Cool new products

We led the development of and have subsequently refined Coolslab, a pioneering energy-saving cooling system which combines ground source technology with a pipework circuit embedded within precast floor slabs.

Improvements to the design enabled us to offer Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) planks twice the width of those used previously and with a reduced number of component parts for its Birley Fields campus development.

The use of Coolslab, along with other sustainable features of the building, has led to an anticipated 51% reduction in CO2 emissions when compared to Part L of the 2006 Building Regulations.

Birley Fields is the third project on which we have used Coolslab, which was developed initially for MMU's Business School and Student Hub where cooling represented the building's predominant energy demand. The advantages offered by the system also saw the technology installed at Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council's new civic offices.

Lake water used in concrete

With no suitable mains connection to supply water for the on-site concrete batching plant at our Buckinghamshire Energy from Waste project, we used water from a lake which had formed in a pit on an adjoining landfill site.

The water was pumped to a holding tank where it was treated before being used. Regular testing ensured the water was fully British Standard compliant for use in the concrete production process.

As well as the environmental benefit of allowing on-site concrete production without the need to supply a mains connection, use of the lake water provided cost savings by avoiding mains water charges or the need for tankers.

Recycling in the mix

We continue to make progress on maximising the use of replacement or waste materials within the concrete mixes on our sites.

Recent successes include the use of 100% replacement coarse aggregate and 20% fine aggregate in the concrete mix at Walbrook Square in London. This equates to in excess of 71,000 tonnes of virgin aggregate saved.

The lessons learnt at Walbrook Square helped ensure the buy-in of our project partners on the nearby 70 Mark Lane scheme where 85% replacement coarse and fine aggregates were used in the concrete mix for the piling. This equates to 16,389 tonnes of mining waste diverted from landfill/virgin aggregate saved.

Click to enlarge chart

Demolition material crushed and reused

On the Victoria Gate retail development in Leeds, optimising the amount of demolition waste diverted from landfill delivered a significant cost saving while reducing our overall impact on the environment.

Ninety-nine per cent of the demolition waste from the concrete-framed building was crushed and recycled on site for the 5,200m3 of fill material required on the project.

As well as saving some £91,000 in waste disposal costs and 14 tonnes of carbon, this approach removed the need for the extraction and delivery of virgin material, in all avoiding a total of 1,300 lorry movements.

Lighting the way forward

We have replaced sodium lamps with LED technology along stretches of our A19 road concession in the North East. As well as improving safety for the travelling public and our workforce, this is reducing carbon emissions, light pollution, energy costs and maintenance requirements.

Using LED technology:

• Increases the lifespan of the light source from 4 years to 20 years for the LED modules and 12.5 years for the control equipment
• Increases the timescale between maintenance visits and reduces the risk to operatives
• Can significantly improve visibility for drivers and reduce light pollution for adjacent communities
• Reduces the need for maintenance interventions and the requirement for lane closures, allowing additional savings in energy and carbon that would be otherwise associated with this activity
• Allows greater flexibility to dim the lighting units during light traffic periods, delivering further energy and CO2 reductions

The anticipated whole life savings from the replacement of 33 sodium lamps with LEDs at a single interchange is £8,129 and 14.5 tonnes of carbon emissions.

A more sustainable stadium

Nearly 70% of the giant roof truss that runs around the London 2012 Olympic Stadium is made up of redundant sections of steel pipe from an oil and gas project.

In addition to providing significant savings in embodied energy, use of the second-hand steel removed the potential risk to programme associated with the lead time for the steel and the difficulty of manufacturing the specialised sections.

As a result, 20% of the steel used in the stadium came from a non-prime steel source.

Designing out waste

We optimised the use of precast concrete on our Manchester Metropolitan University Birley Fields campus project, an approach which resulted in a huge reduction in construction waste compared with a similar project of a comparable scale.

Utilising BIM early in the design stage to accurately co-ordinate and size the structural frame components meant that a precast concrete solution could be considered.

A total of 10,400 tonnes of precast was installed, with just 97 tonnes of waste produced. This represents a significant saving when compared to the 674 tonnes produced during in situ concrete frame works on a project of a similar size built by the company.

The Brooks Building at Birley Fields was Highly Commended at the Construction News Awards 2015, the judges hailing a project which they said “demonstrated outstanding sustainable innovation throughout”.

The judges’ citation went on to say: “The client’s strong sustainability vision was delivered successfully by the Sir Robert M^cAlpine project team... This BREEAM Excellent-rated building saw 99% of construction waste diverted from landfill.”

Materials use 'Outstanding'

The M74 Completion Project in Glasgow won the 2013 Outstanding Achievement Award for Materials Use from CEEQUAL, the sustainability assessment and awards scheme for civil engineering.

The judges said: “The project had a primary focus on the use of materials from secondary sources. The substantial majority of this was sourced locally from other projects. Achievement of this strategy also required the stabilisation of large quantities of contaminated ground.”

• 2.5 million tonnes of recycled or reclaimed aggregates used
• 86,000 tonnes of chromium waste remediated
• 25,000 tonnes of clay sourced through the National Industrial Symbiosis Programme recycled on the project

Four Gold CCS awards in 2015

Thirteen of our project teams across the country were honoured with Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS) National Site Awards in 2015 – four receiving Gold Awards and one being named Most Considerate Site Runner Up.

All our projects register with the CCS and in 2014 our project teams recorded an average score of 40 out of 50 under the CCS Code, 4.5 points higher than the industry standard.

Considerate Constructors Scheme National Site Awards 2015:

• 4 Gold
• 5 Silver
• 4 Bronze

Opportunities across the country

We aim to recruit locally and encourage our supply chain to do the same.

After approaching the company directly, Beth Bowran was offered the position of Trainee Works Manager. Beth is currently working on our Quadrant 4 project in London, which is within easy travelling distance of her home. She is in the second year of a CIOB Site Management training course at Barking and Dagenham College.

“Working for Sir Robert M^cAlpine is a great experience and I enjoy putting my own stamp on how a site is run,” says Beth. “I have been given opportunities and responsibilities which have really developed my learning.”

Graduate Fred Petty joined the company in January 2015 as an Assistant Quantity Surveyor on our Westquay Watermark project, close to his home in Southampton.

The company is supporting Fred’s on-going professional development and he is now enrolled on the Assessment of Professional Competence programme for RICS membership.

“Since joining Sir Robert M^cAlpine I have been given commercial responsibility for a number of works packages ranging from £2,000 to £5m. With support from senior colleagues, I continue to learn something new every day.”

Learning about biodiversity

Biodiversity and engineering were the topics for the day when pupils from a nearby primary school visited our Walbrook Square project in London.

As well as finding out about the project and different aspects of engineering, the children from Sir John Cass Foundation Primary School also learnt more about biodiversity, including the importance of providing a habitat for bees and other insects.

As part of their day the youngsters visited the site gantry where they helped plant flowers in planters made using waste wood off-cuts from the site.

They were also asked to create pictures showing what biodiversity meant to them. These were used to create a banner to decorate the site gantry.

As a token of thanks each child was given a ‘grow your own’ sunflower or cherry tomato plant kit.

Similar sessions are regularly held on sites across the country, reflecting our commitment to working with schools to enhance the curriculum, promote careers in construction and, in this case, increase understanding of the importance of biodiversity.

Multi-dimensional engagement

We instigated a host of initiatives to help maximise the benefits to the local community of the Old Market development in Hereford.

Close ties were established with two local colleges and an education suite set up on site to give students a better understanding of construction and encourage them to explore opportunities in their chosen trade. This resulted in two students securing apprenticeships with the project’s brickwork contractor.

A strong relationship also developed with CSV Volunteer and Learning Group, our team visiting the charity’s local centre to provide construction course participants with an insight into the work of site trades and to conduct mock interviews. A work placement scheme was set up with CSV and the local job centre, the opportunities provided translating into a full-time work with us for one individual.

Meet the Contractor events provided local companies with the opportunity to express their interest in work, with 10 businesses from the area winning contracts on the project.

The site also established a work placement model with the city’s Royal National College for the Blind, providing one of its students with support towards achieving her NVQ Level 2 in Business.

Collaboration pays dividends at Nine Elms

We are working as part of the Nine Elms Partnership to inform the local community and ensure it benefits from the major regeneration programme currently under way in the area.

The partnership includes representatives from local authorities, the Mayor of London’s office, Transport for London and various private sector partners.

Members of the New London Embassy project team sit on a number of working groups, sharing best practice and working on collaborative initiatives designed to minimise the impact of construction, benefit the community and contribute to the local economy.

Helping ensure a co-ordinated approach, this includes contributing in areas such as community engagement, communications, logistics, utilities, employment, training and education.

Keeping it local

We engage with the local supply chain, create opportunities for local suppliers and use local service organisations for the duration of our projects.

“Sir Robert M^cAlpine's approach to local employment has been very refreshing. Working on the Lillie Square project in Earls Court, London, has been a great opportunity for us to engage in a local project that has enabled us to take advantage of the benefits local employment presents. Not only are we boosting our skill sets with talent on the doorstep, but our operational costs are reduced also.” Grant Shimwell, Project Manager, Colorminium

Providing routes into work

Building on the success of our ongoing relationship with The Prince’s Trust, we have helped 10 unemployed young people from Glasgow take their first steps on a career in construction.

With outstanding support from our supply chain, we partnered with the Trust and City of Glasgow College on a Get into Construction course during delivery of the college’s new twin-site campus.

As well as receiving training in skills including plastering, bricklaying and tiling, the young people on the course gained an in-depth understanding of health and safety and obtained their CSCS cards, a fundamental requirement for working in the industry.

We worked with our subcontractors to ensure that each participant was then provided with two weeks of meaningful work experience which enabled them both to learn from the experts and put into practice the new skills they’d acquired.

Ten candidates completed the course and have progressed into full-time employment with our supply chain.

New entrant target surpassed

With a year still to go, we have already surpassed our new entrants target on our City of Glasgow College campus project.

Reflecting the strength of our commitment to providing opportunities for those looking to join the industry, the project has so far seen the equivalent of 5,696 weeks worked by new entrants, nearly 500 weeks more than our target.

The total number of new entrants on the project has now reached 121, including 51 apprentices.

Among those benefitting from the opportunities provided is Connor Jackson, who in March this year became the project’s 100th new entrant when he was taken on as an apprentice by one of our Riverside campus subcontractors.

Connor said: “I wanted to get a trade under my belt and there aren’t many opportunities for people looking to get a start in the industry. I managed to get this apprenticeship … and it has been great. It’s such a large project which means I’ll be able to gain a wide range of skills and experience that I wouldn’t be able to get anywhere else”

Researching Natural Capital

As part of our work to drive progress within the construction sector, Sustainability Manager Szilvia Zakar is conducting research designed to increase industry understanding of Natural Capital Assessment and its importance in helping to appropriately value natural resources.

Natural Capital Assessment uses the language of business to attempt to place a monetary value on natural resources and services. This increases companies’ understanding of the risks and opportunities associated with their relationship with Natural Capital. Companies are then better placed to manage these interactions and to integrate their impact into business strategy.

Szilvia’s research, conducted through the CIOB Sustainability Scholarship programme, will focus on producing:

• A clear statement of industry understanding of Natural Capital and its applicability to the sector
• A description of the data available on the topic, including how the data could potentially be utilised
• A suggested set of tools and mechanisms to allow management to understand Natural Capital with the same ease and clarity as a balance sheet

Urban sustainability at The Core

With The Core office development in Newcastle upon Tyne envisaged as an exemplar of urban sustainability, the importance of achieving our client’s sustainability requirements was clear from the outset.

Early planning, effective collaboration and a flexible one-team approach ensured our shared aspirations for this BREEAM Excellent scheme were achieved.

By ensuring robust subcontract packages and scopes through the procurement and subcontract design process, we were able to minimise change proposals and in turn protect the BREEAM requirements.

The building features a spectacular 27m-high vertical garden containing more than 35,000 plants. We worked with architect FaulknerBrowns, landscape architect Land Use Consultants, living wall experts ANS Group Europe and engineers Mott MacDonald to design, engineer and install the feature.

The Core was named winner of the Legacy Award – Sustainability, at the Constructing Excellence in the North East (CENE) Awards.

Working with the UK‑GBC

As part of our work to share and promote sustainability best practice within the industry, we teamed up with the UK Green Building Council to provide an On-site Learning Tour of our Birley Fields campus project in Manchester.

The event, part of the UK‑GBC’s Learning and Development programme, enabled us to showcase this highly sustainable project and pass on the lessons learnt at each stage.

Our team presented on the sustainability strategy for the project and how this was implemented to support Manchester Metropolitan University’s ambitious target of Zero Waste, Zero Carbon, Zero Water and maximum biodiversity.

Delegates also learnt about design decisions relating to features such as the brise soliel veil, and how the construction of the building was managed to maximise sustainability.

Emma Radcliffe, Learning and Development Officer, UK‑GBC said: “It was clear from the presentations from the project team that the key to the success of the project lay in the collaboration of the project team at each stage of the process and the clear brief from the University from the very beginning.”

Upskilling our supply chain

We work with our supply chain to drive cultural change and deliver improvements in knowledge and competence across the industry on sustainability.

We are a founding partner and active member of the Supply Chain Sustainability School (SCSS), a free online sustainability tool for the supply chain.

The school helps ensure our supply chain have a complete understanding of our priorities. This enables them to provide more sustainable products and services which improve efficiency, save money and allow us to better meet clients' needs.

More than 790 members of our supply chain are now registered with the school, our Head of Sustainable Procurement sits on the SCSS Board, and we have representatives on various industry groups within the school.

We continue to host “supplier days” which allow suppliers and subcontractors to familiarise themselves with what the school has to offer.

We are also a member of the school’s Horizon Group, a collaboration between industry and academia which aims to help drive improvements in supply chain performance through collaborative research.

Local economy the winner

The number of local subcontractors and suppliers benefitting from winning contracts on our Emirates Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome project had a significant impact on the economy of the City of Glasgow and the surrounding area.

Using the New Economics Foundation's Local Multiplier tool, it has been established that within a 20 mile radius of the site, for every initial pound invested, 64p of additional value was generated. This equates to approximately £60 million generated within the local economy.

Thirty-nine SMEs from within the city boundary were invited to tender for opportunities advertised by the company through the 2014 Business Portal. Nine of these were awarded the contracts which were worth £6.4 million to the local economy. When considered overall, 70% of the contracts were awarded to SMEs, while 107 new entrants and 44 apprentices were recruited into the supply chain.

We now use the Local Multiplier tool on all our projects. This reveals that an additional 30p approximately is generated for the local community for every £1 invested.

• Local Multiplier Case Study: The Emirates Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, Glasgow
  pdf [2.6 MB]

Leading on safety

We are committed to ensuring everyone working on our sites goes home safe at the end of every day.

This commitment to an exceptional safety culture remains central to our company ethos as we work to deliver the cultural change required to eliminate worker injury and near-miss incidents on our sites through our Safety Leadership Programme (SLP).

The SLP challenges each individual's relationship to safety and encourages everyone to take on a personal commitment to safety leadership. Representatives from our subcontractors and clients are included in the sessions to ensure their full buy-in and support for the programme and its Be Safe Home Safe message.

Get into Construction

Through our support for the Prince's Trust's Get Into Construction scheme we are helping industry professionals of the future secure full-time jobs with members of our supply chain.

In one of two schemes run on our London sites, nine out of 12 participants who undertook work placements were offered employment with the subcontractors involved.

The scheme involved young people between the ages of 18 and 25 who were selected for the scheme by the Trust.

Tamarin Fitzpatrick, Prince's Trust Head of Corporate Partnerships, said: “The Prince's Trust is proud to work with Sir Robert M^cAlpine to deliver our Get into Construction programmes. Together we are supporting young people to change their lives through training and work in the construction industry.”

Exploring deconstruction and re-use

We contributed to a groundbreaking research project into how to construct buildings so that they can be more easily reused and recycled.

The RE:Fab project looked at how demountable and re-usable building systems could be used to increase:

• Resource efficiency in construction
• Adaptability in use
• The deconstruction and re-use of components at end of life

We worked with the Alliance for Sustainable Building Products, Ecobond (Cymru) Ltd and ES Global on the Technology Strategy Board Funded scheme, reviewing and providing feedback on a Flexible Life Building design.

Novel river protection

In addition to implementing a host of measures to prevent pollution to the two rivers which surrounded our Olympic Stadium site in Stratford, we worked to ensure the impact on the environment would be minimised in the event of an accidental spillage into the waterways.

With standard floating booms ruled out for health and safety, jurisdictional and access reasons, a marine bubble curtain was selected as the safest and most effective means of containing any spill.

The bubble curtain is created by pumping air through a perforated tube installed across the river bed. The air rises, causing a lip of bubbles on the surface which contains the spill.

Located with ease of access in mind, the bubble curtain was angled to direct the spill towards the stadium side of the waterway at a point where clean-up can be undertaken safely.

Protecting water quality

At the Prime Four Business Park near Aberdeen we implemented a series of measures to protect the nearby Den Burn. This mitigation was especially important as the burn is a tributary to the River Dee which is classified as a Special Area of Conservation.

With the ground sloping down towards the burn, measures to control run off from site entering the waterway included the use of three settlement lagoons to manage dewatering of part of the site.

The lagoons drained to the burn via a series silt fences which acted as a secondary protection in the event of incident or extreme high flows during a storm.

To further reduce site run off into the burn during the bulk excavation phase the permanent Sustainable Drainage System (SUDS) was installed early and all temporary drainage was diverted to this during the remaining works stages.

SUDS installation helped ensure there were no pollution incidents and was carried out in full consultation with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.

Host of biodiversity measures

We have implemented an array of measures to protect and enhance the ecology of the green belt site of a new development for Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire. The scheme is designed to maximise the opportunity for biodiversity across the 22 acres.

Our team is working to help maintain and enhance ecological connectivity through the site to ensure it continues to function as a green corridor during construction and operation.

Biodiversity measures include:

• The installation of 2,000m of reptile fencing to exclude breeding slow-worm, a protected species, from the development when they emerged from hibernation.
• The creation of reptile hibernacula to provide a safe refuge for the reptile population and help increase the site’s capacity to accommodate reptiles.
• Vegetation clearance completed as early as possible in the year to avoid potential conflicts with nesting birds.
• Installation of 3,000m of tree protection fencing.
• Erection of solid hoarding to help protect known bat roosts from light and noise associated with construction.
• Green roofs measuring up to 3,168m2 are to include wood pile features for diverse species.

Avoiding pollution

Conservation issues were a key consideration at the site of a new paint manufacturing facility for AkzoNobel in Northumberland. An early study of potential oil spillage resulted in the introduction of a biodegradable diesel alternative for use in site plant.

Reflecting our lessons learnt culture and commitment to sharing best practice, this approach was subsequently adopted by the piling contractor at our Walbrook Square site in the City of London to prevent land and water contamination.

Increasing biodiversity

With many of the projects we deliver located within built-up urban environments, we embrace the opportunity to increase biodiversity.

The Quadrant 3 mixed-use development in central London features a 250m2 biodiverse sedum roof. Special nectar rich plants were selected to help support the local bee population, while nesting boxes for redstarts and swifts as well as two bee hives and an insect house built by local school children were also installed.

The project was runner-up in two categories at the CIRIA Biodiversity Interest Group BIG Challenge Awards 2014 and was nominated for DEFRA’s Bees’ Needs Champion of Champions Award.

A recent biodiversity survey commissioned by the Crown Estate identified the presence of black redstarts, proving the habitat designed to attract this rare bird is doing what it was designed to do.

The 62 Buckingham Gate development in Victoria features brown roofs spread over three storeys. In addition to biodiverse planting, large logs and rocks were used to provide foraging habitat.

Preserving water quality

Our Severnside Energy Recovery Centre project team has worked closely with the Environment Agency (EA) to ensure our activities don't impact on water quality in the nearby Severn Estuary.

To accommodate the significant dewatering required during construction on the 5ha site we have developed a comprehensive water management strategy.

With no nearby sewer, little space for water attenuation and storage, and the site lying close to the SPA, RAMSAR, SAC and SSSI designated estuary, this has proved a complex challenge.

Under the strategy:

• Water is pumped through a treatment system and discharged into two French drains and a settlement caisson.
• The overall strategy provides sufficient attenuation and storage to meet the 1:30 year flood requirement of the EA’s discharge consent.
• The water is filtered, tested and if necessary treated further prior to discharge into the Severn Estuary.
• A testing regime developed with the EA ensures discharges comply with the consent.

Benefitting local ecology

We are protecting and improving the biodiversity of the areas bordering our A19 road concession, significant stretches of which pass through an internationally important Magnesian Limestone habitat.

The work, which goes beyond our contractual obligations, forms part of a long-term landscape planning and management strategy designed to deliver meaningful and enduring benefits to the local ecology.

Targeted management, carried out in consultation with Durham Wildlife Trust and Highways England, includes:

• The creation of wildflower meadows. Clearance and re-seeding using species characteristic of Magnesian Limestone grassland.
• The formation of hibernacula using materials from scrub clearance and grass cuttings.
• The creation of ponds to increase habitat diversity.
• Utilising self-sown trees to provide additional planting stock.
• Where required maintenance leads to the removal of trees and scrub, this material is chipped and removed for use as biomass fuel. The initiative, which avoids the denitrification of the soil caused by leaving chippings on site, was highly commended at the Highways Agency’s Supplier Recognition Scheme Awards.

Urban space transformed

A barren area of hardcore at our West Quay Watermark site in Southampton has been transformed into a temporary garden, providing a space for site workers and the local community to enjoy and helping to increase biodiversity within an urban environment.

College students and pupils from various schools helped to build and plant the garden which features hanging baskets created from redundant hard hats, and planters packed with a variety of fruit and vegetables.

Fifty flowering shrubs donated by a local garden centre were also planted. Chosen for their pollination benefits, the plants have attracted previously absent species including bees, butterflies and ladybirds to site.

Members of a Nature Group from one of the local schools are involved in maintaining the space, providing the opportunity for them to learn more about wildlife and gardening.