Building Briefs – February 27th

  • CAADT students build a brighter future through work placements

Architectural technology students from New College Lanarkshire have designs on a brighter future after completing work placements at companies across the central belt of Scotland.

Twenty-four students of HNC and HND Computer Aided Architectural Design and Technology (CAADT) at the Motherwell Campus completed week-long stints at architectural and design offices.

Building Briefs – February 27th



These ranged from large architectural practices such as Keppie Design, Cooper Cromar, MAST Architects, Sheppard Robson, Mosaic, Collective, and Space & Place; to smaller firms including A10 Architects, GD Lodge, ICA, Block Architects and 3DReid.

Depending on their area of interest, some students completed work experience with engineering or construction-related firms like BarkerHicks, Ramboll, Laing O’Rourke, MT Cladding and Wilson Developments, or with interior design companies, such as Claremont Office Furniture and Alpha Scotland.

New College Lanarkshire’s CAADT students receive intense training on software packages used in industry, including Autodesk Revit and Building Information Modelling (BIM).

 



  • CR Smith celebrates 4th anniversary of bespoke apprenticeship scheme

CR Smith’s bespoke apprenticeship programme is celebrating four years in operation.

Tailored specifically to meet the skills required by the home improvement firm in collaboration with Fife College, the scheme is on its second intake of apprentices and represents an investment of more than £100,000 by the firm in its future workforce.

Building Briefs – February 27th

(far left) Ian Macfarlane, managing director at CR Smith with CR Smith apprentices and Frazer Walker, lecturer at Fife College (far right)

Eleven apprentices are currently enrolled and are developing the high level of skills demanded by CR Smith. The apprenticeship also teaches the importance of customer service and what it means to represent the company brand.



Unlike traditional apprenticeships, CR Smith apprentice joiners attend classes in the evening, which are delivered by Fife College. This gives them more quality time on the job, learning from experienced tradespeople and gaining the skills they need to become an integral part of the workforce.

A workshop has been specifically built for the apprentices at CR Smith and has all the facilities required to carry out the training modules, tailored to meet the needs of the company.

The programme was launched in 2015 and is aligned to City & Guilds accreditation. The first class of ten apprentices completed their apprenticeship and are now working as joiners with CR Smith.

 



  • Tenants move into new GHA homes in Cardonald

GHA has hailed the transformative impact of its new homes on the lives of its tenants and communities.

Tenants have just moved into 51 new GHA homes built on the site of the former high-rise blocks at Tarfside Oval in Cardonald.

Building Briefs – February 27th

Councillor Susan Aitken with tenant Kristin MacPhail and GHA Board member Cathy McGrath at Tarfside Oval

Three of the blocks were demolished in 2015, with the fourth brought down in 2016.



Tenants were welcomed into their new homes this week by leader of Glasgow City Council, Councillor Susan Aitken and GHA tenant Board member Cathy McGrath, along with representatives from Glasgow City Council, the Scottish Government as well as Wheatley Group, GHA and contractors CCG.

The homes in Tarfside Oval are a mix of flats and houses, with five of the homes suitable for wheelchairs.

The £7 million development was built with the help of a Scottish Government grant of £3.75m.

The development was built by contractors CCG.



As part of the contract with GHA, CCG created four apprenticeships, four new jobs and seven work placements, as well as a donation towards a new garden for Our Lady of the Rosary nursery.

 

  • Community fund benefits from £2,000 CALA Homes donation

Continued support from CALA Homes (East) is helping to support a joint project between the Rotary Club of Currie Balerno and the Balerno Village Trust.



The housebuilder has once again contributed £2,000 towards the ‘Community Chest’ which funds a host of initiatives around Balerno, Currie and the surrounding areas. It continues support for local projects carried out by the Rotary Club since 1981.

Building Briefs – February 27th

The Community Chest is administered by the two groups, which meet bi-annually to review applications for awarding grants to groups in the Edinburgh suburbs.

Groups looking to secure funding from the Chest for upcoming projects should submit their application by 31st May 2019.



Support from CALA Homes (East) has allowed them to continue positive work in the local area, enabling the Community Chest to approve another eight grants at the end of last year.

The projects and causes that benefit from these funds range from new goalposts for Currie Football Club, sports tracksuits for Nether Currie Primary School and the installation of a new water supply to the clubhouse of Balerno Tennis Club.

CALA Homes (East) has a lengthy history within Currie and Balerno and the surrounding areas.

Currently, there are two CALA developments with homes for sale Balerno; Kingfisher Park and Ravelrig Heights, as well as Craigpark at Ratho.

 

  • Deputy First Minister launches Kelvin Innovation Centre for Engineering

Deputy First Minister and cabinet secretary for education and skills, John Swinney MSP, has officially opened the brand new Kelvin Innovation Centre in the Engineering wing at the Springburn Campus of Glasgow Kelvin College.

With an investment of £1.5 million the College has updated fully its machine-shop technologies and fitted out a specialist area for exploration and research in the field of engineering technologies.

Building Briefs – February 27th

Extensive consultation with staff and stakeholders formed the basis for the developments in the Engineering department to ensure the new facilities supported innovative learning and teaching, developing the skills for the 21st Century.

The Kelvin Innovation Centre’s key purpose is to encourage project-based experimentation by students researching into advanced and sustainable technologies, equipping them with much more than high-quality vocational skills. It is intended to encourage the problem-solving, team working and project management skills which are very much in demand by today’s employers.

An audience of the College’s key stakeholders and employer partners accompanied the Deputy First Minister on a tour of the new facilities.

 

  • Pupils set sights on 4X4 national final

Two teams of Scottish schoolchildren are heading for the national final of the annual Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) 4 x 4 in Schools STEM competition next month. 

The next round of the competition will be hosted on 6th & 7th March at the British Motor Heritage Museum in Oxfordshire, where students will be asked to design, analyse, make, test and race a scaled remote control 4-wheel drive vehicle that can negotiate a specially design off-road course complete with hills, tunnels, rock crawls and water dips.

Building Briefs – February 27th

(from left) Elaine Reilly (sales executive, Taylor Wimpey’s Westfield Gardens in Maidenhill), along with the members of Team Docs - Grace, Molly, Daniel, Lewis and Lewis

Sponsorship from Taylor Wimpey West Scotland, which is building a range of new homes at Westfield Gardens, Maidenhill - its latest development in East Renfrewshire, along with Brightwork, the Glasgow and Edinburgh based recruitment business which has helped fund the project over the last five years, are providing support for two teams of Woodfarm High School whizz-kids to continue their journey to the national final of the competition.

The teams use computer coding to programme scaled remote-controlled four-wheel-drive vehicles they designed and built for the competition, all in their lunch hours and after school. As part of their competition entry, teams also have to produce a design portfolio, a ‘pit display’, and give a verbal presentation to a panel of judges and impress them in an engineering interview. 

Woodfarm’s two participants, ‘Team Docs’ and ‘The Doclettes’, will join around 20 teams of secondary school pupils from across the UK for two days of competition and extended challenges.  

Both Woodfarm High School teams secured their positions in the final following mixed fortunes at the Scottish regional final held in Livingston in December, where ‘Team Docs’ were crowned Scottish champions for the third year, and ‘The Doclettes’ secured enough points to qualify for their place alongside them.

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