Santa Claus signs up as Constructing Excellence Member

We are delighted to announce Constructing Excellence’s latest member Santa Claus Inc., the world’s largest manufacturer and distributor of toys by volume.  Santa is about to embark on a major redevelopment of his toy  manufacturing and logistics centre at the North Pole and took the decision to join Constructing Excellence in order to find out … Continue reading “Santa Claus signs up as Constructing Excellence Member”

Developing healthy homes and communities does not have to cost extra

There is a common view amongst developers that designing and building for health and wellbeing objectives is more expensive than standard projects and that it doesn’t offer return on investment. I have recently written an article which summarises evidence from a range of organisations, including the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the Urban Land … Continue reading “Developing healthy homes and communities does not have to cost extra”

BRE office building to become ‘living lab’ for occupant health and wellbeing

BRE has announced a new project that will test the effects of biophilic design on office occupants. The Healthy Research Building will be the UK’s first live research workspace that measures the real-world health and well-being benefits of incorporating nature into a building’s design. The project will see BRE refurbish an existing office building at its headquarters … Continue reading “BRE office building to become ‘living lab’ for occupant health and wellbeing”

5 questions about Phase Change Materials (including one about cocktails)

BRE Global technical author Corinne Williams answers 5 questions about her new publication Assessing the performance of Phase Change Materials in buildings. Question 1: Did you have to test several cocktails during the writing of this publication? No! The ice cube example is a simple way to explain how PCMs work. Ice is a commonly used … Continue reading “5 questions about Phase Change Materials (including one about cocktails)”

Hotel development is first to adopt new LPCB security certification scheme

The St. Regis Astana (Republic of Kazakhstan) has become the first hotel development in the world to be assessed and receive certification by LPCB when piloted against SABRE, the new security certification scheme for buildings and built infrastructure assets by BRE Global. Gavin Jones, Director of SABRE said: ‘Today, more than ever, international travellers need … Continue reading “Hotel development is first to adopt new LPCB security certification scheme”

Generation rent vs generation mortgage? There might be a solution…

A recent report from UBS Wealth Management’s “Bubble index” looking at the state of the property markets has found that London has the second most over-valued property market of any major city around the world. At the same time, official figures from the Office for National Statistics tell us that the average wage in the UK is £28,105 annually. If we were … Continue reading “Generation rent vs generation mortgage? There might be a solution…”