Opinion

Scottish Housing News Podcast co-host Jimmy Black outlines the roundtable discussion from the first episode of the podcast, which has been launched to kick off our series on how Scotland’s social housing sector is meeting the net zero challenge. Some intriguing possibilities were thrown up in

Ahead of COP26, Mark Markey explores the steps that the Akela Group is already taking to bolster its sustainability and the need for the construction industry to embrace the drive towards sustainability. In less than three weeks’ time, the eyes of the world will be on Glasgow when Sc

Chris Mackay and Andrew Little from Burness Paull look at the Scottish Appeal Court decision in relation to the Aberdeen Harbour Expansion Project and what it means for NEC contracts going forward. A decision of the Scottish appeal court has confirmed that NEC contracts are not charters for contract

The Health and Safety Executive outlines its approach to preventing unnecessary deaths caused by exposure to dust on construction sites.

Highbridge Properties director Guy Marsden looks at the shifting requirements for workplaces of the future. The pandemic has triggered a massive shift in the way we work, resulting in many companies moving from an office-centric culture to considering more flexible ways of working. 

Ramboll's Stefanie O’Gorman, who sits on the Scottish Government's Climate Emergency Response Group (CERG), provides her analysis of the group’s 12 immediate actions for the new government to accelerate its response to the climate emergency. Working with the CERG group on our recent

Kevin Reid, chief executive of the Cruden Group, gives a commentary on the Housing and Climate Emergency theme of Scottish Housing Day. In the 2018-2019 financial year more new homes were built in Scotland than at any time since the crash of 2008. Covid put the brakes on activity levels and alt

Euan Pirie, partner in the specialist construction and engineering contracts advisory team at Harper Macleod LLP, looks at a solution to price uncertainty for construction materials when tendering big contracts. Prices for construction materials have gone haywire in a perfect storm of conditions whi

Eilidh Dobson and Iain Drummond comment on legal aspects of the ongoing materials shortage. It will be news to few that the construction industry is experiencing a serious shortage of key materials. The Construction Leadership Council first warned of shortages (in timber, steel, pitched roofing, pla

Engineer Alex Lenia looks at how 3d scanning technology is already used widely in the US, and the advantages it brings to construction sites and teams. Technology has greatly accelerated the pace of our professional and personal lives over the past 20 years. The development of smaller, faster comput

One year on from the devastating explosion which rocked Beirut, Arcadis engineer Joe Bilan is still trying to process what happened and his experiences in the city. On 4 August 2020, 2700 tonnes of ammonium nitrate exploded in Beirut, causing the deaths of over 200 people, injuring over 6000 an

Mike Harrison of HarrisonStevens outlines the changes happening to repurpose brownfield sites, canal towpaths and overgrown and unloved scrubland as more people are being encouraged to ditch the car and enjoy the benefits of active travel. The canal towpaths and redundant railway lines that pass thr

Advocate and former Labour MP Mark Lazarowicz examines the new SNP-Green deal and assess how radical an impact its commitments could have on the natural environment in Scotland. The ‘co-operation agreement’ between the SNP Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party includes, as one

Filip Stefanovic, head of engineering at Ecocoast, discusses the construction industry's obligation to protect the water in the area of construction, and how this can be done.  As with all industries, the construction sector is responsible for its fair share of greenhouse gas emissions, ac

Nick Waugh, commercial director at Buccleuch Property, which is jointly developing Shawfair, argues that new towns are best placed to adapt to residents' changing needs.