Community benefits are a core element of all public sector contracts now, but how much do we know about them and can we influence policy? 

Community benefits are now a fundamental element of all construction schemes in Wales. Most public sector projects include a provision for working with local people and delivering sustainable benefits in the form of training and employment for local workers or a tangible impact upon communities via support for schools. But increasingly private sector schemes are also becoming far more aware of the need to work with local people to ensure that their respective developments are delivered in such a way that creates a built environment that is sustainable. But what do community benefits entail? During the summer discussions between construction stakeholders took place building upon the Community Benefits guidance 2014 launched by Jane Hutt AM Minister for Finance.

Thanks to all who took part in the break out discussion groups. The issues raised and views expressed are being considered and will inform both future events and the development of the Community Benefits policy. The various groups covered a range of issues and you can find out more here:

Community Benefits Guidance:
English -  Delivering Maximum Value for the Welsh Pound – 2014 
Welsh - Budd I’r Gymuned – Sicrhau’r Gwerth Gorau am Arian Cymru – 2014 

Hard copies of the guidance will be available shortly and all those delegates who indicated that they would like a hard copy will have one posted to them as soon as they are available. To request a hard copy of the guidance please email the Community Benefits mailbox

A guide to the Community Benefits Measurement Tool Version 6.6 July 2014

All of the above plus other procurement related guidance can be found in the Procurement Route Planner website, Policy & Resources Toolkit

Construction is often judged by what happens on its building sites. It is an easy benchmark for everyone to use. Whether it is the skill of bricklaying or the handling of materials and management of waste, the on-site behaviour of our industry is there for everyone to see. It is a shame then that despite great work in many areas there is a missing link between site behaviour regarding construction waste and decisions made in the boardroom. It is a serious problem, because if Welsh construction is to hit its waste reduction targets the culture at site level must change – quickly.

Constructing Excellence in Wales has been managing the Construction Waste programme on behalf of Welsh Government since 2008 and achieved some notable successes, not least of which is the Green Compass, a quality scheme for waste management companies. 

Our programme is focused on providing easy solutions for construction companies to help them manage their waste in the most effective and efficient way. In January 2014 we launched a project which we had developed to bring together most of the elements in our programme under one heading. Since June Enabling Zero Waste has been providing real support to four construction companies on four separate schemes – all in South Wales but all very different.

They all share an enthusiastic interest in environmental matters and in particular in working towards the zero waste targets for construction. The project is committed to looking at how we can work together with clients, design teams, senior management and of course the site teams. CEW provide practical support to the teams with an experienced waste consultant who visits sites on a regular basis to help identify solutions for waste arisings. This support is extended to the supply chain at each site and where appropriate on subcontractors.

Progress to date is positive but, and it is a big but, we are also finding that the journey towards the goal is still beset with familiar problems. Despite the head office enthusiasm for the project, communicating this to site teams and individuals remains an issue. The pressures under which site managers have to work often force the issue of waste to the bottom of the daily priority list. These pressures have impacted to varying degrees on our ability to make the most of our resources.

There is still a long way to go in overcoming this missing link between head office aspiration and on site achievement. But there are pockets of excellence that help make the connection. Willmott Dixon won the CEW Award for innovation this year because of their site focused waste reduction strategy.

Ceri Gullett of Willmott Dixon explains: “The industry has made huge strides towards ‘managing waste’, but despite the excellent progress in recycling and diversion from landfill, the ‘waste-less’ message is still an incredibly hard sell. Once you start talking about waste management that’s it, you are halfway to accepting you will have to deal with excess material in some shape or form. But where does that excess material come from and why?

“Our approach has to change from a divert-more to a create-less culture. But it’s not easy and we cannot do it without help. What the industry needs to do is improve ‘material management’, be honest about how much material needs  to be in the supply chain in the first instance,  not be fearful of challenging wasteful practices or designs at any point in the chain, and to take responsibility the choices they make. It’s an industry-wide problem that needs an industry-wide response.”

Improved communication, collaboration and integration of all of the team has to be the aim if the industry is going to make real progress. 

As of 2016, all centrally procured government construction projects must implement level 2 BIM. Our latest CPD module, sponsored by Vectorworks, defines levels of BIM 

WHAT IS BIM?

By 2016, all centrally procured government construction projects, no matter their size, must be delivered using BIM. There are two commonly accepted definitions:

BIM as a process

(Building Information Modelling) is a business/process model for the design, analysis, execution, delivery and management of buildings by a highly collaborative, well-integrated project team, including designers, builders and owners. The process builds upon early design-phase contributions of team members’ expertise, guided by principles of trust, transparency, effective communication, open information sharing, team success tied to project success, shared risk and reward, value-based decision making, and the use of full technological capabilities and support. The outcome is the opportunity to execute “better, faster, cheaper” by reducing errors, waste and cost during the entire process.

BIM as data

(Building Information Model) is the 3D geometry and extensive associated data, representing the necessary design, construction and facility management information. This data is generated by a wide variety of digital tools that address the different needs, abilities and responsibilities of the many stakeholders in the process. All the project data may be represented by one model or a federation of multiple domain models, with data that can be exchanged in whole or in part with other stakeholders at any time in the BIM process.
This CPD will focus on BIM as a process, and its first-time adoption by a small practice for a new-build project.

The Practice and the Project

DUA Architecture has more than 25 years experience working primarily in Dorset and Hampshire, and has worked on a wide variety of projects. As a small practice (generally five staff members or less), it offers a personal service and has a policy of constantly exploring new technologies in both design and construction to improve speed, quality and service for clients.

DUA Architecture was appointed in June 2011 to work with the Moorlands College in Christchurch, which trains Christian ministers and missionaries. Over the last 65 years, it has produced some 3,000 graduates, more than 800 within the last 15 years. While Moorlands has grown numerically, the buildings and facilities have not kept pace and are in need of urgent renovation and extension. Its current building project will include a new community hub, reception area and conference facility, a multi-use centre providing two teaching spaces and a chapel area, which can be combined to provide a 350-seat lecture theatre. This case study will focus on the conference facility.

The practice had been using Vectorworks CAD software for many years. Having attended several seminars on BIM, the practice leaders decided to adopt the approach on the Moorlands College project. They had no formal BIM training but had completed the Vectorworks Architect tutorial manual which was written by expert trainer and architect Jonathan Pickup as part of Nemetschek Vectorworks’ self-paced training options. Essentially they learnt by doing.

Developing an Approach to BIM

The design was initially developed traditionally in 2D, with 3D modelling beginning post-planning. The practice felt that it would be beneficial to begin in 3D for future projects. The complex geometry of the building made the prospect of modelling it in 3D very attractive. They began with the steel frame and developed the model from there. The architect opted for a “lonely BIM” approach, in order to get themselves up to speed with the available modelling techniques and the process.

Lonely BIM refers to a process where models are created with no input from external consultants and are not shared throughout the project team. It is also referred to as level 1 implementation according to the widely used BIM maturity diagram, originally published by Mervyn Richards and Mark Bew in 2008 (see fig 1). This describes the stages that project teams will go through as they move from traditional processes and methods of drawing to implement fully open collaborative BIM.

The government’s 2016 target requires the implementation of level 2 BIM. This is where each discipline creates its own model and these are shared throughout the team, with all project data shared electronically as a common resource.

The eventual goal is level 3 BIM, a fully integrated, collaborative process, where models are shared on a web-enabled BIM hub, in a format compliant with an industry-wide open data standard. At this level, additional layers of data are also embedded in the model, including 4D construction sequencing and 5D cost.

Benefits of modelling with BIM

The practice found that modeling in detail was not overly time consuming but paid great dividends when cutting sections from the model, because a high level of detail is shown in the sections. They felt it was a more effective way of working, especially in handling the 3D geometry of the building.

One example is shown on drawing 1285.238 (fig 2). The design included quite complicated intersections between windows, walls, the steel frame and roof, and modelling enabled these to be refined at design stage and communicated to other consultants, client and contractor.

Meanwhile, for the roof, the practice is using a standard system but wanted to taper the verges and eaves. This required careful detailing with regards to supporting steel work, which they found was made easier in the model. In general, they found the model helped them to identify the areas that might be difficult much earlier and resolve any issues before reaching site.

Sunlight and shading analysis

The team also found BIM offered a great advantage when carrying out the sunlight and shading analysis. In the proposal design for the conference facility, there was a projector screen at the back of the stage. They wanted to make sure that bright sunlight from the high-level clerestory window would not fall on it at any time of the day throughout the year. They also wanted any shading solution to be “fit and forget”, which meant that accurate solar modelling was required.

Originally the design included a modestly sized screen, which would be viewable to only part of the audience, with other screens provided for the rest. By carrying out sunlight animations in the Renderworks software, the team found that this could be shaded by a few strategically placed “banners”, perpendicular to the windows. These banners could then feature artwork to complement the internal decor. However, as the project developed, the client requested that the screen at the back of the stage be made much larger, so traditional vertical blinds became the most practical way of shading it from the sun. The practice then used solar modelling to find the optimal angle at which the blinds should hang, thus maintaining the fit-and-forget nature of the solution.

Workgroup referencing

Inexperienced in the use of BIM, the team was working on one file. This rapidly became very large, and as the project progressed, it became necessary for multiple designers to be working on it at the same time. They therefore read up on the workgroup referencing feature within Vectorworks software. This can provide consistency and efficiency in project files, especially in a large organisation where a number of people are working on the same project.

Referencing allows drawing elements from one file to be used within another. When there is a change to a referenced item in the master file, this is reflected in the target file, and vice versa. Updates to target files can be performed either automatically or manually requested.11:14 02/09/2014.

The workgroup feature allows the creation of a workgroup environment within which one or more folders of content files can be shared on a network. These files may contain content required by all users, such as templates, symbols, export settings or workspaces, or content specific to different projects. Communication among team members is essential when referencing and/or workgroups are in use.

The practice found that it took very little time to split the master file down into individual files, based on the previous file’s layer structure. They then referenced all files into a new master file called “complete”. They found this to be a very efficient way of working, because it enabled team members to work on different parts of the building at the same time, while another could set out drawings within the complete file.

Collaborative working with engineers

Though the team intentionally kept the BIM model in-house, they did provide elements of 3D information to the project engineers in the form of screen shots. They have found that the model made it easier to communicate issues and requests accurately, because they could very quickly cut the required section from the model, annotate and send to the relevant consultant (see Section JJ, fig 3) without attempting to describe it over the phone or producing potentially inaccurate sketches. On its next BIM project, the practice aims to export IFC models rather than images. This would allow the engineer to analyse and review 3D BIM models using free downloadable software such as Solibri Model Viewer.

Overall, the team found that their first experience of BIM gave them much greater confidence in the accuracy of their drawings, and facilitated greater speed and efficiency, and therefore productivity. It enabled them to spend less time preparing drawings and more time analysing designs and resolving issues, and also to produce a greater level of information with which to go out to tender.

Computers Unlimited will hold its annual BIM event, BIM Your Way To Success, on 7 October in London, W1. The day will begin with an overview from David Philp, head of BIM implementation at the Cabinet Office, followed by three interactive workshops to help attendees implement BIM on their own projects. This will include a session on workgroup referencing with Hani Afendi, Vectorworks BIM evangelist at Computers Unlimited, who wrote this article. For further details click here 

How to take this module

The free continuing professional development distance learning programme from Building is open to anyone who wants to develop and improve their professional knowledge. These modules can contribute towards annual CPD activity and help you to maintain membership of professional institutions and bodies.

To take this module, read the technical article above and click through to the multiple-choice questionnaire.

Vectorworks logo

Once taken you will receive your results and if you successfully pass you will be automatically issued with a certificate to print for your records. This module will contribute one hour towards your CPD obligations.

Privacy policy

Information you supply to UBM Information Ltd may be used for publication and also to provide you with information about our products or services in the form of direct marketing by email, telephone, fax or post. Information may also be made available to third parties. UBM Information Ltd may send updates about Building CPD and other relevant UBM products and services. By providing your email address you consent to being contacted by email by UBM Information Ltd or other third parties. If at any time you no longer wish to receive anything from UBM Information Ltd or to have your data made available to third parties, contact the Data Protection Coordinator, UBM Information Ltd, FREEPOST LON 15637, Tonbridge, TN9 1BR, Freephone 0800 279 0357 or email. View our full privacy policy at www.building.co.uk/cpd