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BRE acquires CEEQUAL: next step is single infrastructure sustainability rating scheme

BRE and CEEQUAL announced plans today to bring together two successful schemes – BREEAM and CEEQUAL – to create a single, science based sustainability standard and certification tool for civil engineering and infrastructure projects in the UK and around the world.

Crossrail is using CEEQUAL to assess sustainability credentials of its tunnelling work

From today, CEEQUAL will transfer its business operations to BRE Global after which CEEQUAL will then be delivered by the BREEAM certification team with continued support from the CEEQUAL scheme management team.

"Our long term aspiration with a single scheme is to bring together the significant experience and expertise behind the two rating systems to deliver enhanced environmental and social benefits for civil engineering works" - Peter Bonfield, BRE

The move is supported by the Institution of Civil Engineers and has been prompted by the industry’s desire for a single sustainability rating scheme that addresses the challenges that infrastructure clients, professions and contractors currently face in delivering more sustainable and resilient infrastructure.

The new scheme will also address the need for integration with building related schemes so that clients with mixed developments can have a single combined rating for their asset.

"Our long term aspiration with a single scheme is to bring together the significant experience and expertise behind the two rating systems to deliver enhanced environmental and social benefits for civil engineering works and better economic outcomes that benefit society, and broaden up-take in the UK and international markets," said BRE chief executive Peter Bonfield.

Over the next two years BRE will, with the involvement of the current CEEQUAL and BREEAM delivery teams and communities, combine the best elements and features of both approaches into a new and improved holistic scheme for industry, he said. This will combine CEEQUAL’s team and process-focused approach with BREEAM’s more asset-based scientific methodology.

During the development period CEEQUAL will remain open to new project registrations and current and prospective users will be encouraged to bring forward further CEEQUAL assessments, the contracts for which will be fulfilled to their completion.

"CEEQUAL is an internationally respected rating and awards scheme and has been applied to – and positively influenced – some of the UK’s most successful infrastructure projects like Crossrail and the London 2012 Olympics. It is increasingly used outside the UK, especially in Sweden and, most recently, in Qatar. I and my colleagues look forward to working with BRE to develop the next generation rating scheme that will address the significant challenges faced by those working in the sector," said CEEQUAL's Roger Venables.

BREEAM will now launch an open pilot of its new BREEAM infrastructure methodology to verify the science based metrics that have been developed. This, together with the development work and new metrics behind the planned upgrade of CEEQUAL (Version 6) will inform the next generation scheme which BRE plans to launch in 2017.

What happens next with CEEQUAL

During the transition period CEEQUAL will continue to operate as normal, with the existing verifiers and continued support from the scheme management team. 

Commitments and contracts with current customers of CEEQUAL will continue unchanged. CEEQUAL will continue to be available for new project and term contract teams, who we encourage to apply for new CEEQUAL assessments. Verifiers will continue to provide theskills needed for the completion of CEEQUAL Assessments, while members of the current CEEQUAL scheme management team, TAG and subject experts will maintain their support during the future operational and development period.

CEEQUAL Assessors will be able to transition their qualifications to the new scheme when it is launched. CEEQUAL certificates will continue to be signed by the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers and this role will extend to include infrastructure certificates issued by BREEAM.

 

If you would like to contact Jackie Whitelaw about this, or any other story, please email jackie.whitelaw@infrastructure-intelligence.com.