has been at the very heart of the redesign. So far the work undertaken has included the reuse of 19,000 tonnes of recycled demolition materials, 6,000 m of cable, 3,800 lights and 1,000 mechanical and electrical components. This will undoubtedly help send a message out to the refurb and retrofit industry of what can be done to try and push the industry towards reducing the volume of waste to landfill. (According to a report by the Wates Group, the UK construction industry sends 36 million tons of waste to landfill sites each year.)

The regeneration project has also been doing its bit to tackle the skills shortage, with Balfour Beatty creating 50 local apprenticeships and over 300 training opportunities across the site.

Continuing a legacy

Stephen Tarr, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Major Projects business said, “From the very beginning we were focused on continuing the legacy of this historic venue, transforming it from its original use of a single-purpose venue to a multi-functional world class venue providing numerous opportunities and uses for generations to come.

“We have utilised some of the most complex engineering techniques on this project, capitalising on our in-house capabilities and expertise to ensure the project was delivered safely to a high specification whilst boosting the local economy through employment opportunities; it’s a project we are all immensely proud of.”

Watch the video below:
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Mapei products specified to create a distinctly British feel in luxury London apartments

Mapei’s products were specified to help represent the epitome of sophisticated city living in an apartment redevelopment. Mapei products were distributed by Boyden Tiles, Croydon with the project being led by WB Simpsons.

Keraquick and Latex Plus were used on approx. 340m2 of flooring to lay the Domus porcelain 600 x 600 tiles in all the main and ensuite bathrooms plus all of the balconies within the apartment block.

800m2 of wall tiling were fixed using Mapei’s Ultralite S2 – a high performance, lightweight cementitious adhesive with very low emissions of volatile organic compounds. The adhesive, specifically developed for large size tiles to be laid on large surfaces without back buttering, was used to bond Domus Tiles 3m x 1m ‘Kerlite Slim’ porcelain tiles to the walls of the apartments luxury bathrooms and ensuites.

Mapei’s Topcem, was specified as a screed for an area of 120m2 onto external balconies. The quick setting screed allowed the installation of Domus Tiles 200 x 800mm ‘Wood Sense’ porcelain tiles just 24 hours after application.

For more information on Mapei resilient products, other products or training days, please visit www.mapei.co.uk, email info@mapei.co.uk or tel. +44 (0)121 508 6970.
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