This week, Paul is joined by Andrew Knight, Global Data & Tech Lead at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) , who I think everyone will have heard of. Andrew is a highly experienced technology specialist and is currently leading the program to develop, enhance and gain adoption of RICS’ Data Standards. In this episode, we again focus on the future of the Quantity Surveying role. We discuss how data is being monetised today, how it will be monetised in the future, and most import...
Apr 24, 2023•39 min•Ep. 114
This week, Paul is joined by Mike Wharton, Chief Executive Officer at Complete Roofing Systems , Allied Roofing and Roof Analytics . Mike is passionate about quality and standards in the delivery of construction and has had an exciting journey from Equity Analyst and Fund Manager to CEO at a roofing subcontractor. I believe that often Main contractors consider subcontractors a commodity and then are disappointed by the lack of quotes they receive. Usually, I think this is due to the approach and...
Apr 17, 2023•44 min•Ep. 113
This week, Paul is joined by Nicola Barden, Managing Director at BSF Solid Surfaces , a specialist subcontractor specialising in 3D Thermoforming and producing bespoke centrepiece designs since 1998. During today’s show, we talk about inflation and how this has affected Nicola’s business in the past few years. Nicola shares tactics on how she has managed her relationship with her suppliers and then with her clients to ensure that her business best navigated this situation. In this entertaining e...
Apr 10, 2023•41 min•Ep. 112
This week, Paul is joined by Parag Prasad, a Business Coach, focusing heavily on construction. Managing Director at The Business Growth Agency . Parag was awarded London Business Coach of the Year 2019, 2020 and 2021 and focuses heavily on architecture and knows our sector well. The episode was designed as a follow-on to episode 104, which focused on whether a 4-day working week was possible in construction. “Construction workers are putting in more than 5 hours per week than the average worker ...
Apr 03, 2023•44 min•Ep. 111
This week, Paul is joined by Samantha Mepham, Partner - National Head of Health and Safety Services at Rider Levett Bucknall , a global Quantity Surveying and Construction consultancy. In this thought-provoking and informative episode, Samantha first explains how the Building Safety Act will impact contractors and what they should do to adapt to the legislation. Beyond this, the conversation turns to the Grenfell disaster and how value engineering played a big part in the tragedy. From this, we ...
Mar 27, 2023•40 min•Ep. 110
This week, Paul is joined by his close friend and QS, Chris Barber. Chris is a Co-Founder at Prosper , a platform helping subcontractors to scale their business and also a passionate advocate for subcontractors on his YouTube channel, School of Sub . In today’s conversation, Chris talks about how main contractors need to start managing subcontractors with empathy and, if they do not, why subcontractors should push back. Chris has worked as a Main and Subcontract QS and leans into his experience ...
Mar 20, 2023•40 min•Ep. 109
This week, Paul is joined by Dale Sinclair, the Head of Digital Innovation at WSP . Many of you will know WSP, but if you don’t, WSP is one of the world’s leading engineering professional services firms, with 42000 employees across 40+ countries. In today’s conversation, Dale explains the term ‘Kit-of-parts’ and its relevance to us in the construction sector. Across the conversation, Dale explains how a kit-of-parts will change the way we work and what it might do to the role of the Architect an...
Mar 13, 2023•38 min•Ep. 108
This week, Paul is joined by Chris Ritson, Senior Risk & Uncertainty Consultant at Safran , a software company building a unified project management solution to help organisations confidently tackle complex capital projects. Chris is an out-and-out risk expert, and Paul wanted to interview him to fully understand the difference between how a Risk Manager and a QS manage risks and what QS’ could learn. Across the episode, we cover parametric modelling, Montecarlo simulations and best practice...
Mar 06, 2023•51 min•Ep. 107
This week, Paul is joined by Ian Hepstinall , an Associate Professor in Project Management at the University of Birmingham, a coach, an advisor, and the Author of the Executive Guide to Breakthrough Project Management. Ian is a firm believer in changing the industry. In this conversation, he shares his slightly radical thoughts on changing the industry’s mentality and approach to project management. Einstein said, “Insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results.” Ian...
Feb 27, 2023•45 min•Ep. 106
This week, Paul is joined by Tim Danson, Technical Director of Sustainability at WSP in the UK. Many of you will know WSP, but if you don’t, WSP is one of the world’s leading engineering professional services firms, with over 60,000 employees across 40+ countries. In today’s conversation, Tim talks about how in 2022, humans used a year’s worth of the earth’s resources in just seven months and how he believes the circular economy can help us. Tim’s passion for the circular economy and how it can ...
Feb 20, 2023•37 min•Ep. 105
This week, Paul is joined by Joe Ryle, Director of the 4 Day Week Campaign , Media and Comms Lead for the think tank Autonomy and former advisor to the Shadow Chancellor. Joe is leading the campaign for a four-day, 32-hour working week with no loss of pay, which he argues would benefit workers and employers. In this thought-provoking conversation, Joe lays out the benefits of the 4-day working week for all and then discusses how it could and if it could work in construction - particularly in the...
Feb 13, 2023•42 min•Ep. 104
This week, Paul is joined by Angela Mansell, Managing Director at Mansell Build , one of the UK’s longest-established and most experienced sub-contractors in the field of SFS, plastering, partitioning, dry-lining and rendering. In today’s conversation, Angela describes her experiences of how main contractors generally treat sub-contractors - what works, what doesn’t work and how she would change the industry. Across the episode, we cover how her supply chain management approach is different from...
Feb 06, 2023•45 min•Ep. 103
This week, Paul is joined by Simon Robinson, a Quantity Surveyor and the Director at Subport , an Award Winning Quantity Surveying Consultancy Supporting Subcontractors to secure their profits. In today’s conversation, Simon and Paul debate how to improve the relationship between Main Contractors and Subcontractors. Across the episode, we discuss how Main Contractors can better manage Subcontractors and the top 10 commercial tricks that both sides should be mindful of before signing a contract. ...
Jan 30, 2023•52 min•Ep. 102
This week, Paul is joined by Patricia Haywood , the Director and Commercial Lead at Haywood Consulting, a construction consultancy leveraging contracts to drive profits. Patricia is a lawyer, QS, adjudicator, mediator, and much more. In this highly insightful episode, Patricia and Paul debate what “getting the contract right” means for Main Contractors and how this is different for subcontractors. Across the conversation, we touch on back-to-back contracts, variations and tender submissions. Pat...
Jan 23, 2023•44 min•Ep. 101
In this landmark episode, Own the Build has a first in having three special guests in the studio. Paul is joined by Katie Hathaway (Head of Business Engagement and Communications), Natalie King (Operations Director) and Nicola Bird (Managing Director) at AccXel , the UK’s first industry-led, co-funded construction school. In this funny and heart-warming conversation, Katie, Natalie and Nicola talk about their inspiration for founding AccXel being to save a family business and that this is now th...
Jan 16, 2023•42 min•Ep. 100
This week, we’re doing something a little different. As we approach a century of episodes, Paul reflects on five moments from the Own the Build catalogue to date, which he feels he personally extracted the most from, and thanks all the Own the Build listeners for their ongoing support - without you, we’d be nothing! If you enjoy the show, please subscribe, leave us a review or feel free to get in touch with Paul on LinkedIn or by email ( paul@c-link.com ). Want a demo of C-Link’s new feature? C-...
Jan 09, 2023•39 min•Ep. 99
This week, Paul is joined by David Nash, the Director of Strategy and Policy at The ECITB , a non-departmental public body supporting training and skills development across the engineering construction industry in England, Scotland and Wales. At the show’s beginning, Paul shares a story about a client struggling to resource a QS. Perhaps this is something your business is experiencing right now? If so, you are not alone. David is a highly knowledgeable individual on labour policy today, and he s...
Dec 19, 2022•41 min•Ep. 98
This week, Paul is joined by Ross Griffin, the Founder & Chief Commercial Specialist at KOSMOS , which provides specialist commercial management advice to the Nordic & Irish construction industries. Paul and Ross talk about their experiences working as Quantity Surveyors outside the UK and Ireland and how other countries perceive the profession. Ross is a big believer that the role of the QS is changing rapidly, and he talks about how he uses digital tools to create value for his clients...
Dec 12, 2022•45 min•Ep. 97
This week, Paul is joined by Jo Lucas, Director of Co.Cre8 , a consultancy enabling thriving project eco-systems through knowledge, networks, and behaviours and also by Gareth Evans, the CEO at Smart Procurement Solutions , a consultancy that positively disrupts the status quo of construction procurement. In an exceptionally insightful conversation, Jo and Gareth talk about the fragility of construction’s supply chain, how that has been exposed in recent years and how they advise their clients t...
Dec 05, 2022•44 min•Ep. 96
This week, Paul is joined by James Major, the Founder of Hubb.pro . HubbPro is an AI-Powered Platform Revolutionising The Design Of Low Carbon, Net-Zero Homes. James is a genuine M & E expert, and he is here to tell us how to procure and manage M & E packages. M & E packages are often the most complex, challenging and risky packages to deliver on a construction project, and James is a genuine M & E expert. During this insightful episode, James explains how to procure and manage M...
Nov 28, 2022•36 min•Ep. 95
This week, Paul is joined by Charlene Colas, the Founding Managing Partner from Bespok Construction Consultants . Charlene is an Advisor in the Built Environment and a genuine enthusiast on AI, Blockchain and the Crypto-Economy. Charlene tells us how Blockchain technology will change the future of construction; she explains how you can prepare for it; and why you should be excited. In this entertaining conversation, Charlene also explains why she set up her construction consultancy and shares he...
Nov 21, 2022•39 min•Ep. 94
This week, Paul is joined by Mark Herbert who is a Construction Insurance expert from Construction Insure . Mark takes great pride in educating clients on their needs and why they need certain policies to cover their builds and companies. In this highly insightful episode, Mark provides thoughtful advice on managing the Final Account Process, given his many years of supporting construction companies through the process. ----------- The Own The Build podcast is brought to you by C-Link and is hos...
Nov 14, 2022•30 min•Ep. 93
This week, Paul is joined by Michael Downes, a Solicitor/Construction Expert at Gordons LLP , a law firm from Yorkshire. In this highly insightful episode, Michael provides thoughtful advice on managing the Final Account Process, given his many years of supporting construction companies through the process. Paul and Michael discuss best practices, common pitfalls and, in general, how best to manage the overall approach to ensure you deliver the best outcome for your project. ----------- The Own ...
Nov 07, 2022•45 min•Ep. 92
This week, Paul is joined by Neil Boothroyd, an Adjudicator, Mediator, Arbitrator and Quantum Expert Witness at Gateley Vinden , which is a multi-disciplinary quantity surveying consultancy. In this fascinating chat, Neil explains how more and more disputes are being resolved by Mediation and why he thinks this is a good thing. Neil talks about his experience with Adjudications and Arbitration, how Mediation differs, and why construction companies should look to it to resolve disputes. ---------...
Oct 31, 2022•41 min•Ep. 91
This week, Paul is joined by Heather Evans, a Partner and the National Head of Sustainability at Rider Levett Bucknall , a Global Construction and Property Consultancy. In this entertaining conversation, Heather explains how Quantity Surveying can survive the upcoming AI revolution in construction and not become extinct by linking cost and carbon. Heather’s experience is that cost consultants are now being asked about the commercial implications of sustainability and how ESG can drive a whole ne...
Oct 24, 2022•38 min•Ep. 90
This week, Paul is joined by Diego Padilla-Phillips, Technical Director and Net-Zero and Decarbonisation Lead for WSP in the UK. Many of you will know WSP, but if you don’t, WSP is one of the world’s leading engineering professional services firms, with 37000 employees across 40 countries. In this fascinating conversation, Diego explains how skyscrapers are changing, how they will look in the future and why they will become an integral part of the built environment moving forward. For anyone in ...
Oct 17, 2022•37 min•Ep. 89
This week, Paul is joined by Martin Paver, CEO and Founder of Projecting Success , a passionate team of visionaries, project managers and data scientists on a mission to change how we deliver projects. In our conversation, Martin explains that we’re at an inflexion point in construction and AI/Machine Learning and how project teams will look very different in the future. If you are a QS, this is a must-listen for all in construction. For links to the events and training cited in the conversation...
Oct 10, 2022•36 min•Ep. 88
This week Paul is joined by Dr Mark Key, a Chartered Construction Manager, Building Engineer, Author and Researcher. Mark has just written a book on behalf of the Institute of Civil Engineers titled “Building Regulations, Codes and Standards”. In this thought-provoking episode, Mark explains where we are with Building Regulations, how to work with the current system, and how to start thinking about evolving the system. A must-listen for all in construction. You can buy the book here – https://ww...
Oct 03, 2022•37 min•Ep. 87
This week Paul is joined by Tom Hawkins from FTI consulting , a Global Consulting firm. Tom is a Quantity Surveyor and Quantum Expert Witness for Construction and Engineering Industry Matters. In this conversation, Paul and Tom discuss a recent report highlighting the primary reasons construction companies get into a dispute, how to avoid those disputes and best practices in general. This is a must-listen if you are starting a new project or are currently working on a difficult one. ----------- ...
Sep 26, 2022•43 min•Ep. 86
This week Paul is joined by Joe Gooden, Head of Broking (Structural Warranties) at Build-Zone . They are one of the UK & Ireland’s leading providers of Structural Housing Warranties & Latent Defects Insurance. In our conversation, Joe explains the difference between patent and latent defects, the importance of structural warranties, and the pitfalls of using a non-A-Rated insurer. I learned a lot from the conversation, so this is a must-listen for all property developers and main contrac...
Sep 20, 2022•41 min•Ep. 85
