Industry support for Infrastructure Carbon Review grows

New firms and organisations move to support a lower carbon, lower cost future in construction 

Antony Oliver
05 February 2015

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Infrastructure commitment to a lower carbon, lower cost future is building momentum with 45 businesses and organisations from across the supply chain now committed to the Infrastructure Carbon Review.

Latest to join the list of clients, consultants, contractors and suppliers pledging support include Tony Gee and Partners, MPA British Precast, Thames Water, Barhale, WSP UK, London Underground and London Rail, Cemex (UK) and Grontmij.

Each has pledged to pursue lower carbon solutions that also cost less and, through a series of defined actions and activities around leadership, innovation and procurement, have committed to “releasing the value of lower carbon”.  

Infrastructure Carbon Review - latest signatories:

Tony Gee and Partners,

MPA British Precast,

Thames Water,

Barhale,

WSP UK,

London Underground and London Rail,

Cemex (UK)

Grontmij.

“We agree that where it can reduce costs to the taxpayer and consumer, Government and industry clients should work together to incorporate carbon reduction objectives within their infrastructure projects and programmes by 2016,” says the ICR pledge.

The Infrastructure Carbon Review is a key initiative launched by the government-backed Green Construction Board in November 2013 to demonstrate and encourage industry to embrace the link between lower carbon and lower cost across the supply chain.

The target set by the Construction 2025 industry strategy is to achieve a 50% reduction in operational and capital carbon by 2025 en route to an 80% reduction by 2050.

Using the review tools, firms and organisations can assess their “carbon maturity” against industry peers and find out how progress towards a lower cost and lower carbon future can be accelerated.

Led by Anglian Water director of asset management and Green Construction Board Infrastructure Working Group chair Chris Newsome, the Infrastructure Carbon Review is fundamental to helping infrastructure supply chain to embed and exploit the link between lower capital and operational carbon and lower cost.

The ICR highlighted three key actions to incentivise and release the value offered by carbon reduction – strong leadership to drive cultural engagement with the low carbon agenda; innovation to identify and implement new thinking; and procurement that incentivises the whole value chain to collaborate and outperform client targets.

It is one of the key practical initiatives to flow from the Green Construction Board, which celebrates its third anniversary with a special seminar at Ecobuild on 5 March.

The Green Construction Board is the government-industry partnership which is intended to help clarify and explain the business opportunities created by the shift to a green economy across construction and is a key plank in delivering the Construction 2025 industrial strategy.

Green Construction Board - three years on seminar at Ecobuild

A seminar will be held to update the industry on the route towards a lower carbon lower cost future at Ecobuild on Thursday 5 March at 10am. For details email nicola.walters@bis.gsi.gov.uk.

It was established in October 2011 as a consultative forum for government and the UK design, construction, property and infrastructure industry and to “ensure a sustained high-level conversation and to develop and implement a long-term strategic framework for the promotion of innovation and sustainable growth in this sector.” 

Any business or organisation involved in the infrastructure sector is encouraged to embrace and sign up to the Infrastructure Carbon Review as a means to both demonstrate commitment to a lower carbon, lower cost future but also as a way to drive improvement in performance by benchmarking against the industry.

For details visit the Green Construction Board website here.

For details of the GCB three years on seminar at Ecobuild contact nicola.walters@bis.gsi.gov.uk.

Organisations pledging support for the Infrastructure Carbon Review:

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

H M Treasury

Government Chief Construction Adviser

Green Construction Board, Infrastructure Working Group

@ One Alliance

Anglian Water

Arup

Atkins

Balfour Beatty

BAM Nuttall

Barhale

Barhale Trant Utilities

British Precast

Carillion

Cemex (UK)

Costain

Crossrail Ltd

Defence Infrastructure Organisation

EDF (New Nuclear)

Galliford Try

Green Building Council

Grontmij

Heathrow

Highways Agency

HS2

Institute of Civil Engineers

J N Bentley

Kier Infrastructure

Lafarge Tarmac

Laing O’Rourke

London Underground & London Rail

Mott MacDonald

Murphy Group

National Grid

Network Rail

NG Bailey

Skanska

Temple Group

Thames Tideway

Thames Water

The Clancy Group

Tony Gee and Partners LLP

UK Power Networks

Vinci Construction UK

WSP UK Ltd