McKirdy & Morrison, Dentist Surgery In Burnbank

A rainy Sunday afternoon is an ideal time to post a blog, so here goes. This is the second dentist practice that block have completed. The first was our refurbishment of a grade C listed former library building in Uddingston, South Lanarkshire for Mr Neil Simpson and this second surgery is a shell fit out for our great clients McKirdy & Morrison who were recommended to us by Mr Simpson himself.

The project consisted of the complete installation of 4 surgeries (fitted-out by specialist contractors - Henry Schein), an LDU room and associated staff and reception areas. Both the planning and building control processes went smoothly with South Lanarkshire Council and shortly thereafter the project was tendered and won by Alexander Braidwood Construction from Blantyre.

The Clients were very active in the selection of all of the finishing materials and fittings and the contractor was also instrumental in some key decisions assisting the smooth running of the site and aiding in the delivery of the design. All in all a great team effort, and that's the way it should be.

If you know of any dentist who is seeking advice on the refurbishment or relocation of their surgery please share this post with them and ask them to get in touch.

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Block Quantity Surveying

After great client demand to introduce an all encompassing service offering, we have now introduced a surveying service within block architects.

Block Quantity Surveying provides key services that cover all aspects of procurement, contractual and project cost management. No matter how large your project we can assist you with these elements of the build. Our professional team offers their services throughout the UK to all sectors including private clients, contractors and public bodies.

As one of many professional services offered within our business our Professional Consultants and Quantity Surveyors can work alongside any design team or with any contractor to ensure that our Clients achieve their stated objectives.

We understand that good communication and teamwork are key to the success of a project and we have invested heavily in our Information Technology to ensure we are always available to our Clients and they are kept informed at every step.



Meet Alex Reid our Consultant Surveyor

Alex Reid, is a professionally qualifed Quantity Suveyor who alongside his involvement in Block Quantity Surveying, is currently working towards his PhD in Construction Management at Glasgow Caledonian University.

His ongoing academic research has identified the tangible benefits that can be achieved when you combine construction knowledge, information technology and a networking platform to deliver the technical, clerical and administration functions of larger construction organisations into the small private client and contracting company.

It is with this in mind that Alex will bring his considerable surveying knowledge and expertise to the Block brand



What are the benefits or our surveying service:-

1.Up to 2hrs of our FREE time assessing your needs and advising you of the possibilities…
2.Realistic cost predictions for your project…
3.Learn the process of negotiating your way through the construction minefield…
4.Tap into our established network of professional consultants who understand the delivery process…
5.Stop wasting cash on other professional services which don’t meet your demands…
6.Stay enthused about your vision…



What Services Will We Provide:-

• Construction Cost Planning
• Advice on Contractor Selection
• Preparation of Tender Documentation
• Selection of Procurement Route
• Tender Reporting
• Tender Negotiation
• Valuation of Construction Works Completed On Site
• Financial Reporting
• Agreeing Final Accounts

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SAP Energy Ratings - What are they all about?

What exactly are SAP ratings?
SAP ratings sound complicated, but in reality they can be relatively simple to understand. Here is a brief guide...

The acronym SAP stands for Standard Assessment Procedure, which is a procedure used to calculate how energy efficient a building is. All new buildings are required to have a SAP rating along with buildings that are undergoing major remodeling. This is a government created scheme, to encourage energy efficiency in homes.

How does the SAP work?
The Standard Assessment Procedure makes use of a scale from 1-120 based on the yearly energy costs for water heating, space and lighting as well as the carbon dioxide emission rate. There are several things needed in order to calculate the SAP rating for a property:
• Construction details, including U (heat loss) values
• The drawings of the building design
• Window and door details
• The boiler, hot water cylinder and control system information.

When all of the data has been collected, it is input into the authorized software by a accredited assessor, and a draft report is produced. If the building passes all of the criteria, an As-built final report is then given along with a Predicted Energy Performance Certificate and is submitted with the main application to building control before any building work has started.

If the project fails any of the criteria, it needs to be redesigned so that it complies with all of the regulations. Once it meets the regulation standards, the assessor is informed of any changes to the build and confirms that it now meets the standards. They then produce the As-built final SAP report, and the On Construction - Energy Performance Certificate (OC-EPC) if relevant, and then submit them to building control for the final sign off.

So there you have it, SAP energy ratings in a nutshell! Be sure to keep them in mind if you are thinking of renovating, or building a self build home.

CONTACT BLOCK ENERGY SERVICES NOW IF YOU REQUIRE A SAP ENERGY RATING

A Happy Fatbuzz Easter

Just wanted to drop a quick blog post to get you all into the Easter feeling. We have today received our Cadbury's Cream Eggs from our great friends at Fatbuzz.

If you have liked this short blog post please feel free to drop a note on their facebook page

Check out more about us on our facebook page

Difficulty with iTunes downloading for Block Podcast No.5 and No.6 resolved

It would appear some people have been experiencing difficulties downloading Episodes 5 & 6 which were released this week; we have now re-submitted the feed information to iTunes and it appears to have solved the problem.


Our apologies for the inconvenience but, we hope you will aggree it was worth the wait!

The Block Podcast makes a big return today; it's been almost two months since the last podcast with Christmas and a very busy start to the year delaying the first recording of 2012. So it's typical, you wait a while for one and two come along at once!  Yes, we're releasing two podcasts today.

The podcast team got together to record one episode and the chat was so interesting that we just let the recorder run and we've ended up splitting the recording in two parts; Episode 5 and Episode 6.  There is a natural break in the topics and it seemed sensible to chop it into two 45 minute podcasts rather than one bumper edition.

Episode 5 is largely a very interesting chat about Procurement in the construction industry and, Episode 6 is primarily about how the construction industry could, and should, use social media.

These Episodes were recorded on the 27th February - here are the participants:

• Evelyn Laurie, Principal, Red Marketing
• Gill Joy, Director,  Intend Development
• John Stobbs, Director of Operations, Sap Service UK

Also on the podcast we have Kenneth Martin, Managing Director, Block Architects and Gordon White, Managing Director, fatBuzz Ltd

EPISODE 5
We discuss lots of different aspects of procurement in the construction industry, here are some of the key topics:

• The complexity of the process
• Are SME's getting their fare share?
• BBA Accreditation and the cost of being registered
• Quirky.com and crowd funding for product development
• Are the contracts profitable or, are companies buying the work?
• How good id you bidding?
• Do you review and fine tune failed bids?
• The Glasgow Construction Forum 
• Scottish Procurement Construction Linked In Group

There's lots of great chat in this Episode and lots of useful information for anyone involved in the procurement process, it's well worth a listen.  You can download Episode 5 on iTunes or, you can listen to it here on the blog:

Play the podcast here:

Download and subscribe to Block Podcast on iTunes HERE

EPISODE 6

This is an interesting discussion about how the construction industry is adopting social media and, what they could be doing to improve their marketing and existing services with the adoption of Web 2.0 technology; here are some of the key topics:

• Is the construction industry using social media effectively?
• Creating content internally vs using an agency
• Twitter as a powerful search tool
• Twitter for building awareness and finding collaborators
• Augmented reality - is it a viable alternative to model making?
• 3D printers vs Fly-though video
• QR Codes - some innovative uses within the construction industry

Episode 6 concludes with a brief discussion about the new Permitted Development rules and whether they are a good thing for the industry.

This episode has lots of useful information and examples of how social media and Web 2.0 technology can be used in a number of ways within the construction industry - a worth while listen.  You can download Episode 6 on iTunes or, you can listen to it here on the blog:

Play the podcast here:

Download and subscribe to Block Podcast on iTunes HERE

We hope you enjoy the discussion on this podcast and remember if you would like to take part in a future episode please email Gordon White or Kenneth Martin for a chat.

We would also like to get some feedback from you about the podcast and suggestions for topics you would like us to cover; you can either leave them as a comment here on the blog or, on our Facebook Page.

If you have enjoyed this post or the podcast please use the Facebook, Twitter and Share buttons below to share it with your online community, there's a good chance they will find it interesting too.  Thank you.

Please also remember you can follow Block Architects on our Facebook Page by clicking here.

Block Podcast - Like buses, you wait a while and two come at once!

The Block Podcast makes a big return today; it's been almost two months since the last podcast with Christmas and a very busy start to the year delaying the first recording of 2012. So it's typical, you wait a while for one and two come along at once!  Yes, we're releasing two podcasts today.

The podcast team got together to record one episode and the chat was so interesting that we just let the recorder run and we've ended up splitting the recording in two parts; Episode 5 and Episode 6.  There is a natural break in the topics and it seemed sensible to chop it into two 45 minute podcasts rather than one bumper edition.

Episode 5 is largely a very interesting chat about Procurement in the construction industry and, Episode 6 is primarily about how the construction industry could, and should, use social media.

These Episodes were recorded on the 27th February - here are the participants:

• Evelyn Laurie, Principal, Red Marketing
• Gill Joy, Director,  Intend Development
• John Stobbs, Director of Operations, Sap Service UK

Also on the podcast we have Kenneth Martin, Managing Director, Block Architects and Gordon White, Managing Director, fatBuzz Ltd

EPISODE 5
We discuss lots of different aspects of procurement in the construction industry, here are some of the key topics:

• The complexity of the process
• Are SME's getting their fare share?
• BBA Accreditation and the cost of being registered
• Quirky.com and crowd funding for product development
• Are the contracts profitable or, are companies buying the work?
• How good id you bidding?
• Do you review and fine tune failed bids?
• The Glasgow Construction Forum 
• Scottish Procurement Construction Linked In Group

There's lots of great chat in this Episode and lots of useful information for anyone involved in the procurement process, it's well worth a listen.  You can download Episode 5 on iTunes or, you can listen to it here on the blog:

Play the podcast here:

Download and subscribe to Block Podcast on iTunes HERE

EPISODE 6

This is an interesting discussion about how the construction industry is adopting social media and, what they could be doing to improve their marketing and existing services with the adoption of Web 2.0 technology; here are some of the key topics:

• Is the construction industry using social media effectively?
• Creating content internally vs using an agency
• Twitter as a powerful search tool
• Twitter for building awareness and finding collaborators
• Augmented reality - is it a viable alternative to model making?
• 3D printers vs Fly-though video
• QR Codes - some innovative uses within the construction industry

Episode 6 concludes with a brief discussion about the new Permitted Development rules and whether they are a good thing for the industry.

This episode has lots of useful information and examples of how social media and Web 2.0 technology can be used in a number of ways within the construction industry - a worth while listen.  You can download Episode 6 on iTunes or, you can listen to it here on the blog:

Play the podcast here:

Download and subscribe to Block Podcast on iTunes HERE

We hope you enjoy the discussion on this podcast and remember if you would like to take part in a future episode please email Gordon White or Kenneth Martin for a chat.

We would also like to get some feedback from you about the podcast and suggestions for topics you would like us to cover; you can either leave them as a comment here on the blog or, on our Facebook Page.

If you have enjoyed this post or the podcast please use the Facebook, Twitter and Share buttons below to share it with your online community, there's a good chance they will find it interesting too.  Thank you.

Please also remember you can follow Block Architects on our Facebook Page by clicking here.

Permitted Development Rights Scotland 2012

New rules have been introduced this month (Feb 2012) that will take about 4000 planning applications out of the system each year.

The Scottish Government have introduced the changes so that projects such as some extensions, garages, sheds, garden decking and adding access ramps to properties will no longer require official planning permission.

They hope that this will mean more people will take the opportunity to start these smaller projects generating work for builders and other trades whilst saving the homeowner the time and money previously spent getting official permission.
The exceptions to these new rules will be for listed buildings and properties situated within conservation areas.

So if the thought of having to go through the planning procedure was putting you off that home improvement project then think again, your project might be one of the 4000 no longer requiring official permission. Best to check with your architect, just to make sure…