EWS | DIGEST IN BRIEF McDonalds opens net zero restaurant Fast-food chain McDonalds claims its new restaurant in Shropshire is the first in its portfolio to meet net zero carbon standards in construction and operation. The company says the Market Drayton facility will be a blueprint for future new-build and retrofit projects, as part of the chains strategy for becoming a net zero business by 2040. Recycling materials for use in the restaurants construction was key in reducing embodied carbon. The cladding includes recycled IT equipment and white goods, the kerb stones are made from recycled plastic bottles, and some signage is made from used coffee beans. Surplus wool from local farms has also been used in the insulation. A solar array and two wind turbines reduce in-use emissions, and energy not generated on site is supplied from renewable sources, the company says. Architect defends plan to demolish M&S agship store Pilbrow & Partners compares scheme to replacing a 1970s diesel car with a Tesla The architect designing a new high-prole store for Marks & Spencer on Londons Oxford Street has claimed that the new building will lead to lower lifetime carbon emissions than could be achieved by retrotting the existing store. Fred Pilbrow, of Pilbrow & Partners, said it was not always right to refurbish old buildings: I would compare this to a discussion about a notvery-well-performing diesel car from the 1970s, he said, and what were trying to do is replace it with a Tesla. He added that there would be less embodied carbon in the short term, but within between nine and 16 years, we will be ahead on carbon because our Tesla will perform better. Pilbrow carried out a whole-life carbon comparison exercise with engineering rm Arup. The M&S flagship store at Orchard House was built in the 1930s, and plans to replace it WEBINAR NOW AVAILABLE ON DEMAND Water Source Heat Pumps and Ultra Low Heat Networks for the Multi-Residential Sector Brought to you by: with a 10-storey mixed-use new building have caused controversy. More than 2,000 people have signed a petition against the project based on its environmental impact, which they claim is simply incompatible with the companys aim to achieve net zero emissions by 2045. Pilbrow: Its not always right to refurbish old buildings 200,000 workers vanish in wake of pandemic The UK construction industry has lost a huge number of experienced workers since the start of the pandemic, according to the Construction Products Association (CPA). It has calculated that around 223,000 trade specialists have left since the summer of 2019, with more than half of them aged between 45 and 55. Losing this amount of experience threatens the industrys ability to deliver the governments plans for building back better, the CPA said. This ageing workforce demographic has been a concern for some time, but was expected to impact in 10-15 years time as people came up for retirement, said CPA economics director Noble Francis. Like many other things, the pandemic seems to have accelerated this and plunged construction into a deepening skills crisis. People may still come back, but it looks like many have opted to take early retirement or work in other industries. WATCH NOW: bit.ly/CIBSEMitsubishi SCAN ME 8 January 2022 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Jan 22 pp08-09 News.indd 8 23/12/2021 15:32