From the end of January the CEW waste team will be managing a series of workshops to encourage the industry to take part in the consultation process for the Draft Regulations for Site Waste Management Plans.

If it’s worth having – it’s worth waiting for!! We in CEW are delighted that at last we are about to see the consultation process on the draft regulation for Site Waste Management Plans (SWMPS) in Wales get under way on 31^st January. Our long standing position on the principle of SWMP is well known – we see it as a, if not the key element in achieving Wales’ goals for reducing the waste generated during the build process. 

SWMP will push waste right to the forefront of the construction process and will raise the awareness of every stakeholder involved in the built environment from client to designer to planner to contractor and onward down the supply chain. 

When we ran fact finding workshops back in 2008 we were inspired by the almost unanimous support for the implementation of SWMP; industry across the board expressed the view that this would create a level playing field for all participants and early introduction of SWMP regulation was encouraged. We are hopeful that enthusiasm for this regulation has not waned through the passage of time and that our programme of facilitated consultation workshops will harvest that enthusiasm.

We urge you to become involved – watch out for more details and look for information about the Consultation Launch Event or contact Paul Jennings Director, Construction and Demolition Waste Programme

To register to attend email CEWales

Industry groups RICS and Construction Skills Network predict that Welsh construction is set to improve in 2013

There is a positive vibe running through the Welsh construction industry. It might be faint at the moment, but industry bodies such as RICS are arguing that 2013 is the year that the built environment in Wales will turn a corner. Last week the Construction Skills Network (CSN) said the outlook for Wales will start to look more positive, with modest growth in output forecast from 2014. Last quarter around 15% of surveyors reported they expect workloads to grow and according to CSN figures, the Welsh building industry will see output rise at an average rate of 2.7% per year, between now and 2017 – substantially above the 0.8% UK average.

RICS Wales chairman Neil Brierley said: “Whilst it is encouraging that construction output is predicted to rise slightly in 2013, there remains a concern that the delivery of this projected improvement may be hampered by a lack of capital funding. As ever, the public sector will be a key element of any recovery that occurs and it is hoped that the spending plans outlined in the Wales Infrastructure Investment Plan come to fruition.”

Milica Kitson made the same argument in the Western Mail last week. Indeed, CEW is launching the first of a series of meetings for its new Major Project Delivery Task Group in a bid to ensure that the ideas outlined in the WIIP are not just committed to, but enhanced for the benefit of the whole built environment and wider Welsh economy.

Sharing best practice underpins pretty much everything that we do at CEW but we can only do this with the support of the industry. This is the proven way to raise standards across the industry by sharing innovation. 

Our Best Practice Programmes include our Exemplar and Demonstration programmes. Find out how to take part in these by accessing our website. The exemplar programme is underpinned by the principles of sustainable development: economic performance; environmental benefits and social wellbeing. Those who take part in this programme show how these 3 criteria are best balanced to deliver sustainable projects. On the other hand our demonstration programme focuses more on a specific aspect of best practice or innovation in a project. It’s been running for over 10 years and many of the innovative practices showcased via this programme have since become standard practices across the construction industry. 

If you want to view any of our case studies follow this link to our map based tool – and don’t forget to give us your feedback via Twitter or LinkedIn. 

In addition to our case studies CEW and its three best practice Clubs have recently developed a How2 Guide which offers examples and suggestions as to how greater value can be driven through the construction process. The guide, although constantly being updated as new guidance and best practices are developed, sets out how different actions at different stages of a project can lead to better outcomes – giving far greater value for the investment. 

Again your input to this guide will be invaluable to its continuing development – the more everyone puts in the more everyone gets out. Any feedback via the How2 Twitter link @how2cew would also be welcome and will be considered by the best practice clubs prior to updating the guide.

It’s the time of year to plan your winning entry to the annual CEW Awards. The entries are open ...now!

The ‘call for entries’ for the CEW Awards went live last week on the CEW web site. Will you be a winner? Will you be playing a starring role at the CEW Awards ceremony this summer? It is the seventh year of the Constructing Excellence in Wales awards, now recognised across the Welsh built environment as the biggest and brightest celebration of best practice. They are a clear demonstration of the core strength of construction in Wales and the desire and commitment to deliver buildings, roads, bridges and facilities of all kinds in a collaborative and sustainable manner.

We know the construction industry in Wales is of a high standard and we prove it each year as the award winners from Wales go head to head with winners from other CE regions at the UK final in the autumn. Welsh winners consistently do well and were successful, yet again, at the 2012 UK Awards. It is time to ask yourself a question – have you and your team and your projects got what it takes to be a winner?

Find out by measuring yourself against past winners and checking out categories and how to enter at our website.

Good luck!

The deadline for submissions is 12.00 noon, Tuesday 5 March 2013.

Jane Hutt confirmed around £90m of priority capital funding for Wales to boost Welsh construction

Jane Hutt, Minister for Finance, announced the Welsh Government’s commitment to stimulating economic growth, creating jobs and reducing poverty in Wales and made clear that Welsh construction has a big role to play. In an official statement made last week the Government clarified that since publication of the Wales Infrastructure Investment Plan (WIIP) last May, it has committed to an additional investment package of around £1.1 billion. The £232 million package will provide a much-needed boost for economic growth and will create or protect an estimated 4,000 jobs. It builds on the £44 million package announced last May for the current financial year, in line with the priorities set out in the WIIP. The Government then confirmed additional capital investment this financial year to boost growth and jobs – allocating £91.5 million to a number of priority areas including:

• A £30 million package of housing investment including funding for affordable housing and other housing priorities for example, an alternative approach to delivering housing adaptations and land for housing schemes
  
  
• A £40 million package for education to support priority capital investment programmes across the education sector in Wales
  
  
• £11.5 million for transport schemes including improvements to the A465, the Abercynon roundabout on the A470, the A55 in North Wales and transport schemes across Wales integral to the National Transport Plan
  
  
• £5 million for Flood and Coastal Risk Management schemes in Conwy and Denbighshire and for a number of Environment Agency schemes across Wales

The term Building Information Modelling (BIM) is on the lips of most individual in the construction industry and is gaining momentum right across Wales and the rest of the UK. Our CEW BIM events have already attracted over 500 delegates, a number of which have progressed through the different modules: Learners, Intermediate and Advanced. Alongside these delegates a number of organisations are receiving one-to-one hands on support with BIM implementation and business adoption right from policy through process to project. 

CEW established a BIM Task Group to support the Welsh Government in developing a strategy to implement BIM across Wales. You can access the Task Force Report  and the Executive Summary to keep up to speed with our findings. We are continuing to support clients and suppliers alike to deal with the challenges and helping them to harvest the quantified benefits of collaborative BIM.