CIC Cascade

12 December 2005

1. DQI For Schools launched
2. Re-structure to give new focus to Strategic Forum
3. Independent Chair required for IPHE
4. BConstructive announced as finalist in e-Government National Awards 2005.
5. Stuart Henderson, Chairman of CIC awarded honorary membership of CIAT
6. ICE and ICES sign new Memorandum of Agreement
7. New President for the Association for Project Safety
8. ConstructionSkills calls for managers to build the Olympics
9. Consultation - give your views on questions aimed at designers and other project professionals
10. Events

1. DQI for Schools launched

The Design Quality Indicator (DQI) for Schools was officially launched at the “Designs for Learning Conference” on the 6th December 2005 by the Minister of State for Schools and 14-19 learners, the Rt Hon Jacqui Smith MP.

The DQI for Schools has been has been developed from the CIC Design Quality Indicator (DQI) in partnership by the Department for Education and Skills and the CIC .

The DQI for Schools remains extremely close to the DQI sharing in both concept, and methodology of application. The DQI for Schools shares around 90% of indicators in the DQI but has allowed emphasis to be put on the spaces found in schools, such as teaching spaces, halls, staff areas, school grounds and dining areas, and the relationship between the school and the community it is part of.

Rt Hon Jacqui Smith MP, Minister of State for Schools and 14 - 19 learners said at the launch:

“I am today delighted to launch the Design Quality Indicator for Schools. I have talked about the importance of schools being able to recognise good design and the DQI for Schools is an important step in this direction. It is an online package, based on the Construction Industry Council’s ‘generic’ DQI tool. It will allow schools and other stakeholders to consider and evaluate design quality at every stage of the project.  It is in the form of a tailored questionnaire and I am assured that it is a product of good design itself! The DQI for Schools is the result of fruitful collaboration and I would particularly like to thank the architects and educationalists who have freely given their time in its development; the CIC staff who worked on the project; Imperial College and all of those who participated in the advisory group. The Schools DQI will be mandatory for all BSF projects and I am sure that schools will find it to be invaluable.”

Graham Watts CIC Chief Executive said:

“Working with the DfES to develop the DQI for Schools has been extremely fruitful and is an excellent new dimension to the DQI concept.    CIC is very pleased to be able to offer this direct support to the drive to improve school buildings. The decision to base the DQI for Schools firmly upon the generic DQI is one we strongly support and is a clear sign of the industry responding to the issue of measuring design quality in a joined-up way. I welcome the rigour that the DfES has put into developing the DQI for Schools and the thorough critique that this has given the generic DQI; which I am pleased to say has stood up extremely well to this close scrutiny. I am very pleased to welcome the DQI for Schools to the DQI family.”

The DQI for Schools is available at www.dqi.org.uk/schools

For further details contact the CIC Press Office on 020 7399 7407 or alternatively call James Beevers or William Hawkins on 020 7399 7424

2. Re-structure to give new focus to Strategic Forum

To better address its ongoing workload, whilst maintaining a more strategic overview, the Strategic Forum for Construction has decided to rationalise its structure, with effect from 1 January 2006 .

The membership of the Forum has been reduced to six core organisations, which broadly represent the full spectrum of the industry and its clients whose members will be:

• Construction Clients Group (CCG)
• Construction Confederation (CC)
• Construction Industry Council (CIC)
• Construction Products Association (CPA)
• A joint group of National Specialist Contractors Council & Specialist Engineering

Contractors Group

• A joint group of the Trades Unions

The Forum itself will be split into two distinct groups: an Executive Panel, which will comprise the six Chief Executives nominated by the member groups; and the Strategic Forum which will comprise the Chairmen/Presidents of the six groups together with the CEOs.

The Strategic Forum will meet three times a year and each meeting will be concerned with a theme of strategic significance to the industry and other relevant people will be invited to attend from government and elsewhere. The Forum intends to interact with Government across the full range of Departments. The DTI, as the industry's sponsor in Government, will be invited to meetings as an observer.

The Executive Panel will take responsibility for monitoring progress in relation to achieving the targets set by Sir John Egan in ‘Accelerating Change’ and for overseeing progress in relation to the various sub-groups. It will meet on a regular basis.

The various sub-groups established by the Forum3 to progress particular initiatives will continue to function and will be owned and run by the relevant member body but they will now report to the Executive Panel.

The Secretariat for the Forum will rotate around the CIC, CC and CPA: the CIC, which has held the Secretariat since 2003, will continue in this role until June 2006, at which point responsibility will transfer to the Construction Confederation for a year. The CPA will take over the role in June 2007 for a further year.

The host organisation will nominate the Chairman for the Forum during its term of office. Speaking after the meeting, the outgoing Chairman, Peter Rogers, said:

For further information please contact Kate Dunne at kdunne@strategicforum.org.uk

The Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (IPHE) is seeking an independent person to Chair its Board of Trustees.

The Chair would help to formulate, monitor and review our strategic aims and ensure best practice in governance. As well as leading the Board, the Chairperson will work in partnership with the Chief Executive to help implement the strategic aims and optimise the relationship between the Trustees, the Institute’s permanent staff and local volunteers.

The IPHE, which celebrates its centenary in 2006, is a registered charity and a professional body of over 12,000 members.It has the support of over 250 companies and internationally, it currently acts as Secretariat to the World Plumbing Council.

Applications are invited from persons (not members of the IPHE) with an interest in public service and a passion for excellence who can demonstrate:

• Leadership skills gained in the community, business or workplace.
• Strong communication skills – working closely with a wide variety of organisations including government.
• An understanding of how to set clear objectives and monitor performance.

The appointment, which will commence in June 2006, will be up to three years. It is unpaid but expenses may be claimed. The commitment is approximately ten meetings a year.

If you feel you possess the necessary skills to help the Institute at the start of its second century, please write enclosing a CV to Alan Woollaston, Acting Chairman of the Board, at The Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering, 64 Station Lane, Hornchurch, Essex, RM12 6NB, Tel: 01708 472791; Fax: 01708 448987; or for an informal discussion and/or information pack contact the Institute’s current Chief Executive Andy Watts - email andyw@iphe.org.uk

4. Bconstructive announced as finalist in e-Government National Awards 2005.

The ConstructionSkills’ careers website www.bconstructive.co.uk has been shortlisted as a finalist in the 2005 e-Government National Awards

The awards highlight the best services improving citizens and business transaction with councils, central government departments and other public sector organisations.

Finalists include a great diversity and spread of achievement in e-Government right across the UK - Councils, central government departments, non-departmental public bodies and voluntary organisations are all represented in this 'best of the best' .

www.bconstructive.co.uk has been short listed in the category - e-Government excellence: Other public sector body (non Governmental, or non-Departmental Public Body which has delivered e-Government services which succeed for the target audiences).

Cabinet Office Minister Jim Murphy MP and Ian Watmore, Government CIO and Head of the Cabinet Office e-Government Unit will be involved in the awards, which will be presented on 25 th January 2006 at the Savoy Hotel in London .

Murphy says:

"e-Government is one of the most important ways the Government can deliver public services reform. We are committed to developing Government IT systems and services that make real and tangible improvements to the lives of British people and businesses. The e-Government National Awards are our way to recognise the best attempts to deliver on this commitment."

Jim Fitzpatrick Local e. government Minister, at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, says

"I'm delighted to see so many councils entered the e-Government National Awards. Local e-government has made enormous progress over the last five years, and this is shown by the number and high quality of the bids. I congratulate all the short listed finalists and look forward to the winners being announced in January 2006."

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is supporting the local government Awards, finalists highlighting best practice in:

1. Efficiency - using electronic service delivery to improve the citizen experience of liaising with local government.
2. Take-up - delivering a high take up of an e-enabled service through effective service delivery and marketing.
3. Leadership - electronic joined up public services providing strong local solutions for local circumstances.

The announcement of the finalists follows the recent publication of the Government's IT strategy, 'Transformational Government' - which promises a wide-ranging plan to transform and improve UK public services via IT and e-Government.

5. Stuart Henderson, Chairman of CIC awarded honorary membership of CIAT

Stuart Henderson, Chairman of CIC was among five construction industry professionals awarded Honorary Membership of the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists at its President’s Dinner Dance on 19 November.

Honorary membership is the Institute’s mechanism of recognising non-members who have supported or contribute to the development of the Institute or the discipline of architectural technology. It is an ‘exclusive club’ with membership awarded only in exceptional circumstances,

As 2005 has been such an exceptional year for CIAT, with it celebrating its fortieth year as well as receiving a Grant of Royal Charter, CIAT’s Council approved five recipients to receive the Institute’s Honorary membership, all of whom have contributed greatly to CIAT’s success as a professional institute. These are:

Michael Brown, Deputy Chief Executive, Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).
Pall Everall CBE, Chief Executive, Local Authority Building Control and former Head of the Construction Directorate, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
George Ferguson, Immediate Past President, Royal Institute of British Architects.
Stuart Henderson, Chairman of the Construction Industry Council (CIC).
Graham Paterson, Course Leader, the Robert Gordon University .

The recipients were introduced by Paul Burton PPCIAT and presented with their Certificates of Membership by newly inaugurated CIAT president Jim Kirwan PCIAT.

6. ICE and ICES sign new Memorandum of Agreement

The relationship between the Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors (ICES) and the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) was further strengthened recently with the signing of a new memorandum of agreement.

ICES is the only ‘associated institution’ of the ICE and, as such, the two bodies have worked closely together since 1992; combining their sets of specialist skills and offering mutual benefits to members of both institutions.

Although an earlier memorandum of agreement was arranged in 1999, it was felt by both ICE and ICES that this needed to be updated to better reflect the new joint membership arrangements that have now been agreed between the two institutions. At the ICE’s North West region’s hugely successful meeting to debate the ‘State of the Nation 2005’ at Haydock Park, Colin Clinton, President of the ICE, joined ICES President, John Bacon in signing the new agreement. Colin commented that he was “very pleased” that a number of ICES members had taken advantage of the “streamlined” route to ICE membership, with particular mention of John Bacon himself, who has had his significant contribution to the civil engineering industry marked with the award of FICE. Colin concluded his speech with the wish that the new agreement will mark an upturn in joint membership and a consolidation of knowledge exchange activity.

Speaking on behalf of ICES, John Bacon stated that this was a proud moment for himself to be signing what amounts to the third memorandum of understanding between the two institutions, particularly as he himself, as the then chairman of ICES, was involved in the very first negotiations of the first agreement with the then president of ICE, Robin Wilson, way back in 1992.

The new agreement consolidates the arrangements for reciprocal membership but also, very importantly, establishes a joint working party to monitor the implementation of the reciprocal membership scheme. The group will be discussing registration options with the Engineering Council in the very near future.

For further information, please contact Ling Davies, Marketing and Public Relations Officer,

Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors on 0161 972 3100

7. New President for the Association for Project Safety

Mr. Peter Rickell, FIHEEM TMICE MIOSH MaPS, is the new President for the Association for Project Safety. Peter began his two year term of office with effect from October 2005.

Peter has been a member of APS since it was established in 1995. He was the first Regional Chairman for the South East Region and elected an Executive Committee and Board Member in 1997.

He started his career as a structural engineer in the special projects department of a construction company dealing with the design of bridges and tall structures. Later, as a Partner of a multi-discipline firm of consulting engineers he provided design, management and consultancy services for construction projects throughout the UK and overseas. He is a Member of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health and he established a Health and Safety Division of the firm in response to the introduction of the CDM Regulations.

With the imminent arrival of the new CDM Regulations, Peter Rickell takes over the helm of the APS Board at a most crucial time for Construction Health and Safety Risk Management. Peter believes that “this is probably the most important time not only for APS but also the construction industry. Although the existing CDM Regulations are basically sound, it is crucial that the new Regulations address their shortcomings to allow for effective implementation by all in the industry.”

For further information contact Kirsty Richardson on 0131 221 9959 or email kirsty@aps.org.uk

ConstructionSkills has announced plans for building the Olympics and warns that good management and leadership is vital to delivering London 2012

ConstructionSkills, the Sector Skills Council and organisation responsible for recruiting and training the UK’s construction workforce has published analysis showing that the task of building the London 2012 Olympics will create approximately 33,500 additional jobs over the next seven years, with civil engineering and a range of specialist skills in particularly high demand.

However, the organisation is warning that with a number of major projects to be delivered in the Greater London area over the next few years, managing workflow will be vital in order for the industry to deliver on all demands.

The skills forecast is based on construction work directly attributable to the Games. It indicates that the number of workers needed to complete Olympic construction projects will peak at around 7,500 in 2010. This figure includes a range of specialist skilled workers who will be required to build the complex mix of stadia, infrastructure and residential developments.

The forecast of 33,500 broadly breaks down as 6,500 managerial or administrative roles, 2,800 professionals such as architects and surveyors, and 24,000 trade or craft roles.

Sheila Hoile, Skills Strategy Director at CITB-ConstructionSkills, says:

“We believe that this analysis is the most accurate and realistic forecast available at this stage of planning. Building the Olympics needs to be seen in the wider context of the current massive demand on the UK construction industry. In the wider South East and Greater London alone there is £34bn worth of projects of over £100mn each in the pipeline. This is in addition to the existing Greater London construction industry with an annual value of approximately £12 billion. So the Olympics represents a huge construction programme with the work involved accounting for nearly 10% of the total picture in these regions.

“With major projects currently on site such as Heathrow Terminal 5, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and Wembley, Britain is well-equipped for the task ahead. However, the years 2008-2010 are critical for London, with the number of workers on site at any one time in the South East area expected to peak in 2010. Good workflow management and effective leadership are vital to long-term success.”

The Olympic skills figures are the first to be produced by the Construction Skills Network, a new cross-industry alliance developed by ConstructionSkills to revolutionise construction recruitment and training. The Network will provide the industry’s most comprehensive model for forecasting capacity, productivity and skills across the construction industry, and to plan for the impact of future trends on the construction workforce.

Hoile continues:

“The Construction Skills Network will help to ensure that the industry has the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time. As more plans are finalised for the Olympic and Thames Gateway developments over the coming years, so the Network will be able to produce more accurate figures on how many people – and more importantly, in what roles – will be needed to deliver this massive project.”

The Olympic skills need analysis follows the news this week that the government has accepted ConstructionSkills’ mould-breaking proposals for a Construction National Skills Academy operating as a network of on-site training centres available on major construction projects around the country.

The approach, which is designed to overcome the challenges of training a mobile workforce in a sector largely made up of small firms and sole traders, will include training units linked to the construction of facilities for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

ConstructionSkills is also unveiling a dedicated team to help ensure that the construction programme to build world-leading facilities and infrastructure for the Olympic Games is delivered safely, on time and on budget, to leave a lasting legacy for London. Working as part of the Strategic Forum Olympic Task Group, the Constructing London 2012 team will work with partners to recruit and train local people, to ensure that constructing the Olympics provides sustainable skills and job opportunities for the residents of East London.

Mike Bialyj, Field Director at CITB-ConstructionSkills said:

“Construction is the UK ’s biggest industry. Even before we knew we’d won the Olympic bid, the industry required 88,000 new recruits every year to deliver on the massive demand the industry faces, with a number of large-scale projects in the pipeline, in addition to the Olympics.

“This week’s announcements show our commitment to ensuring that the construction industry has a safe, skilled workforce in the right place at the right time to deliver on demand to 2012 and beyond.”

For further details contact Jenny Rushforth on 020 7367 9817

9. Consultation

Safety in Design Ltd has been commissioned by CITB-ConstructionSkills to create a bank of questions aimed at designers and other project professionals. You are invited to sample the Draft Test questions as part of the consultation process in their development. The draft questions and details on how to respond can be found at www.cic.org/activities/consult.shtml.

10. Events
The events page of the CIC website is frequently updated visit the events page for details.

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