Environmental monitoring in groundworks: clearing the way for new homes
With available building space at a premium in the UK, there has been an increasing push to convert disused brownfield land into new housing....
Scotland: building and fire safety regulation post-Grenfell
By Rosie Gollan, Edinburgh-based solicitor at law firm Womble Bond Dickinson
FOLLOWING the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017, the UK Government has been reviewing...
Planning a way forward
The Scottish Government recently set out proposals for “revamping” the nation’s planning system, which build on recommendations of an independent review carried out last...
Building your brand as an employer of choice
IT is welcome news that Scotland’s unemployment rate dropped slightly to 4.2% between April and June. According to The Office for National Statistics, the...
Social value schemes find their place in company environmental strategies
Kobir Ahamed, sustainability manager at commercial roofing firm BriggsAmasco, says social value schemes are finding their place in environmental strategies
INITIATING a social value strategy...
Sensor-led smart technology could transform Scotland’s approach to housing
By Cade Wells, business development manager, CENSIS
WE have seldom spent more time in our homes than now. Indeed, we have certainly never relied so...
Finding a different pathway to my successful career in construction
By Elaine Perratt, assistant health and safety manager at Cruden Buildings & Renewals Ltd
When I was at school, I wasn’t academic; the thought of...
Just capital: Edinburgh housing market remains a law unto itself
By Kirsten Nicolson, a director in the Edinburgh residential offices of DM Hall Chartered Surveyors
As the old year slips away, home buyers and sellers...
Offsite to play vital role in the biggest growth sectors
It has been widely reported that two of the largest growth sectors in the coming years will be affordable/social housing and student accommodation. Steve...
National Women in Engineering Day – How to get more Scottish women into engineering
By Patricia Molina Benitez, graduate engineer at WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff
Gender diversity is an issue before we even reach employment; in fact, it’s already...
Demystifying the rules regarding recruiting construction workers from overseas
By Mark Templeton, director at Anderson Strathern
In his spring statement, chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced that five construction occupations were to be added to the...
Upskilling our existing workforce is key to getting apprentices ready for zero carbon
By Caitriona Jordan, head of retrofit programmes at Construction Scotland Innovation Centre (CSIC)
Scotland must reduce net greenhouse gas emissions, 40% of which come from...
Lessons learned through lockdown could rebuild the future of construction
By Kevin Reid, chief executive of the Cruden Group
AS the construction industry begins its journey through the restart plan, we consider how lockdown has...
Waste management: how does Scotland compare?
By Scott Brewster, MD, Brewster Brothers
Driven by the need to tackle climate change and protect the environment, businesses across the UK are making great...
Home Reports have worked well, but surveyors must be open to opportunities for improvement
By Eric Curran, managing partner of DM Hall Chartered Surveyors
IT is quite remarkable that it is now 10 years since Home Reports, the initiative...
Developers can play pivotal role in improving Scotland’s digital connectivity
By Jim Fitzsimons, director of special projects at Stewart Milne Group, the developer behind Countesswells
Improving digital infrastructure is key to the future success of...
Civils sector needs visible pipeline of work to ensure a prosperous future
By Grahame Barn, chief executive of CECA Scotland
THERE is much to be positive about in the civil engineering sector, encapsulated recently in our CECA...
Paving for change — the growing importance of SuDS
SuDS represent a collection of strategies, management practices, structures and design solutions that drain surface water efficiently and sustainably from development sites. Here, David...
Scotland’s Passivhaus schools teach construction industry important lessons
By Sarah Lewis, research & policy director, Passivhaus Trust
THERE are estimated to be 35 Passivhaus schools currently underway or in the pipeline in Scotland....
Is your holiday home winter ready?
Leaving your holiday home empty over the winter months can be a daunting prospect, and the unpredictability of the British weather makes it hard...
