The Concrete Society Wales is preparing for its traditional spring lunch in February with a warm up event that will look at the role of drones in the industry. 

This CPD event has been designed for potential users of infrared thermography as a non-destructive test method in the construction and building maintenance industries, outlining the applications and benefits. The seminar will also cover the use of unmanned aerial systems (drones) as an access platform for working at height or in dangerous locations whether building defect analysis, quality assurance, aerial mapping or quantitative thermal analysis. The seminar will outline the applications, benefits and legal aspects of operating drones and how they can be used to eliminate risk and save money. 

But the main event is in February – the Concrete Society Wales region annual lunch, with the guest speaker being Martin Cory ex-England and British Lions rugby star.

Download the details from the links below: 

Concrete Society January 2017
Concrete Society Spring Lunch February 2017

CIRIA focus on Infrastructure resilience - event series
Following the launch of our infrastructure resilience series of events this autumn, we are pleased to announce the next event (25th January) in this series will consider definitions of resilience across sectors, share lessons on setting appropriate levels of resilience for asset design and management, and discuss how integrated resilience plans could be developed across sectors. Further events are planned between February - April 2017. Read more...

Delivering wellbeing at site level
This new CIRIA project aims to help construction companies by highlighting how to enhance the health and wellbeing of their workforce. Organisations interested in raising awareness of wellbeing at site level are invited to get involved. Get involved...

CIRIA SuDS Manual nominated for Landscape Institute's 2016 Awards
We are proud to have The SuDS Manual (C753) nominated in the Landscape Policy and Research category this year. This category recognises “research, guidance and strategies that have played, or will play, a significant role in influencing policy affecting the landscape at an international, national, regional or local level and/or the development of the profession and furthering the art and science of landscape architecture.” The Award ceremony takes place on 24 November in London. Read more...

CIRIA welcomes new member Dynasafe BACTEC
Dynasafe BACTEC specialises in disposal of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and other hazardous materials and have previously been involved in CIRIA projects dealing with UXOs. Find out more...

Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children, Carl Sargeant AM announced that the Welsh Government will invest £30 million this year towards providing 20,000 affordable new homes.

Welsh Government has found a further £30M this year to invest in 20,000 sustainable homes. Carl Sargeant, minister for communities and children also joined with Community Housing Cymru and the WLGA to sign a Housing Supply Delivery pact, underlining the importance of partnership working in delivering 20,000 affordable homes during this term of Government.

The Welsh Government’s affordable housing target of 10,000 additional affordable homes in the last Assembly was exceeded, with the Housing Supply Pact between Welsh Government and Community Housing Cymru playing an important role in meeting that target.

Carl Sargeant said the new pact between the Welsh Local Government Association, Community Housing Cymru and the Welsh Government would support the achievement of the new target.

G4C Wales launched its West Wales Group last week and saw over 50 people come and find out about being a young professional in Welsh construction.

Are you part of the generation driving change in Welsh construction? If you’re not, then you might be in danger of being left behind because with over forty people attending the launch of the G4C West Wales group last week it looks like the industry has youth on its side.

G4C Wales is calling for students, graduates, young professionals and newcomers to Welsh construction to join its new west Wales group based in Swansea. The response was excellent last week and there was a great atmosphere at the event.

The CEW South West Wales best practice club hosted the event and Jon Williams committee member of the G4C Cardiff group explained the aims of G4C and why you should join.

But don’t be left out, you can find out more about G4C Wales from the CEW team, but you can also recommend and nominate a young professional as a Young Achiever in the CEW Awards 2017.

Do you want to make a change in the housing market? This the last chance to tell the LENDERS project team your thoughts on green mortgages, energy efficiency and affordability.

Everyone seems to agree that the housing market neds to make some major changes if the country is to build more homes and if the market itself allows people to find the money to buy them. One way to make that change happen is to help the team running the LENDERS Project by telling them your views on green mortgages, energy efficiency and affordability via the projects online e-survey http://bit.ly/2drw5Bw. You’ve only got one week left. 

The LENDERS Project, the ground-breaking research project backed by Nationwide, CEW, the BRE and Principality and others is considering ways to link the energy performance of a home to its mortgage affordability.

The LENDERS project seeks to demonstrate at scale that the information required to make a more accurate estimate of your future home’s fuel bills is already available. By demonstrating how this can be used, and proving its reliability, the project plans to provide the mortgage industry with an improved method of making sure home owners can afford both their mortgage and their fuel bills.

Because of the LENDERS project, an energy efficient home with consequently lower fuel bills would leave the home-buyer with proportionally more of their income available to repay the mortgage. In turn, this extra money for repayments means they can afford larger repayments and therefore a larger overall mortgage, all without increasing the combined costs of the mortgage and fuel bills that the home owner pays overall.

We all need to look beyond just kerb appeal and the interior decor. We need to consider how a home performs at its core level – keep us warm in the winter and cool in the summer. As an industry, we need to ask a series of questions. How efficient are our homes that we manage, maintain and provide for consumers; how can we educate the homeowners to take more responsibility; and then how can we build an overall connection between performance and value?

Now is the time to complete that LENDERS Project survey: http://bit.ly/2drw5Bw

Re: A Better Deal for Future Generations – setting the challenge for the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal

The £1.2bn Cardiff Capital Region deal was signed in March 2016 to improve public transport and bring economic growth to south east Wales over the next 20 years.  It includes £734m for a south Wales Metro, bringing better rail and bus travel in the capital and valleys. It also involves 10 local councils and aims to bring 25,000 new jobs and an extra £4bn in private sector investment.

Since becoming Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, I have engaged with local authority leaders on the vital opportunity provided by the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal to fulfil their duties under the Well-being of Future Generations Act and deliver a programme that improves well-being for generations to come.
 
The City Deal must make a difference to the people most in need and address long-term challenges.  In particular, I would like to see how the programme is developed in line with the Five Ways of Working enshrined in the Act: Integration; Long-term thinking; Early Action; Collaboration; and Involvement.

This is an opportunity to show how applying the Act to a major public investment programme could deliver not just some anticipated short-to-medium economic gains but also transformational change in terms of our economic, social, cultural and environmental well-being. It’s a chance to rise to persistent challenges in a truly long-term and preventative way and we hope that the learning from this will be relevant and applicable not just to the South East but other parts of Wales.  

As part of these discussions,  I have offered to set out in more detail some of the challenges and opportunities in my paper, "A Better Deal for Future Generations - setting the challenge for the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal", which we hope will be useful as the City Deal Board considers the report by the Growth and Competitiveness Commission, due to be published later this week.

The Act requires that we do not address single issues, such as the economy, in isolation. The City Deal must play its role in reversing inequalities in health and well-being, for example through stimulating different patterns of work and employment, and breaking inter-generational cycles of poverty where it is most persistent. It must also address climate change through developing a low carbon economy and be used to make a real and lasting difference to lives of people living and working in the region.
 
I believe it is possible to achieve economic, environmental, social and cultural improvements simultaneously, if the approach is driven by a bigger and better vision than simply increasing economic activity. The document highlights other areas where this approach is being taken. As Future Generations Commissioner, I would maintain that the Cardiff Capital Region, indeed the whole of Wales, deserves nothing less than a similarly visionary approach fit for our future generations.  
 
As City Deals and economy strategies are developed in all parts of Wales, the learning from this programme will be relevant. I look forward to sharing the progress that is made, including from other areas where this approach is being taken.
 
Please feel free to promote and share this information within your own networks.

Gwell Bargen ar gyfer Cenedlaethau'r Dyfodol - gosod yr her ar gyfer Bargen Ddinesig Prifddinas-Ranbarth Caerdydd

Llofnodwyd Bargen Ddinesig Prifddinas-Ranbarth Caerdydd, gwerth £1.2 miliwn, ym Mawrth 2016 i wella trafnidiaeth gyhoeddus a dwyn twf economaidd i dde ddwyrain Cymru dros yr 20 mlynedd nesaf. Mae’n cynnwys £734m ar gyfer Metro i dde Cymru, a fydd yn gwella teithio ar drên a bws yn y brifddinas a’r cymoedd. Mae 10 awdurdod lleol hefyd yn ymgyfrannu a’r nod yw creu 25,000 o swyddi newydd a £4biliwn ychwanegol mewn buddsoddiad gan y sector preifat.

Ers i m ddod yn Gomisiynydd Cenedlaethau'r Dyfodol Cymru, rwyf wedi ymgysylltu ag arweinyddion awdurdodau lleol ynglŷn â'r cyfle allweddol a gynigir iddynt gan Fargen Ddinesig Prifddinas-Ranbarth Caerdydd i gyflawni eu dyletswyddau o dan y Ddeddf Llesiant Cenedlaethau'r Dyfodol a chyflwyno rhaglen sy'n gwella y cenedlaethau sydd i ddod.

Mae’n rhaid i’r Fargen Ddinesig wneud gwahaniaeth i’r bobl mwyaf anghenus a mynd i’r afael â heriau hirdymor. Yn arbennig, hoffwn weld sut y caiff y rhaglen ei datblygu yn unol â’r Pum Dull o Weithio a ymgorfforir yn y Ddeddf: Integreiddio; meddwl yn yr hirdymor; Gweithredu Cynnar; Cydweithio, ac Ymgyfraniad.   Mae hwn yn gyfle i ddangos sut y gallai cymhwyso’r Ddeddf i raglen fuddsoddi gyhoeddus o bwys gyflawni nid yn unig enillion economaidd a ragwelir yn y tymor-byr-i-ganolig, ond hefyd gyflawni newid trawsffurfiol yn nhermau’n llesiant economaidd, cymdeithasol, diwylliannol ac amgylcheddol. Mae’n gyfle i gwrdd â heriau parhaus mewn dull hirdymor gwirioneddol ataliol a gobeithiwn y bydd yr hyn a ddysgir yn berthnasol nid yn unig i’r De Ddwyrain ond i rannau eraill o Gymru.   Fel rhan o’r trafodaethau hyn, cynigiais egluro’n fanylach rai o’r heriau a chyfleoedd yn fy mhapur "Gwell Bargen i Genedlaethau'r Dyfodol - gosod yr her ar gyfer Bargen Ddinesig Prifddinas-Ranbarth Caerdydd" a fydd gobeithio yn ddefnyddiol wrth i Fwrdd y Fargen Ddinesig ystyried adroddiad y Comisiwn Twf a Chystadleurwydd, sydd i fod i gael ei gyhoeddi’n hwyrach yr wythnos hon.   Mae’r Ddeddf yn gofyn i ni beidio mynd i’r afael â materion unigol, megis yr economi, ar eu pennau eu hunain. Rhaid i’r Fargen Ddinesig chwarae ei rhan mewn gwyrdroi anghyfartaledd mewn iechyd a llesiant, er enghraifft drwy ennyn newid mewn patrymau gwaith a chyflogaeth, a thorri’r cylchoedd tlodi mwyaf parhaus a drosglwyddir o un genhedlaeth i’r llall. Rhaid iddi hefyd fynd i’r afael â’r newid yn yr hinsawdd drwy ddatblygu economi carbon isel a chael ei defnyddio i wneud gwahaniaeth gwirioneddol a pharhaol i fywydau pobl sy’n byw a gweithio yn y rhanbarth.

Credaf ei bod yn bosibl cyflawni gwelliannau economaidd, amgylcheddol, cymdeithasol a diwylliannol i gyd ar yr un pryd, os ydyw’r ymagwedd yn cael ei sbarduno gan weledigaeth sy’n fwy ac yn well na chynyddu gweithgaredd economaidd yn unig. Mae’r ddogfen yn amlygu meysydd eraill lle mae’r ymagwedd hon yn cael ei mabwysiadu. Fel Comisiynydd Cenedlaethau’r Dyfodol, buaswn yn dadlau bod Rhanbarth-Ddinas Caerdydd, ac yn wir Cymru gyfan, yn haeddu dim byd llai nag ymagwedd weledigaethol debyg sy’n addas ar gyfer cenedlaethau’r dyfodol.   Wrth i Fargeinion Dinesig a strategaethau economaidd gael eu datblygu ym mhob rhan o Gymru, bydd yr hyn a ddysgwyd o’r rhaglen hon yn berthnasol. Edrychaf ymlaen at rannu’r cynnydd a wneir, yn cynnwys o ardaloedd eraill lle mae’r ymagwedd hon yn cael ei mabwysiadu.   Croeso i chi hybu’r wybodaeth hon a’i rhanni gyda’ch rhwydweithiau.

CEW were a supporting partner for Design Circle’s recently launched “MUD” report and video, both of which build from the highly successful day-long workshop event in September. The work begins to investigate the impact of the proposed new South Wales Metro beyond the turnstiles of the stations, instead looking at how the increased connectivity and ‘footfall’ could be used to stimulate economic, social and environmental benefits to the local communities and the region as a whole. 

Dan Lewis, Design Circle’s chair from HLM Architects, said “The new Metro stops are in the process of procurement, but they’re really just the pebbles being thrown: MUD has looked at the ripples they could cause, and highlights how we need to plan for these now if we are to get the biggest benefits”. 

Some of the key issues from Design Circle’s MUD event and the resulting report have also been captured in a five minute video, which were both launched to an audience of more than 100 at the RSAW Annual Conference. The report and video is now being disseminated widely and Design Circle anticipate activities on the next steps in 2017.

View Video: here

Download : Report