We’ll be right back! Team TFT is out for Wellbeing Day
We all do work that we’re passionate about, but there’s nothing like taking time to rest and reset. That’s why TFT dedicates a clear day for our whole team to spend on their own wellbeing, offline and out of the office.
TFT’s next Wellbeing Day is on Friday the 4th October, giving the team a break to enjoy one of the early autumn days.
During this break, with ‘Out of Office’ replies set, we’ll be unwinding and celebrating a day just for ourselves. That might be spending quality time with loved ones, supporting special causes, getting some exercise outside in the sun (we hope), or simply enjoying an extended weekend.
Wellbeing is a central part of our working life at TFT. We believe that without the ability to switch off or step away, we won’t fully enjoy our working days or bring our best to the work our clients trust us to deliver.
As well as this dedicated day for wellbeing, and our annual charity volunteer day, we support each other as part of day-to-day life, keeping us all in balance and in touch with our wellbeing needs. Apart from shared-interest communities across the team from cycling to book club, our HR team are qualified mental health first-aiders and we work closely with the property industry network LionHeart to provide everyone with support which is well suited to our professional lives.
Share
Rethinking speculative Cat A fit-outs: waste, time, carbon and cost
In the wake of World Green Building Week, Sarah McDonnell, Director, Project Management in our Dublin office, asks why generic interior office fit-outs – known as Cat A fit outs – remain the market norm for finishing development and refurbishment projects in of office buildings.
A significant proportion of Cat A fit outs are typically destined for the skip. Landlords install them to create a ‘blank canvas’ effect to market spaces to prospective tenants, while tenants then seek to personalise their space and will rip it all out to install their own walls, finishes and equipment to create the right space for them. We need to break this damaging ‘fit-out-to-strip-out’ cycle.
The Irish Green Building Council’s Marion Jammet, Head of Policy and Advocacy and Biodiversity Lead, recently highlighted the fact that ‘embodied carbon in construction accounts for 14 per cent of Ireland’s national emissions and that this could increase without action, threatening climate targets.’ Yet despite ESG sitting high up the agenda for building owners and occupiers alike, the habit of installing (and scrapping) speculative Cat A fit outs does contribute a huge volume of material waste as standard practice. The irony is that many office developments today are geared to high levels of sustainable performance, but still contribute tonnes of carbon through this wasteful process.
The market norms in action
Only in the last 18 months, a major Dublin tenant relocated to a new campus of over 300,000 sq ft. As part of the exit agreement, the previous tenant of the building was required to reinstate all the Cat A elements, despite all parties knowing that the new tenant was secured and much of the brand new fit out would soon be replaced. The reason relates to lease terms which couldn’t be agreed with the landlord by previous tenants.
From our experience, a high-end fitout of an office development of around 60,000 sq ft could account for up to 250 tonnes of carbon. In an office building of around 100,000 sq ft (which could house more than 1,000 employees, depending on the occupier), a Cat A fit out can average 750 tonnes of carbon. This is equivalent to 4,000 flights from Dublin to Paris (at 185 kg carbon per flight).
The maths is pretty simple. By not installing the Cat A and instead allowing the tenant to complete their fit out, waste is avoided, ensuring only what’s needed is installed.
What’s the appeal of speculative Cat A fit-outs?
Commercial real estate professionals see the speculative Cat A process play out across the market time and time again and there is wide agreement that this is not sustainable or practical. However, commercial agents still struggle to let space without it. This is because incoming tenants without industry experience or an experienced team behind them perceive ‘bare’ space as unfinished and therefore unappealing for their needs and time frames. In reality, these tenants never want a ‘generic’ space, so they invest significant time and money creating bespoke office layouts with new materials and equipment.
However, this takes a similar amount of time as starting without the generic fit out in place, so the perceived time advantage does not justify the carbon cost.
Time to change the norms
The industry has made incredible progress in recent years to reduce carbon, yet speculative Cat A continues to be the norm rather than the exception. Surely as an industry, calling for a ban is one of the easiest and most immediate ways that we can make a difference? Investors, developers, asset owners, managers and property consultants need to collaborate more closely on achieving a less wasteful and time-poor approach than currently exists.
As professionals with the skills and commitment to make a difference, we should all be helping tenants to understand the true cost of fit outs which are at best only partial and which invariably result in an unnecessary return to square one. We should also seek to eliminate generic Cat A fit outs from the development or refurbishment process, allowing tenants to create the spaces they need in the most sustainable and relevant way possible. But firstly – and most important – is that the true scale of the issue is understood, so that we can come together to solve it.
Share
More space, less carbon: how we moved office without the waste
Our sustainability work with clients is often about maximising impact and efficiency while minimising cost on projects big and small. We applied that knowledge to save two fitouts and 41 tonnes of carbon in our own recent office move.
As our team in Edinburgh grew, we knew we’d soon need to up-size our office space. But we didn’t want to increase our carbon footprint in the process. Instead, we trialled a more sustainable way to relocate.
The typical Cat A fitout is something of a dirty secret in our industry. These fitouts are regularly responsible for generating tonnes of carbon emissions and material waste simply because they are routinely installed and removed as tenants come and go in offices, often to be replaced with a slightly newer version of what came before.
At the same time, breaking the standard practice of the ‘fit-out-strip-out’ cycle is not straightforward, especially when case studies for its success can be few and far between.
So we decided to become our own test subjects, using our office move as an opportunity to do things differently.
By retaining what we could from the previous tenants and working with both our existing and new landlords, we managed to save around 41 tonnesof CO2 during the move. This equates to around 144 kgCO2e/m2, a saving significantly below the 312 kgCO2e/m2 LETI target figure[1] and the equivalent of 500 flights between Edinburgh and London City Airport.
This process didn’t take a radical feat of engineering, cutting-edge materials or an expensive team to achieve. What it needed was a technical understanding of the impacts and the key dial movers, which we had in-house, but it also required careful negotiation of complex planning and logistics issues between otherwise cooperative landlords and tenants who recognised the benefits it brought them.
As with all new things, we have learned some valuable lessons during our move. Some parties were more amenable to a new dilapidations process, and we had to work hard to convince other parties who had no experience of a ‘greener’ procedure and were potentially resistant to change.
The carbon savings we made also demonstrate that taking significant action is not just for large corporate occupiers. We hope that this will resonate with SMEs and that they will apply some of the lessons we have learned to achieve similar cost and carbon savings when considering relocation in the future.
Considering SMEs make up 99.9% of all companies in the UK, there is great scope for all of us to change best practice, making it the new standard practice as we evolve into an increasingly sustainable, responsible, industry.
DNA: the building blocks of a sustainable office move
The process we went through can be described as: ‘DNA’: Desire, Negotiate, Agree. This applies to all parties, across existing and new premises whilst relocating. We approached our move in the following way:
Desire. What does this building already have that we want? Evaluate the furniture, fixtures, equipment and overall fitout, then draw up a list of what you could reuse or benefit from
Negotiate. Open communication with the existing tenant and agree what they are prepared to sell or leave, and what they are going to be removing. Give them time to discuss with their landlord about what will be left in the building during the dilapidations process
Agree. Decide with the landlord and departing tenant to allocate the liability for the retained parts of the fitout, considering the type of lease being undertaken (FRI, IRI, etc). Agree a price for the new fitout, and then exchange
This process has the advantage of relying on open, in-depth communication which helps to mitigate the otherwise adversarial process for an exiting tenant beginning dilapidations negotiations with the landlord. For our own former premises, the process looked like this:
Desire. Would a prospective new tenant want any of our existing fitout? Would they – or the landlord – be willing to take on the liability for our equipment?
Negotiate. Assess what is to be removed, what can be retained, and what the landlord or a prospective new tenant would be happy to keep in the space
Agree. Settle financially between the three parties for the costs of the fitout and complete the dilapidations process
Making sustainable choices pay off
This approach had three major benefits:
Reducing TFT’s dilapidations liability for a property that requires less remediation
Being compensated for a fitout that would otherwise have ended up in a skip or recycling facility
Being incentivised to maintain and reuse our equipment and ensure it serves a full, useful life so that we have the opportunity to sell it with the fitout at the end of our tenancy
The exiting tenants in the new premises benefited too. As well as reducing their dilapidations liability, they gained financially from a fitout that is usually costly to remove and saved themselves from entering into potentially lengthy and confrontational discussions over dilapidations. No element of the existing tenants’ fitout had served its full life so a ‘standard’ dilapidations process in this space would have been a significant waste of carbon. Meanwhile, we were not required to pay an as-new price for a quality fitout that was less than three years old.
We were able to benefit from not needing to install a number of big carbon impact items such as raised access flooring and building services, as well as some smaller, more building specific items such as window blinds (bespoke to the 3m high glazing). Our new office is larger than our previous one, so it made sense to retain all our existing furniture as well as ordering new tables from reclaimed scaffold boards via a local supplier. This has reduced the quantities and carbon intensity of any new items.
What could you achieve?
We have saved 41 tonnes of carbon whilst moving in June 2024, of which, 9.8 tonnes was saved from our existing office equipment. We are looking to continue to minimise our footprint by keeping our operational costs (financial and carbon) low. Our team of in-house engineering specialists is helping us to look at ways of lowering our operational carbon, by upskilling all office users to use passive measures to regulate the temperature of the office and generally reduce overall demand on mechanical systems in the long run.
When moving, there are considerations to be made about logistics, liability and cost. Making these work in a way that is relevant to carbon reductions means reinterpreting the standard convention of what ‘value’ is.
Value should consider more than just financial benefits and reflect the carbon associated with what is being purchased as well as that associated with what is being saved. This means thinking about your workspace fitout not just as a depreciating asset with a residual monetary value but as a store of upfront carbon investment which is to be paid off over time. The amount of carbon embodied into an item may not be reflected in the cost, so cheap items can be carbon intensive, but that doesn’t mean that only premium items are low carbon.
Most of all, it shows what we can achieve when we investigate familiar processes and decisions in more detail. Hopefully you’ll be inspired to try this too.
If you’d like to discuss more about how we made the move happen and how we can help you lower the carbon impacts of your buildings and construction projects, get in touch with Neil & Emily, here:
[1] This is based on LETI’s lower target of 600 kgCO2e/m2 with the 48% embodied carbon typically associated with the superstructure excluded. We have excluded this figure as we cannot attribute it to our own carbon saving
Share
Senior Building Surveyor / Project Manager
An excellent opportunity for a Senior Chartered Building Surveyor, with a contract administration/project management focus, to play a key part in the commercial building surveying team providing high calibre professional advice to clients. TFTs enviable client list includes Railpen, Abrdn, Aviva, Legal & General, M&G and The Crown Estate, among others.
Project work will include cladding, fire, building safety and compliance remediation. You will be involved in project management/contract admin and project monitoring.
Professional work will include a range of commercial instructions including TDD for purchaser/vendor dilapidations, schedules of condition and PPM reporting.
While the role is likely to be more project based, there will be a need to be deliver professional work too.
You will be part of a small but very supportive team in Leeds with great opportunities to for career progression.
Key accountabilities
Primarily working within the commercial sector, undertaking project management/contract admin and all round building surveying work including the following:
Project management and contract administration on a range of sectors.
Project Monitoring
Technical Due Diligence
Schedules of condition
Dilapidations
Fire safety and building compliance remediation
General building surveying commercial work.
Performance criteria
MRICS
Excellent report writing skills
Strong general building surveying skills
Autonomous project management/contract administration experience from concept to completion.
Experience of working in a proactive commercial environment
Understands the Building Regulations PD role and is aware of the BSA process.
Able to meet fee targets and generate new business through building successful client relationships
Commercial awareness and understanding
Embraces technology to deliver reports efficiently
High level of up to date technical building knowledge
Skills and behaviour
Ability to work well in a multi-disciplinary team and lead when required
Confident and concise communicator both verbally and in writing
Able to progress work autonomously
Commercially focused and strong experience of working with private sector client base and meeting the demands that requires.
Able to contribute to wider business development
What’s in it for you?
Hybrid & flexible working (minimum 3 days a week in the office)
Competitive salary and car allowance. Pension after 3 months.
Benefits: Fee Plus bonus scheme, mobile phone & laptop, personal accident cover, private health care (after 6 months), life assurance, 25 days holiday, 1 day charity leave per year and 1 company wellbeing day per year.
Season ticket loan & cycle scheme completion of probationary period.
We are BCorp Certified!
As TFT’s impact on the world has grown with the size of our business and the scale of our client services, we are determined that our future growth continues to be positive and sustainable. B Corp certification enables us to do just that, by recognising the highest standards of social and environmental performance and aligning our ongoing efforts with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.tftconsultants.com/tft-is-a-certified-b-corp/
DEI at TFT
At TFT we don’t aim to tick boxes and count numbers and percentages, we create an environment where anyone, from any background and life experience, can do their best work. We empower you to bring your full, authentic self to work. We are diverse by nature and inclusive by choice.
If you’re driven to perform, you’ll fit right in, we approach work fearlessly, learn quickly and improve constantly. A bright idea can come from anyone. We believe diversity drives innovation.
Our approach to diversity, equity and inclusion is simple – we embrace everyone.
About TFT
TFT is the leading independent firm of Development, Built Asset & Engineering and Sustainability consultants. We place the wellbeing of people and the performance of buildings at the heart of everything we do.
We’re proud of our reputation for integrity and delivering work of the highest quality, blended with commercial pragmatism. We offer a strong track record across all commercial property sectors, advising investors, developers, occupiers and owners on maximising best property asset values. Diversity and strength in depth is important to us. Whether it be a technical thought leader with a career’s experience – or a recently qualified rising star – in today’s risk averse world you need people on your side with a reputation for diligence, transparency, intellect and commercial insight. Clients see TFT as large enough to provide the expertise and resources to get the best from their portfolios, and small enough for it to matter personally.
We have over 180 employees operating from a network of offices in Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, Guildford, London, Leeds, Manchester and Southampton.
TFT is passionate about people development and will provide you with excellent and progressive career opportunities and sponsored learning.
Share
Senior MEP TDD Engineer
This is an excellent opportunity to become part of our friendly and collaborative business within the successful and dynamic MEP team, which forms part of the wider Engineering and Sustainability Hub.
Working as part of an established building services (MEP) team, we require an experienced engineer to expand our technical due diligence (TDD) service line offering and also support our dilapidations and project monitoring service lines.
You will need commercial TDD experience (essential) and dilapidations (preferable), design knowledge, business development and client relationship management skills and the vision, desire and expertise to help expand a sustainable and successful service. This role provides an opportunity to work on high profile and leading commercial properties and developments across the UK and Europe.
You will work on prestigious, seminal and landmark buildings with clients such as The Crown Estate, M&G Real Estate, Aviva Investors, Broadgate Estates, Legal and General, GIC, British Land, Portman Estates, St James’s Place Wealth Management, and Knight Frank Investment Management.
This role is for someone who is keen to establish themselves and progress their career within a leading multi-disciplinary property consultancy practice and support the growth of our team.
TFT’s Engineering and Sustainability hub provides national coverage to our network of UK offices. Training and support will be provided should the correct candidate require this to reinforce/develop existing skills to supplement current experience.
We are passionate about providing personalised career progression opportunities and development for all who work with us.
Key accountabilities and deliverables
Work in conjunction with the Service Line Lead and Senior Director to enhance the MEP offering in line with an agreed growth strategy.
Ensure successful delivery of TDD, dilapidations, and project monitoring across the UK business, working in the existing MEP team.
Acquire skills to incorporate Energy and Carbon or sustainability type assessments as part of the TDD process.
Develop positive relationships with existing clients and in-house building surveyors and project managers.
Drive individual financial performance in line with agreed targets.
Manage individual pipeline work and resourcing.
Improve and expand an existing sustainable and profitable service offering.
Technical report writing.
Site inspections.
Client meetings.
Key Skills/Knowledge/Qualifications
Educated to degree level in engineering systems related course of study (or comparable qualifications/career experience/on the job learning).
Minimum three years post qualification experience.
Incorporated Building Services Engineer (or similar equivalent)
Communication skills with clients.
Understand commercial considerations of providing TDD advice.
Demonstrable experience in inspecting and reporting on the condition of engineering services installations.
Ability to co-ordinate own workload and resources required to support this.
Innovative thinking.
Interest in the decarbonisation of buildings and how this can be practically achieved.
Person Specification
Aspiration to work towards Chartered Engineer (full support will be given).
Strong personal management skills with a drive to succeed and progress.
Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate with people of all levels and seniority.
A flexible approach to work with a willingness to travel.
Able to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
Ability to prioritise and act on own initiative, working independently with guidance from line management.
Excellent organisational skills and exceptional attention to detail.
Commercial awareness and desire to be client facing.
Drive for personal growth, learning new skills and career progression.
Desire to support an existing successful service offering.
What’s in it for you?
Competitive salary offered plus benefits: discretionary bonus scheme, mobile phone and laptop to support flexible working, Private Health Care (after 6 months), Personal Accident cover, Life Assurance, 25 days holiday, 1 day charity leave and 1 wellbeing day per year.
Cycle scheme and interest free season ticket loan and company contributory pension scheme on completion of probationary period.
About TFT
TFT is the leading independent firm of Development, Built Asset & Engineering and Sustainability consultants. We place the wellbeing of people and the performance of buildings at the heart of everything we do.
We’re proud of our reputation for integrity and delivering work of the highest quality, blended with commercial pragmatism. We offer a strong track record across all commercial property sectors, advising investors, developers, occupiers and owners on maximising best property asset values. Diversity and strength in depth is important to us. Whether it be a technical thought leader with a career’s experience – or a recently qualified rising star – in today’s risk averse world you need people on your side with a reputation for diligence, transparency, intellect and commercial insight. Clients see TFT as large enough to provide the expertise and resources to get the best from their portfolios, and small enough for it to matter personally.
We have over 180 senior directors and employees operating from a network of offices in Birmingham, Bristol, Belfast, Cambridge, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, Guildford, Leeds, London, Manchester and Southampton.
TFT is passionate about people development and will provide you with excellent and progressive career opportunities and sponsored learning.
We are BCorp Certified!
As TFT’s impact on the world has grown with the size of our business and the scale of our client services, we are determined that our future growth continues to be positive and sustainable. B Corp certification enables us to do just that, by recognising the highest standards of social and environmental performance and aligning our ongoing efforts with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.tftconsultants.com/tft-is-a-certified-b-corp/
DEI at TFT
At TFT we don’t aim to tick boxes and count numbers and percentages, we create an environment where anyone, from any background and life experience, can do their best work. We empower you to bring your full, authentic self to work. We are diverse by nature and inclusive by choice.
If you’re driven to perform, you’ll fit right in, we approach work fearlessly, learn quickly and improve constantly. A bright idea can come from anyone. We believe diversity drives innovation.
Share
Graduate Building Surveyor
We have an excellent opportunity for a graduate building surveyor to join our growing Manchester office. Whether you are a recent Building Surveying graduate, or already have some experience, you will be part of an expanding team working on a wide range of building surveying disciplines in a commercial environment. You will be part of a very supportive environment with full support provided to achieve your APC, which includes attending our corporate graduate training sessions, bringing together national experts to up skill both TFT and client graduates.
TFT is passionate about people development and will provide you with excellent and progressive career opportunities, alongside sponsored learning.
As this is a graduate position you will be expected to in the office at least 4 days a week initially, to work closely with the team and support your knowledge development.
About TFT
TFT is the leading independent firm of Development, Built Asset & Engineering and Sustainability consultants. We place the wellbeing of people and the performance of buildings at the heart of everything we do.
We’re proud of our reputation for integrity and delivering work of the highest quality, blended with commercial pragmatism. We offer a strong track record across all commercial property sectors, advising investors, developers, occupiers and owners on maximising best property asset values. Diversity and strength in depth is important to us. Whether it be a technical thought leader with a career’s experience – or a recently qualified rising star – in today’s risk averse world you need people on your side with a reputation for diligence, transparency, intellect and commercial insight. Clients see TFT as large enough to provide the expertise and resources to get the best from their portfolios, and small enough for it to matter personally.
We have over 180 employees operating from a network of offices in Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, Guildford, London, Manchester, Leeds and Southampton.
TFT is passionate about people development and will provide you with excellent and progressive career opportunities and sponsored learning.
Key accountabilities
TFT has an enviable client list and you will work with institutional funds such as M&G, L&G & Aviva among others. You will have the opportunity to work on a mix of professional and project work including:
Contract administration
Surveys and scheduled of condition
Technical due diligence
Dilapidations
Building Pathology
Due diligence services
Specification/maintenance management
PPM, RCA’s and licences to alter
Pre-acquisition surveys
Project Monitoring
Working to complete APC competencies
Performance criteria
BSc (Hons) or MSc Building Surveying (RICS accredited course), or equivalent, such as an apprenticeship
Experience in a commercial BS firm would be useful but not essential
Confident in talking to a wide range of people to build relationships
Experience of CAD would be an advantage but not compulsory
Skills and behaviour
Must be a good team player but able to work independently
Confident communicator both verbally and in writing
Driven and ambitious to achieve
Thorough understanding of the needs and demands of a wide range of people and how to meet and exceed their expectations
Proactive and uses initiative for personal knowledge development
Accurate with high attention to detail
Excellent time management skills
Must have a driving licence and access to use of a car due to location of work
Willing to travel
Package indicators
Competitive salary offered plus benefits: discretionary bonus scheme, mobile phone & laptop, Private Health Care (after 6 months), Personal Accident cover, Life Assurance, 25 days’ holiday, and one day a year charity leave. Company pension scheme after 3 months.
Cycle scheme and interest free season ticket loan on completion of probationary period.
We are BCorp Certified!
As TFT’s impact on the world has grown with the size of our business and the scale of our client services, we are determined that our future growth continues to be positive and sustainable. B Corp certification enables us to do just that, by recognising the highest standards of social and environmental performance and aligning our ongoing efforts with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.tftconsultants.com/tft-is-a-certified-b-corp/
DEI at TFT
At TFT we don’t aim to tick boxes and count numbers and percentages, we create an environment where anyone, from any background and life experience, can do their best work. We empower you to bring your full, authentic self to work. We are diverse by nature and inclusive by choice.
If you’re driven to perform, you’ll fit right in, we approach work fearlessly, learn quickly and improve constantly. A bright idea can come from anyone. We believe diversity drives innovation.
Our approach to diversity, equity and inclusion is simple – we embrace everyone. We wouldn’t approach a building survey in a one-dimensional way, so we don’t our people.
Share
Senior or Associate Building Surveyor
An excellent opportunity for a Senior or Associate Chartered Building Surveyor to play a key part in the commercial building surveying team in our Dublin office, providing high calibre professional advice to clients.
You will support delivery and growth of services in Ireland, forging relationships with both internal and external clients to deliver market leading advice. Clients include high-level global investor and corporate occupier client base, including Aviva, EQT Exeter, Dublin Airport, Amazon, UPS, M&G and GIC.
As a commercially focused building surveyor, passionate about supporting and motivating a team, you will be helping us to grow the Dublin office and maintain and further develop client relationships and diversify the range of our current service offering, as well as progressing your own career.
We are passionate about people and you will be part of a flexible and very supportive environment with great opportunities for career progression.
About TFT
TFT is the leading independent firm of Development, Built Asset & Engineering and Sustainability consultants. We place the wellbeing of people and the performance of buildings at the heart of everything we do.
We’re proud of our reputation for integrity and delivering work of the highest quality, blended with commercial pragmatism. We offer a strong track record across all commercial property sectors, advising investors, developers, occupiers and owners on maximising best property asset values. Diversity and strength in depth is important to us. Whether it be a technical thought leader with a career’s experience – or a recently qualified rising star – in today’s risk averse world you need people on your side with a reputation for diligence, transparency, intellect and commercial insight. Clients see TFT as large enough to provide the expertise and resources to get the best from their portfolios, and small enough for it to matter personally.
We have over 180 employees operating from a network of offices in Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, Guildford, London, Manchester, Leeds and Southampton.
TFT is passionate about people development and will provide you with excellent and progressive career opportunities and sponsored learning.
Key accountabilities
Primarily working within the commercial sector, undertaking all round building surveying work including:
Technical Due Diligence
Monitoring
Refurbishment and redevelopment projects
Contract administration
Pre-acquisition surveys
PPM
General building surveying commercial work e.g. Dilapidations
Performance criteria
MRICS with relevant experience as above
Degree in Building Surveying, or equivalent e.g. apprenticeship
Clear & concise report writing skills
Expertise in general building surveying i.e. contract administration and dilapidations
Experience of working in a pro-active commercial environment
Sound knowledge of building contracts in a commercial context
Able to meet fee targets and generate new business through building successful client relationships
Commercial awareness and understanding
Embraces technology to deliver reports efficiently
High level of up to date technical building knowledge
Skills and behaviour
Must be a good team player and able to work independently
Confident and concise communicator both verbally and in writing
Driven individual with a strong track record in client management and business development
Excellent client relationship management and business development abilities
Use of digital dictation systems to work effectively and efficiently
Aspirational and motivated to develop within the business
Senior profile with motivational skills to play a key role in core service lines within the business (regionally and nationally)
Passionate about people and can clearly demonstrate leadership capabilities to assist in team and office management and growth
Diverse approach to working with different people (excellent communication and interpersonal skills)
Commercially focused: capable of developing client relationships, socially adept and able to network at business development events
Able to demonstrate successful CRM and business development
Package indicators
Flexible & hybrid working
Competitive salary and car allowance, fee plus bonus scheme, mobile phone & laptop, 25 days holiday, annual wellbeing and volunteering day.
We are BCorp Certified!
As TFT’s impact on the world has grown with the size of our business and the scale of our client services, we are determined that our future growth continues to be positive and sustainable. B Corp certification enables us to do just that, by recognising the highest standards of social and environmental performance and aligning our ongoing efforts with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.tftconsultants.com/tft-is-a-certified-b-corp/
DEI at TFT
At TFT we don’t aim to tick boxes and count numbers and percentages, we create an environment where anyone, from any background and life experience, can do their best work. We empower you to bring your full, authentic self to work. We are diverse by nature and inclusive by choice.
If you’re driven to perform, you’ll fit right in, we approach work fearlessly, learn quickly and improve constantly. A bright idea can come from anyone. We believe diversity drives innovation.
Our approach to diversity, equity and inclusion is simple – we embrace everyone. We wouldn’t approach a building survey in a one-dimensional way, so we don’t our people.
Share
Senior or Associate Project Manager
A highly rewarding senior appointment to deliver and develop project consultancy based in the London office, providing high calibre fast paced project management and employer’s agent services to high-end commercial clients. The primary role will be to service current workload, including investor led refurbishment and added value schemes across commercial office, residential, retail and industrial asset classes.
As a commercially focused Project Manager, passionate about supporting and motivating a team, you will be helping us to support the growth plans for the London office and maintain and further develop client relationships and diversify the range of our current service offering, as well as progressing your own career.
We are passionate about people and you will be part of a flexible and very supportive environment with great opportunities for career progression.
About TFT
TFT is the leading independent firm of Development, Built Asset & Engineering and Sustainability consultants. We place the wellbeing of people and the performance of buildings at the heart of everything we do.
We’re proud of our reputation for integrity and delivering work of the highest quality, blended with commercial pragmatism. We offer a strong track record across all commercial property sectors, advising investors, developers, occupiers and owners on maximising best property asset values. Diversity and strength in depth is important to us. Whether it be a technical thought leader with a career’s experience – or a recently qualified rising star – in today’s risk averse world you need people on your side with a reputation for diligence, transparency, intellect and commercial insight. Clients see TFT as large enough to provide the expertise and resources to get the best from their portfolios, and small enough for it to matter personally.
We have over 180 employees operating from a network of offices in Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, Guildford, London, Manchester, Leeds and Southampton.
TFT is passionate about people development and will provide you with excellent and progressive career opportunities and sponsored learning.
Key accountabilities
Primarily working within the commercial sector, undertaking:
Project management services on office, retail, residential (and other) new build, refurbishment, alteration, extension, and fit-out projects on schemes typically ranging from £2m to £50m, but with some far in excess of this
Contract Administration and Employer’s Agent Role
Enhance TFT’s service offering for project delivery
Good working knowledge of key JCT contracts, including experience in contractual issues such as extension of time, loss and expense claims et
Building new business to support strategic growth objectives by securing repeat business through successful project delivery
Develop and execute a plan to build your profile and workload in London, and win new business
Support the growth of the London project team working closely with the Directors
Leverage existing and historic relationships to develop new business for TFT
Performance criteria
MRICS or MAPM qualified ideally from a Building Surveying or technical background (Architecture or Engineering for example)
Fast paced commercial approach, familiar with progressing challenging projects and meeting demanding deadlines
Effective user of technology to promptly and thoroughly record and share project data
Strong relevant track record in autonomous project delivery
Proven success in ability to meet and exceed fee targets
Building client relationships with positive outcomes
Leading project teams and building trust
A profile and reputation in the market for delivering PM services
Skills and behaviour
Business focussed
Sought out by existing clients for repeat business
Socially adept and networks at business development events
Confident, client facing communicator both verbally and in writing
Strong excel capability
Able to manage and lead others and project teams
Lateral mindedness – able to think creatively to develop the brief, assemble the team and drive them through the feasibility, outline, detailed and final proposals stages of the design.
Organised and able to manage multiple key project issues to ensure projects remain on track
Commercially driven
Comfortable as the key client contact for each project where necessary
Must be a positive team player but able to work independently
What’s in it for you?
Competitive salary and car allowance. Flexible & hybrid working
Rewarding career with excellent career opportunities. We create personalised career development plans and promotion is based on personal performance and not time served
Fee Plus bonus scheme, mobile phone & laptop, personal accident cover, private health care (after 6 months), life assurance, 25 days holiday, annual wellbeing and volunteering day.
Company pension scheme after 3 months
Season ticket loan and cycle scheme on completion of probationary period
We are BCorp Certified!
As TFT’s impact on the world has grown with the size of our business and the scale of our client services, we are determined that our future growth continues to be positive and sustainable. B Corp certification enables us to do just that, by recognising the highest standards of social and environmental performance and aligning our ongoing efforts with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. https://www.tftconsultants.com/tft-is-a-certified-b-corp/
DEI at TFT
At TFT we don’t aim to tick boxes and count numbers and percentages, we create an environment where anyone, from any background and life experience, can do their best work. We empower you to bring your full, authentic self to work. We are diverse by nature and inclusive by choice.
If you’re driven to perform, you’ll fit right in, we approach work fearlessly, learn quickly and improve constantly. A bright idea can come from anyone. We believe diversity drives innovation.
Our approach to diversity, equity and inclusion is simple – we embrace everyone. We wouldn’t approach a building survey in a one-dimensional way, so we don’t our people.
Share
The Building Safety Act: creating safer buildings sooner
As the Building Safety Act (BSA) drives building owners to improve the safety of residential buildings, investors and developers undertaking these works must manage project timescales around new requirements while the wider industry upskills and adapts.
Creating a new generation of safer buildings and more valuable assets for the long term means navigating the BSA as part of an ongoing investment decision-making process. TFT has been helping our clients meet these requirements by carefully managing timescales, inputs, outputs, the details required at each stage, the required competency of those involved, and risk mitigation measures throughout.
What does the BSA require from investors and developers?
The BSA relies on the ‘Gateway’ approvals process for new properties which are at least 18 metres or seven storeys in height and contain at least two residential units. These are defined as ‘Higher Risk Buildings’ (HRBs).
A pipeline of up to 500 HRBs are expected to be constructed in the UK each year, in addition to the existing stock of around 12,500 such buildings. Consent from the newly created Building Safety Regulator (BSR), which operates within the existing Health and Safety Executive (HSE), must be obtained for new properties at each of three new Gateway stages: 1 (Planning), 2 (Pre-Construction) and 3 (Completion prior to occupation).
The BSA became law in the middle of 2022, and this new process creates uncertainty for investors. In particular:
Will pipeline developments get sign-off at Gateway 3 within the timescales promised by the act?
Will key lease commencement dates will be met?
Will extensive delays result in the loss of projected income streams?
These are valid concerns and are best addressed by planning for the various risks associated with each Gateway stage before they threaten to impact upon the project’s viability.
Buildings cannot legally be occupied until a Building Completion Certificate is issued, meaning new developments are unusable until one is obtained.
However, certification is issued by the BSR eight weeks after registration of the property, and must be applied for. The quality of the application submission is essential given the timescales at hand, and must include an assessment and evidence of competence of key parties to a development.
The best way to develop a good understanding of the assessment process is to get early advice on the BSA at feasibility stages, and ensure the team can navigate its challenges.
During Gateways 1 & 2, realistic programming and procurement strategies are required to deliver the level of detail needed within the available timescales to ensure BSR consent is achieved and the expectations of interested parties are managed and properly built into investment strategies from the outset.
Don’t forget: the BSR seeks to achieve full compliance of all parts of the building regulations, not just fire and structural safety elements.
As with planning applications, the BSR has a 12-week statutory period to review applications and respond, although our current experience has seen a 16 to 20-week period for this review. It cannot be consulted throughout the design process and will only provide feedback once a full review is concluded. To date, just around 50% of BSR submissions have achieved consent at first application, a significant risk to project timescales. The additional time involved in re-submission can add weeks to the final practical completion (PC) date and the associated costs.
Clients and their project teams can take advice from approved inspectors to review designs and their likely compliance prior to making a BSR submission. However, there are no guarantees that compliance will be achieved. We always recommend that clients seek strategy advice as early in the process as possible allowing risk mitigations to be considered and built into project plans at the earliest opportunity.
As a project moves forward in Gateway 3, the focus shifts to obtaining PC and the Building Completion Certificate from the BSR. Managing and minimising timings between these two dates is another key risk. Because HRBs cannot be occupied until the Completion Certificate is obtained and the building registered with the regulator, completed buildings risk sitting empty for many weeks waiting for approval before allowing new occupiers to move in.
Clients – assisted by the duty holders – must submit a Completion Certificate application at the correct time with the right information, together with signed declarations from both principal contractor and designer that the works and building comply with the Building Regulations. At this point, the principal accountable person for the occupation phase must confirm that the ‘golden thread information’ and key building information has been handed over to them.
The BSR is required to approve the application for a Completion Certificate in a 12-week period, however, once again there is no certainty in this timeframe.
All occupied existing HRBs had to be registered with the BSR by 1 October 2023 after which point it became a criminal offence for the principal accountable person to allow the building to continue to be occupied. A Building Safety Case Report is also required for these registered buildings, with April 2024 being the date set by the regulator to provide comprehensive building safety information, outlining risk management strategies and – critically – fire and structural safety measures. In reality, the regulator has started reviewing safety case reports from this date, although they are taking a pragmatic and proportionate approach.
There is no assurance that the submitted Safety Case will gain approval and it may ultimately be rejected by the BSR. To have the best chance of success, project teams must begin the process now to develop a clear plan and demonstrate how they are meeting the act’s requirements.
The regulator aims to assess all buildings for the first time within five years with priority given to HRBs for assessment based on height and number of dwellings. Since the start of April 2024, the BSR has begun to call in buildings for assessment and issue Building Assessment Certificates, which is also when the requirements relating to registration for building inspectors and building control approvers became enforceable.
Our own, direct experience to date of the processes outlined is that these have already exposed many potentially serious issues with existing properties which fall short of the requirements expected by the BSR, particularly those relating to structural and fire safety. It is clear that bridging the knowledge gap between identified challenges and producing viable solutions is required to meet those requirements across the board. Having the right team able to demonstrate competency is essential for this. This is not just the key duty holders – including the client, all contractors and designers – but also fire, façade and structural engineers and the legal team.
Stakeholders need to come together as early in the process as possible, to anticipate and properly manage any possible barriers and delays. Through better integration and involvement of all relevant members of the development team as early as possible, the effectiveness of this continually adjusting statutory process to deliver a project can be optimised and the risks reduced to building owners, investors and users.
The transformation of Holbein Gardens saw a tired 1980s office building refurbished and extended to create a modern workplace. The scheme embracing biodiversity, energy efficiency and circular construction methods which delivered a low embodied carbon scheme.
TFT’s work on this project began when we co-created Grosvenor’s sustainable development brief. The brief encompasses themes such as climate resilience, social benefit, connectivity, green spaces, resource use and much more, to set the stage for more sustainable projects across the Grosvenor portfolio.
Holbein Gardens became a test case for the brief, and we took a holistic approach to creating a more sustainable space. We applied the brief from top to bottom: from its blue roof down to its windows – openable and connected to air quality sensors which monitored outside conditions – through to use of lime plaster with low VOCs down to the floors, which were reused along with other materials throughout the project.
A new lease of life for existing materials
Holbein Gardens is a LETI (London Energy Transformation Initiative) Pioneer Project, with 300kg/co2e/m2 embodied carbon – even lower than LETI’s 2030 upfront carbon target (350kgCO2/m2). We did this by using reclaimed steel for 34% of the structure as well as reclaimed stone and brickwork. We also eliminated 99% of site waste, and designed the structure and brickwork for future disassembly, preserving these materials for another life.
Circularity was at the heart of our approach to the scheme, particularly important when considering carbon-intense steel elements. Part of the solution was to extract steel from another Grosvenor site in Bermondsey, analysing the most suitable material, adapting it for Holbein Gardens and incorporating it within the new structure.
In turn, steel in the former roof of Holbein Gardens went through the same process, becoming new risers in the refurbished building. Some steel which came out of Holbein Gardens during this project found a new home elsewhere, as part of the roof at Grosvenor’s Fivefields building.
A detailed approach to sustainability
Holbein Gardens is designed to operate as an energy-efficient space, with efficient lighting, mechanical equipment, and a renewable energy supply.
We also included the following measures to reduce operational energy in-use:
Openable windows and passive design measures to enable future adaptation for different uses or climate scenarios
Natural daylight optimisation to reduce artificial lighting requirements and energy demands
A complete programme for future Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing & Heating (MEPH) plant replacement, and plans for planned preventative maintenance (PPM) all designed to extend the useful life of the plant equipment
We also considered measures to improve the wellbeing of occupants and deliver a biodiversity net gain of 200%, by dedicating 11% of the building’s Gross Internal Area (GIA) to green spaces that support the Wild West End initiative. The Wild West End aims to create more green urban infrastructure through a combination of green roofs and walls, planters and flower boxes, street trees to provide a habitat for birds, bees and bats. The initiative also improves quality of life for people, lowering stress levels and increasing satisfaction and wellbeing in the public realm, creating an environment for us all to live, work, and visit.
Holbein Gardens is constructed within UKGBC’s Net Zero Carbon Framework, targeting:
Back