Scissorum-In-Memoriam

Weekly Newsletter 09 September 2022

This Week Merchant Taylors’

Mace Design Contest writes Azlan Latif (Divisions): During the Easter Holidays, Mr Duffey

She also talked us through how Mace hires contractors and sub-contractors at building sites. Each team produces their materials and documents for the project, which are centralised on BIM. For the Stratford Waterfront, there were approximately 52 subcontracted teams. After that, we were asked to get ready to go to the building site. The importance of health and safety at the site was explained to us and we were given 5 pieces of PPE to wear: A helmet, high-vis jacket, boots, glasses, and gloves. On the way to the site, Mike, the lead site project manager, informed us about the planning and processes needed before and during the building process. Apart from health and safety, the most important thing for Mike was communication – whether with the various teams at the build site or teams external to the project. Mike described the extensive planning that was required when installing the new bridge over the train lines. Throughout the process they had to speak with TFL and coordinate with many teams to install the bridge during Christmas break. Once on the site, Mike gave us a tour of the floors where construction was in process. We saw various teams in their PPE gear working around each other in a coordinated manner. Mike explained to us how the builders get together at the start of the day to plan their work, because there are many different teams and efficiency is key on large-scale projects such as the Stratford Waterfront. Throughout the site, there were posters and signs at every corner reminding workers of health and safety and alerting them of any hazards.

sent out an email from an OMT at UCL regarding the Mace Design Contest 2022. The competition required you to design a community centre either by hand or using Google Sketchup. Contestants were judged on Practicality of design, Aesthetics, Skills demonstrated, Creativity and Sustainability. I won the competition in the SketchUp category and was invited to visit the Mace site on the Stratford Waterfront. The Mace group has worked on iconic projects such as The Shard, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford and the Dubai Expo. The construction site we were visiting was the Stratford Waterfront. This is a £1.1 billion development at the Queen Elizabeth Olympics Park will be a combination of 5 buildings: BBC Recording Studio, Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London College of Fashion, UCL East London Campus, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. My dad and I went for the tour where we first met Ms Imogen Hawksbee, an assistant project manager. She introduced us to Building Information Modelling (BIM), which is a cloud based advanced building information modelling and structural engineering platform. BIM is used to centralise all parts used in designing and planning the project – including layered 3D models, project plans, and cost. BIM is revolutionary as it digitises the build process making it easier to maintain and reference. Ms Hawksbee explained that BIM can be used to quickly find faults such as leaks or equipment failures in the building, so that the building management team can fix or replace it.

Mike also explained how cranes are delivered in parts and built on the site. A lot of this process is manual – for example the ropes are attached by people climbing up the tall cranes. Towards the end, we were taken to the top floor of the Victoria and Albert Museum where we could see the entire building site. It gave us a sense of scale of the project. To finish it off, we said our goodbyes and left the site, just as the next group of winners and runners up were starting their tour. All in all, this tour was an eye opening experience into the world of Engineering, Design, and Technology. It has inspired me to explore a career path like this and work on projects of this scale. As a follow up to the visit, I was sent an email by Ms Laura Hampson, Senior Social Value Manager, about how I can find more about a career in this field. I found that the tour was well-presented, and my questions were answered freely. This was a great experience and I hope others also pursue venues to get opportunities like these. I was particularly impressed by the BIM technology and how it has improved the process around building large scale complex structures.

September 29 2017

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