INDUSTRY COMMENT Ask the Expert Simon Howard, divisional managing director at


Polypipe Building Services (PBS), looks at the sector’s main challenges in this series of Ask the Expert.


What is the biggest challenge facing the industry this year?


Planning for smart buildings


James Cook, head of planning law at Blacks Solicitors, discusses the relationship between the smart buildings of the future and the planning system


T


he use of smart technology has surged in the past decade, with the global market doubling in value from $43.4bn in 2017 to an expected $91bn in 2022. From its use in the


home to integration in most sectors of the economy from energy, banking to shopping, it’s been adopted to enhance the experience of consumers across the board.


Thanks to the ongoing evolution of technology, buildings are becoming smarter and better able to deliver the services that users require. This provides a multitude of benefits including making buildings as efficient as possible, minimising costs, and increasing energy saving capabilities. A number of UK cities are also implementing smart city projects in order to commit to investment in the infrastructure which will be necessary to implement ‘smart’ technologies.


In a planning context, technological innovations in how buildings are both constructed and operated are considered to have a vital role to play in creating sustainable communities and the UK achieving its target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.


What are smart buildings?


Smart buildings are any structure that uses automated processes to automatically control the building’s operations and systems including heating, ventilation, air conditioning, lighting. Sensors and other technology are integrated into the building at construction in order to collect data and manage the processes to ensure that it meets the functions and services required by the tenants or users of the space. The infrastructure enables owners, operators, tenants, and facilities managers to improve the performance of the building, reduce energy consumption, and optimise how the space is used. Smart buildings, thanks to the optimisation and automation of services can also have a reduced impact on the environment. Alongside environmental benefits, people who live and work in smart buildings are often more productive thanks to the regulated environment, for example lighting, air quality, and thermal comfort. The technology can also enhance collaboration and facilitate the use of data to monitor and improve the way in which developments function and achieve sustainability goals.


Smart buildings and the planning system


The Government sees the planning system as having a key role in mitigating the effects of climate change and reducing


Read the latest at: www.bsee.co.uk


the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The National Planning Policy Framework requires local plans and new developments to take a proactive approach to mitigating and adapting to climate change, and to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions through location, orientation and design. This includes increasing the supply of renewable and low carbon energy and heat. In 2019 the Climate Change Committee (CCC) concluded that UK homes are not fit for the future and that the quality of design must be improved to address the challenges of climate change. The CCC noted that smart systems can help to reduce energy demand as well as giving real time data on matters such as temperature and humidity. Data could also be used to encourage more sustainable travel choices. In January 2021 the Government published its National Design Guide: Planning practice guidance for beautiful enduring and successful places (NDG). The NDG highlights the contribution that new construction techniques can make towards improving the efficiency and productivity of new buildings; and the benefits of innovative and smart technologies supported by digital infrastructure. In December 2021 the Government announced future homes and buildings standards for England which will be implemented from 2025. The Government says the standards will assist by “embracing smart technologies, we can cut energy bills, reduce demand for energy, and boost economic growth while meeting our targets for carbon reduction and maintaining healthy environments.”


Conclusion


The installation of smart technologies within buildings at conception will be vital to achieving modern, sustainable and healthy communities which can meet targets for carbon reduction. However, as the CCC concluded in 2019, it is important that the technology is usable and readily available to all given challenges with usability, reliability and cost. In order to achieve these aims, planning policies will need to be adopted and implemented in a flexible manner in order to ensure that the buildings of the future are ‘smart’ from conception and that the need for retro- fitting is minimised.


The biggest challenge I feel the industry is facing today is around volatility in the supply chain. This is not just about the availability of material from a single manufacturer or pricing, supply chain volatility and disruption can affect contract timescales; from the moment the first concrete is poured any delays will have a knock-on effect!


What have you done to mitigate this challenge?


Our product solutions and services are evolving to help overcome of supply chain challenges for our customers. We have positioned and structured our business to be are flexible in our supply, adaptable to potential change in needs of our clients, therefore avoiding directly negatively impacting a build schedule. We have the benefit of scale at PBS, offering developers a variety of different solutions and an industry-leading level of service with a wide and deep supply chain and routes to market.


Is there an issue with the supply of skilled labour?


Skilled labour continues to be a challenge for the industry across all trades. Our Advantage Service allows us to enact a further-down-the-line solution to ensure that our products are quicker to install. We are reducing the amount of skilled labour needed by contractors on site by carrying out more of the configuration and prefabrication work at our own premises. By reducing this burden, we can help to reduce timescales to project delivery. This service allows our customers to embrace modern methods of construction. We are able to integrate fully with the building design, with the contractor’s system design, and through to the contract schedules, which allows us to maximise the amount of work we carry out off site. It is vital that we don’t introduce delays to a build schedule. Because we operate a ‘just in time’ delivery service, our products arrive right at the point when they need to be installed.


What are you doing to increase the amount of skilled labour in our sector?


Again, just like the supply chain, a lack of skilled labour availability can affect an entire build programme. We are as active today as we have ever been in encouraging young people into the industry. We engage with a number of colleges in the area to talk about and introduce manufacturing and construction and the various career paths that are available to students in the industry. I strongly believe that this sector can really drive social mobility and I am pleased that PBS can play a role in this. The year ahead will no doubt provide us with challenges, but I am confident that we have the right team here at PBS to deliver innovative product solutions and services to meet all the many challenges we face head on. We really are trying to help construction build better.


Simon Howard of Polypipe Building Services


BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER APRIL 2022 23


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