News & Blogs

From strength to strength: 10 years of Novus

When members first came together in a London pub in 2008 and started to discuss what the CIOB could do for young professionals, the concept of Novus was born and little did they know it would continue to go from strength to strength. During Members’ Forum 2013 in Yorkshire, a spotlight was given to Novus and members from across the globe were influential in creating the Novus Global Strategy document and Terms of Reference, cementing its place firmly within the institute.

Novus on Board

As part of our celebrations for ten years of Novus, we caught up with two members who represent Novus on CIOB Board’s. Jessica Lloyd is Assistant Project Manager at Mott MacDonald, part of the Bristol Novus Group, and has been on the CIOB’s Business Development Board (BDB) since August 2018. Dean is Project Manager at Mace, Chair of the Truro Novus Group, and has been on the CIOB’s Education, Qualification, Standards and Practice (EQSP) Board since October 2017. We asked them both what Novus means to them and why giving a voice to the young professional at Board level is important.

Construction Quality: It’s about our values

I recently asked a question online. It was a simple question and yet, it started a conversation about Construction Quality Management that I think we can all learn from. This was the question I asked: "If you were to improve Quality Management within construction, what's the first area you would focus on and why?" The response was overwhelming. Comments came from a wide variety of professionals across our industry. Some themes soon emerged.

Collaboration on quality: getting on track

Earlier this year, I represented the CIOB to announce the launch of the Building in Quality initiative with RIBA and RICS. We signed a Joint Memorandum of Understanding with the aim of establishing a chain of custody for quality that would link those who commission buildings with those who use them. It was a positive example of collaboration and a recognition that, in light of recent events, we needed to act to improve the quality of the built environment for the benefit of society.

Question time: a Novus interview of Rebecca Thompson

Winner of our Novus 10 anniversary competition, Jamie Young, won the opportunity to interview CIOB Past President, Rebecca Thompson FCIOB. Jamie is senior design manager for Wates and the Chair of Cambridge Novus.

Being an advocate for industry in the Middle East

Noreen is Executive Director for Hollywood Associates, a consultancy based in Dubai, and is currently on the CIOB Local Hub Committee for the Dubai region and was recently elected on to the CIOB’s Education, Qualification, Standards and Practice (ESQP) Board. Here she tells us what a difference it's made being an active member of the CIOB.

Championing consumers: the role of the New Homes Ombudsman

This week James Brokenshire, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has announced that a New Homes Ombudsman is to be created. He said this will ‘champion homebuyers, protect their interests and hold developers to account’. Importantly, the new homes ombudsman will be enshrined in statute, with legislation requiring all ‘new developers’ to belong to this new ombudsman.

Modern slavery: Why we’re looking at corporate risk the wrong way

Modern slavery is a pernicious and hidden crime. We’re only just beginning to understand the level of risk it poses to UK supply chains. But as our knowledge increases, corporate response to the Modern Slavery Act remains lacklustre. With many organisations in paralysis, the arguments for and against taking action can be distilled into three words: attitude to risk.

Helping policy play its part

In 2020 Mark Beard, Chairman of construction group Beard, will become the 117th President of the CIOB. His Presidency will follow from Charles Egbu, Dean of School of the Built Environment and Architecture at London Southbank University, who will become CIOB President in 2019, and Chris Soffe, CEO of Gleeds America, who became CIOB President in July. In our guest blog, we ask him to share his visions for the future of the Policy Board.

Debating a sustainable industry as young professionals

At the CIOB Members’ Forum in Toronto in July 2018, we held a debate on the sustainable future of the construction industry chaired by Senior Vice President Charles Egbu. The world is changing and the area of sustainability is a big one, not just the environmental strand to that topic but also social dimensions, the issue of culture, equity and parity as well as the moral compass of our industry. It also encapsulates the economic footprint and life cycle of the built environment.

What it’s like to be winners of the Global Student Challenge

It was a long shot but it was a hole in one. On July 12, three graduating students from the Honours Bachelor in Technology at the Angelo DelZotto School of Construction Management, George Brown College, won the 2018 Global Student Challenge, organized by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB). Here, Professor Blago Blagoev interviews the team to find out what it’s been like since.

Could CIOB help members build solutions for global disaster relief programmes?