Blogs

It’s mental health week for 2022! SWPA enjoy taking this time to take stock of the last year and see what we can do better for our team over the coming year.  

This year we have decided to do something a little different, because this year’s theme of loneliness ties into a topic we are huge advocates of – building communities. 

The statistics are bleak, we need to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century to keep the global temperature below 1.5°C to avoid the worst consequences of the biological and ecological crises.  

All to often the reality of this is overwhelming, and many of us have no idea where to begin or what to do. Earth Day 2022 gives us the perfect call to action – invest in our planet.

Collaboration has long been recognised as a goal in the construction industry, Constructing Excellence created the Collaborative Working Champions; which has identified 10 themes as most essential in achieving superior performance from fully integrated collaborative working in the UK construction industry. 

In this latest article, SWPA finds out more about Ian Williams, one of only a few businesses to be appointed across multiple frameworks with us, including the vitally important Fire Safety (FS1-P) framework and fire door lot on the Doorsets, Fire Doors and Communal Entrance Doors (C8) framework. We caught up with Ian Williams’ Business Manager, Richard Croucher.

Fire doors are an essential aspect of fire safety for any property. They’re designed to stop the spread of fire and smoke in a building for long periods. This ensures escape routes are protected so people can evacuate a building safely and provides more time for firefighters to extinguish a fire.

There are several regulations in the UK associated with fire doors. This article will provide a breakdown of each and what they entail.

International Women’s Day 2022 is recognised across the globe, IWD celebrates women’s achievements and champions gender equality, this year IWD calls for us all to break the bias!  

Whether deliberate or unconscious, bias makes it difficult for women to move ahead. Once we recognise that bias exists, we can all take responsibility for our actions and begin to positively change and challenge actions that don’t enable an equal playing field.  

The Government’s recently published Transforming Public Procurement (TPP) Green Paper consultation response shows determination to put alternative assessment scoring front-and-centre over price, to drive both equity and economic improvement.

Back in February 2017, the National Audit Office estimated it would cost £6.7 billion to return all school buildings to satisfactory or better condition, and a further £7.1 billion to bring parts of school buildings from satisfactory to good condition.

David Hartley, Managing Director at MTX, discusses how modern methods of construction (MMC) are proving beneficial to the healthcare sector, when it comes to supporting their sustainability goals, particularly under the increased pressures brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.

SWPA benefit from regional and national expertise, across several disciplines, from our local team, other teams throughout the UK, and our technical and procurement hub at our LHC head office.