_space blog with Rob Charlton

Holiday Reading

2012-01-16T04:37:00.000-08:00

Several times over recent years we headed off for some sun over the holiday period. This year we headed off to the Canary Islands and were lucky enough to have fantastic weather for 7 days. It as a great opportunity to truly unwind, reflect on the previous year and look forward to the year head. By having a few days off for Christmas before in the UK I found myself totally unwound with a very clear mind. It is something that I can strongly recommend.

As with most of my holidays for those who have followed my blogs in the past I usually spend the time reading what most people would consider very boring books on entrepreneurship and business. I am fascinated by the stories of people who have made a change. I often intersperse this with the more traditional business management books as well as recently getting into economics.

This holiday was no exception and I had quite an interesting mix. I previously read Steve Jobs biography but decided to re-read it on this trip. I also read Richard Branson’s latest book as well as the latest offering from Allan Leighton. To finish things off I read the book about Bernard Madoff and his £65 billion fraud.

What I should also say is that all of these books were read on my iPad which saved the usual fear of excess baggage fines at the airport.

Richard Branson’s book is an interesting read and explains his evolving view of how a business and capitalism should change for the new millennium. ‘Screw Business As Usual’ sets out his thoughts on how business should consider the environment and look to give as much back to communities and people.

This is the overarching theme of the book and once you have sussed this generally the book states lots of case studies of companies which have done good over recent years. I am a great supporter of this approach but I did find the book slightly repetitive. There is also the nagging issue at the back of my mind that Richard Branson was writing this book whilst sitting on his Necker Island with his private jet standing by. I guess he sits in a far more comfortable position than many of us who are working hard to sustain our own businesses and the livelihoods of those who work with us.

The focus of Alan Leightons book was how business leaders make decisions. I found this a very quick read and really interesting. He has snippets from leaders such as Terry Leahy of Tesco’s and Adam Crozier ex of the FA.

There is also some excellent personal insights from his time at the Royal Mail which are very interesting.

The Madoff story is an incredible one. I could not help think how did he manage to sleep at night. It was clear that Bernard Madoff was considered an upstanding member of the community whilst he was stealing millions from his friends and colleagues. The scale of the fraud is spectacular and it is hard to imagine how he managed to achieve it without assistance of others.

Over the years I must have read hundreds of books on management and business but I do think that the Steve Jobs story is the ultimate business book and nothing comes close. Not only is the book fantastically well written it tells the most amazing story of Steve Jobs.

Steve Jobs has several stories but his most impressive is the fact that in 1997 he returned to Apple which was very close to bankruptcy and by 2010, 13years later had turned Apple into the most valuable publically owned company in the world.

As a sideline he had also built Pixar and ended up owning 7.5% of Walt Disney.

He is clearly a very odd personality and having read many books on the best way to build businesses and manage people Steve Jobs defies every single rule. He was obnoxious and insulting with little empathy for others.

However his incredible focus on detail and quality encouraged people to achieve things they never thought they could.

In relation to business stories I think it will be a long time before there is a one that can match that of Steve Jobs and Apple.

A message for the grandchildren

2011-12-08T09:16:00.000-08:00

We have just entered December which is traditionally the lunch, dinner and drinks month of the year. Traditionally the construction industry is very busy throughout the month out and about socialising and networking. The start of the festivities is usually the Lord Taverners lunch in the North East of England however this year we started even earlier with the Morgan Sindall evening last week.

Most consultants and contractors have an event throughout December bringing together clients and partners.

It is amazing that even in these challenging times priority is placed upon such events and that relationships are still at the centre of what we do.

However this year I am already sensing uncertainty and nervousness from everyone. A jovial festive spirit has yet to appear and often the discussion is about redundancies or individuals setting up their own organisations.

The days of companies exaggerating their overflowing order book are long gone and now people are far more realistic and honest about the challenges we all face.

Whilst times have been tough for the past few years I think this year there is realisation that it is unlikely anything is going to change soon and that we face several Christmases like this.

There is no doubt that the economy and in particular the construction industry has never faced the challenges it faces at present. The simple fact that revenue levels have drastically dropped has meant businesses have had to quickly adjust to a shrinking forward pipeline.

In the past it was possible to look to the future in relation to forward workload. However now opportunities are thin on the ground and generally appear without notice.

Despite all of this I still believe that relationships across the industry are strong and that everyone is supporting each other and looking to get through rather than break any records for profit or turnover.

What I have found particularly heartening is the commitment and energy from the people within our organisation. Whilst obviously all around us there is an environment of fear of the unknown I am constantly overwhelmed by the efforts and commitment our people are making on behalf of the team.

There is no doubt we have never faced a time as we do now however when we get to the other side hopefully we will all recognise that the greatest achievement is responding to the biggest challenge in a generation.

Im sure it is a story and a lesson we will share with our grandchildren.

Some Good Advice

2011-11-14T06:23:00.001-08:00

A few weeks ago the time had come for me to invest in some new work shoes. Doing the typical man thing on Saturday morning I called into my local shoe shop, tried on a pair which fitted and bought them.

On the Monday morning I threw on my new shoes and headed for my first meeting in Hull with one of my colleagues. After our meeting in Hull we headed to Leeds where I was dropped off in the centre of town.

It was a rainy Monday in Leeds that day and as I stepped out of the car it was like walking on sheet ice. My new shiny shoes had a lovely polished finish on the soles making them look particularly shiny in the shop. After about ten yards of trying to stay upright my efforts failed and when putting my foot on some cobbles I did a banana skin slip and ended up landing on my elbow with a direct hit.

What followed was somewhat gruesome and it is probably not appropriate to go into details but suffice to say this was not going to be fixed with an elastoplast.

I ended up in hospital for five days after a 4 hour operation. The metal work in my arm would be worth a considerable amount in scrap.

After I got out of hospital I thought I would call in at the shoe shop where I was greeted by the usual ‘what happened to you’. I was not looking to blame anyone as I wholeheartedly believe this was my fault however I was keen to ensure that such an oversight could be prevented in the future.

We checked the manufacturers information and the packaging and nowhere did it suggest that soles needed to be rubbed before worn. It seems obvious but there are so many things on your mind such a simple thing is easily overlooked. The overlooking of this small matter has had a huge impact on both me and my family along with everyone I work with.

This accident has really knocked me for six and has taken me some time to recover. Not only did I damage my elbow at the same time I damaged my hip and knee which seem to be taking longer to repair.

On a positive note I have had confirmation from the shoe manufacturer that they are now going to include a warning with all shoes that leather soles should be rubbed down in advance to minimise the chance of this happening again.

Make sure if you buy leather soled shoes you do the same!

The departing of a genius

2011-10-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

I was shocked earlier in the week when I heard of thepassing away of Steve Jobs. Whilst ithas been obvious for some time he had been very poorly I had not anticipatedthat his illness was terminal.

I have spent the last few years reading lots about SteveJobs and Apple. Many of the things whichApple have done has certainly influenced some of the strategic decisions wehave taken at _space group and also some of the cultural developments we havemade.

I don’t say this lightly but I do think Steve Jobs had anincredible gift and could be defined as a genius.

He had the ability to see into the future and sense marketsproducing unbelievable products which broke new ground every time. There is often much debate about what theword innovation means however I think much of what Apple and Steve Jobs donecan only be defined as innovative.

He built a culture and a brand in his relatively short lifespan with a global dominance in such a short space of time.

Whilst he is renouned for his success at Apple in recenttimes I also think similar successes are equally amazing.

He started out pushing new ideas with the Mackintoshcomputer and maybe he was too soon or dominated by the Microsoft juggernaut. When he fell out with the board at Apple he put everything into 3D animationand Pixar. Having read his biographyof his time it is clear that he gambled a lot and even remortgaged his house tokeep the funding going for Pixar. Ultimately he went on to sell Pixar and become a major shareholder inDisney who are yet another major global brand.

His success at Apple during his second tenure is probablyhis greatest achievement. His legacywill come from this period, a range of products which have had a huge impactacross the globe.

I hope the culture that Steve Jobs built is maintained andthat the team he leaves behind continues to be innovative themselves ratherthan living in the shadow of Steve himself.

I think it will be many many years if ever that one personwill have such a huge impact on culture across the globe.

The Barriers to Off Site...

2011-09-21T02:28:00.000-07:00

Over recent weeks I have spent quite a bit of time with a number of specialists in the off site manufacturing sector. The most active group of specialists is the build off site organisation and its network of companies. Within this group we have a wide range of organisations from M&E sub contractors to suppliers through to main contractors.

The government is requesting that the construction industry reduces it costs by 20% over the next 20 years and at the same time improve energy performance of the buildings in accordance with the most recent building regulations.Clearly these two things are at odds with one another and if we continue to achieve a cost reduction by squeezing the supply chain it will soon become apparent that such an approach is unsustainable. We are already seeing early signs of a cost driven market place with many small to medium sized contractors going out of business largely due to the effect of lack of cash.

We therefore need to look at an alternative way of improving quality and reducing costs at the same time. I believe the answer is in the process of thinking more before we start building.I am keen to lose the term construction and think more intelligently about assembly.There are many tools now available to us to help us plan buildings efficiently off site and particular the use of Building Information Modelling will allow us to prototype buildings, minimising errors and time on site.

By using this approach this leads us into a far more component driven design approach where we use standardisation for things such as repetitive elements like doors, windows, bathrooms, toilets and even plant rooms.It means that the industry has to think differently about its procurement but by adopting a more standardised and component driven approach we will undoubtedly drive up quality whilst through volume reduce cost.

At _space group we have been adopting this approach in the development of several new products. Our Spacehus low energy house adopts this thinking and we have developed a digital prototype of a number of low energy houses with only 19 components. Through developing a building product using manufacturing principles we are able to assemble a building on site in less than 20 days removing a considerable amount of risk in the process. Currently our costs for a 925 sq ft house are £80,000 which includes foundations through to finishes. All that is required are the service connections and external works.

By ensuring we have quality components which are well put together we can reduce the energy costs down to £10 per week for a building of this size.

We believe such innovation is the future of the industry however we are finding that we are coming across many barriers to delivering buildings in this way. Constructors are far happier to continue to build the way they have always known where there is no continuous improvement and workmanship is inconsistent.

The big debate for us at _space group is what are the barriers preventing Spacehus as a product being adopted. I am sure there are many reasons ranging from fear of change or the belief that such as approach is a threat to an organisations future.

I have no doubt that the pressure being born by the government to reduce costs whilst improving energy performance significantly will ultimately lead to an off site solution developed through a Building Information Model. The challenge at the moment is a time frame for this realisation.

At _space group we have been banging the drum on Building Information Modelling for 11 years and it is only in June this year that such as approach has been legitimised by the broader community. I hope that the adoption of component driven design will not take as long.

2011 is the BIM tipping point

2011-07-11T02:42:00.000-07:00

Will 2011 be the tipping point for BIM? Image from www.tvscoop.tv

Over the past couple of weeks there has been a growing amount of interest, discussion and debate about Building Information Modelling. The momentum was started in October 2010, with comments from Paul Morrell about the Government’s ambition to embrace BIM. The Government’s construction strategy, issued in May, formalised this view. As a company that has been evangelising about BIM for several years, it is nice that some of the views we have had are being embraced by others, views that we have been able to share with the industry, along with our learning, during our conversion to a BIM-centric organisation. There are still negative responses to the approach, however there are now a majority of individuals and organisations who accept that BIM is the future and they will have to adopt and invest moving forward.

What I have noticed over recent months is the pace of adoption. Over the past few weeks I have spent time in London and have met with a number of senior individuals from major constructors and consultancies. Many of these organisations have made rapid progress and are driving it through their companies and making it part of their forward strategies.

I believe that our professional institutions have been very slow to respond to these changes. Organisations such as the RIBA and RICS are still grappling with BIM, and this is a concern as they are seen as our industry’s representatives in the public realm. In order to adequately service us as personal and professional representatives, and highlight our position as an industry, these organisations must change their role very quickly, and embrace a position as representatives of a skill set within the whole life cycle of the design, construct and operate that our industry has.

Jack Pringle, the next present of the RIBA, made a great point in Building Magazine last week when he suggested that the Construction Industry Council was an excellent organisation to be the umbrella for the industry bringing together the complete cycle into a single organisation. The CIC has also had opportunity to influence the Government in a way which the professions have not achieved for many years, and this level of mutual respect and understanding is very important as it provides us with an intelligent, measured and coherent voice, particularly relevant at a time when the industry’s involvement public sector projects, such as BSF, have come under fire.

I am really encouraged that the life cycle of a building is now being understood and appreciated. The days of considering the design and construction of a building separate to its capital cost are starting to diminish. Progressive organisations have acknowledged that getting the requirements right in the first instance influences the process of design and construction is very important, and also has a huge impact on the operation and the revenue costs of a building during its life cycle.

_space group has embraced a ‘Big BIM’ approach with a four stage process that takes in this life cycle (www.bigbim.co.uk ), and similar models which adopt similar principles are used in other firms. There is no right or wrong approach to BIM. The important thing is that our industry understands the wider life cycle of a building.

There will still be architects, engineers and constructors who see their role in very narrow terms, rather than embracing this broad spectrum view. However at _space group, our openness to innovation and use of our skills has allowed us to get involved with a whole range of organisations throughout the whole cycle of a project. We are now providing support to sub-contractors, main contractors, other consultants and end users to deliver a more integrated approach which delivers less waste, less cost, less energy and less risk.

As the pace of adoption increases, it is clear that this year will be a BIM tipping point for our industry and those not on board will be tipped out of any meaningful work in the industry.

Government Construction Strategy - My Response

2011-06-01T06:31:00.000-07:00

The Cabinet Office issued its Construction Strategy yesterday and I have spent the past 24 hours looking through it trying to understand what it means for the industry.

My overriding thoughts are that this is a really welcome strategy, which is long overdue. This government has clearly given consideration as to how it should spend its capital wisely and has pulled together a report which has included collaboration across a number of high level offices within Whitehall, the efficiency and reform group of the Cabinet Office construction sector unit of BIS, as well as Infrastructure UK.

In the past we have suffered from reports which have set out a vision rather than a strategy and plan. This document is different and has some clear, measurable objectives which enable us to move forward as an industry.

Clearly the issuing of the document is only step one and the critical issue now is whether it is adopted by all government departments and becomes central to what the government does.

The focus of the document seems to be very much on internal government procedures and how the government will procure and manage work, and less so on how the construction industry should respond. I believe it is here that the construction industry comes in, and should be capitalising on statements the government has made about benchmarking energy performance and cost, as well as the delivery of all buildings using BIM (Building Information Modelling).

Essentially, the government is setting out its expectations as a client challenging the construction industry, in the same manner as a potential preferred bidder must do, to set out its best response solution.

Traditionally the industry has been very conservative and has not progressed at a pace. Without a doubt, the expectations from government will be high and their benchmarks will be challenging. The industry therefore will have to invest in research, development and innovation. To achieve the levels of capital and revenue cost expected, the industry will have to think completely differently. I anticipate that a kick back from these proposals and only those who are willing to open their mind and think differently will flourish.

Throughout the document there are some very interesting facts and the one that struck me was that there are 300,000 businesses within the construction industry, of which 99.7% are SMEs with over 2 million workers, so clearly the fragmented nature of the industry will cause a problem in generating a holistic response.

The government is intending to establish a board which will be the centre point of this strategy and will communicate with all government departments. This is a much needed initiative in an industry that is so fragmented and does not yet speak with a single voice, so hopefully this will give clarity and direction to the industry.

It is interesting to see that the government has used the terms ‘standardised’ and ‘mass customised product’ in the report. Many organisations and individuals in the industry have fought against such an approach but the government’s advocacy of it is a clear indication of their intention to encourage the construction industry to move forward in this vein.

Another interesting addition is the fact that there is now a linkage between those who design and construct a facility and those who subsequently occupy and manage. Usually this linkage has not existed in any particular way and hopefully with the adoption of BIM the benefits will easily be demonstrated in the savings to revenue.

Across the action plan there are some very straightforward, yet important aspects which will make a considerable difference to the efficiency of the industry. There is a proposal to look at standardised Pre-Qualification Questionnaires (PQQs), such as PAS 91, as well as the potential of standardised procurement and contracts, something not currently prevalent within the industry.

Whilst BSF has been much maligned for its expensive approach, some of the information gained from the initiative was positive and has helped to inform policy. Clearly the idea of another forward plan of capital expenditure is a positive one, and it will allow organisations to invest long term and demonstrate value to client departments.

There also seems to be a willingness to ensure that the correct skills of procurement and management of projects are in place across the public sector, and as long as the individuals with these skills are sourced properly, their presence will ensure continuous learning and realistic expectations.

The idea of having structured cost targets and value criteria is also to be applauded. By collecting data and benchmarking, league tables can be identified and this in turn will help to develop the industry positively. The Movement for Innovation Programme was a good method of demonstrating the best in industry and provided some excellent benchmark data.

As an early adopter of BIM, _space group is pleased to see it mentioned within the strategy. The government clearly recognises the benefit that it will now receive as a client and will legitimise the approach across the construction industry. It is also interesting to see that integrated project insurance has also been considered and will be researched in greater detail in the future.

Overall I think this document clearly sets out what the government will be expecting from the construction industry over the next four years and will encourage a refreshing approach within the industry.

As the government is the single biggest client to the construction industry, spending around £41billion per annum, the industry has no excuse not to respond and achieve the benchmark targets which the government has set out in this report.

I am encouraged to see the report and it gives me hope for a better industry. However I am very realistic about the reticence that there will be across many organisations to adopt some of the proposals made in the report, and that this continues to be a tough time for the construction industry, one that will see many businesses stand or fall based on their decisions over the coming months and years.

What future for our industry?

2011-05-25T04:28:00.001-07:00

What does the future hold for our industry?

On the front page of the Financial Times yesterday was an article about the incredible decline in construction output during 2011. Overall construction workload fell by a staggering 39%. This is the most significant fall for the past 35 years. There were turnover statistics from several of the major construction companies, including Kier and Balfour Beatty, which indicated the considerable reduction in their construction turnover in the period.

The quarterly GEP figures issued for Quarter 1 suggested that construction output was down by nearly 5% in the period. There are no regionally adjusted figures so I would anticipate that the decline in the regions is far greater as the overall figure will be bettered by investment in the South East.

This catastrophic level of change in any industry will inevitably reshape the future considerably. For the construction industry, clearly we will never go back to the past and the type of industry it was over the past 15 years will not be seen again. We are in a period of flux at present where there is little workload or revenue, but at the same time there are improvements in technology which could reshape how we design, deliver and operate buildings for the future.

All businesses are keen to set out a vision of sustainability which looks to provide steady employment and profit for those involved in the businesses, something which is clearly under considerable threat in the construction industry at present.

As I look into the future I believe it is impossible to predict where we will be in 2 or 3 years time. Long term investments are a considerable gamble with the future being so unpredictable. Many firms are shrinking their regional presences and looking to develop opportunities in the South, which will obviously drain talent from the regions. Organisations are consolidating and changing on a regular basis. International markets continue to be the lifeline of most organisations that are able to stay afloat.

This generation has never seen such a dramatic downturn, and construction leaders are drawing on much of their experience to maintain business sustainability. While it may be difficult to predict where any of us will be beyond the next 12 months, all we can hope is that when we do see a light at the end of the tunnel, the future will be different, but secure, as well as exciting and challenging. Hopefully we can all learn lessons from this period and ultimately ensure we all have a better future.

The big housing question

2011-05-10T02:07:00.000-07:00

I have been inspired to write this blog entry following a recent episode of Panorama. The programme was all about the need for affordable housing across the UK. There was a shocking contrast of housing in London which was fraudulently being let by landlords at extortionate rates and a family of 9 in Sheffield living in a 3 bedroom house.

There are around 5 million people on the housing waiting list in the UK and it was clear that the majority of people on this waiting list have no chance of being housed. During the show, Portsmouth Council went through their own list contacting most of the people on it, informing them that there was no chance of them ever being housed by the Authority. This meant that they cut their list considerably.

The big question however, is what happens to the people who will never be housed?

We have been developing Spacehus as a potential product for this market and we have managed to get a 3 bedroom house at an all in cost of around £84k on a small development. The running costs of this house would be around £10 per week which also would go some way to address fuel poverty.

A concept image of the £84k Spacehus that could help solve the affordable housing issue

The challenge is however, encouraging RSLs to develop. I have spent the last few months talking to many RSLs, and there is not ability or desire to develop new homes. This therefore means that the market is stagnant, so as no improvement is being made in relation to the waiting list, we face the problem of it getting longer.

It seems the reasons the RSLs are reluctant to develop is that they have been familiar with the grant process and the Government is now encouraging to change models and progress with an affordable rent model, which seems to increase their risk considerably in the longer term. All the details are not clear at present and I hope that I can dig deeper to understand what the problem is and to try and find a way around the challenges and encourage take up.

It does seem however, that there is a standoff between the Government and Social Landlords, meaning that we have a growing housing crisis in the UK.

Land values continue to be unrealistic and planning continues to be challenging. Both of these are preventing private sector involvement, putting the market in stalemate.

I still remain convinced, with my entrepreneurial hat on, that there is a need for housing which is affordable to buy or rent and run. At _space group we will continue to invest in finding a solution to this problem, until we find a way of getting affordable sustainable homes delivered.

For a number of years, we at _space group we have been driven by the purpose of making life better. After watching Panorama, I am sure that if we manage to crack this problem we will definitely make life better for the family in Sheffield who are currently sleeping on the settee.

What a Difference a Year Makes...

2011-03-23T04:55:00.001-07:00

Michael Gove was the keynote speaker at The Spectator's "The Schools Revolution One Year On" conference

I recently attended the Spectator Conference in London entitled ‘The Schools Revolution one year on’.

This event was held last year in advance of the General Election, and what was interesting this year was the number of teachers and educationalists at the conference and the lack of architects and construction people, despite the fact that The Spectator is a big advocate of Free Schools and Toby Young is on their payroll…

From the line up at this event, with Michael Gove delivering the keynote address, David Laws bringing the Lib Dems’ point of view to the table and Lord Adonis and Tim Byles attending, it was clear that it was supported by like-minded people who are in general in support of the Free Schools movement.

Michael Gove came across well, and I was surprised that he does have a sense of humour. He focused on three key areas as priorities, these being accountability, independence and teaching. He talked very little about new buildings or IT. It seems he is wedded to the private school model and is hoping to encourage schools to take this approach across the curriculum with the introduction of an English baccalaureate.

It felt like a very one-sided conference, supporting academies and free schools. Many of the arguments were valid, and I was encouraged by the focus on improving teaching and a zero tolerance policy of poorly performing teachers, however I still maintain the big difference between state schools and private schools is the commitment of the parents and not the ability of the children.

It is clear that the Government’s focus is no longer on buildings and the statement from Tim Byles was that buildings had to no longer be inspirational, but fit for purpose. This does seem to be setting the bar fairly low and I think that it is a missed opportunity.

What we have to do in our industry is to deliver inspirational learning spaces within the parameters which we have been set, and which this conference reinforces. Only time will tell if the new approach is a success, but so much has changed in the past year, and I am intrigued to see where the schools agenda will be this time next year.

The Future of Architecture

2011-03-01T09:09:00.000-08:00

Will onsite be replaced by offsite manufacture in the future?

The recent publication by Building Futures about the future of architecture is an excellent insight into the challenges facing the industry. The report paints what I believe to be an incredibly accurate and perceptive view of our future.

The premise of the document is that there may be no architecture profession by 2025, which is an interesting argument and one I feel is close to what will be the reality of the situation.

Ultimately, I believe that the RIBA will end up representing two very different types of organisation.

At one end of the spectrum, the RIBA will represent the small general practitioners which operate in local markets on one-off niche projects. At the other end of the spectrum they will represent architects internationally – large international practices which deliver high profile complex schemes around the world.

Those medium-sized architects face the future of a diminishing marketplace. Previously, these practices have been involved in large Government programmes such as BSF or P21+. They have also delivered mixed use commercial schemes for developers across the UK.

In reality, it is no longer an option for these practices to rely on the Government for work, as the marketplace and requirement for these schemes is disappearing fast. Such organisations need an ongoing growth and revenue to provide investment in training and development and to cover large overheads.

The report hints at what these practices need to do to survive. They will need to reposition themselves and do something different in the marketplace.

Their future lies in capitalising in the need for a coordinating role. The use of BIM in construction projects supports the need for a lead designer or coordinator. There is an opportunity to embrace this role however I am sure many design managers within construction businesses will attempt to take on this role for themselves.

The role of consultant engineer may also diminish as both M&E and structural sub contractors take on more and more of the technical requirement.

The medium sized practice could also look to develop products on behalf of the industry. There is an opportunity to use the design skills which architects have to produce buildings which are manufactured rather than constructed. These products can then be sold to the large contactors or direct clients. If the designers can be clever enough they could create products which depend less on constructors and more on assembly, changing the industry through an investment in innovation. Large contractors who have strong balance sheets tend not to invest in research and development and are happy to continue to deliver projects how they have always been delivered.

The final area of opportunity for these mid-range practices is on international work. Over the past 10 years many of these practices have built up a great amount of experience in designing hospitals and schools. These skills should not be wasted and can easily be exported to other parts of the world. It will mean competing on a global stage, but with the right targeted marketing there may be an opportunity to fill the gap left by the reduced spending in the UK.

There is no doubt that the prognosis for architectural practice as we know it today is not good. By 2025, the profession will be very different and many of the current medium sized practices will not exist in their current form. A number of new businesses will have been formed by the more entrepreneurial and innovative business leaders, whilst many of the others will have been absorbed by larger construction companies who have identified the need for the coordination skills which are inherent in the traditional architect.

Toby Young

2011-02-04T02:56:00.000-08:00

The future of schools: flat pack

Image from: www.kentrustweb.org.uk

Last week’s comments by Toby Young and Michael Gove about the future of school design and the performance of architects has caused much controversy.

Firstly I would like to state that I am no fan of Toby Young and his particularly direct approach to communication. Neither am I a fan of the current free schools movement in that they seem to be adopted by middle class parents and will do little to improve the imbalance of life chances for young people in the UK. However, putting this all to one side, there is much for the architectural profession to learn from Toby Young’s comments and the potential for flat pack schools for the future.

Toby Young accused the architectural profession of designing expensive schools and also being arrogant in their belief that school environments did not affect learning. I totally support the fact that the schools we designed under the previous Government were far too expensive. However, to blame architects for this is unfair. The architects involved in these schools designed buildings which they were asked to design and at an average cost of £2100 per m²the Government was happy to pay.

The waste in this process was very much down to the process from the beginning to the end. In 2002 we completed a new build high school in Northumberland. We managed a turn key solution including furniture and all IT for £900 per m². This was a quick design competition with a design and build contract. The school was Blyth Community College which won numerous awards and was published by the OECD as an exemplar school design. I am sure that if we designed the building again we would do it far more economically however, it does prove that from this point the process changed and costs escalated.

Toby Young also accused architects of being arrogant in their belief that school environments made a difference to learning. I have no doubt that the quality of the environment does make a difference to a student’s ability to learn, if it is only the fact that someone has shown faith by investing in quality facilities. However, the level of this investment is significant in relation to the potential improvement.

Where architects are arrogant is in their belief that they know better than educationalists in relation to what is right for young people. I have seen so many architects challenge educationalists who have been in the teaching profession for many years and suggest their thinking is wrong. This is where architects are arrogant in that they genuinely believe that they have the answers.

Where we as a profession fail is in the listening to the market. The past Government was keen to spend lots of money on one off schools. This suited the architectural profession very well and we all were rewarded for our efforts. However, now the market is saying that they want low cost buildings which are standardised. If Toby Young wants cheap schools and cheap buildings we should be looking for ways to provide it rather than fighting against his request. At the end of the day Toby Young is the client and he is the person who signs the cheques.

We should embrace Michael Gove’s view of standardisation and look to learn from Tesco, IKEA and Dixons as to how we can commoditise buildings.

Architects are so often focused on the art of architecture, which I would always support, and is important and has its place. However in the current market place we need to find ways of innovating to resolve the commercial challenges we face.

I would far rather see our energy being put into innovation across the whole industry where we work together to solve the financial challenges rather than wasting our energy on telling our clients they are wrong. I do not believe a client can ever be wrong as they ultimately pay the bills. If architects do not like a particular client they have a choice to not work with them. Too many times over the years I have heard the expression from colleagues where they tell me that they need to educate the client. This is a classic arrogant statement in that architects believe that they should be educating everyone else around them into their thinking.

We should look to commoditise our buildings more to provide better service and performance at a much lower cost. We should be looking to deliver schools for below £1000 per m² with exceptional energy performance and construction times of a matter of weeks.

I fear for the architectural profession as it takes on clients, ignoring the opportunity to innovate and bring intelligent solutions to the market.

It's just the beginning

2011-01-27T08:36:00.000-08:00

How far along the road to recovery are we?

Since we returned to work after Christmas I have sensed a notable change in atmosphere and confidence across the industry.

It seems like a number of organisations are making announcements to reduce their costs since they have returned after the break.

I suspect that during 2010 many companies were hanging on, waiting for the market to improve. Unfortunately that has not happened and is unlikely to happen in the near future. I would guess that when the Directors of these companies sat down and looked at cash in the bank and opportunities going forward, some fairly drastic measures had to be taken.

Consultancies would have looked at their costs and realised the only option is to cut resource to minimise outgoings. It is clear, from the fact that there are several small to medium sized construction businesses that have gone into administration since the New Year due to cash pressures and lack of future pipeline, that in some cases, this has not been enough.

I think this process will continue right through 2011 and beyond. I think the last two to three years and the forthcoming two to three years are likely to be the most significant in construction for at least a century. There are many theories of what the impact of this reduction in construction work will be, but I hope that something positive comes out of such a negative situation.

As an industry we can hopefully embrace this period and look to find more efficient ways of delivering buildings to the highest standard.

The Government is putting huge faith in the private sector to drive recovery and with construction being one of the most significant industries in the country, clearly we will all have our part to play in the economic recovery process.

2011 - A Challenge or an Opportunity

2011-01-06T08:31:00.000-08:00

Christmas - traditionally a time of excess. Will it be the case in 2011?

As I recovered from the excesses of Christmas and New Year, reading the press and watching the news, I gradually felt myself slipping into a state of depression.

The media have jumped on the band wagon of how bad 2011 is going to be. The word ‘challenge’ has been used countless times with reference to the next 12 months. As increased fuel prices are coupled with the challenges of an economic downturn, it appears doom and gloom loom large for us.

This sentiment was reinforced even further with Tuesday’s VAT rise – another fantastic opportunity for the media to ram home how bad life is going to be for us all. This incessant drive from the media to convince the whole country that the future is going to be dreadful casts a huge cloud over everyone. So, taking all of this in over the festive period, it could have been for me easy to reflect and think how depressing the forthcoming year is going to be.

However, with this perspective Christmas 2011 is going to be a long way away and every week is going to feel like a month. For those who believe that the glass is half empty, this burden is going to wear heavy for a considerable time and I do worry for the mental health of the whole country as the recession continues to be sustained.

As we all returned to _space group, this week I, was keen to look at the positives of the current situation. Whilst undoubtedly, the environment is changing and there will be cuts in spending in some areas, this can also be considered as an opportunity. Certainly these changes are significant enough to force new thinking in the construction industry. Our clients need and expect large percentage savings off their capital expenditure and the increase in energy costs is forcing us to make our buildings perform better.

All of this will encourage our industry to look for new ways of delivering our services and improve the outputs from what has been an underperforming industry.

I was very keen to communicate this positive outlook to everyone across _space group when I returned so that we can start the year in the right frame of mind with the energy to take us through what will be a different 2011. With our eyes open to opportunity hopefully we can carry our business forward for many years to come, through investing in the future and thinking about innovation.

The Largest Change Management Programme Since Victorian Times

2010-12-09T09:02:00.000-08:00

Paul Morrell - Chief Construction Advisor: Image from www.bco.org.uk

Paul Morrell has been at it again. As part of his role for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, he has issued a report which has looked at the implications to the construction industry of the low carbon challenge.

His report suggests that the industry faces the largest change management programme since Victorian times if it is to meet the low carbon agenda.

The report came from the Innovation and Growth Team (IGT) which is drawn from the construction industry and is asked by the government to consider how the construction sector could meet the low carbon agenda.

The Climate Change Act requires the UK to reduce its carbon account in 2050 to at least 80% lower than the 1990 base line.

Via the report, Paul Morrell has highlighted some of the good practice which is being carried out throughout the construction industry at present. There are some excellent projects where energy is right at the heart of the project. However, I believe that this is the exception far more than it is the rule.

In the past 12 to 18 months there has been a marked change in the approach to producing energy however, the continually disjointed nature of the process means that it is difficult to deliver efficient results.

Building regulations will continue to become increasingly onerous and our present methods of construction will make it increasingly challenging to achieve these stretching targets.

Over the past 10 years, the industry has proved that, even when there is plenty of work available, it is reluctant to invest in research and development. The industry shoots itself in the foot when times get tough in that it drives cost down without innovation.

Companies such as Laing O’Rourke have invested massively in research and development however, to continue this they need a considerable level of turnover. As part of the report there were some very nice platitudes from some Ministers stating how important the carbon issue would be to the construction industry.

I do not believe the industry will make this investment itself as it is naturally conservative and fearful of change, and the race for growth without investment is very raw to the industry at present following the spectacular demise of Connaught and Rok.

There is no incentive for the construction industry to invest in reducing energy and certainly if there is no commercial benefit to clients they are unlikely to invest themselves.

For us to get the significant improvements we need in energy performance, the Government needs to legislate to achieve these stretching targets. There will be kickback from the industry claiming the targets cannot be achieved however, this pressure will drive the industry to find ways to solve the problems.

Businesses who respond positively should be rewarded by the legislation and those who don’t should be penalised.

Unfortunately I do not have the answers to how this can be carried out but I do know that without it the industry will continue to progress as it always has done, with organisations continuing to undercut each other to win the next project.

BIM gets rolling

2010-11-29T06:32:00.000-08:00

Over the past six weeks the term BIM (Building Information Modelling) has been used more than ever. At _space group, we have been tracking this technology for over 10 years and were converted a long time ago. The construction industry has now started to realise that there may be something in this new technology. The main driver for this change has been the adoption of the approach from client bodies. This includes the Government themselves, following several speeches from Paul Morell, the Government’s construction advisor, who is supporting BIM and confirming that it is the way all public buildings will be procured in the future. Other clients, such as Manchester City Council, have also stated that all future projects will be delivered using BIM.

Once large scale client bodies have made this jump, the rest of the industry will start to wake up to the need to use it, and hopefully, its potential.

Over recent weeks I have been involved in countless discussions, presentations and workshops with construction organisations who want to understand what BIM is all about. My starting point is always the same. BIM is not the answer to everything and there are some pieces of intelligent software available which do assist the process but there is still a need for experience and construction knowledge. The second point I make is that BIM is not only about training a team how to use sophisticated software but, I believe, is a complete cultural change within any organisation. Without decisions being made at the highest level of all businesses, BIM will not work. Procurement processes and contracts all need to be reviewed and re-aligned to this new integrated process.

We are only really at the start of our journey in the UK regarding BIM as several constructors start to realise the potential and need for this new approach. The architectural industry is still way off the pace and continues to fight against the technology. I believe much of this is fear and also arrogance in that many architectural businesses focus very much on the art rather than marketing needs.

The involvement by constructors has been really encouraging, however the understanding at board level still is a long way from delivery on site. Over the next few years we will see some major successes and failures utilising this approach however, I am absolutely convinced that BIM will be universally adopted across the industry and will deliver projects faster, cheaper and better.

Holiday Reading - T Dan Smith

2010-11-22T07:30:00.001-08:00

T Dan Smith - One of Newcastle's great influences. Image from www.quazen.com

On my recent holiday, I read, as usual, a broad mix of biographies all generally aligned to the built environment or business in one way or another.

One of the most interesting books I read was the story of T Dan Smith, the infamous leader of Newcastle City Council through the 50s and 60s. T Dan Smith won infamy through his connection with the architect John Poulson, who was imprisoned because of his dealings with various public authorities – a fate that Smith shared because of his dealings with Poulson.

While I was aware of his story, I didn’t know the detail, which this book provides, and very much puts the facts onto the rumour, starting with his humble beginnings through to the end of his life in a flat in Shieldfield, Newcastle.

There is no doubt that T Dan Smith was a fantastic visionary and I do believe Newcastle continues to benefit from much of this vision. He was responsible for the design of the Civic Centre, the implementation of the strategy for the metro system, the central motorway and many more major projects across the city. This investment 50 years ago ensures that Newcastle continues to be a major city in the UK today.

This single minded vision is similar to that which Sir Howard Bernstein has delivered at Manchester. He was also an entrepreneur and built a successful business but unfortunately his linkages with Poulson would tarnish his fantastic vision for the city. The book suggests that actually he was innocent and in the end decided to give in to the media and courts and plead guilty.

I have always been a fan of T Dan Smith and his vision for the Newcastle, and whilst I believe he has left a fantastic architectural legacy, I feel that his greatest legacy is the fear within Local Government to take chances in case there are recriminations like the ones he faced. Unfortunately today’s Local Authorities do not have the kind of vision which T Dan Smith had and generally deliver a middle of the road solution to most things.

Many of the disasters in Newcastle’s city centre, such as several of the tower blocks, were not in fact T Dan’s vision but unfortunately he has been tarred with the brush of these over the years. Whilst I believe that he has left a legacy in the built form for the city unfortunately his lasting legacy is the lack of risk and vision in northern Local Authorities.

Wanted - 100,000 School Places

2010-09-13T08:17:00.000-07:00

Students will have to work harder in overcrowded classrooms if changes aren't made - image from _space group.

Recent research has revealed that England is facing an acute shortage in the number of school places, with more than 1 in 10 pupils in the country in schools suffering from overcrowding.

The suggestion is that the government will need to build a total of more than 100,000 places at primary and secondary schools, at a cost of up to £2bn. 50,000 of these places are required just to alleviate overcrowding, while the other 50,000 are places that local government officials have estimated will be needed to prevent the spread of overcrowding.

This overcrowding is driven by attempts by Local Authorities to cope with the lack of good schools in their boundaries. Popular schools are being allowed to grow beyond their buildings’ limits, so that as many families as possible get a place at their first choice institution. This means that already full schools will be unable to expand to meet demand as pupil places continue to rise, and larger shares of children will need to take up places at less successful schools.

Not only could a lack of classrooms force schools to increase class sizes, it also threatens to undermine the government’s plans to boost competition in education, which appears to depend on spare capacity for children to move between schools.

Currently, more than ¾ million children, 12% of the total in Local Authority schools, are in buildings that are more than 4% over the capacity for which they were designed. Among these children, more than 250,000 are in schools that are 10% over the limits of their facilities, while over 60,000 are in schools that have 20% more students than their buildings are intended for.

Considering that the amount of four year olds is set to rise by 8% over the next two years, this issue will only get worse, and in order to prevent overcrowding, Local Authorities will need to find another 25,000 new primary school places, with similar numbers for secondary schools required by 2014/15.

These growth numbers will be problem for a new education secretary who is planning wide-ranging reforms. His reforms are intended to increase the competition among schools. However this relies on a margin of spare capacity and new link choices to be made.

Apparently the school places crunch is not evenly distributed with London suffering particularly badly. The previous government had identified indentified investment for Local Authorities facing the shortage of primary school places and Building Schools for the Future was intended to be the long term answer to this issue.

Obviously, there was a bit of political too-ing and fro-ing on this issue, however there can be no doubt that the overcrowding is increasing and that this is likely to be a political timebomb. Clearly, there needs to be a stand back in relation to education building provision and how this aligns with ambitions, policy and performance of schools.

Rob

The New Homeless

2010-08-31T06:26:00.000-07:00

It is becoming increasingly apparent to me that we have a generation of new homeless people – young people in their 20s and 30s.

Actually, homeless may be too strong a word for them, and more appropriate is ‘houseless’.

This generation are either finding it very difficult to raise the funds to buy a property or have seen the down side of taking large loans and do not wish to get a foot on the property ladder. They even have their own term – KIPPERS, or Kids in parents’ pockets.

"KIPPERS" - it doesn't just refer to a fish

I seem to come across an increasing number of young people who in this situation, still living at home with their parents and desperate to move into a place of their own. Many of these young people have not saved money because this has not been something that they felt they needed to do in the times of excess. Now they need deposits of 20-25% to get a mortgage and their ability to raise this level of cash is difficult.

At _space group we have quite a few of our team within this age bracket and I am aware of a significant number of our people who are still at home with their parents, some in relationships finding it difficult to build a future together. There are even some who are starting families and still remain in separate properties.

The "KIPPERS" are ready to leave home, but can't get on the property market

Because of the need for such a large deposit, the private rental market has become attractive to a lot of KIPPERS, even though the products on the market are not great. At one end you have low quality, bedsit-type accommodation, and at the other, expensive riverside apartments. It is the more pragmatic accommodation in the middle which we seem to be without.

I know some RSLs have identified this and are trying to feed the market, but they themselves are suffering from funding challenges. I know recently of an RSL that put such properties on the market and there were huge waiting lists from people wanting the opportunity to rent, so it is clear that the demand is out there.

At _space group, we have developed a low cost house for the social housing market within our _spacehus brand. This is within the affordable window and also has minimal running costs. We have achieved this through offsite manufacture, which has allowed us to give each hus the highest quality in airtightness and insulation.

We are currently working on producing a £99,000 house, with running costs of £10 per week. While our buildings have low energy credentials, there is something else driving the project that we think is very important – by keeping the running costs low, the money the homeowner saves can be put towards paying the mortgage.

Our plan on the £99,000 house is to work on a 15% deposit with an 85% mortgage.

We are hoping to find a funder who will work with us who will help a whole generation own a home.

These £99,000 houses would even be appropriate for market rent if we can buy land at a realistic price. In the meantime, watch this _space!

Rob.

Things Will Never Be The Same

2010-07-13T06:44:00.001-07:00

One of _space group's BSF schools, Washington School in Sunderland

July 5^th 2010 is likely to be a milestone in the history of the construction industry. Michael Gove put an end to the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme, delivering one of the biggest blows to an industry in recent history. Without a doubt, thousands of construction jobs will be lost because of this announcement and the decision to halt spending on new schools.

One of my greatest surprises was the construction industry’s shock over the scale of the cuts. The coalition government began making noises some time ago that they were going to be aggressive in their review and early signs of Michael Gove’s subtlety were not particularly promising, so we had good time to prepare ourselves for the inevitable. Personally, I believe that it could have been considerably worse because live projects could have been scrapped.

Not only will this announcement affect the work available to our industry, Gove implied that we have all been wasteful and inefficient, and this is bound to have implications for those involved in construction in the future. Our industry responded to the game in town at the time and, for the past five years, many of us have been saying that BSF is wasteful and there must be a better way to deliver the programme.

I believe that the coalition have a window of around 12 to 18 months to sort out the country’s balance sheet, and then there will be an expectation that investment starts again in solving the problems of our schools estates, which are in poor condition due to a lack of capital investment since cuts made by Margaret Thatcher’s government. The education of our children is a very emotive subject and the idea of children being taught in crumbling buildings can be politically damaging for any government.

Michael Gove has appointed a committee to look at how we can deliver our capital spending programmes more efficiently. It is relevant that a director of property from Tesco is on this panel, as is the operations director from Dixons, as we are all aware of how aggressive retailers can be in driving down cots and forcing procurement approaches. I do believe there is some waste in our industry and there are better ways to do things, which could be signposted by this committee.

Technology plays a great part in improving efficiency, and working together, in a more integrated way, will help us to do this. _space group has been using Building Information Modelling for the past five years and this technology has helped us in this way, but encouraging the industry to take on this, and other technological changes, is a difficult sell and one that I think we must keep working on.

There is also opportunity for pre fabrication as a means of aiding school estate, but again this has not been embraced by many, with more traditional approaches being preferred.

As an industry, what we must do is accept where we are, and after we have all recovered from the shock and the impact these changes will have, we need to review our delivery approaches and invest in research to be able to offer increased efficiency in the future. When the new government do decide on the best ways to procure new schools, we should be proactively involved in the process and helping deliver more for less.

BSF RIP

Rob.

Thinking differently about housing

2010-07-07T03:18:00.000-07:00

I have been disturbed by the number of people, particularly young people, who are unable to find a home of their own. To me, having a place of your own is one of the most important aspects of life, but finding an affordable home in the current market is very tough as land values still remain excessive and construction is expensive and wasteful, which sends the price of a new home soaring.

For the past two years, _space group has been working hard to develop a truly affordable home. We have been working with several organisations from around the world to piece together what we feel may help. This has resulted in the creation of our own affordable home – _spacehus.

Our _spacehus brings together Swedish timber technology, an Italian heating system and Japanese photovoltaics to create structures we believe can be both affordable and low energy. However, there is clearly a sustainability problem here in that, in order to reach our goals, we have scoured the globe for innovation and quality of product! Why? Because the levels of innovation and quality abroad are simply not found in the UK at present.

One of the things we hope _spacehus will do is help to encourage our manufacturers to embrace the opportunities to develop leading edge technology for low energy living. Not only that, but we hope that our timber structures will change the stigma the British attach to pre-fabs and timber framed housing brought on by the cheap construction methods used in the 1960s and 70s. In Northern Europe, thousands of homes are built with a timber base, and as we’re able to use some of the lessons local manufacturers and designers have learnt, we can ensure that our building is made of the highest quality materials, producing an airtight structure.

Although current Government cutbacks, which have affected the HCA to the tune of £230m, make the ways in which homes can be delivered uncertain, there continues to be a housing need and we are confident that a way to deliver affordable homes for those who need them will be found.

_space group has recently submitted Planning Approval for a prototype home on our site in Newcastle. We will be testing the performance criteria of all of the _spacehus systems, as well as using it to demonstrate the power of this idea. We plan to be delivering our first commercial homes at the beginning of 2011.

Watch this _space for more news on this exciting development!

iPad - My Verdict

2010-06-16T07:26:00.000-07:00

Steve Jobs unveils his new iPad - but will it be a PC killer?

Image from www.inc.com/hardware/articles/201004/ipad.html

It’s nearly two weeks now since I walked out of the Apple Store with my new iPad, and when it comes to Apple’s latest baby, I find that most people fall into two categories:

1. Those who are Apple geeks, and therefore, love the iPad.

2. Those who think the iPad is a waste of money.

I have carried out a very scientific research project to understand where the truth lies. As _space have a reputation of ‘thinking differently’ and wanting to set the pace, I wanted to get my hands on an iPad to see what all the fuss was all about and to see whether it held any opportunities for our business.

I have been an iPhone user for some time and have become dependant upon several apps such as the grail and the digital clock.

Many people do say that the iPad is just a big iPhone. They are totally correct, however, I think this is the whole point of the device. With the iPhone, I found myself watching presentations or movies on the screen the size of a cigarette packet. Transporting this experience to the iPad is wonderful and makes surfing and watching video so much easier. I now take my iPad everywhere and find it convenient to quickly get access to websites and other information.

The iBook Store is really good and I have already finished my first book on it. I can see huge benefits, particularly on holiday where you end up using half your baggage allowance because of all of the books you have to trail with you. I have also subscribed to the new Times app as well as FT online. Both of these are fantastic and easy to operate. In due course, all magazines will go this way, creating a completely new industry.

I have been trying to get rid of my laptop, however as yet there are things which the iPad cannot do, so at the moment I am carrying two devices, which defeats the purpose of the iPad. Only time will tell if Apple’s newest creation can replace the PC, but at the moment I don’t think it is able to.

Many of the things it does do, such as being a book reader or a film viewer, laptops do not do as well, or with as much flair.

I think the iPad will only get better as more apps are developed and more publications are available.

Rob

It's All Very Nice

2010-06-03T06:17:00.000-07:00

Malmo, Sweden. Image from www.destination360.com

Last week I spent a few days in Sweden. We were in Scandinavia reviewing the manufacturing process for our timber building product. We were there for three days, which proved to be very interesting but also very exhausting.

We arrived into Copenhagen airport which is worth a visit in its own right. The building is very ordered, clean, crisp and welcoming, and gave us an excellent feeling of the Scandinavian way.

We then travelled by train through Malmo, up to the lakes where the factory is sited. As I travel around the UK a lot, I am a bit of a connoisseur of trains, and I felt this put anything Richard Branson had to offer to shame. All the trains were immaculate and very punctual, and the staff were incredibly courteous and very smart. My favourite aspect was the café / bar which was an open plan area where people on the train would gather, rather than the formal sitting down area provided in the UK.

On our first night, we stayed in a typically Scandinavian hotel, which was clean and crisp, yet minimal, in keeping with the town it was in. We had a fantastic meal and then visited a bar. As drinks worked out at over £6 a pint, we did not end up drunk that evening.

The following day’s breakfast was an interesting contrast to what I’ve experienced before. In comparison to the UK, everything moved at a much slower pace and seemed far more relaxed, and our hotel, I’m assured, was a typical Swedish business hotel. This helped to set us up for the day in a pleasant, relaxed manner.

We spent the remainder of the day visiting the factory and watching the skilled craftsmen putting together timber buildings. This is an incredible process where a team of around 35 operatives work on a line putting together a single house in a day. What was particularly fascinating was how they build the houses from the window out. The first window is placed on the flat bed, the gasket is added and the structure fitted around it. This is then pressed into place with a bench press, and then, panel by panel, the building is fabricated and stored. An articulated wagon then drives into the storage area and picks up the components in a dry environment ready for delivery. The quality of product is exceptional – not only are the finished panels of the highest standard, but all of the components utilised are too, with a noticeable difference being the quality of timber used, generated from the highest quality pine and larch from Sweden.

That evening, we visited our host’s own restaurant which was a wonderful experience in its own right. Never before have I had a restaurant opened only on my behalf, and my colleagues and I were served at our table by the Chef of this lakeside village restaurant.

The next day we made our way home through Copenhagen airport, and I have returned to the UK very impressed by the whole culture of Scandinavia in general, and Sweden in particular – the friendliness of the people, the beauty and efficiency of the area is admirable. However, I feel that this made me a bit too relaxed and I needed the tension which is so often apparent in our own wonderful country!

Rob

Oh, what a night!

2010-05-20T09:28:00.000-07:00

Rob and Diane at the Think Pink Ball

We held our annual North East ‘Think Pink’ Ball on Friday night, in aid of Children North East. This time, we took over the Gateshead Marriott and adorned their reception area and banqueting suite in _space pink and lime green.

It was a fantastic turn out, with over 220 guests all dressed in pink. There can’t have been much pink attire available in the North of England after the event!

We always to try and make the evening informal, with more of a party atmosphere than the average industry ball. Hopefully, we managed to achieve this and so far, we have had some really nice emails from people who attended, thanking us for a great evening. You never know if these thank you e-mails are from people being kind, but if my own experience of the night is anything to go by, I think people will have enjoyed themselves.

Whilst the Think Pink ball is a charity event, supported by the _space foundation, I am always conscious of not exploiting peoples’ generosity. However, we have been absolutely flabbergasted by the response we had on the night, as we have raised over £20,000 for Children North East. This was even more remarkable when you consider the timing of the night – on the same day, the announcement of a freezing of the BSF was made, putting everyone in a very pensive mood.

As is usually the case at these events, the evening rolled on in the bar into the early hours. I think we managed to call it a day at 4.00am which was far too late (or early, depending on how you look at it). There was a time when this would not have affected me but Saturday was definitely a challenge for me, with Sunday not much better. To make things even more challenging for me, on Saturday, I ended up going to a five year old’s birthday party, and as many of you will know, these are not renowned for being the most peaceful of events.

I have said on many occasions that it is events such as this where friends and colleagues come together to make all the hard work put into their jobs worthwhile. I am not one for Aston Martins or Ferraris, but give me a night out with friends anytime.

Rob.

Staying Positive

2010-05-11T07:58:00.000-07:00

Uncertain times ahead at Westminster - image taken from www.thelondonsite.org.uk

These are undoubtedly unprecedented times, and if it was a football match it would be great to watch as a neutral. However, the political uncertainty facing the United Kingdom at present is clearly a concern.

We all know that there is a fear of the unknown, and never before has this been more apparent than it is at the moment for our country and the direction we’re heading in. In business, we undoubtedly face a period of change where public spending has to be reduced to give ‘UK plc’ a stronger balance sheet.

I really hope that this reduction is done sensibly to allow businesses and people to adjust in a planned manner. Out of all change there is opportunity and we have to keep our eyes open to see which way markets and opportunities will progress.

Over the past week, we have been somewhat treading water while a direction is agreed. One thing that we know for certain is that no one, including the political leaders, knows what our future may hold.

Rob.

Trapped in Paradise

2010-05-06T07:27:00.000-07:00

Image from www.beachholidayguide.co.uk

I managed to make it back from Fuerteventura last week after being trapped in a beautiful hotel, thanks to the volcanic ash cloud.

It is difficult to say to anyone that this was a nightmare as I am sure that there are far greater disasters in the world. At worst it was an inconvenience.

However, what I did learn was that being somewhere you don’t want to be and not being able to leave can be frustrating. Also, I had mentally prepared for a week’s break and the additional week proved difficult as I was ready to start using my brain again.

I have also learnt that if I ever did win the lottery, I would not be able to retire to a luxury villa in the sun as clearly I need the creative elements of enterprise and business.

I am now very much back into the swing of things at _space group and enjoying the challenges of an unpredictable and changeable marketplace.

Rob

The Ultimate Multi-Tasking

2009-11-17T02:12:00.000-08:00

Running Man (life123.com)

For this blog entry I am trying out the ultimate in multi-tasking. I am finding that I have less and less time for exercise as I travel around the regions of the UK. I spend the week eating sandwiches and the weekends partaking in too much alcohol and nice meals. All of this is helping me to grow to be twice the man I have ever been before.

It is difficult to survive on salads day in and day out and it is not a delicacy which cross-country trains are renowned for. I am therefore rekindling my efforts in the gym.

My Christmas present last year was a running machine, bike and rowing machine which have had very little impact on my well-being.

It has become apparent, however, that owning these devices is not sufficient to aid your health. After several false starts I am really going to make the effort to use them at least for one week!

I do find the gym incredible boring so I am seeing if it is possible to multi-task. I am currently dictating this as I walk at 3.5 miles per hour on programme 1.

I have not fallen off the treadmill as yet and I will keep you updated as the weight falls off over the weeks ahead.

Space considers new sponsorship opportunity

2009-11-06T08:10:00.001-08:00

Living in a recession

2009-10-21T01:48:00.000-07:00

Illustration by Claudia McGehee.

We are all in a very strange situation at present. We currently sit in the middle of a recession where all around us budgets are being cut funding is disappearing and businesses are contracting. On top of this we have the added unknown of a potential new Government and changes in policy.

For business all of this presents a new set of challenges. We have to try and second guess what a new Government may do and how we can plan a strategy around this. Many of the plans we are making are based upon how we operate today. However in less than a year the Government could very quickly implement new policies which would affect everything we do. You only have to look at the change of policy by the Learning and Skills Council to see the massive impact that this had on the construction industry in such a short space of time.

A counter to this uncertainty is the amount of opportunity which appears during such times. Companies looking at joint ventures or working together are on the increase. Markets which were previously saturated now provide opportunity. Even recruitment is providing opportunity. Over the last 10 years one of the greatest challenges to our business has been in recruitment for our needs. Now we find incredibly talented people working in warehouses or maintaining gardens.

Recession is just another business challenge where risk and opportunity have to be balanced for long term sustainability.

Photos from the TES Classroom of the Future...

2009-10-09T03:27:00.000-07:00

For more images taken at the event, visit the _space life Facebook page by clicking HERE.

Poles apart

2009-10-05T02:17:00.000-07:00

I am just returning on the train from two days spent at the Times Education Supplement exhibition at Olympia. We were asked by the organisers if we would support them in presenting the classroom of the future at their event. We were provided with 65 square metres in which to build the futuristic space.

I agreed to support TES as this was not the normal type of event we would attend and it was attended by teachers rather than designer and builders. These would include BESEC for example.

This event was very much attended by the users of our buildings. The exhibition would give us the chance to test some of our thoughts on the teaching profession. Our thinking in relation to learning environments has be driven by our own beliefs, research and guidance issued by the government. Our classroom of the future or learnspace as we like to refer to it is a flexible diverse and adaptable space. I believe the classrooms of the future will be heavily influenced by IT and furniture. In a single space we have tried to allow the ability for several activities to be carried in a single period. The activities could include create, investigate, communicate, generate, educate, collaborate and integrate.

Much of this is already adopted in the way primary children are taught. They use group working and project based learning. Their furniture is flexible and they sit on the floor or even outside. At secondary school everything changes. We use 56 square metre rooms with 30 seats and desks all facing the front where knowledge will be imparted.

What has been interesting from the exhibition has been the reticence from the teaching profession. I initially thought the issues were about fear of the IT. However I think the issues are deeper. The teachers seemed to feel by having a class broken down into small groups it would be too hard to manage and they wouldn’t have the time to control the students.

There is without doubt two very polarised camps. The design and construction industry seem to have aligned with the government and PfS in delivering new schools. At the conferences supporting this camp there are very few teachers. On the other side there are the teachers who have their own defined view. At present never the two shall meet.

We can't continue to design and deliver schools and spend all of this money and not engage and embrace the profession who will be working in them. The BSF programme is about transformation but at the moment we are delivering schools without the teaching practices aligned. We need to get an understanding from both sides and see how we can move forward together. We mustn’t forget the driver for this investment is to improve the futures of our children. Until we move away from the pressures of delivering grades there will not be the space to update how our teachers teach and our learners learn.

Classroom of the future

2009-10-02T01:17:00.000-07:00

A 3D of our TES 'Classroom of the Future'

I'm on way down to the TES (Times Education supplement) exhibition in Olympia in London today. This is a 2 day gather of a wide range of the teaching profession. We are showcasing learnspace which is our classroom of the future. We have a 65 sqm space which we have set up as a space which could be the classroom of the future.

We believe spaces need to be flexible, adaptable and diverse to suit a whole range of learning approaches. We have an IT partner who is showcasing the latest technology. We will have everything from large format screens for sharing information to itouch for personal information.

We have a couple of furniture partners who range from the specialist fixed furniture through to loose furniture. Ergonomics are forgotten in a learn space and need to be given more consideration in the future. This should be an exciting couple of days.

Sir Bobby

2009-09-29T05:32:00.000-07:00

Sir Bobby Robson / The FA

Monday saw the memorial service for Sir Bobby Robson at Durham Cathedral. The attendance and warmth shown by everyone at both the Cathedral and St James Park was an unbelievable testament to what people thought about this man.

He has always been someone who I have admired and who has provided me with some of my best memories in football. Italia 90 was possibly the highlight for me however he also managed to get Newcastle United on track.

I have never heard anyone say anything bad about Sir Bobby. I did not know him personally, but saw him at several events over the years and he was always very humble and friendly.

How he spent the last few years of his life was an inspiration – raising thousands of pounds for good causes for the North East.

Sir Bobby died without anyone having a bad word to say about him and most successful man I have ever seen.

One of his childhood friends spoke at the service and said he had never changed despite his international success.

He may not have had the big house or the yacht, yet so many people felt so much for him and he left such a legacy it is a great lesson for all of us. It gives us all something to strive for while on this planet.

I think we need to campaign for a statue in the centre of Newcastle to act as inspiration for us all at so many levels not just football.

A Spot of Holiday Reading

2009-09-01T02:21:00.000-07:00

After my adventures in Florida at the beginning of the summer, I quickly found myself in need of another holiday.

We have just returned from a trip to Madeira - a beautiful island and the home of Ronaldo!

As ever, my holidays give me the opportunity to catch up on my reading. My taste in reading materials are a little ‘anorak-ish’ but I thought I would try my hand at reviewing some of the books I read whilst I was away, as I don’t have much more to report on because I didn’t get much further than the swimming pool!

Leading from the Front: My Story. Gerald Ronson

The first book I read was the story of Gerald Ronson who heads up the Ronson Group, which was a very successful business in the 70s and 80s. It ran petrol stations whilst more recently the group has become an international property developer.

Gerald Ronson is now aged 74 and is still working a 6-day week! His story is fascinating and takes you through how he grew a business, lost it all, and then grew it back again. He was infamously involved in the Guinness shares trial and ultimately ended up spending time in prison. He gives an interesting account of his life, how he shaped his future and what is important to him.

His family and community are a large part of his life and he has spent much of his time supporting Jewish charities over his 60 years in business. He is so matter of fact about the people he has met, from royalty to celebrities, many of whom became his friends. His company crashed in the last recession and after some poor investments in America, he was forced to sell large parts of his equity.

He continues to run the business on a day-to-day basis and is now the grandfather of property development in the UK - seen it all and done it all.

This was a fantastic read especially with the focus on development and the economy. Clearly, Gerald Ronson puts his family and his community at the top of his priority list and he clearly demonstrates how you can have success yet still share with others.

Common Sense Rules. Deborah Meaden

Out of the current five dragons on Dragons Den, four of them have written autobiographies. I have now read all four after reading the recently published, book by Deborah Meaden.
This is a fairly light business book giving common sense examples of how to run a business, as well as examples of how Deborah Meaden grew her organisation and ultimately sold it to venture capitalists.

Much of the information is common sense but still useful by giving a brief insight to the author who is clearly an effective and focussed business manager. This is a quick read targeted at those who watch Dragons Den.

Investing in Standards During a Recession

2009-07-24T06:46:00.000-07:00

Going back to the 80s I was one of the greatest critics of the BS5750 and the Quality Assurance process. I remember wading through huge documents and ticking thousands of boxes just to be able to demonstrate we had carried out everything in accordance with our procedure. The reason for my criticism was that I was not convinced that this delivered any real value to the business.

However, over a number of years the standards have been reviewed and have been changed to ISO 9001 which used the Demming plan, do, check, act model.

We spent a lot of time as a business reviewing ISO 9001 and decided to develop our own continuous improvement wheel based on plan, do, check, act. We used the 9001 standard as a base however. I remember in the past when we had a QA audit there was two weeks of frantic activity before the Auditor arrived to make sure that every box was ticked and every piece of paper was in the right place. Now we look forward to the auditor arriving and make no special arrangements for these particular days. We use the audit as opportunity for continuous improvement.

We have named out internal management system _scils (_space Continuous Improvement and Learning System) and have been able to integrate other standards within it without major change.

We have recently been accredited with ISO 14001 in relation to environmental standards. Far from believing that quality standards are a hindrance I have now moved my thinking to believe that such standards are imperative in time of recession. Particularly with ISO 14001 it has structured our thinking in relation to waste and risk. We now look at every aspect of the business and consider where waste is being produced and how we can minimise it. By measuring what we use in the first place we can monitor resource movements and percentages against others.

We are now aiming to include the ISO 18001 standard within our _scils model to ensure that our Health and Safety achieves the highest standards.

During a recession when process, waste and risk are very important I would recommend any business to invest in these standards to ensure that the organisation is run as efficiently and effectively as possible as I believe they add real value.

The Big Four O

2009-07-18T07:33:00.000-07:00

Life begins at 40... / photo

I reached a major milestone at the weekend. On the 11th July I hit the grand old age of 40. Some say life begins at 40 and I look forward to what that may bring. I have to be honest usually birthdays have little impact upon me however, I got to thinking that if 80 is a good innings, by the time you get to 40 you are half way there meaning that its all down hill from here!

My 30ies were an exciting time for me and this period generally coincided with the last 10 years of growth. Whilst growth was very exciting it provided its own challenges and headaches.

It is likely that my 40ies will have a different set of challenges as we steer the business through a difficult period.

For the man who has everything birthday presents were always going to be a challenge. The best present was the party which I had last Saturday night. These are rare occasions where all of your friends are gathered together in one place at the same time. Obviously one is your wedding providing you only have one and the other is likely to be your funeral which you won’t be at.

The one thing that struck me on the evening was that friendships are recession proof and in my case I have been fortunate enough to have a solid bunch of friends through the ups and downs over the years.

Batten Down the Hatches

2009-07-17T07:28:00.000-07:00

Wikipedia

Over recent months one of the terms which I keep hearing in our industry and in particular from architects is that they plan to ‘batten down the hatches’ and ‘ride out the storm’. I think in the past this has been the way many architectural businesses have responded to recessions and generally the profession is badly hit by such down turns. Much of this is caused by the fact architects depend upon capital spending and in recessions this is one of the first things to be cut.

Over the past decade our industry has made huge strides forwards in relation to its approach and technology. There is no doubt that there is still further to go but my worry is that much of the hard work we have done in relation to partnering or integrated working will be stopped and potentially be forgotten.

As an industry we need to continue to invest in training and development.. With Building Information Modelling and integrated project delivery we are on the cusp of a revolution. Unfortunately many companies are battening down the hatches and cannot afford to invest.

I also worry that by battening down the hatches the storm will happen around us and when many companies open the hatches there will be no industry left.

At _space we made the decision to think very carefully about how we move forward but do not intend to batten down the hatches or bury our heads in the sand. We will continue to invest in our people and technology and think differently about our industry.

Hopefully this will stand us in good stead for the future and in fact help us weather the storm.

We are always looking at how we can diversify our offer to enable us to sustain our business for the long term.

An Old New Town

2009-07-06T02:19:00.000-07:00

Milton Keynes/Wikipedia

I spent sometime in Milton Keynes last week, this was the first time I had had the privilege of visiting this much talked about town.

My first challenge was getting there, as a regular train traveller cutting across country was going to be problematic. The answer was to head into London and back out to Milton Keynes. I was on a secret mission and the first thing that struck me on that particular day was the incredible heat with temperatures reaching 32 degrees.

At _space we talk much about sustainable communities and I am always looking for the collective elements that can make this happen. Clearly, at some point, Milton Keynes was thought to be state of the art. Many years later the masterplan has been developed and the new community created.

What I am not sure about is, if this is an integrated or sustainable community. It has all of the pieces but many of the elements operate in isolation. It has to be economically sustainable in that it is operated for several years and continues to grow. However the roundabouts and road system gave little priority for pedestrians with huge industrial zones being surrounded by forests of trees.

The housing seemed to be remote lacking the usual mix of a buildings and styles developed over many years.

Much of the architecture was of a similar 60ies and 70ies style again with little response to human scale.

It would seem from the outside that commercially Milton Keynes has been successful, possibly due to its good links to London by both road and rail. I would challenge however, whether this is the best place to live if there is the rich mix of uses, ages and architecture which can create a place.

I came away from Milton Keynes believing that it was difficult to force a community to happen on a rigid plan such as this. Communities need to evolve over time and respond to the times in which they develop.

Places also need to be particular to their geography and I did feel that whilst I thought I had not been to Milton Keynes before I had visited the same place in Telford and Washington.

North-South Divide

2009-06-26T03:51:00.000-07:00

North-South Divide map/Wikipedia

The recession is starting to have quite a cultural impact on the architectural profession. My view has always been that in architecture there has been a London market and a regional market. Much of what has been delivered in the capital has been commercial responding to the asset boom driven by the banks. This has included offices, hotels and high end housing.

The majority of the construction industry is now driven by Government spending and investment in education and healthcare. This has encouraged many of the businesses in London to look further afield for opportunities.

The concentration of skills in London will help to increase the quality of public buildings being procured across England.

With regards to the upgrading of the of the schools estate, Partnerships for Schools are now very reliant on CABE as the custodian of design quality. Over the last few years the BSF process has been driven by delivery and the procurement itself. CABE’s involvement will undoubtedly raise standards and encourage bid teams to respond to the need for design quality.

This shift will give the opportunity to promote the benefit of the investment in design as part of the huge capital investment being made by the Government. As a northern business we must ensure we are part of the dialogue with bodies such as CABE and the RIBA which are traditionally based in the south.

America, Economics, Apple and the genius of Walt Disney

2009-06-15T06:20:00.000-07:00

I haven’t completed my blog for two weeks now, and with good reason. I have been on holiday in Florida spending time at the beach reading books along with Mickey Mouse and friends.

The pattern for my holidays is that I return with lots of new thoughts from the books I have read and what I have seen. This holiday is no exception.

Economics

I have taken an interest in economics after the events of the last few years. The books I have read have been fascinating and enlightening. I am now sure things will never be the same again, and we need to ensure we don’t make the mistakes of the past.

Over the last 10 years we have had unprecedented growth and many of the risks taken by banks have been too high, with no consideration of ‘what if’. The rewards were huge for the banks in the short term however; it is now clear that they didn’t understand the complexity of what they were doing. The fallout is huge and the construction industry is affected more than most.

Disney

You would think that it would be difficult to find much to comment on from a business perspective in a theme park. Nothing could be further from the truth. At Disneyland there are many lessons for all businesses.

Disney is by far the best in class. The service is as high as I have ever experienced and I would guess their customer satisfaction is the highest in the world. They employ 55,000 people in Orlando with the vast majority upholding the Disney values. Maintenance of the facility is of the highest standard despite being operational every day and having thousands of visitors. They also continue to surprise, and since my last visit several years ago there are new attractions with relevance to current culture.

Disney World is the size of a city yet it runs efficiently and effectively. It also generates revenue of over $6 billion per year.

USA 2009

I have also taken onboard many aspects of the American culture while I have been away and will be sharing my thoughts over the next few days on the various aspects which I found interesting.

America on the Environment

America has woken up to the environment however I would say they are between 5 and 10 years behind Europe. They are starting with recycling but have not moved to energy conservation and in particularly Florida there is a huge amount of air conditioning. Car sizes have reduced with fewer SUV’s and 4 wheel drive vehicles on the road.

We stayed in a hotel on the Gulf Coast which claimed to be the first NEEAT hotel in America. All I could see was recycling bins and cartons made from recycled material. However this is a positive start and importantly this is now of interest to the American people.

America and its Car Industry

The American car industry is in a huge mess. General Motors filing for bankruptcy is unbelievable. It would appear that it has made some dreadful decisions over the past 20 years and the issues it faces now are not new. It did not continue to innovate and has been content to continue to manufacture average products. It even invested in Hummer when everyone else was investing in R&D of the electric vehicle.

Toyota has continued to develop its product and now produces the most popular cars in America.

The Global Recession is linked to the downfall of the motor industry in the US. In Detroit there has been a huge drop in manufacturing jobs leaving people with lower incomes or unemployed. These are the communities which have been encouraged to take up sub prime mortgages.

America and Apple

We visited several malls on the trip and by far the busiest and liveliest was the Apple Store.

There were people using the many apple devices from music to computers to phones. Microsoft may have lost its way in innovation and understanding what society wants and needs. Steve Jobs and Apple have great intuition when understanding contemporary cultures.

The Apple revolution is building in the UK and I am sure it will become central to youth culture within the next few years.

America and Steve Jobs

Whilst Disney has managed to remain a leader when it comes to theme parks through its imagineering (imagination and engineering) other parts of the business have fallen behind Walt Disney was an innovator and won more Oscars than anyone else for his work on animated movies. Disney lost its way with movies after the death of Walt and failed to push the boundaries.

I read Steve Jobs biography and he has made a fortune and lost a fortune and then gone on to make another one.

Now Apple and Steve Jobs are such a huge success it is easily forgotten how different it could have been. He invested everything he had and was very nearly bankrupt developing Pixar. He took huge risks but made a huge success with movies such as Finding Nemo and Toy Story.

Disney was left with no choice but to buy Pixar with Jobs becoming a major shareholder in Disney.

I have now read the stories of both Walt Disney and Steve Jobs and there are many parallels. Both of them are entrepreneurs and both are innovators. They are visionaries and single minded. Most of all they have a talent at reading the emerging markets.

Steve Jobs is the Walt Disney of our time.

Steve Jobs/Wikipedia and Walt Disney/Wikipedia

A Brave New World

2009-05-22T01:49:00.000-07:00

We have now officially entered the brave new world of social networking. Our new _space Life site is now up and running and we are going through our tests as we build up the content. I believe that social networking is building more and more momentum with increasing numbers of the people that I meet inadvertently mentioning YouTube or images on Facebook.

We are really hoping to bring the site to life and my vision is that it becomes a centre for all of the stories for the communities which we work within.

I spent the last few days in the South looking at several new schools and academies as I am always keen to see what is being done by others. On my travels I can across a very interesting new private school which had open air corridors giving students a good blast of fresh air. With a likely change of Government we are keeping our eyes open as to how a new Government may want to reform the education system. There are models in Scandinavia where education is delivered by the private sector under a voucher system. This has to be a realistic possibility under a conservative Government.

The racing season has started and I attended my first meeting in York last week. One of my favourite things throughout the summer is horse racing. I love the atmosphere and meeting people however, I am not a huge gambler. There are many meeting throughout the year and we hope for a glorious summer. It has to be better than sitting at St James Park.

At the end of the week I am off to Florida to spend some time with Mickey Mouse and my 5 year old daughter. I will be wearing my Mickey Mouse ears and really getting into the spirit of things. A trip to Orlando is far from an architectural pilgrimage but still great fun.

There are unlikely to be any great revelations in my blog upon my return however, I have packed my usual collection of business biographies so who knows how this may influence _space over the months ahead.

Social Media in Space

2009-05-01T03:45:00.000-07:00

Times have certainly changed. We have just launched our new website Spacegroup.co.uk which reflects the diversity of the group. We have also launched a further site Spacelife.co.uk which allows us to tell the stories of the people of the buildings we create.

Initially I was a bit of a cynic regarding social networking. I thought it would be another fad and certainly something I would never have the time to use myself. However I find this media creeping more and more into my day to day life.

YouTube is great for watching short clips and space have even started producing video releases rather than press releases for projects we have completed.

I am astonished at the number and type of people who now use Facebook as a way to share photos and keep in touch.

When there is something new happening I have to find out more and understand what it is all about. I was recommended a great book called Meatball Sundae which put new media into context. Spacelife is our step into this world to link up with the people who live in the communities we work within.

These sites are used by all ages, however, there is a whole generation growing up attached to laptops and I phones. I realised times had changed when I watched my 16 year old son sitting on our settee with his girlfriend talking to their friends on MSN.

In our family eBay has also become a bonding activity as well as a small cottage industry operated by my wife and the same 16 year old trading children’s clothes.

Somebody once said to me that there are two types of people when it comes to social networking. There are those who get it and those who don’t. I think I now fall into the former.