CIBSE ANZ Young Engineer of the Year Alex Shan explains the importance of communal spaces and why data is key to enhancing future buildings
Category: Opinion
Alternative reality
Engineers and manufacturers must take a proactive approach to breakdown the barriers to widescale adoption of low global warming potential refrigerants, says Mott MacDonald’s Grisha Grebennikov
Show your workings: complying with the building safety regime
Hywel Davies considers the implications of the new rules relating to competence
Breaking back: Why Aecom is using Stem Returners
Aecom has partnered with Stem Returners in an initiative to encourage people back to work
Testing times: reforming the UK product testing regime
An independent review of construction products testing has made key recommendations. Hywel Davies reports
UPS for data centres: a modular approach
As demand for computing power grows, designers and specifiers must focus on reducing energy demand in data centres. Kohler’s Alex Emms says modular uninterruptible power supply can improve energy efficiency
Hardship and housing
Households hit hardest by the cost of living crisis are those most likely to live in unhealthy homes. UCL’s Professor Anna Mavrogianni considers the relationship between the built environment and health inequalities
Heat pumps are the best solution, for now
Green hydrogen is being hailed as a home-grown super-fuel that will help the UK achieve net zero carbon emissions. But until it becomes available, Whitecode Consulting’s Alex Hill says heat pumps are the only way to decarbonise buildings – however challenging they are to install
Join our mission to net zero
To realise the ambition of the Net Zero Review, MP Chris Skidmore is calling on engineers to join the Mission Zero Coalition for Buildings and Infrastructure to help build a regulatory framework to promote sustainability
Existing building stock – the elephant in the room
The UK has ambitious net zero carbon targets. That means tackling some 27 million existing homes and two million commercial buildings. Hywel Davies considers the importance of refurbishment