Welcome to PBC Today August 2023. With the Met Office warning that the record-breaking 40C heatwave the UK experienced in 2022 could become a normal summer by 2060 – and even considered cool for the time of year by the end of the century – our cover story by Prof Jason Lowe OBE looks at how we can get reliable information about the impact of extreme weather into the hands of AEC decision-makers
The new Met Office Climate Data Portal will allow stakeholders to investigate their physical climate risks over the next 50 to 100 years, with detailed projections to help them plan for climate change and the reporting that new regulations, linked to climate change, will require.
We also hear from Tim Balcon, chief executive of the Construction Industry Training Board, on its updated Net Zero Action Plan, which aims to equip the sector with the skills for a sustainable future.
Elsewhere, Paul Dodd of the Scottish Futures Trust examines proposals for a UK National Metric Library to provide a central repository of performance metrics for the built environment.
The Geospatial Commission’s Holly West discusses the use of location data in construction and the Geospatial Strategy 2030, and we look at the Zero Diesel Sites Route Map from the Construction Leadership Council’s CO2nstruct Zero programme, which aims to eliminate the fuel’s use on 78% of UK construction sites by 2035.
In MMC & Offsite, Alex Goodfellow of the Confederation of Timber Industries delves into the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Timber Industries’ latest report, Timber Construction: Barriers and Solutions, setting out the policy options to support the expansion of low-carbon timber construction in the UK.
We also hear from Professor Johnson Zhang about innovative research at Edinburgh Napier University that has led to a world-first bamboo-timber composite construction in China.
In BIM & Digital, Brian Hills of The Data Lab looks at the hype surrounding AI, its potential impacts and risks in the built environment and how we can promote responsible use.
What is in store in PBC Today August 2023?
The Met Office data portal has been launched to firmly place its essential climate data into the hands of those that need it.
Following the launch of the Construction Industry Training Board’s updated Net Zero Action Plan, chief executive Tim Balcon examines the work being done to equip the UK with the skills for a sustainable future.
Proposals for a UK National Metric Library could provide a structured repository of quantitative and qualitative performance metrics for the built environment, supporting the UK’s net zero ambitions. Paul Dodd of the Scottish Futures Trust explains how it would work.
The Construction Leadership Council’s CO2nstruct Zero programme has launched the Zero Diesel Sites Route Map, which sets out a plan to eliminate diesel use on 78% of UK construction sites by 2035.
Ahead of the major decarbonisation challenge in the UK, Nick Geddes, Energy Systems Catapult, explores how cost-effective, sustainable alternatives such as heat networks could be the solution.
We should be strengthening the service, not disassembling it, says David Edwards of Placemake.
Alex Goodfellow, chairman of the Confederation of Timber Industries, examines the barriers to expanding timber use in UK construction and the policy solutions available to the government to address them.
Researchers at Edinburgh Napier University showcased their innovative research in bio-based construction by leading an engineered bamboo-timber composite gridshell construction project, completed by students from three universities.
Artificial intelligence has been at the centre of some alarming, if not apocalyptic, news stories of late. Brian Hills, CEO of The Data Lab, looks beyond the headlines at the potential impacts and risks of AI in the built environment and how we can promote responsible use.
To retrofit the built environment for the future, you first need to know where you’re starting from, says Diarmuid Murphy, director of property at Murphy Geospatial.
