Features

As Associate Director at gpad london, David Walker has had a colourful and varied career. Graduating from Sheffield University during a recession, he then moved to Budapest for a couple of years and Berlin for three more, working for Daniel Libeskind. Here, David talks to FC&A about his diverse career.

Since the first known case was diagnosed in Wuhan, China, in November 2019, the outbreak of coronavirus has had far-reaching implications for people and companies both nationally and worldwide. On Thursday, 12th March, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the virus a pandemic, meaning businesses are approaching the unknown in the months to come.

How can you ensure your practice can best get through the disruption being caused by Coronavirus? Having, a solid understanding of what a remote working solution can offer your business now in these unprecedented times and in the longer term, is a great place to start.

It goes without saying that the impact of Coronavirus on the development sector will be significant – not only the immediate, considerable and often unpredictable obstacles that we face today but for years to come. But the housing shortage won’t go away, and new infrastructure is desperately needed.

The coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) has raised serious health concerns, with some countries imposing travel restrictions to tackle the spread of the illness.

The second stage of the Grenfell inquiry opened with what the inquiry’s chief lawyer called a “merry-go-round of buck-passing”, as the contractor, architect and cladding installer gave their statements. Two weeks before the inquiry reconvened, Dame Judith Hackitt, Author of the Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety, shared her frustration around the pace of change following the devastating fire. Her view is the construction industry has not moved fast enough to change its practices and culture, writes Ian King, Chief Operating Officer at Zeroignition.

With the liquid roofing and waterproofing sector rapidly growing, Victoria Ramwell from Kemper System offers best practice advice on how to specify and install liquid systems.

The Future Homes Standard, effectively the follow up to the “ban the gas boiler” announcement, sets out what we can expect from our buildings from 2025, writes Matthew Trewhella, Managing Director of Kensa Contracting. And how we are going to get there via its “transitional arrangements” could see an almost overnight ban on oil, LPG and electric as soon as mid-2020; under the standard gas will get much harder and heat pumps many times easier to introduce into new-build homes.

Since October 2006, when The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 came into effect in England and Wales, replacing over 70 pieces of fire safety law, it has been essential for contractors and architects to be aware of fire safety in the built environment. Whether building a new public building or a commercial property; or conducting a major refurbishment; part of the solution for almost any non-domestic premises will be fire safety glass, as Scott Sinden, Managing Director of leading glass manufacturer and processor ESG Group, explains.

In today’s fast-paced digital age, we’re constantly subject to change – and it’s no different for access control. Trevor Ball of Allegion UK asks whether we truly understand the importance of seamless system integration in today’s shifting access control market.