MODUS 06/19

06/19THE SAFE ISSUE

®

Trump Tower, New York City

Marco Polo Apartments, Honolulu

Torch Tower, Dubai

Cottingley Towers, Leeds

FR Tower, Dhaka

Sargam Society, Mumbai

Crystal Tower, Mumbai

Grampian House, London

Grafton House, London

New Taipei City Hospital, Taipei

Paissandú Square, São Paulo

These are just a few of the fires to have broken

out in high-rises in the two years since the

Grenfell Tower tragedy. All of them were built

in countries with fire saftey codes – but there

is no global standard. Isn’t it time for one? 12

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One of the most basic requirements people expect from the

built environment is that it is safe. Whether at home, at work,

or travelling on our transport networks, we want to live without

fear as we go about our daily lives.

The dedication of our profession to uphold the highest standards

of technical expertise and ethical behaviour has had a meaningful

impact on safety, with the result that the quality of our built

environment is now better than it has ever been. However, this is not

something we can take for granted. Urbanisation, climate change,

and digitisation are changing the way we live and work at a pace we

can barely comprehend.

These trends are only intensifying, potentially threatening not only

our wellbeing, but the natural environment on which we rely.

From fire safety, to supporting our seniors in ageing populations,

as well as climate resilience, the range of challenges is as large as it

is diverse. And the public quite rightly expect RICS to take the lead

in finding solutions in the built environment to these challenges.

They deserve solutions that support their ambitions to live good lives,

regardless of their individual circumstances.

I am confident we can be the agents of this change, bringing to bear

the tools and knowledge of our profession to respond to the demands

of the 21st century on our built environment. We have the skills to help

people succeed, and must now work to ensure that the generations yet

to come will inherit and thrive in vibrant and sustainable communities.

Views expressed in Modus are those of the named author and are not necessarily those of RICS or the publisher. The contents of this magazine are fully protected by copyright and may not be reproduced in any form without the prior permission of the publisher. All information correct at time of going to press. All rights reserved. The publisher cannot accept liability for errors or omissions. RICS does not accept responsibility for loss, injury or damage or costs that result from, or are connected in any way to, the use of products or services advertised. All editions of Modus are printed on paper sourced from sustainable, properly managed forests. This magazine can be recycled for use in newspapers and packaging. Please dispose of it at your local collection point. The polythene and paper in this pack are recyclable. The polythene wrap can be recycled at carrier bag recycling points.

FOR RICS Stephanie Bentley RICS, Parliament Square, London SW1P 3AD

FOR SUNDAY Editor Oliver ParsonsArt Director Sam Walker Deputy Editor Andy Plowman Designer Katie Wilkinson Creative Director Matt Beaven Account Director Karen Jenner Head of Recruitment Sales Sam Gilbert Senior Account Manager James Cannon Production Manager Michael Wood Managing Director Toby Smeeton Repro F1 Colour Printer Walstead SouthernPrint Cover Images Alamy; PA; Getty; Shutterstock

Published by Sunday, 207 Union Street, London SE1 0LN wearesunday.com

Editorial enquiries editor@ricsmodus.comAdvertising enquiries James Cannon jamesc@wearesunday.com, or +44 (0)20 7101 2777

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News, events and notices / 41-42

INTELLIGENCE

EXPERIENCE

FEATURES

What we can learn from… / … Singapore’s world-leading approach to water management

Way to go / Architect and RICS Certified BIM Manager Allister Lewis

Opinion / Dan Hughes on how the profession can stay ahead of technology

Chartered territory / With which single measure can the industry best fight climate change?

Deconstructed / Does hyperloop really represent the future of transport infrastructure?

What if? / Could we ease the UK’s housing shortage by relaxing the green belt?

06

08

09

10

36

50

32

1812

Burning issue / Fire is the same, no matter where you are in the world. But there are no unified building standards for dealing with it – until now

12

All together now / Coworking has hit the mainstream, but now that the big developers have piled into the market, what does it take to stand out?

18New world ordered / Insights for the future from three speakers at this year’s RICS’ World Built Environment Forum Summit

22

The ageing city / The global population is getting older. Are we in danger of building cities that can’t cope with this new, elderly demographic?

26The answer lies beneath our feet / We need to reduce carbon emissions, fast. Could carbon farming – capturing CO2 in the soil – help meet our targets?

32

I N T E L L I G E N C E

Water management in Singapore / Future of surveying jobs /

Tackling climate change / Hyperloop – worth the hype? /

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The Marina Barrage dams Marina Bay to form Singapore’s largest reservoir, which provides 10% of the city’s water needs

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 7

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The city is one of the world’s most adept at squeezing every last drop out of its most precious commodity. Robyn Wilson explains how

H O W S I N G A P O R E H O L D S I T S W A T E R

W H A T W E C A N L E A R N F R O M …

Singapore has a big water challenge. Demand in the city-state is around 430 million gallons a day, enough to fill 782 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Domestic consumption accounts for almost half of this – a figure that could almost double by 2060, according to Singapore’s national water agency, the Public Utilities Board (PUB). Surrounded on all sides by sea and vulnerable to heavy downpours, the region must also contend with flash floods.

Against this backdrop, Singapore developed a now world-renowned water management programmes, sinking S$670m (£382m) into research and development. PUB has formed collaborative ties with leaders in private industry and academia, including GE Power in North America and Israel’s national water company, Mekorot, to de-risk and scale up promising technologies.

The agency says this collaborative approach has resulted in half the projects carried out under its R&D programme progressing to implementation or the next development phase. To date it has worked on 613 projects with partners from 27 countries. PUB also works with bodies such as the Ministry of Education, and Housing Development Board to educate teachers, students and homeowners on water scarcity and management. Last year it began a two-year deployment of smart shower devices to around 10,000 flats to conserve water.

Elsewhere the city-state has made a series of infrastructure investments to create “four national taps”, which come from local water catchment, imported water, desalinated water and reused/recycled water – what it calls “NEWater”. Currently, desalinated water supplies up to 25% of Singapore’s water needs, with NEWater making up to 40% but the city-state intends for these two sources to account for 85% of Singapore’s water needs by 2060.

Rainwater and grey water collected via drains, canals and rivers is channelled to one of 17 reservoirs. Since 2011, these local water catchment areas have grown; from once taking up half its land surface, to now two-thirds. The city also imports water from the Johor River in Malaysia – an agreement that runs until 2061. Two desalination plants currently meet 25% of Singapore’s water needs, with three more due to come online next year. Finally, the region has five reclamation “NEWater” plants, which use a three-step treatment process to produce clean water: microfiltration and reverse osmosis remove contaminants and bacteria, while ultraviolet disinfection kills any remaining organisms.

Register your interest for the next RICS Water Conference: rics.org/flagship-events

S H O W I N G A S E N S I T I V E S I D EWater is a precious commodity in drought- afflicted Australia. Consequently, the main city authorities have adopted water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) principles in their planning legislation, which treat storm and sewage water as a resource rather than waste. In Melbourne, WSUD examples include protecting and enhancing natural water systems within urban developments, and integrating stormwater treatment into landscapes such as parklands. Water draining from urban developments is filtered to remove pollutants and retained to reduce runoff in the event of floods.

K E E P I N G A L I D O N T H I N G SLow-impact development (LID) is a term used across the US and Canada to explain a “design with nature” approach to managing and minimising stormwater runoff. The aim is to use green infrastructure to mirror nature wherever possible, thus ensuring any new development has minimal impact on the environment. This is achieved by incorporating natural features such as trees, wetlands, drainage patterns, topography and soils – an approach that creates areas for local water storage, and drainage systems that are distributed across the landscape.

A D R A I N O N R E S O U R C E SA by-product of urbanisation is the spread of impervious surfaces such as concrete and asphalt that repel rainwater, rather than allowing it to soak into the ground. In the event of heavy downpours, this can lead to flash flooding. The sustainable urban drainage systems adopted in the UK use various forms of permeable surfaces to manage drainage, such as green roofs to control water runoff and permeable paving that allows rain to pass through the surface. These measures help to direct the flow of water to natural features such as streams and lakes, thus preventing local sewer networks becoming overwhelmed.

FLOWING PRAISE: GOOD WATER MANAGEMENT AROUND THE GLOBE

I N T E L L I G E N C E

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DAN HUGHESCEO, LIQUID REI

“AUTOMATION WILL FREE US TO FOCUS ON THE MOST ENJOYABLE ASPECTS OF OUR JOBS ”

experience. But automation will have an impact not so much on jobs in general as on specific tasks within them, such as data collection and the number-crunching behind a cost estimate or a valuation.

So significant amounts of what we do today will be automated tomorrow, but that does not mean that the future is not bright. While technology will do more of the heavy lifting, it is also likely that the types of jobs that can be automated will be carried out more often – valuations will become more frequent, for example. As these tasks become more deeply governed by algorithms and machine learning, the faculties that we value as human beings – creativity, service, ethics – will not only become more relied upon, but also more valued. And the good news is that these are the tasks that are usually the more enjoyable aspects of people’s jobs.

The world is changing fast and if the real estate sector wants to lead the way, rather than be led by others, we must all come together to embrace new ways of doing things. In the British Property Federation’s LIQUID Report, published in March 2019, a survey of senior industry leaders found that 93% saw digital transformation as essential for the future of the real estate sector.

There is little doubt that the role of the surveyor will continue to exist– and thrive – in the future; with one important caveat: to achieve this, above all else, we must embrace change today.

Find out more about the impact that advances in technology are having on the profession, and how you can seize the opportunities it brings, at rics.org/surveyingtechnology

That technology is upending the way our industry operates – how we do our jobs, the expectations of our customers, the emergence of new business models – is beyond doubt. It is perhaps the pace of this change that makes it feel unsettling, especially with so much focus on the threat to jobs. According to McKinsey & Co’s 2017 report, A future that works: automation, employment, and productivity, 44% of today’s jobs in real estate and construction will be automated in the future.

As an industry founded on long-term principles, real estate is often accused of lagging behind other sectors in the journey of digital transformation. This may be fair but, considering the nature of the sector, it is easy to forget quite how far we have come in a short space of time. There are early signs everywhere that the industry is evolving and embracing technology. At the most basic level, the uptake of innovations that have only been around for a short time has become commonplace. The use of data is now a business priority and, although adoption is not yet widespread, there has been an increased focus on cryptocurrencies and blockchain, which has only been around since 2008.

A further sign of how far we have come in a relatively short space of time is that established industry bodies such as RICS are now playing a leading role in digital transformation. Away from the digital products and services that they provide, technology is an important aspect of RICS’ membership competencies, it has established a Tech Affiliate Programme and published a range of data or technology standards and guidance notes.

Assuming McKinsey’s estimate of 44% is correct, we can expect plenty more change in the coming years. Technology is making everything quicker; from simplifying the conveyancing process to speeding up investments into property – for example, with platforms such as ISPX, or from shortening commercial leases to streamlining the house-hunting

O P I N I O N : F U T U R E O F T H E P R O F E S S I O N

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 9

C H A R T E R E D T E R R I T O R Y

YOUR RESPONSES ON TWITTER

@LEE_WILKINSON212 MayPretty close call @RICSnews – the whole #built environment just needs to ask itself on each design: is it enough, what else could we do?

@CAPTATE112 MayPity these questions [are] still being asked if all the answers have been around for a few years.

@DROP_THE_PILOT7 MayStop knocking down old buildings and re-use them. Voila! Beautiful cities, less waste, less hazardous materials clogging the air and sewers, fewer industrial machines spewing out dangerous gases. The obsession with renewal is ridiculous. Re-use is what matters.

@LEIGH_MCIAT3 MayMonitor in-use performance and take action when sustainability rating metrics, including predicted energy use, aren’t hit.

H O W C A N T H E B U I L T E N V I R O N M E N T B E S T H E L P F I G H T C L I M A T E C H A N G E ?In the wake of the Extinction Rebellion protests that brought swathes of London to a standstill, last month the UK government conceded that we are facing a climate emergency. With the built environment contributing around 30% of the UK’s carbon emissions, how should the sector respond? We took to Twitter to find out …

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39%USE LESS CONCRETE

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15%SMARTER #FACMAN SYSTEMS

41% A GREEN BUILDINGS

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5%WE ’RE DOING ENOUGH NOW

I N T E L L I G E N C E

D E C O N S T R U C T E D

Hyperloop can improve our quality of life As soon as I mention to people I work for Virgin Hyperloop One (VHO), they talk about their commute. The time we spend travelling, the impact that has on our stress levels – what we’re looking at doing is disrupting transportation as we know it.

We’re trying to really set ourselves apart from high-speed rail or air travel; we’re offering a mode of transport that is faster, cost competitive and environmentally more sustainable. We’re looking at offering a service that deploys vehicles – pods – in a frequency of a few minutes or less, and enables peak passenger movement in excess of 12,000 passengers per hour per direction. We have run more than 300 tests to date on our prototype in Las Vegas.

We’re developing a roadmap that will get us to commercialisation in a passenger offering by the mid 2020s. The furthest along of our projects is a route between Pune and Mumbai in India. We’re proposing a 12km demonstration track, which will lend confidence to existing and future investors that the technology is ready, safe and makes sense as an investment.Brandon Kluzniak is senior manager for civil infrastructure at Virgin Hyperloop One, Los Angeles, US

It can be economically viable, if the technology worksOur scope was to run a feasibility study for Virgin Hyperloop One and the Missouri Hyperloop Coalition to see if it’s feasible to build a hyperloop from St Louis to Kansas City, with the route, potential economics and so on. The conclusion was this project would work. We didn’t evaluate VHO’s technology, instead we made an assumption that they can get up to 500-600mph as promised.

When you’re moving in a tube at the speeds that VHO is proposing, it needs to be relatively flat and straight or you end up with potential for a rollercoaster effect. Almost all of the route would be within the interstate highway’s right of way. We looked at potential ridership; by reducing travel time from four hours to 30 minutes we would save $410m in wasted productivity. Our high-level capital expenditure cost estimate for the route is $8bn- $10bn; VHO provided the numbers for operating expenditure.

The next step should be a sample project of enough size and scale to sort out regulatory authorities, do the proof of concept and have much better cost information.Drew Thompson is a director at engineering consultant Black & Veatch, Kansas, US IN

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Is the turbocharged tube the solution to modern-day transport woes or a mere pipe dream? Four experts discuss

B E Y O N D T H E H Y P E O F H Y P E R L O O P

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 11

It won’t solve the transport crisis, but has its usesThe major crisis in transport in most cities in the world is urban transport, short-distance commuting. The kind of speeds they are talking about for Hyperloop – in a dense urban area – you will never achieve. We need better last-mile connectivity.

When you need to create near-vacuum conditions, cost wise, this is a big guess. The turning radius for Hyperloop has to be very big, with no margin for error. Whether over or underground, because of that radius you’re looking at a high cost. You’ve got to maintain this near-vacuum condition in the tubes. Who knows what the costs are when you have 200 miles of this. This technology is not moving any more people compared with an Airbus A320 or a Japanese high-speed train.

I think some elements of Hyperloop are going to be useful in moving people or freight. Amazon, for example, should be interested; with humans you have safety issues, but you can move packages around. This may not be the end product, but something will come out of it.Ira Gupta is a London-based commercial adviser to transport and energy clients worldwide

Hyperloop is not a reality, and may never beHyperloop can’t be a solution to any current transport problem, as it doesn’t exist. This is like the Wright brothers pitching airports before they’d flown an aeroplane – it’s a bit premature. Magnetic levitation technology has been around for years and we’ve had pneumatic tubes since the 1800s. Putting these two technologies together doesn’t work at this time. There’s no reason public agencies should propose to build lines until they’ve built a test track that functions.

Long tubes of metal are going to expand and contract. You can imagine shorter tubes connected by rubber or something, but what’s the loss of vacuum? We don’t know. Nobody’s built one. Since they’ve never put a person in a hyperloop, they have no idea how people are going to react.

In addition to not having technology, they don’t have a business case. How do they get passenger flows that justify the cost? This isn’t faster than anything that has come before – we have aeroplanes. They haven’t come up with a market where this works better than anything we already have.David Levinson is professor of transport at the University of SydneyIN

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signs are green. In the

In the UK, fire exit

Germany, it is banned outright.Across the globe, huge

inconsistencies exist between fire safety codes. Some

countries don’t have any at all. Shouldn’t we end this confusion before many more lives are

needlessly lost?

US, they are red. The use of cladding on high-rise buildings in

Dubai is restricted, while in

Burning issue

WORDS BY ROBYN WILSON

FIRE SAFETY

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 13

But three years before, an eerily similar set of events had unravelled in Melbourne, after a fire broke out in the early hours of the morning on 25 November 2014 in a high-rise tower block, where 400 residents lived. Like Grenfell, the incident report concluded that the fire had spread with a speed and intensity caused by the building’s aluminium-clad walls; a material, it said, that was typically used in low-to-medium-rise commercial properties.

Fast-forward to August 2017, and another large fire ripped through a residential block, this time in Dubai. This was the second blaze to hit the Torch Tower in two years, with the building’s external cladding, again, to blame.

The similarities of these three cases lay in stark contrast to the tough restrictions that exist in the US over the use of the cladding material, or to the outright ban that is in place in Germany. Debate has been sparked as to why these differences exist at all.

Questions are now being raised about whether it’s time to establish a global set of fire safety standards for built environment professionals and what a standardisation of this scale would look like in practice.

Leading the charge for standardisation is Gary Strong FRICS, who is chair of the International Fire Safety Standards (IFSS) Coalition that was launched at the UN last July. The task of the coalition is to establish

The catastrophic fire

that swept through

Grenfell Tower

in June 2017 took

the whole world by surprise.

a common set of internationally accepted principles for fire safety aspects of design, engineering and construction, occupation and ongoing asset management.

“After reaching out to other countries, it quickly became clear that there were huge differences in the fire safety codes that existed and that, in some circumstances, some countries didn’t have any at all,” says Strong, who is also Global Building Standards Director at RICS. “For example, in the UK we have green fire exit signs and in the US they are red. I’ve been in the States and someone has said to me ‘that’s red, does it mean we can’t go through it?’. So, [these differences] lead to massive confusion.”

These inconsistencies also make it difficult for built environment professionals working in different countries to comply with individual codes that exist, adds Strong.

His concerns are echoed by other built environment professionals such as Nick Constantine MRICS, head of building consultancy at Asteco Property Management in Dubai. He explains that, before 2011, Dubai “didn’t really have a set of codes to follow that were UAE-specific, so it was down to consultants and engineers to specify codes”.

In 2011, the country introduced its first fire life-and-safety code, which was then updated in 2013 to ban the use of flammable cladding on buildings that are more than 50m in height, he says. This update followed a serious fire that destroyed Tamweel Tower at the Jumeirah Lakes Towers development, which was covered in the material.

After the Torch Tower fire in August 2017, the code was revised in 2018 to further improve upon the issues relating to cladding, says Constantine. It also addressed the roles and responsibilities of all those involved in the building of an asset, right the way through the supply chain from the owners to the manufacturers. “Dubai has generally been quite quick to respond when needed to address issues in the codes,” he says, although he adds that a common set of practices would still be helpful for industry professionals.

Performance reviewThe IFSS Coalition’s initial focus will be on life safety. The intention is that future principles may also deal with the protection of societally important buildings, the destruction of which would have a significant impact on a nation – as the recent fire at Notre Dame in Paris demonstrated. The coalition proposes to develop these standards on a set of performance-based criteria rather than prescriptive measures – a point that many in the industry are getting behind.

What this means in practice is wide ranging, but Mark O’Connor, director and head of specialists in WSP’s property and buildings business in London, gives an example of the difference: “[A prescriptive approach to fire safety resistance in a building’s structure might say] if your building has this occupancy and is of a certain height, it must have 120 minutes’ fire resistance. There’s no deviation from that. If you follow it, you will meet the structural requirements of the building regulations.”

For performance-based criteria, on the other hand, an engineer would take into account several factors in relation to the specific building, such as type of occupancy, compartmentalisation and ventilation, to assess how hot the building would get in the event of a particular fire, after which they would design a structure that could withstand that fire.

“So you’re treating a building on its merits and not just prescriptively applying the same rules to every building,” adds O’Connor. “[Instead] you apply the most fire-resistant elements to the bits of the structure that need it most, to maximise design efficiency.” As an extension to this latter point, there was a consensus among experts that a performance-based approach would allow for greater innovation in the design, construction and engineering of buildings.

Furthermore, it is thought that a set of global standards – which by their nature would be new and updated – could provide greater flexibility in asset classes that are evolving, such as the private-rented sector and coworking. Balfour Beatty’s David McCullogh FRICS, chair of the RICS Fire Safety in Tall Buildings working group, notes: “Some of our current fire standards

NICK CONSTANTINE MRICSASTECO PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

“ FREQUENTLY AFTER A BUILDING HAS BEEN CONSTRUCTED WE FIND THAT FIRE DETECTORS HAVE BEEN COVERED UP”

have been based on things that have happened across history and some of it doesn’t have a lot of research behind it – it’s just common practice. So one of the biggest areas where [outdated standards] become a problem is if you have new developments, and new ways of using buildings and occupying them.”

Self preservationA good example of this can be taken from Hong Kong’s self-storage sector, says Simon Tyrrell MRICS, managing director of E3 Capital Partners, which invests in alternative asset classes. He explains how a devastating fire in a self-storage property in June 2016, which caused the deaths of two firemen, brought to the fore the inconsistencies that existed in fire safety standards – particularly in sectors that are relatively new. “A lot of industrial buildings were built in Hong Kong during the 1970s and 80s, which at the time was a manufacturing hub,” Tyrrell explains. “So, when that industry moved away, to areas such as Shenzhen, Hong Kong was left with relatively old and obsolete property.”

As a result, occupiers of these buildings, such as self-storage companies, had built out their sites relevant to the fire safety codes, but they weren’t necessarily updated to best practice. “As long as you built your space and it complied with the code of the building at that time, it was never checked, because it was compliant,” says Tyrrell. “No one said: ‘This is a slightly different use so it should have its own specific asset class.’ You were just zoned as an industrial user.”

After the fire, the Hong Kong government questioned whether self-storage should have its own asset class and specification, and subsequently developed a set of rules and regulations, which Tyrrell says were

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Clockwise from top left: two years on from Grenfell, a government report found that there are still 40,000 people in the UK living in tower blocks wrapped in the same cladding that directly contributed to the blaze; Dubai revised its building codes in 2018 to clamp down on the use of flammable cladding in response to the fire at Torch Tower; four people died in a fire at Mumbai’s Crystal Tower last August – the building’s fire-fighting system was found to have been defective; after a fire at the FR Tower in Dhaka, Bangladesh in March this year, two of the owners were jailed for violating building codes that led to the deaths of 26 people

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INEQUALITY FANS THE FLAMESThere were close to 121,000 fatalities from fires in 2017 globally. Death rates are falling but the

difference between developed and emerging nations is still stark. Across sub-Saharan Africa,

fires account for 5.76 deaths per 100,000 individuals, compared with 0.68 in Western Europe

AUSTRALASIA 0.48

CARIBBEAN 1.95

CENTRAL ASIA 2.97

CENTRAL EUROPE 1.09

CENTRAL LATIN AMERICA 1.08

CENTRAL SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 6.07EAST ASIA

0.83

EASTERN EUROPE 4.37

EASTERN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA6.86

NORTH AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST 2.10

NORTH AMERICA 1.26

SOUTH ASIA 2.32

SOUTHEAST ASIA 1.13

SOUTHERN LATIN AMERICA 1.77

SOUTHERN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 5.38

WESTERN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA 4.71

TROPICAL LATIN AMERICA 0.93

WESTERN EUROPE 0.68

WORLD 1.89

OCEANIA 3.14

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very difficult to control. “We had building services saying we had to do ‘x, y, z’ and fire services saying we had to do ‘a, b, c’, but if you did one you couldn’t comply with the other because they weren’t talking to each other.”

Eventually the sector worked with the government to come to an agreement. However, Tyrrell believes that a global best practice “would really add weight” to the work that has already been done in relation to his sector in Hong Kong, as well as other parts of Asia and Southeast Asia where the self-storage sector is growing.

In terms of reducing business risk, Tyrrell flags the boost to investor confidence in newer sectors such as self-storage that global standards will bring. “Irrespective of what local regulations say, you could take the moral high ground in what should be done relative to what is done in other markets where a sector is perhaps more mature.”

Constantine concurs: “Generally, I think investors would be pleased with [a global set of standards]. If they knew a country had signed up to a global standard, it would give them a bit more confidence in investing there. They would know that their asset is going to be protected and that there’s not going to be that risk involved of having to do an intensive technical due diligence to ensure that a certain standard that they want has been implemented.”

Knowledge gapPlus, an overarching global standard could prove useful to the sharing of skills and knowledge between countries, Constantine adds. “Quite frequently, as surveyors, we find that after the building has already been constructed, tradesman or maintenance have come [post-construction] and affected the compartmentalisation, or the owners or occupiers have covered up the fire detectors due to things like cooking, so I would welcome a clear definition and education that would also help [for the operation of the asset].”

Constantine admits that such a task would be difficult to implement – a point echoed by O’Connor, who explains the complexity of building regulations and rules in relation to Grenfell. “It’s not just about fire. [Grenfell] had to meet lots of other regulation requirements, so it’s a many-faceted thing. We can’t just take fire safety in isolation. [For example], sustainability and environmental factors have led to an increase in requirements for the thermal performance of a building, which is what drove the use of [the Grenfell] material in the first place. Nothing can be taken in isolation, so to come up with a common standard that also works

with countries and other regulations and requirements will be difficult to achieve.”

On this last point, Strong does not underestimate the scale of the challenge, with the IFSS Coalition at “the beginning of a very interesting discussion”.

McCullogh adds to this, noting how incidences of fire around the world can drive changes to building regulations and codes in an area, rather than them being discussed as a common issue. “This is why RICS is saying that we should be learning from each other, and that if something should be done, it should be argued logically, no matter where in the world you are.”

As for what’s next, Strong says the coalition is working on the first set of high-level principles (box, right), which it hopes to publish later this year. The group also intends to set up a document-sharing platform for built environment professionals to access and reference whenever they need, says Strong. After that, the coalition will focus on the more “granular detail” around fire safety standards, covering issues such as cladding or evolving asset classes.

Navigating around the many political and environmental challenges will be no easy task for the coalition, particularly following the highly emotive events of tragedies such as Grenfell. But one thing’s for sure: as rapid urbanisation and globalisation increase the likelihood of people needing to live in high-rise buildings, the importance of not only having flexible fire-safety standards, but ones that can be shared easily across countries, will certainly come to the fore. n

For more information about RICS’ work on fire safety, including news, updates and the latest training courses, go to rics.org/firesafety

A FRAMEWORK FOR FIRE SAFETYAims and objectives of the International Fire Safety Standards (IFSS) Coalition

The IFSS Coalition’s standard-setting committee will map existing, relevant fire safety standards and create a catalogue of fire codes for buildings to identify best practice and understand market needs.

It will draft a conceptual framework, which will guide the drafting and understanding of fire safety principles into the future. This framework will include the following items:A common set of internationally accepted performance-based principles for fire safety aspects of design, engineering and construction, occupation and ongoing management. These will be relevant to all property classes, regions and nations regardless of the political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal differences between nationsThe coalition will largely be concerned with life safety, although future editions of the principles may also deal with property protection, recognising the impact on society of the loss of a building – such as contents, operations, etcCreation of a framework that will allow comparisons to be made on a like-for-like basis across countries.

The coalition has also said that it must link to International Ethics Standards and other relevant standards that exist.

Follow the progress of the International Fire Safety Standards Coalition at rics.org/ifss

DAVID MCCULLOGH FRICSBALFOUR BEATTY

“ WE SHOULD BE LEARNING FROM EACH OTHER, NO MATTER WHERE IN THE WORLD YOU ARE”

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ILLUSTRATION BY MICHELE MARCONI

It’s the trend that swept the offices sector, and now the big guns want a piece of the coworking action. But in a crowded marketplace, what can traditional developers offer that the new breed of flexible workspace operators can’t?

Like many influences on modern life that are now part of the mainstream, from wellness to smartphones, the concept of coworking can be traced back to the west coast of the US.

In his 2015 report, The rise of coworking spaces, sociologist Dr Alessandro Gandini sees the roots of this workplace trend as we know it – individuals and small businesses working alongside each other, paying a monthly membership fee with services pooled for efficiency and to encourage collaboration – in what was then termed “new media” production companies in the early 2000s. Fast-forward to the global financial crisis, and there was a perfect storm for the phenomenon to gather pace with landlords having a surplus of office stock ready to rent out at a discount and a crop of freshly laid off individuals ready to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams with just a mobile phone and a laptop.

Tim Oldman, CEO and founder of workplace consultant Leesman gives some context for 2019: “Most of the coworking propositions in London are retuning people at the bottom end of the millennial generation, so huge numbers of entry-level employees are experiencing entrepreneurial start-ups but with the quality of the accommodation that even the big corporates can’t provide.”

Coworking is now an established part of the property scene. Cushman & Wakefield

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in its Coworking 2018 report states that the various types of flexible working – among them serviced offices, virtual offices and dedicated desks, which are generally referred to under the catch-all term of coworking – currently occupy 10.7m ft2 (0.99m m2) or around 4% of London’s office stock.

And it’s a similar story across the globe, Cushman reports: 27m ft2 (2.51m m2) in key cities in the US, a leap of 20% in just two years, while it estimates that the sector will account for 15% of total office supply in Southeast Asia by 2030 in cities such as Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai.

Although it might have been started by smaller specialists, these days more traditional property players are fighting back, seeing the efficiencies in densities achieved in flexible workplaces compared with those of traditional offices, meaning more tenants can use the same space and greater rents can be charged. In Cushman’s August 2018 report on the US market, Coworking and Flexible Office Space, for instance, the density was 55-85 ft2 (5.1-7.9 m2) in coworking, compared with 145-175 ft2 (13.5-16.3 m2) in the traditional office market.

Battle for territory A case in point for traditional landlords entering the fray is the Crown Estate, the formation of which dates back to 1066. It launched its first flexible working space at One Heddon Street in London’s West End earlier this year. The site has 350 desks and a variety of membership options. The firm’s central London portfolio director, James Cooksey MRICS, says the property “is the first in a pipeline of projects, which will broaden our offer, to ensure we continue to support the changing needs of today’s businesses”. As well as the private offices and hotdesks familiar to coworkers, One Heddon Street also boasts an events space hosting everything from yoga classes to thought-leadership seminars. This therefore recreates the sense of community underpinning the physical space that the coworking operators have long pioneered.

And this same trend for developers to provide their own iteration of coworking can be seen around the world. Slovakian developer HB Reavis’s HubHub brand has locations in Warsaw, Bratislava, Budapest and Prague, as well as London. In the US, Tishman Speyer has developed Studio: a mix of lounges, private meeting rooms and curated programming. The initial concept

space, which opened in late 2018 at New York’s Rockefeller Center, is nearly 35,000 ft2 (3,252 m2) and will be joined by locations in six key markets, among them Washington DC, Los Angeles and Frankfurt. “We understand the importance of agility and the need for companies of all sizes to be able to move quickly and scale as needed,” says Thais Galli, Tishman Speyer’s senior director of innovation.

Developers such as these have the availability of offices at their disposal of course: they own – rather than lease – the buildings in which their coworking spaces are based. Not only that, but if it’s a new build, they have control over how they are designed and fitted out, from the position of

ROBERT CAMPKIN MRICSCOLLIERS INTERNATIONAL

“ THE POSITIVE EFFECT OF COWORKING IS THAT INVESTORS AND DEVELOPERS ARE INCREASINGLY RECOGNISING OCCUPIERS AS CUSTOMERS”

lifts down to the quality of the mechanical and electrical elements, while coworking providers have to work within the spatial parameters of the buildings that they lease. Landlords would argue this gives their coworking product the ability to better deliver what end-users want, whether that’s natural ventilation, energy-saving lighting, or floorplates that have the optimum mix of private offices and communal spaces.

Do it yourself Emma Swinnerton, head of flexible workplace solutions for EMEA at Cushman, isn’t surprised that firms who own office buildings have got in on the coworking act: “They have seen operators making a significant financial return, which could make them think ‘should I be doing this myself?’ The other aspect is control and developing relationships with tenants, if you have a third-party occupier doing that.”

Couple this with the fact that WeWork is reporting that 20% of its revenues come from enterprise clients who typically enter into leases of between one and three years, a proposition that is edging closer to what developers and landlords offer their tenants directly, and it’s easy to see why industry heavyweights such as Landsec have got on board in a bid to cut out the coworking middle man. Its Myo brand opened its first space last month, for businesses of between 15 and 80 people, in the company’s Nova development in London’s Victoria.

“We saw a gap in the market between coworking and long-term leases,” explains Oliver Knight MRICS, head of Myo. The thinking goes that these smaller companies will forge a lasting relationship with the landlord directly. When they outgrow this type of space, there are options within the rest of Landsec’s portfolio for them to decant into. “We’re also looking to attract existing customers who want to have accommodation for specific projects or require additional amenity space, meeting rooms or a place to hold events,” Knight continues.

Seeing coworking as something to draw in not only SMEs but also corporate clients is a view shared by Chris Hiatt FRICS, director of Landid, which has developed several buildings along London’s western corridor. “The way the market’s going, particularly outside London, is that larger tenants looking for 100,000 ft2 (9,290 m2) will take 50,000 ft2 (4,645 m2) on a long-term lease and the rest on a more flexible basis,” he says. IM

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Rather than develop its own product, however, Landid has opted to put coworking providers into its buildings. Spaces operates out of the Porter Building in Slough and the Charter Building in Uxbridge, while Fora has a long lease at Thames Tower in Reading. “They are set up to do it as a business,” says Hiatt, explaining this business model. “Plus, having them in helps sell the story of the building and gives other tenants the option of extra space that is more flexible.”

This is not the only model for landowners and investors to get a slice of the coworking pie. Investment firm Blackstone acquired the majority stake in The Office Group in June 2017 in a deal that valued the business at £500m, and Brockton Capital have made significant investment in Fora. There is also the option of pursuing a joint venture with a coworking operator, as Network Rail did in 2011 with The Office Group to refurbish empty space in five main-line stations.

“Time will tell who are the winners and the losers but serviced offices require very specific skills sets and management akin to hospitality, which are not traditionally part of an investor’s core business,” says Matthew Greenstreet FRICS, director in project management and construction at London-based consultant Drees & Sommer. He points out that speculative office developers are building-in concierge-style customer service – so at Landid’s properties, for instance, you might see everything from dry cleaning, to a “little black book” of suppliers, to after-work beers being offered. “I don’t see serviced offices as a new asset class – it’s a transformation of an existing one,” Greenstreet continues.

Robert Campkin MRICS, EMEA head of corporate capital solutions at Colliers International, sums up the implications for the market: “The traditional relationships between landlords and tenants had left some occupiers feeling neglected. The positive effect of coworking disruption for everyone is that investors and developers are increasingly recognising occupiers as customers. They are becoming more in tune with the occupier’s increasing demand for flexibility, and heightening their service levels and efforts to accommodate a business’s bespoke requirements.” n

The changing nature of the workplace was a central focus at the RICS World Built Environment Forum Summit last month. Visit rics.org/wbef to find out more

From top: Boasting an events space as well as 350 desks, One Heddon Street represents the Crown Estate’s first foray into the coworking sector; LandSec opened the first space under its Myo brand last month at Nova in London’s Victoria; developer Landid has taken a different approach, signing operator Fora on a long lease at Thames Tower in Reading

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PORTRAITS BY JOEL KIMMEL

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 23

Asia will be the dominant continent of the 21st century. As I outlined in my recent book, The Future is Asian, we are already seeing an “Asianisation” of the world, driven by China’s demand for commodities and the continent exporting its people and ideas.

This new civilizational order links 4.6 billion people from Saudi Arabia to Japan, from Siberia to Australia. We are also seeing other emerging markets develop along the lines that we are seeing Asia develop. These concepts can apply just as much to South and Central America or to Africa. They may even ultimately apply to the West.

“Asianisation” certainly presents its own challenges for real estate professionals. The scale of Asian cities is so vast that they present a whole different landscape, literally, from what we’ve seen in the Western world. It’s not unusual for megaclusters of cities to develop in Asia, such as the Greater Bay Area around Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangdong, for instance.

The well-developed Asian megacity of the future does not have just one central business district (CBD). It could have four, several city centres, and a network of amenities, infrastructure and services. It’s a challenge but also an opportunity for the property sector.

OUR CONNECTED FUTURE – AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR CITIES

PARAG KHANNAFOUNDER AND MANAGING PARTNER, FUTUREMAP, AND AUTHOR OF THE FUTURE IS ASIAN

1 /It would be healthy for developing nations to evolve along these

lines. At the moment, too much focus in many emerging markets is on one city: think of Jakarta, Manila, Bangkok and how they dominate the economies of their home countries. The situation is the same in Africa, around Nairobi, Cairo or Lagos, as well as in Latin America, where Mexico City, Lima, Santiago and Buenos Aires draw the best and brightest to their centres of economic and social activity.

In China, you have a lot more options. You don’t have to live in Shanghai or Beijing any more. As a result, you are starting to see large-scale service economy cities rise in China. People want to have less pollution, less congestion and less stress in their lives. So, places like Changsha and Kunming are also a labour-migration pull.

You have a major conurbation with 100 million people in the 16 cities of “Cheng-Yu”, the combination of Chongqing and Chengdu. The Greater Bay Area has 62 million souls across nine main cities. The 31 cities around Wuhan and the middle reaches of the Yangtze River boast a population of 136 million yet are broadly dispersed along spokes connecting those smaller urban hubs.

This, with the right investment, can take place at a smaller scale in other nations. There needs to be a balancing between the most populous and second-most-populous tiers of cities. India is also developing in this direction. Delhi and Mumbai are too large. We are seeing smaller, but still large, economies develop around cities such as Bangalore and Hyderabad, each with a distinct niche, whether driven by tech, a port or an industry cluster. Then you need joined-up thinking at a regional and national level to link them.

This thinking may make you wonder why we would want to live in a city at all. There are good reasons why we don’t work as coders, say, living on a farm in rural Myanmar. You need the ports and the wifi and the fibre, the hospitals, universities and schools and, above all, a diversified economy. It’s hard to do these things outside cities.

I hope that the rise of decentralised economies can help reduce the wealth gap between urban elites and the population as a whole. Inequality that festers is not going to lead to a bright future. Yet inequality is staggeringly high in many developing counties. That’s not surprising given the breakneck speed of development. But over time there is going to be less tolerance for this inequality.

If we don’t see the kind of dissipation of investment that benefits the whole country, not just the capital cities, that is potentially going to be very negative politically. But I believe that in today’s connected world, we can build toward that optimistic future, successfully.

This year’s RICS World Built Environment Forum Summit

convened a host of experts to discuss everything from the

future of cities to the new face of the workplace. We invited

three event speakers to share their views on what lies ahead

RICS WBEF SUMMIT

The task of trying to remove polluting fuels from our energy system has never been simple. Over 20 years after the current series of UN climate change conferences began, the share of global energy consumption provided by fossil fuels remains over 80%, according to International Energy Agency figures.

Global energy consumption has increased by over 45% in the past 20 years, and production of coal and natural gas has risen even faster.

While it’s true that the Trump administration has championed the coal industry, coal is on its way out in the US. To understand the challenge facing energy transition advocates, we must distinguish between the transition from coal and the transition from gas.

In North America today, there are no plans to build new coal-fired power stations and the economics for coal get worse every year. In the parts of the US that operate competitive power markets, coal-fired power struggles to compete with natural gas on price. Moreover, the kind of large-scale, constant baseload power that coal-fired generation excels at providing is becoming less important as, in the US and other developed economies, energy-hungry industries are giving way to service industries with lighter electricity demand. As a result, electricity consumption is falling.

In emerging markets, on the other hand, coal is often the cheapest fuel. For growing economies such as India and China, domestic coal production remains an attractive way to sustain economic growth at a price point that most of the population can still afford.

Transitioning from coal, therefore, requires different measures in different parts of the world. Where coal remains competitive on price, natural gas can be a bridging fuel to renewables, replacing coal as the main provider of baseload capacity. Gas-fired peaking plants, designed to respond to urgent demand for electricity in peak periods, are considerably cleaner than coal plants and quicker to start up.

The transition from gas will be harder, not least in the US, which now produces so much gas that it became a net exporter in 2017 and is due to scrap tax credits for renewable energy generation in the coming years. As technology improves, renewables become cheaper, but this alone is not enough: they must also be as reliable as fossil fuels, combining with batteries or other technology able to supply power when wind and solar are not generating. The cost of large-scale batteries needs to fall by about 50% before this can occur.

A cost-effective solution already exists, however, in the form of capacity markets, which sell power capacity to energy suppliers to guard against power outages at peak times. This can be in the form of either increased generation or of reduced consumption, such as a factory that switches off its machinery temporarily when demand is high. Smart grid technology can help to aggregate capacity providers, and schedule power demand – such as for charging electric vehicles – away from peak times. Combining capacity markets with markets for carbon credits could cancel out some of cheap gas’ competitive advantage. Longer term, the most important technological advance in the energy transition will be in battery storage.

There is already no shortage, at least in the US, of people eager to take jobs in the renewable energy industry. But like other industries, this sector will be increasingly driven by automation at all levels, from project origination through design to asset management.

Both industry veterans and new entrants will have to get to grips with the automation, particularly understanding data streams, either by up-skilling or partnering with service providers. The spread of capacity markets could also bring new entrants to the energy industry in the form of heavy-duty industrial consumers. Professionals at these firms who master energy efficiency, data analytics and power trading are well placed to capitalise on the energy transition.

MAKING THE SWITCH: WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO TRANSITION TO RENEWABLE ENERGY?

2 /

MICHAEL FERGUSONDIRECTOR, ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE PRACTICE, CORPORATE RATINGS GROUP, S&P GLOBAL

“ RENEWABLES ARE BECOMING CHEAPER, BUT THEY MUST ALSO BE AS RELIABLE AS FOSSIL FUELS”

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 25

As times change, particularly in the context of social and sustainability goals, there has been, and will continue to be, more focus on our footprint within the built environment. Inefficiencies that weren’t as relevant before are relevant today as the population grows, infrastructure ages and

technology continues to advance; people become enabled and choose to be mobile and more flexible in order to adapt.

This adaptability also applies to people’s acceptance of the shared economy, where several organisations can occupy and share one space, dramatically increasing efficiency.

Shared and open seating environments with a managed and facilitated community aspect break down perceived barriers to getting engaged quickly within the culture and work environment. With an unprecedented number of workers now classifying themselves as freelancers – according to the Intuit 2020 Report, this could be more than 40% of US workers by next year – it is important that corporate real estate and human resource managers work to curate a workplace experience that speaks to their needs.

Comfort, acoustics, natural light and fresh air are the underpinnings of an employee’s ability to function well throughout their working day. For example, if the heating and air conditioning is not designed properly, first there is a comfort issue and also there is an issue about the amount of time spent trying to control it. Comfort is a big factor in people’s ability to focus on their work and has a significant effect on employee productivity.

Dr Joseph Gardner Allen, assistant professor of exposure assessment science at Harvard’s TH Chan School of Public Health, has conducted research that found workers in properly ventilated buildings performed twice as effectively on cognitive and decision-making tests compared with those in poorly ventilated buildings.

Therefore, it is important to consider indoor environmental quality and its impact on health and productivity. Often this is just an afterthought, yet the results of Allen’s studies suggest that even a modest improvement to indoor environmental quality may have a profound impact on the decision-making performance of workers, and their productivity in general.

JOIN THE 2020 SUMMIT

MAUREEN EHRENBERG FRICSGLOBAL HEAD OF DIGITAL FACILITY AND ASSET MANAGEMENT SERVICES, WEWORK

The bottom line is that you can design as cool a looking space as you like, but if you don’t get the inner workings right first, you will fail to achieve an optimised, productive work environment.

To get the right solution for large corporate enterprise clients, we spend a lot of time sitting with their real estate group and different stakeholders in the business to observe the ways in which they work and to determine what is and isn’t working for them. We consider usage data, work movement patterns, conduct research and undertake surveys to ensure we’re giving insights-driven recommendations.

Over the next five years there is going to be more variation of the space that is offered by owners to occupants. Real estate will, in time become an “on-demand” industry and landlords will be able to build and provide for space as a service.

Now is an incredibly exciting time to be working in commercial real estate as it is moving forward, being transformed by technology, society and work. This change is advancing very quickly and drawing in new thinking and professionals with new and different skill sets creating alternative ownership and business models and advanced workplaces, no longer just places where work happens.

Seeing things differently, challenging old models, bringing in new skills and creating platforms and products that can be consumed in various ways by tenants and workers will mean the difference between success and failure in property in the coming years. n

The opinion pieces in this article have been abridged for publication in Modus. To read the full versions, visit rics.org/futureprofession

The next RICS World Built Environment Forum Summit will be held in Shenzhen, China, on 11-12 May 2020, and will focus on the theme of “Successful city clusters: wealth creation, resilience and great places to live”. To find out more, sign up for email updates and to get involved, visit rics.org/wbef

“ COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE WILL, IN TIME, BECOME AN ON-DEMAND INDUSTRY”

WHAT WILL TOMORROW’S WORKPLACE LOOK LIKE, AND WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE PROFESSION?

3 /RICS WBEF SUMMIT

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THE AGEING CITY

In 1950, the proportion of people living in the developed world over the age of 65 was 8%. By 2045, it will be 25% (see left). Coupled with a rapid rate of urbanisation, it’s clear a seismic shift in global demographics is under way. But with today’s cities growing to serve the needs of their largely young, working populations, are we in danger of creating places wholly unsuited to their older, future residents?

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The developed world is facing an unprecedented demographic change. While Africa, the Middle East and South Asia experience a youth boom, among OECD countries the trend is going the other way. The proportion of people aged 65 and above will rise from 16% today to 25% in 2045, as an

additional 146 million people join the age group. The redrawn demographic picture will pose a challenge in many areas of the economy and society, not least the built environment.

Over the past decade, policymakers in many countries have begun to favour “ageing in place” solutions, which encourage people to remain in their homes for as long as possible as they get older. The trend has been driven partly by necessity, because of the increasing cost of providing sufficient residential care places, and partly by the growing preference of older people to remain in their own homes.

“Ageing in place puts a premium on making sure their environment is fit for purpose,” says professor Chris Phillipson, a director of the Manchester Institute for Collaborative Research on Ageing. “People are ageing in neighbourhoods that undermine their independence and that has to be sorted out, both inside their homes and in terms of mobility and access to services and resources outside the home.”

Many existing homes are too poorly designed to be adapted for older people, which is why there is a strong case for new homes to be built to “lifetime home” standards, offering features such as space for wheelchair access and the installation of stairlifts, argues David Sinclair, a director at London-based thinktank the International Longevity Centre. “The vast majority of older people live in general-needs housing across the world. If you are talking about improving housing you can have the biggest impact and address the biggest need by helping the millions of people who will stay in their own homes.”

In the Netherlands all new houses are now built to such standards, and in some parts of the country that is beginning to influence the long-term value of properties, says Joël Scherrenberg MRICS, principal of specialised valuation practice Scherrenberg Groep.

“The ability to use the home for as long as you need it is an element of sustainability more broadly and where the market is in balance, sustainability is becoming increasingly important to buyers. Whether the house can be adapted for older people is one of the elements that they take into account, and therefore has an impact on value,” he argues.

Meanwhile, technology could play a role in facilitating a better quality of life for people ageing in place, suggests Scott Eckstein, the Los Angeles-based MD of senior accommodation consultant Active Living International. “Digitalisation and the shared economy will make it easier for seniors to make connections with people like stay-at-home moms who want to earn money by caring for them.”

Young at heartEarlier generations have chosen to retire to the seaside or country, or in the US to large purpose-built retirement communities. But today an increasing number of older people are favouring an urban lifestyle because they want to stay close to their existing family and social networks, amenities such as shops, and healthcare and cultural facilities, says Eckstein. “They do not want to retire to an island of old agers as their parents did. They will want to be around things, to volunteer, to see their kids, to go back to school, to travel.”

However, many cities are poorly designed for an older population, as Sinclair explains: “Part of that is because the urban fabric takes a very long time to change, but another aspect is that a lot of economic imperatives for investing in the built environment are associated with work. For instance, transport networks are focused on getting people to and from work quickly.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) has attempted to address the issue by founding a global network for age-friendly cities. Since 2015 participating cities have introduced measures such as better access to public transport, street seating and public toilets, clearer signposting, and initiatives to keep pavements free of obstructions. Enabling mobility is a crucial element of age-friendliness, says Phillipson: “When you ask older people what would most improve the quality of their life, transport is the thing that often comes up, usually access to a bus service where they have extra time to get on and off.” Meanwhile, Eckstein suggests that if the predicted advances in autonomous vehicles eventuate, driverless cars will provide a more user-friendly, personalised means of transport for the elderly.

Graham Parry, group research director at property company Grosvenor, and author of the 2018 Silver Cities report on planning for an ageing population, says that while some property investors understandably choose to target their equity on growing cities with younger populations, inevitably those markets tend to be much higher-risk and less mature in terms of institutional capital requirements than established markets with ageing populations. He argues that investors who fail to grasp the opportunity presented by well-heeled senior citizens could be missing out: “The baby boomers will be the richest generation ever to retire. They have enormous spending power and they are probably going to be enjoying a longer period of retirement than previous generations.”

That could be a boon for declining town centres if they can adapt to serving the needs of older people, suggests Sonia Parol, head of care and retirement living at east Midlands-based architect Urban

SCOTT ECKSTEINACTIVE LIVING INTERNATIONAL

“ TODAY’S ELDERLY DO NOT WANT TO RETIRE TO AN ISLAND OF OLD AGERS AS THEIR PARENTS DID”

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GREY AREASBy 2030 there will be a high proportion of elderly people in over 30% of the OECD’s top 100 largest

cities. In Berlin, Hong Kong, Milan and Tokyo, more than 25% of residents will be over the age of 65.

BERLIN 20 / 26

LAGOS 2 / 3

MILAN 22 / 27

PARIS 14 / 18

STOCKHOLM 16 / 18

BUENOS AIRES 11 / 14

LONDON 13 / 16

MUMBAI 27 / 10

RIO DE JANEIRO 10 / 16

SYDNEY 14 / 18

CAPE TOWN 6 / 8

MADRID 16 / 22

NAIROBI 14 / 18

SAN FRANCISCO 15 / 19

TOKYO 24 / 29

HONG KONG 16 / 27

MEXICO CITY 7 / 12

NEW YORK 15 / 20

SHANGHAI 11 / 21

VANCOUVER 13 / 19

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Edge. “An active third age can contribute to both the economic and social life of the country and help retailers and the high street.”

Not every older person will want – or have – the opportunity to age in place, so more specialist senior housing will be needed accommodate the growing aged population. “The baby boomers who are approaching retirement age now have completely different requirements and expectations to the generation before them, says Parol. “This is the right time to come up with new solutions.”

Valuable lessonsBecause senior housing is less efficient in its use of floorspace than general housing, it requires a different viability model, argues Laurence Liauw, a director at Spada Health Concepts and adjunct associate professor at the University of Hong Kong (box, right). “You can’t value senior housing in the same way you value normal housing because of the functional and design differences,” he says. “Surveyors need to push this with governments and developers to incentivise development. That difference has to be in the valuation of a project for it to be built, and it has to be funded with a different model.”

Liauw says that in most developed countries older people are increasingly choosing retirement communities in preference to nursing home models of accommodation. “We see diversification towards retirement living that is more like a healthy lifestyle hospitality product for seniors, but with nursing care under the same roof so that there is a continuum of care for people to live well together, rather than a facility where you go to die.” These facilities are often called continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs). CCRC schemes offer seniors the advantage of not having to move as their health deteriorates, but for some older people they still feel too segregated from the rest of society.

Eckstein predicts the emergence of more “naturally occurring” retirement communities, which he describes as “CCRC without walls”, and which would be constructed near to existing town centres, or with their own newly created town centres. He suggests that settlements could be built with features that allow them to be adapted as the inhabitants age, with more care services gradually being bought in by the community as they grow older together.

Julia Park, head of housing research at architect Levitt Bernstein in London, foresees the growth of less institutional, grassroots-led co-living set up by older people who find themselves alone in later life and would prefer company – although she concedes that such schemes are difficult to deliver. Like other experts in the sector she sees the future of elderly housing in more integrated, multi-generational communities. “The breakthrough is that most of the accommodation for older people that is being built now looks like ordinary housing,” she says. “Many of us are thinking of moving into towns as we get older, so we are likely to live in apartments with lift access in a mixed-generation block. They may be located on the lower floors and be slightly bigger than those for younger people, and there will be some sort of common space. The future of housing generally is a much more age-friendly model.” n

How do we create cities that can adapt to changing demographics as well as other global trends such as rapid urbanisation, climate change and resource scarcity? We explore at rics.org/intelligentcities

HONG KONG: EPICENTRE OF THE AGEING CHALLENGEHousing elderly residents in a high-rise society

“China and Hong Kong are at the epicentre of the challenge of an ageing world,” notes Spada Health Concepts’ Laurence Liauw. “Japan’s ageing population is nearing its peak, but Hong Kong has the longest life expectancy of anywhere in the world and China’s curve is getting steeper. Governments must do something about this now.”

While much of South Asia is experiencing a youth boom, China’s ageing trajectory is following that of the developed world, partly because of the now-abandoned one-child policy, says Liauw, threatening a slowdown in economic growth similar to that seen in Japan.

Meanwhile in Hong Kong the proportion of the population aged over 65 will leap from 18% today to 30% in 2040, predicts Marco Wu FRICS, former chairman of the Hong Kong Housing Society. In recent years the public housing provider has introduced pilot projects in an attempt to show the way forward. An ageing-in- place scheme has been established for residents of its subsidised housing blocks, which funds age-friendly adaptations and provides some health and social support. For the mid- and high-income brackets, senior citizen residents’ schemes have been trialled.

In a high-rise society with some of the most expensive property prices in the world, developing age-friendly housing is challenging. The supply of land in Hong Kong is insufficient to meet demand, but many older people are reluctant to leave their communities for schemes built on cheaper plots further out of the city, says Wu.

He believes that Hong Kong’s culture, in which it is usual for several generations of the same family to live in close proximity, may help the city to adapt as its population ages. “In the future we need to aim to create more mixed housing with blocks for the elderly close to blocks for the younger generation, so that they can look after each other,” argues Wu. “That is easier to do in the public sector, but if we are successful, I am confident the private sector will follow.”

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WORDS BY GEORGE BULL

IMAGE BY CAMERON DAVIDSON

We need urgent solutions to avert a climate emergency, and with soil’s

carbon-capturing capability proven and cheap to implement, it could be that …

CLIMATE CHANGE

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 33

Dave Reay wants to get to net-zero. This means that, by the time he dies, he will have sequestered the equivalent of a lifetime of carbon emissions. Reay – who is professor

of carbon management and education at the University of Edinburgh – hasn’t flown for 15 years, is vegetarian and tries to live by the principles he set out in his 2005 book, Climate Change Begins at Home. But to achieve net-zero, he’s now turning to the soil: “It’s always been in my mind to have a piece of land and to manage it to soak up carbon. A place where I can apply all of my research.”

That piece of land is a small 74 acre (30 ha) farm in Kintyre on the west coast of Scotland. It’s mainly grass and sheep, but together with a neighbouring farmer, Reay plans to gradually reduce the amount of livestock and plant more trees; and to quantify the amount of carbon in the soil, trees, and even the “blue carbon” – the CO2 that is sequestered in coastal ecosystems – in the seaweed on the shore of his farm. His aim is to work out how you can increase the uptake of carbon while securing a livelihood as a small landowner.

Reay is open that the real excitement for him will be the research rather than farming, but is convinced that we need to get to grips with how we quantify and manage the land in this way. Because much of the agricultural sector is about to enter a whole new paradigm, he says, where the “primary purpose is not producing food, but taking carbon out of the atmosphere”.

Welcome to carbon farming. Capturing airborne carbon in the soil was made a formal part of the response to climate change in 2015 by the UN’s Lima-Paris Action Agenda. The commitments included several on agriculture, notably the “4 per 1,000” initiative, which aims to increase the amount of carbon in agricultural soils, grassland and forest soils by 0.4% every year. Employing practices such as no-till cropping, stubble retention and agroforestry, through to integrated whole-farm planning, would be enough, 4 per 1,000 argues, to halt the increase in the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere related to human activities.

Another report – Natural climate solutions for the United States – published last year by American Association for the Advancement of Science, claims that changing forestry and agricultural management practices could provide sequestration of the equivalent of 21% of US annual emissions. In the UK, the Royal Society’s 2018 Greenhouse Gas Removal

report recommends active support for soil carbon sequestration, forestation and habitat restoration be built into new UK agricultural and land-management subsidies. And the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is currently preparing a special report on land, food and climate; a source close to it says mitigation options clearly include storing more carbon in agricultural land.

Affording the time Little of this is new. People have been advocating for it for at least 50 years, suggests Pete Smith, professor of soils and global change at the University of Aberdeen, and a leading expert on greenhouse-gas-removal technologies. So why all the noise now? Because “we need affordable solutions that buy us time while we are decarbonising the rest of the economy”.

Smith believes the extent of what could be achieved by 4 per 1,000 has been “oversold to a certain extent”. Food security expert Tim Benton, professor of population ecology at the University of Leeds, echoes this: “Soil carbon sequestration is incremental [and] important, but likely to offset only a small percentage of emissions.”

Smith estimates that, if carbon farming was implemented properly worldwide, it could soak up 2-5 gigatonnes of CO2 a year – about 10% of global emissions. However, that benefit would only last us between 20

and 50 years before global soils were saturated. At that point attention should turn to protecting them; keeping that carbon in the ground. This is what Smith means by carbon farming “buying us time”. We can use it to compensate for the gap before the mass adoption of electric vehicles, renewables and carbon capture and storage.

None of this detracts from 4 per 1,000 being a good initiative, Smith hastens to add, especially because it’s getting people to buy into increasing soil carbon stocks “even if you’re not interested in climate change”.

The first thing we need to do, Smith says, “is switch off the emissions”. That means keeping the carbon where it is and restoring and protecting global peatlands, rather than draining them. Next, we should turn to croplands and degraded pastures that have been depleted by mismanagement and overuse, and try to get their stocks up. He suggests there are around 60 different ways for farmers to increase carbon uptake on their land, and all of these have “co-benefits”, such as soil health, reducing feed costs or run-off, that mean the motivation for doing them needn’t even be emissions related.

What carbon farming does, though, says Reay, is put a whole new spin on techniques that have been around for years. “It’s incentivising [farmers] to trap carbon out of the atmosphere as part of [their] work as a farmer, and be rewarded.”

PETE SMITHUNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN

“ WE NEED SOLUTIONS THAT BUY US TIME WHILE WE ARE DECARBONISING THE ECONOMY”

CARBON FARMING IN ACTIONThe Marin Carbon Project, California

The Straus Family Creamery in Marin County has a 20-year carbon farm plan that will reduce and sequester 2,000 million tonnes of CO2. Around 80% of this will come from biodigesters capturing methane, and 20% from soil management practices such as adding compost, planting hedgerows and rotational grazing. The farm has data showing increased yields from carbon sequestration practices, and also uses satellite imagery to help direct its operations. The farm has reported savings on feed by using its own increased grass production, and energy costs thanks to its biodigesters.

The Straus family’s carbon farming plan is courtesy of the Marin Carbon Project, a consortium of independent agricultural institutions that combines research with real-world projects. A report by the Marin Resource Conservation District, Sequestering Carbon in California Soils (2013-2015), found that sequestration of just one tonne per hectare on half the grazing land in California (pictured) would offset 42 million tonnes of CO2 emissions – an amount equivalent to the state’s annual greenhouse gas emissions from energy use for all commercial and residential sectors.

The carbon farm planning process starts from the view that carbon is the single most important element on which all other on-farm processes depend. It begins with an inventory of natural resources on the farm to create a set of baseline conditions and its carbon-sequestration potential if the farm was to implement some of the project’s 35 approved practices. These are then filtered according to the economic considerations of the farm, and the project works with farmers to help secure financing. IM

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Farming policy has generally not been directed towards climate change. In the UK, the sector accounts for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions – possibly as high as 25% if you include the supply chain – and there’s been little change since 2008, according to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The agriculture bill currently going through parliament, which is designed to replace the Common Agricultural Policy post-Brexit, puts the emphasis on subsidies being paid out on the basis of farmers delivering public goods. The expectation is that the bill will bolster support for farmers to increase carbon uptake, while also cutting emissions from their normal activities.

Jeremy Smith MRICS, a rural surveyor at Savills in Exeter, is cautious: “The wording of the paper is, essentially: direct subsidy is going and ecosystems services are coming to the fore – public money for public goods. But the devil is in the detail, and no one knows the details.”

Smith says there’s little doubt that soil health is still overlooked: “It’s not seen as an investment in the farm in the same way as a building or machinery is.” But there are

signs of change. The Dartington Hall Trust Land Use Review, on which Smith advised, is looking at benchmarking soil health as part of the landlord-tenant relationship, with penalties or rewards for degrading or improving it. The Trust combines five food and farming enterprises in an agroforestry system known as “silvoarable”. One tenant rotates their arable crop between rows of trees, farming “horizontally”, while the tree crop licensees farm it “vertically” to maximise the space available for crop production.

“Taking away the [current] subsidy opens up new possibilities for ecosystem services, because you’re not beholden to one set of rules,” says Smith. And there are arguments for some land being used for ecosystem services over food production – compare the arable potential of the south-east of England to the south-west, for example.

“Most farmers are running a business, so the idea of being paid to reduce carbon is attractive,” says the Soil Association’s head of horticulture, Ben Raskin. But it also doesn’t make sense to reward farmers based solely on location, he adds. For example, if you farm on sandy soils your carbon uptake might be 2-3%, versus 30-40% if you’re in a region with peaty soil. “We need to reward practices that we know sequester carbon, such as agroforestry, and also bring other benefits.”

Wood works Agroforestry, for example, gives farmers three bites of the cherry. It pulls carbon from the air, provides a cash crop from the timber, and delivers wider benefits for other crops and livestock.

The challenge for carbon farming at the moment is putting figures on it. “There is a lot of debate about what practices deliver what benefits, and how you maintain those for best effect will vary from site to site,” says Raskin. It’s difficult to measure. Farmers have to do a lot of sampling to prove what they’ve achieved in soil carbon sequestration, and people have so far been unwilling to pay for it on the voluntary carbon markets.

And that’s the crux of it. What holds carbon farming back is ultimately the same thing that’s hindering the adoption of many emissions reduction approaches: we still don’t have a carbon price. “If you’ve got a price, then you’ve got an incentive,” says Smith. “That would be a game changer.” n

Explore other innovative methods of reducing CO2 emissions at rics.org/sustainablebuilding

BEN RASKINSOIL ASSOCIATION

“ MOST FARMERS ARE RUNNING A BUSINESS, SO THE IDEA OF BEING PAID TO REDUCE CARBON IS ATTRACTIVE”

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JCT Training – new dates added, book now!September 2019

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Learn from the JCT experts

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 37

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“Surveyors are absolutely crucial for bringing their expertise and understanding to BIM”ALLISTER LEWISHEAD OF TECHNOLOGY, AYRE CHAMBERLAIN GAUNT, AND RICS CERTIFIED BIM MANAGER, BASINGSTOKE

processes, training requirements and research and development involved with BIM. All of this put together makes for a role that has really never been available to architects.

Is technology making old job titles redundant?The construction industry is at a really exciting digitisation stage, which is creating new career paths for young people. It’s not such a narrow world anymore – you might be an architect, but you can at the same time be an information manager, a BIM manager, or work in 3D printing. There is a range of skills that should be transferred and brought into the industry, and digitisation supports this.

How do you see the relationship between architects and surveyors evolving?I used to work quite closely with a team of quantity surveyors who measured from BIM models and used the data to inform their bills of quantities via BIM-complementary software such as CostX. I’m pushing to develop more of these relationships in my present role, because although we rely on BIM – leading some to question whether we need surveyors at all – in my view they are absolutely crucial for bringing their expertise and understanding to the model.

Is BIM still driving change in the industry?BIM Level 2 has been an extraordinary driver for change, and has put the UK in a position where other countries now wish to follow our example. However, a two-tier system seems to be forming with companies that have progressed their BIM capabilities and expertise to a high level – giving them an advantage in bidding for work – leaving behind other smaller practices who haven’t progressed as far with BIM. This is a worrying knowledge gap.

Are architecture and surveying firms still too risk averse? For small or medium-sized firms, cost is still a huge issue. Not only with the technology itself, but also training people to understand it. The reality is a lot of businesses don’t work to a big research and development budget. Firms need to have a clear view of where they are going, too. Some of the most successful firms have a five-year plan of how they see themselves advancing with BIM in the future.

Are we coming close to a point where every facet of the built environment can be put in one model? Yes, this is where we’re heading. The aim is that by 2025 there is a greater level of digitisation and integration. Large technology firms have identified the construction industry is ripe for development and there is a huge opportunity to sell new products, services and systems ultimately for the benefit of clients and end-users.

Find out more about the Association of Data-Driven Design at: addd.io

Allister Lewis attained a first-class honours degree in architecture at Portsmouth University in 2000. He got his first taste of 3D modelling software when he moved to Portsmouth City Council’s architecture office in 2008, propelling him into the space where architecture and BIM meet. He has launched the Association of Data-Driven Design to further the understanding within the construction industry of this new branch of the profession.

“Head of technology” is an unusual title for an architect. What does this involve? My title encompasses my role as BIM manager for the company, which means thinking about BIM’s relationship to architecture, as well as keeping at the forefront of all the hardware, software,

38 / MODUS / MAY 2019

effect of locking in losses, as your fund must sell more units of fund to generate the same level of income.Inflation risk The purchasing power of your retirement income can erode over time: £100 of goods in 2008 cost £131 10 years later, according to the Bank of England’s inflation calculator.

There’s a lot to think about, but the good news is retirement is no longer a once-and- done decision. There’s plenty of time to decide, and your retirement income can be taken in stages to suit your circumstances. Ongoing financial advice can help to steer you through the risks, so that you can enjoy your retirement on your terms.

To attend one of our June Retirement Planning briefings, held in conjunction with St. James’s Place Wealth Management, or for a no-obligation financial review with a St. James’s Place representative, please visit sjpp.co.uk/rics, email rics@sjpp.co.uk, or telephone +44 (0)800 953 3030

St. James’s Place Wealth Management is RICS’ Preferred Provider of Wealth Management Advice. Advice is provided by representatives of St. James’s Place Wealth Management plc, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority for the purpose of advising solely on the Group’s wealth management products and services. Visit sjp.co.uk/products for more details. RICS is an appointed introducer to St. James’s Place Wealth Management plc, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

The idea of working into older age can fill some people with dread, but for others it’s recognition that retirement in the modern age has changed. The pension freedoms introduced a few years ago, aligned to increased longevity, are creating different patterns of retirement. Gone are the restrictions of previous generations, to be replaced with flexible working, unlimited pension access and second-stage careers.

Modern-day retirees are now faced with a plethora of decisions, particularly when it comes to retirement income – the challenge of making pensions savings last a lifetime in particular. Ironically, complete freedom can potentially lead to “choice

overload”, which is why planning and advice are crucial to making the right decisions.

For example, drawing down an income from your pension savings can bring different risks to consider, compared with building your wealth. These can be less obvious than investment risks, but no less detrimental if left unchecked:Longevity risk According to the Office for National Statistics, 55 year old female has a life expectancy of 88, however this is just the 50:50 point. She also has a 25% chance of surviving to 95, so potentially another seven years of income for which to plan.Pound cost ravaging Taking a regular income in a falling market can have the

Reaching retirement age is just the beginning, rather than a deadline, so make sure your finances allow you to live life to the full

K e e p c a l m a n d c a r r y o n

M E M B E R R E W A R D S

Benefits Plus is the member rewards programme from RICS, with a range of exciting special offers, discounts and incentives for RICS professionals. For the full line-up of benefits, visit rics.org/benefits

“ RETIREMENT IS NO LONGER A ONCE- AND-DONE DECISION. THERE IS PLENTY OF TIME TO DECIDE”

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 39

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DISCOVER HOW TO WIN BUSINESS IN AN EVER-CHANGING ENVIRONMENT

Urbanisation, climate change, rapidly advancing technologies: these are the trends that are forcing the profession to innovate. Developers are rethinking how they create flexible commercial space in light of changing consumer demands; RICS professionals are curating working environments that drive productivity and wellbeing, while saving their clients’ money; and all disciplines within the profession are being forced to consider how to mitigate the risks of climate change as the planet gets hotter, wetter and wilder. We explore case studies of those who are adapting their skills and expertise to not only win business but meet these challenges of a changing world head on. Visit future.rics.org to read them.

JOIN US TO CELEBRATE AT THE RICS AWARDS GRAND FINAL

The RICS Awards showcase the most inspirational initiatives and developments in land, real estate, construction and infrastructure. Across eight individual categories, the UK’s premier property and construction awards celebrate the most innovative projects in 12 UK regions. Regional winners will now go forward to the Grand Final, which takes place on Friday 4 October at the Royal Lancaster London hotel. Join us to celebrate the achievements and successes of RICS professionals and their impact on local communities at this prestigious event. For details of regional shortlists and for bookings go to rics.org/awards.

CELEBRATE THE PROFESSION’S PROGRESS THIS PRIDE MONTH

RICS is committed to serving the public, our professionals and regulated firms through demonstrating the tangible benefits of a diverse and inclusive workforce. We will be hosting information and providing resources to LGBTQ surveyors throughout the Pride month of June, as well as celebrating our CEO Sean Tompkins’ nomination for male Agent of Change for gender equality by Management Today. Find out more about the wider work RICS does in this area at rics.org/diversity.

VALUER REGISTRATION MANDATORY IN EUROPE AND SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

RICS Valuer Registration is now mandatory for all RICS professionals carrying out

valuations that fall within the scope of RICS Valuation Standards (Red Book) in Europe and sub-Saharan Africa. The Red Book applies International Valuation Standards to all RICS professionals and regulated firms worldwide on a mandatory basis. There is increasing demand from lenders, investors and occupiers globally for valuations undertaken by RICS Registered Valuers, and Valuer Registration is already mandatory in more than 30 countries. For further information, and to register on the scheme, visit rics.org/registervr.

LEARN ABOUT THE VALUE OF USING COMMERCIAL PROPERTY DATA

As the property industry adapts to the realities of a digital world dominated by cloud computing and artificial intelligence, the amount of available data concerning real estate is increasing exponentially. The industry appears to be at a tipping point, and there is an increasing urgency for chartered surveyors and other property professionals to learn data analysis skills. It is no longer enough simply to possess data; the value lies in being able to use it. Find out about the skills required to recognise the use of data in the property industry, and how to maximise the value in analysing it, at rics.org/commpropdata.

HOW SHOULD RICS GOVERN PROCUREMENT OF FM SERVICES

Don’t miss your chance to contribute to the consultation on RICS’ new global professional statement on Procurement of Facility Management services. This statement will represent a huge step forward in helping chartered surveyors and their clients more effectively procure facility management services. The statement will set out mandatory requirements for RICS professionals and RICS regulated firms, along with guidelines on good practice. To read and contribute to the consultation draft, visit consultations.rics.org.

E X P E R I E N C E

Please email obituary notifications to contactrics@rics.org or call +44 (0)247 686 8555

O B I T U A R I E S

EASTERNWalter George Buckley MRICS 1933-2019, St. Albans Ranjit Singh Digpal MRICS 1963-2019, Essex

EAST MIDLANDSDouglas Walter Harman Gascoine FRICS, 1927-2019, Southwell

LONDONGerard Peter Downey MRICS 1964-2018, London Anthony John Ross FRICS 1957-2019, London

NORTH WESTDavid Richard Bailey MRICS 1984-2019, Blackburn

SOUTH EASTPatrick Cooke-Priest FRICS 1939-2019, OxfordJonathan Douglas Cowan MRICS 1963-2019, SurreyAlan Vivian Maltby FRICS 1942-2019, CanterburyMervyn William Smith MRICS 1951-2019, Chichester Sarah May Woodhouse MRICS 1965-2019, Gosport

SOUTH WESTDavid William Marsh FRICS 1934-2019, Bristol

WEST MIDLANDS Peter William Gair MRICS 1973-2018, Birmingham

SCOTLANDDennis James Hanson FRICS 1929-2019, CaithnessJohn Sidney Innes FRICS 1927-2019, Aberdeen

Iain Macleod MRICS 1955-2019, Johnstone

WALESStanley John Frudd FRICS 1925-2019, Colwyn BayDafydd Ioan Jones MRICS 1966-2019, RuthinRoger Oswald Aubrey Richards FRICS, 1933-2019, Penarth

REPUBLIC OF IRELANDWalter M Halley MRICS 1942-2018, Waterford

EUROPEPhilippe Malaquin FRICS 1941-2019, Paris

ASEANChi Chuen Danny Chung FRICS 1944-2018, Mid-Levels, Hong Kong

MENEATom Thipa Msowoya FRICS 1946-2019, Malawi

NORTH AMERICAMervyn Carlton Thompson MRICS 1939-2019, Port of Spain

SOUTH ASIASrinivasa N Arunachala MRICS 1972-2019, Bangalore

If you are facing hardship after the loss of a family member, or considering leaving a legacy, please contact LionHeart, the charity for RICS members and their families. Call +44 (0)24 7646 6696, email info@ lionheart.org.uk, or visit lionheart.org.uk

T R A I N I N G & E V E N T S

For details of conferences, training sessions and CPD seminars near you, go to rics.org/events

CONFERENCES

RICS Dilapidations RoadshowJune-July, various locations CPD: 3.5 hours £150 rics.org/dilapsroadshow

RICS Planning and Development Conference25 June, LondonCPD: 5.5 hours £240 rics.org/plandev

RICS Integrated Property Services Conference 1 July, London CPD: 6 hours £260rics.org/propertyservices

RICS Residential Property Conference 4 July, London CPD: 6 hours £200rics.org/residentialconference

TRAINING COURSES

Leadership Development for Project Managers18-19 June, LondonCPD: 15 hours £1,575 rics.org/leadershiptrainingpm

Certificate in Commercial Real EstateDistance learning CPD: 72 hours £1,465 rics.org/crecertificate

Certificate in Property Finance and FundingDistance learning CPD: 56 hours £1270 rics.org/propfinance

Managing Fire Safety - Level 3Online training CPD: 40 hours £595 rics.org/managingfire

RICS Rural Conference 19 June, Cirencester The annual flagship conference for rural surveyors in England. Key sessions include a discussion on “public money for public goods”, the UK government’s proposed land management mechanism; agritech; environmental risks and global valuation; and succession planning.CPD: 5.5 hours £175 rics.org/ruralconference

All prices are exclusive of VAT or local taxes

JUNE 2019 / MODUS / 43

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StreetDots is a marketplace that connects independent businesses in food, beverage & retail to landowners & consumers, all powered by a unique technology platform.

We rotate our offer, keeping your space fresh & exciting all year round. Earn more revenue, increase footfall and keep your tenants happy. What’s not to like! enquiries@streetdots.co.uk

offices // business parks // transport hubs // shopping centres // high street // hospitals

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R I C S R E C R U I T R I C S R E C R U I T . C O M / T O A D V E R T I S E , E M A I L S A M G @ W E A R E S U N D A Y . C O M O R C A L L + 4 4 ( 0 ) 2 0 7 1 0 1 2 7 7 9

If you are interested in working for us then we would love to hear from you. Please contact:

Neale Smith Head of Recruitment on

07393 797350or send your CV to svcareers@connells.co.uk

Connells Survey & Valuation are seeking Residential Surveyors.

We are looking to recruit RESIDENTIAL SURVEYORS in the following locations

BournemouthBradfordBristolBurnleyCardiff

CorbyDarlingtonDorsetHerefordHull

Kings Lynn / NW NorfolkLeedsLeicester /Loughborough

Transparent Commission &

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TIME FOR A

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MedwayNewportNorth WalesScarboroughSheffield

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TO BOOK, PLEASE EMAIL SAMG@WEARESUNDAY.COM

The next issue of Modus will be published on 13 July 2019 RECRUITMENT COPY DEADLINE: 24 June

Only the best jobs

RESIDENTIAL SURVEYORS & VALUERSAll the best jobs with premier employers, including

lenders, financial organisations, large corporate and smaller non-corp surveying firms. Full and part time, employed & self employed opportunities. If you are AssocRICS/MRICS/FRICS and a registered valuer, ideally with relevant experience then call us first.

Immediate positions throughout London/M25, Avon, Beds, Berks, Birmingham, Bucks, Cambs, Cheshire, Derbys, Devon S, Dorset, Durham, Essex, Hants, Herts, Kent, Lancs, Leics, Lincs, Gtr Manch, Mersey, Middx, Norfolk, Northants, Notts,

Somerset, Staffs, Suffolk, Surrey, Sussex E, Teesside, Tyneside, Wales S&N, Warks, Wilts, Worcs, W.Mids, Yorks.

Also, Staff Surveyor positions: Northern Ireland and UK, Desk Top Valuers, Senior Compliance and Private Survey Only

opportunities. Call for latest locations and package details.

Email your CV in confidence to apply@mlarecruit.com or speak to the industry’s most experienced

recruitment team, Graham Johnson 07821 708131 or Jeff Johnson 07940 594093

JUNE 2019 / RICSRECRUIT.COM / 45

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join one of the UK’s fastest growing Chartered Surveyors, specialising in the bridging finance market. We provide valuation services to a large client base producing residential, commercial and development reports that the Lender can rely on and trust. GENEROUS FEE SHARE BASIS Due to significant growth in volumes of work, we are keen to recruit additional professional surveyors in all geographical areas to carry out valuation work on a very generous fee sharing basis with minimum and cancellation fees in place to protect you, the surveyor. This opportunity would probably suit sole practitioners looking to add income to their existing workload, however all are very welcome to apply.

NEW CAREER OPPORTUNITYFLEXIBLE PART-TIME AND FULL-TIME RESIDENTIAL, COMMERCIAL & DEVELOPMENT SURVEYOR OPPORTUNITY, NATIONWIDE.

WORKING WITH ASHWICK CHARTERED SURVEYORSAshwick Chartered Surveyors are property specialists offering a one stop valuation service throughout England and Wales. We are looking for individuals to join our team that are able to offer quality services driven by commitment to provide excellent customer service.

We believe in developing strong relationships with our broker and lender clients going above and beyond and are looking for like-minded surveyors.

To work with Ashwick Chartered Surveyors you will need to be committed, highly professional and meticulous, with full RICS qualifications and registration with at least 5 years post qualification experience.

We in turn supply you with full support from our experienced and friendly administration and compliance team, providing you with full and clear instructions, report templates and immediate assistance. We offer the facility to type your dictated reports free of charge.

Generous fee scales.

Flexible working hours.

Free dictation service.

Friendly, knowledgeable and helpful team.

Compliance team on hand to assist you.

To discuss further please contact our Business Manager, Kate Callow, on 01934 750 203 or email kate@ashwickltd.co.uk

Construction Quantity Surveyor Initial Salary circa £65k

Sea Change Sussex - the economic regeneration company for East Sussex, is delivering an ongoing investment programme of comprehensive development of major business parks and town centre locations, including offsite infrastructure, business and other premises for letting and sale. Sea Change Sussex wish to recruit an experienced, highly motivated construction Quantity Surveyor to join its small multi-disciplinary team based in Hastings, East Sussex. based in Hastings, East Sussex.

The candidate would be required to undertake a full range of duties including contract administration and employer’s agent and ideally have a minimum of 5 years’ experience in a construction quantity surveyor/project management role. The ideal applicant would have a construction related degree, Quantity Surveyor and MRICS qualifications.

For a full job description please contact info@seachangesussex.co.uk. Applicants should submit their C.V. by email to info@seachangeusssex.co.uk

DEVELOPMENT AND ESTATES SURVEYOR - NORWICH

BULLEN DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED

Bullen Developments Limited has an exciting opportunity for a newly qualified

Chartered Surveyor.The role encompasses estates management

of our property portfolio, forward planning of existing sites, site acquisitions and disposals.

An understanding of the development process would also be beneficial; from site identification,

feasibility, acquisition and planning protocol through to build completion.

This is a new role within a highly skilled and professional team and would suit a committed,

hardworking team player looking for the opportunity of a diverse and interesting workload.

Submit your application to: steve.bastian@bullengroup.co.uk

For further information please contact:

Stephen Wilson DipPropInv MRICS Managing Director, Professional Services

T 01932 736501 E recruitment@tgsurveyors.co.uk

Recruiting for MRICS or AssocRICS Chartered Surveyors for 4 or 5 day week employed roles

Career development

and progression opportunities

Central support team

Market leading commission

structure

Cutting edge technology

Competitive basic salary and benefits

package

Progressive and growing organisation

Key locations:

Manchester, Kent, Teesside, Peterborough, Hull, West Midlands, South West England

We’re recruiting VRS registered, AssocRICS, MRICS, and FRICS surveyors today.

SDL Group is an equal opportunities employer and encourages a diverse range of talent to apply.

Call us today on: 07881 008594Or, email your CV to: recruitment@sdlgroup.co.ukwww.sdlsurveying.co.uk

Supportive culture & team A clear path to

complete your APC

Regular socialevents

You’re more than

just a number

to us

We’ll support and train you.

JUNE 2019 / RICSRECRUIT.COM / 47

RICS Recruit Supporting you through your career journeySecure your dream job in surveying. As the official RICS job board, RICS Recruit caters solely to surveyors in land, property and construction sectors worldwide.

At RICS Recruit we offer a range of opportunities from junior to senior positions. Whether you are starting out your career or looking to take your career to the next level, RICS Recruit connects you to the latest surveying vacancies in your sector.

How RICS Recruit can support you:

• Develop your career – RICS Recruit gives you accessto a wide range of jobs

• High calibre jobs – leading firms choose RICS Recruitto advertise, giving you the opportunity to access andapply to the top jobs

• Speed of access – get the best specialist jobsat your fingertips

• Career support – RICS Recruit supports you by providing content onhow to improve your job hunting experience. Advice on improving yourCV, as well as interview techniques, to ensure you get the job you want.

Find your future job today. Get the RICS Recruit App. Ricsrecruit.com

Recruiters - to recruit the best applicants and to take advantage of the RICS members package please call Sam or George on 0207 101 2779 or email ricsrecruit@wearesunday.com

Opportunities for experienced Residential Surveyors – UK Wide

Opportunities for experienced Residential Surveyors within corporate environments:Remuneration includes a basic salary of £45-60k (depending on location), bonuses (based on fee income), a car (or allowance), healthcare and pension.B / BB / BD / BH / BS / CA / CB / CF / CH / CM / CV / DA / DE / DT/BA / E / EX / GL / GU / HU / KT / LE / MK / NG / NN / NP / NR / PO / RG / SL / RH / S / SA / SN / SO / PO / ST / SW2 / TN / TW

Consultant / Freelance Surveyors:Surveyors required to undertake both valuation and surveys on a freelance / consultancy basis for both panel derived and privately instructed workload.Fee values vary depending on client but wouldcertainly be considered reasonable in the currentmarket. Payment based on up to 60/40 split payable to the individual consultant on a self employed/limited company basis. PII is provided in all circumstances. Please call for our latest locations of interest.

With our years of experience and longstanding industry relationships, why not let us do the hard work for you – speak to us first and get the best possible coverage in your job search.

Unrivaled Property Recruitment Expertise.

For well over 20 years now, we’ve been placing surveying professionals in positions across the country, at some of the most prestigious companies around.

Whether you’re a Chartered Surveyor or AssocRICS, a Commercial Valuer or Building Surveyor – we’ve got your next job.We are happy to discuss and potentially offer contrast to your current situation, or provide advice on the best move to maximise your career path.

We currently have numerous and immediate vaccancies for experienced surveyors and those seeking cross-training across the UK. Some current locations include: Residential Surveying:London & Counties / Midlands / The North (East & West)Staff Valuer:North & East London / South West LondonCross-training:WR / CV / B / DY / NG / NR / PL / EX / LBuilding Surveyor:London / Leeds / Newcastle

Andy Welham 0208 514 9177 Andyw@BBLproperty.co.uk

For our full range of opportunities alongside helpful career & CV advice please visit www.bblproperty.co.uk

With many more vaccancies available please do call should you be interested in having an informat chat about the opportunities in your own location.

www.bblproperty.co.uk

Opportunities within non-corporate, practice-based environments: Offering the same security and market presence of corporate employment without the focus on volume / points or impossible turnaround; five jobs/points per day is the norm! Basic salary of £45-60k plus generous package.B / BB / BD / BL / CB / CF / DL / DY / EX / IP / KT / KT / L / LE / LL / LN / M / ME / MK / MK / NG / S / SA / SG / TA / TW

Cross training opportunities:Opportunities for Surveyors of other faculties to cross train into Residential Surveying (subject to location and experience). Training can be provided to AssocRICS / MRICS Surveyors (with VRS eligibility) from most surveying backgrounds so previous direct experience is not essential. Salary available is circa £50k with car allowance and bonuses on top.B / BH / BL / CF / CH / CV / CW / DE / DT / EX / HG / HR / IP / L / LA / LS / M / NG / OL / PE / PR / S / SP / TQ / WF

To find out more, call us first on:

Andy Welham 0208 514 9177 Andyw@BBLproperty.co.uk

James Irving 0208 514 9120 Jamesi@BBLproperty.co.uk

As one of the few independent recruitment agencies operating exclusively with the residential sector, we have a unique overview of roles across Lender, Corporate and Independent employers. Why shop around talking to each and every company when you can speak to us, in confidence, without obligation and get a clear view of the entire market.

Find out more about current opportunities, locations of interest and the latest sector news at:

JUNE 2019 / RICSRECRUIT.COM / 49

50 / MODUS / JUNE 2019

Years of political pusillanimity have left us with a policy no longer fit for purpose, argues John Lockhart FRICS

W H A T I F…

… w e r e a d j u s t e d t h e g r e e n b e l t ?

E X P E R I E N C E

“The primary function of the green belt is to prevent urban sprawl … But should that really be the focus?”

infrastructure providers, developers, utilities, planners and local communities. It would be a complex exercise but ultimately worthwhile – both economically and environmentally – as the current unstructured approach is gradually eroding and damaging these protected areas.

This is a thorny political challenge. However, local authorities in Cambridge have proved it can be done, successfully removing significant areas of land from the green belt to accommodate growth, and also improving access to green infrastructure and working with communities.

As Cambridge demonstrates, it is perfectly possible to release land for development and enhance environmental and social outcomes. All it takes is a more intelligent approach to land management – plus a healthy dose of political leadership.

John Lockhart FRICS is chairman of Corby-based environmental planning and forestry consultant Lockhart Garratt

The concept of implementing a policy to prevent urban sprawl goes back a long way, to the establishment of the first green belts in the 1950s. Today, England’s green belts cover more than 4 million acres (1.6m ha), or around 13% of the country’s land mass.

That the policy has lasted so long is testament to the fact that it has been very effective. It has provided strict boundaries and undoubtedly protected swathes of open countryside from development, something that is clearly appreciated by town planners and the public alike. However, the policy has now reached its sell-by date.

The UK’s desperate need for new housing cannot all be accommodated on brownfield sites, or indeed, on greenfield sites outside the green belt. From an environmental and practical perspective they should be located close to existing infrastructure – otherwise all you are doing is leapfrogging the green belt and forcing people into long commutes, mostly by car, which flies in the face of climate change, air quality and zero-carbon commitments.

At the moment, the primary function of the green belt is to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land permanently open, but should that really be the focus? What if, instead, it concentrated on its function as an asset for the communities it serves: providing access to green infrastructure and protecting and enhancing biodiversity, while at the same time recognising the existing economic requirement for urban growth?

Such an initiative would have to be led by central government, as key passages of the National Planning Policy Framework would have to be redrafted. However, it would also have to involve all stakeholders: environmental charities, local authorities, IN

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Brad the surveyor will never, ever learn to use our software. Brad, we invented Mojo for you

Don’t get us wrong, Brad is actually a

very clever man.

He knows things that nobody else in

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Putting the Mojo back into property management

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