Enhancing the present and looking to the future
Through the use of digital technology
We firmly believe that digital technology is an enabler to project and industry efficiencies, and recognise that construction can benefit from the progress made in other sectors, and the need for the industry to catch up to ensure we attract a diverse mix of talent and skills we will need to take advantage of the next generation of construction technology.
McLaren is at the forefront of digital technology in construction, using digital modelling and building component tools to link every stage of project delivery to a single data source. This data is to be open to project partners, improving how we design, deliver and operate built assets, resulting in smarter projects and cities for our clients of the future.
Building the right way
Adding value for our customers
- Share digital process with customers, designers, subcontractor and materials suppliers and manufacturers to create
- Create value by encouraging active participation of our customers in the project digital strategy
- Utilise data in the form of project KPI’s to track and monitor project progress
Increasing the skills of our colleagues
- Develop a Business wide digital training strategy
- Develop and share training with colleagues, customers, and project partners
- Encourage interest and create opportunities for individuals to enter the construction industry
- Develop long-term relationships with key primary, secondary and tertiary education facilities to inspire young people to enter the construction industry, either with us directly or with our preferred supply chain partners
Making our construction works more efficient
- Develop comprehensive digital strategy for all projects
- Deploy integrated project and business data as a project management tool
- Integrate all our digital software and management platforms to create single project and business management data sources
- Link every stage of construction delivery to a single data source
- Utilise project data to inform future projects, and embed lessons learnt
- Interact and share knowledge with other industry leaders
Digital design, project data management and integration are key areas of investment for our business. Ultimately, our digital processes support us in driving internal efficiencies, reducing risk, improving quality and enhancing decision-making so we can deliver even better results for our clients.
Our data journey to 2023
Skills & training
Over the next two years of our digital strategy, current McLaren staff will undergo a training programme to upskill them in line with our strategy aims.
Key to McLaren’s plans is company-wide compliance with the ISO 19650 standard which aims to improve the use of BIM.
This standard, which has been released in phases since 2019, details stringent requirements for information management processes in both the delivery and operational phase of assets. An anticipated fifth part will be dedicated to security and smart-asset management.
The baseline for sustainability
Data is also being gathered to increase sustainable practises. All contractors face national environmental targets that mandate greater efficiency and lower carbon emissions, and progress will rely on good knowledge of prior performance.
We evaluate all our energy and water consumption site by site, and aggregate this data according to sector, programme and value. Now, we can estimate how much water and power consumption a new project will use and when we apply our carbon reduction targets, we are confident of a robust baseline. This also includes creating a measure for embodied carbon – emissions from the manufacture and transportation of materials – and incorporating this into all our project plans.
Creating an advantage
McLaren fully integrate data across their businesses, creating a competitive advantage and ‘designing out’ past inefficiencies, a trend which accelerates as we obtain more data.
We use predictive analytics to forecast risks by collating information about a forthcoming project and comparing it with previous data from similar jobs.
Using digital analysis, we can highlight whether a particular project is at risk of cost, time or health and safety issues looking at all factors from construction processes and materials through to environmental conditions like the weather.
The Building Safety Bill & 'Golden Thread Inititative'
In the aftermath of the tragic Grenfell Tower blaze in 2017, Dame Judith Hackitt’s independent review of building-safety regulations recommended that for high-risk residential buildings, a digital record should be kept “from initial design intent through to construction and including any changes that occur throughout occupation”. This “golden thread” of information will be used to demonstrate safety compliance to the new Building Safety Regulator, a role due to be created under the Building Safety Bill later this year.
McLaren is working on a pilot programme, with the housing association L&Q and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, on how to deliver the golden thread initiative. We will use our data-gathering capabilities to ensure there is clear information on design, products, and key decisions at every stage of every project.
Contact the team
