Pablo stressed the necessity of embedding sustainability discussions early in the design process to ensure these principles are deeply rooted in the project.

Article by Director of Sustainability., Head of Sustainability and Building Physics.

Learn more about our approach to sustainable design.Click the 'play button' to listen in, or read.key takeaway article on the benefits of Reference Design below..Defining Reference Design.

What is a Reference Design and why use one?.Many major clients have national or global rollouts that are happening at a rapid pace.. Often these clients have to procure a bespoke design for every site, introducing unnecessary design cycles and complexity that adds cost and time to construction projects and ongoing operations..

Yet, from our experience, these clients have a very well-informed view on how their asset needs to perform and the layouts and designs that deliver their operational outcomes.

This knowledge and understanding lends itself to a repeatable solution that can comprise c.80% of the asset.. We call this a ‘Reference Design’: a highly optimised, site agnostic ‘core design’ for a portfolio client.The emphasis with The Roadmap to 2030 is very much on that process from concept and design, right through to the end of an asset’s life.

The use of data in a consistent way, as part of the information management mandate, will be key to ensuring ongoing effectiveness across the whole life-cycle.Transforming Infrastructure Performance 2021 is positive, accessible and hopefully provides the drive needed to invest in change by looking for opportunities to align with the rest of the industry, and by taking small steps which can be expanded upon for further growth.. On a related note, although the definition of what we mean by a platform approach to construction is now becoming more fulsome, we can still go back to the IPA document from 2018 and continue to find it completely relevant and valid.

This demonstrates a consistency of thinking which should be quite reassuring.TIP 2021 is just a more detailed roadmap, and this should be helpful to people if they are struggling with the concepts.