Tag Archive: events

1. Thurston Group attends Place North West’s Meet the Authorities event

   5th July 2021 10:07 am Comments Off on Thurston Group attends Place North West’s Meet the Authorities event

   Some of the team attended Place North West’s in person Meet the Authorities: Public-Private Partnerships event last week. Discussing how a strong economic recovery will depend on successful public-private partnerships.  

   Taking place safely in person at the Lowry Hotel with limited numbers, ‘Meet the Authorities’ was a mix of presentations and panels with networking opportunities. Main discussions formed around how developers and investors can best work with councils and whether planning authorities have the resource to handle significant developments. It also looked at government funding sources and other initiatives that will set the agenda in the next few years.

   The first presentation and panel came from Phil Mayall, Board Director at Muse Developments, Kevin Riley, Director at WSP, Emma Birkett, Heritage Director at Rochdale Development Agency, Barry Roberts, Managing Director – North West at Morgan Sindall Construction and Roger Frith, Head of Strategic Regeneration and Development at Oldham Council. 

   While the second presentation and panel discussion featured a range of speakers. From Mark McNamee, Managing Director at Cityheart and Richard Laming, Senior Director at Turley to Darren Jones, Development Director at Nikal, and Alan Evans, Director of Regeneration and Place at Wirral Council. 

   Gemma Darroch, our Business Development Director, enjoyed attending the event and found it insightful. She said, “As a Wirral resident myself I was particularly interested to hear about the regeneration plans from Alan Evans, at Wirral Council in partnership with Muse and Peel Developments. It was interesting to find out how placemaking and mixed use development are at the heart of their regeneration plans.”

2. Thurston Group is a finalist at the Offsite Awards!

   22nd June 2021 2:39 pm Comments Off on Thurston Group is a finalist at the Offsite Awards!

   We’re delighted to announce that we’ve been shortlisted for two awards at this year’s Offsite Awards! Our Tameside Hospital project is up for Healthcare Project of the Year, while our ‘Meanwhile Housing’ scheme for Be First London is up for Social Housing Project of the Year. 

   Our Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust project saw us deliver a brand new modular ward for Tameside General Hospital within seven weeks. Increasing their critical care capacity during the covid-19 pandemic. This project was critical to the hospitals ability to support their region with ventilated bedspace to combat the pandemic. A project that would normally take up to 20 weeks, we were able to design, manufacture and install the new ICU ward, extension and linkway within seven weeks. 

   We delivered 92 modular one, two and three-bed homes on behalf of Jarram Falkus for Be First London on Cook Road, Dagenham. The local authority is under growing pressure to provide temporary housing for residents who have found themselves in the position of being homeless or for those who are vulnerable and leaving care. Our sustainable, accessible modular homes were the perfect solution for Be First and highlights the benefits modular and offsite can offer.

   The judges selected the finalists from an overwhelming number of entries. All winners and highly commended will be announced at the Offsite Awards Ceremony, taking place at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry, on 21 September. 

   The Offsite Construction Awards reward outstanding examples of modular and factory-based methods, products and systems. Celebrating the offsite industry, the awards also promote the benefits of modular and offsite as a more modern, sustainable and streamlined method of construction. The awards also allow the most innovative achievements to be upheld by the industry alongside those considered the nation’s best. 

   Managing Director, Matthew Goff, was delighted our project’s had been shortlisted. He said, “We’re delighted to have been shortlisted and look forward to the event in September. Good luck to all of the other finalists! Being shortlisted for the awards will earn us recognition within the offsite and wider construction industry, open new doors and secure more business development opportunities. Being shortlisted for these awards reflects how our modular solution encapsulates all of the benefits of offsite construction while delivering against compliance, timeframe and budget.”

   You can find out more information about our projects by heading to our Case Study page. 

    

3. Thurston Group attends MPBA webinar

   10th June 2021 2:30 pm Comments Off on Thurston Group attends MPBA webinar

   We spent today virtually attending the Modular and Portable Building Association’s (MPBA) second live event of the year. Presenting from the Arden Hotel, the AGM webinar focused on the Marketing, Health and Safety, Learning and Development, and Technical updates. 

   The Marketing update from MPBA Marketing Chair, Dominic Beastly, showed how the Association has grown in online communities, and how this benefits members. It also showed how plans are progressing for 2021 to provide greater exposure and more opportunities for members.

   Andy King, the MPBA’s Technical Chair, provided a Technical update. This section explored how fire and energy are the two largest areas with regulation changes that will have a significant impact on the entire industry. 

   Learning Hub Director, Richard Hipkiss, gave a Learning and Development update. Highlighting the ongoing plans and changes to training courses and NVQ developments and progress with Apprenticeships. 

   Finally the Health and Safety update from Brian Sutherland, MPBA’s Health and Safety Chair provided the latest HSE information on covid-19 measures and various areas that may have an impact on the construction industry and what changes are due to take place moving forward.  

   Dean Hill, our Bid and Marketing Manager, attended the event. He said, “It’s been a while since attending, but today was a very insightful event which helped highlight some changes that we may need to take into account going forward with any modular and portable building projects. It was great to get an update from the MPBA on a variety of topics. I’m looking forward to the next one. Hopefully all together in person! Thanks again.”

4. Thurston Group attends IdeasHub

   3rd June 2021 2:25 pm Comments Off on Thurston Group attends IdeasHub

   Our Business Development Manager, Gemma Darroch, spent the morning attending the IdeasHub from Willmott Dixon and the Procurement Hub. The first webinar in their leadership series where they’ll be sharing knowledge, insight, intelligence and innovation from industry renowned speakers. With a view to unlock proactive conversation with members, partners and guests. 

   Their first online event saw two renowned visionaries of the procurement world who brought their invaluable thoughts and insights. Peter Kilkenny, Executive Director, has developed extensive operational experience across both the public and private sectors, managing a range of Sports, Leisure and Cultural venues. He gave his thoughts around how town and city centres may regenerate in the future. Alan Heron FCIPS, Director of Procurement at Procurement Hub, has over twenty years’ experience in multiple sectors including IT, public, private and healthcare. He provided an overview of the green paper and offered his thoughts on best practise moving forward. 

   The event was all about the government’s Levelling Up Fund, which will invest in infrastructure that improves everyday life right across the UK. With a much needed £4.8 billion fund, this will support town centre and high street regeneration, local transport projects and cultural and heritage assets. Town centres and high streets have suffered massively throughout the pandemic and this fund looks to boost local economies and improve the lives of communities in towns up and down the country. 

   Gemma Darroch found the event insightful and was interested to hear their thoughts on the long term plans. She said, “I was particularly interested to learn about the longer term NHS care plan which is looking to increase healthcare at a local level. Focusing on people and communities, the plan aims to put a spotlight on collaboration and partnerships involving a whole range of organisations.”