1. NOVEMBER 2014_MODUS 43
Foundations
I always had an interest in electronics and
electrical engineering at school, which led
me to an engineering apprenticeship in
Yorkshireinmylateteens.Theworkvaried
from fault finding in factories to wiring up
lampposts on the M62 in blizzard
conditions–whichconcentratedthemind
somewhat.Irememberthinkingtheremust
bemoretoacareerinthebuiltenvironment.
So I went south and after working as an
electrical technician at Ford’s head office
in Essex, my whole career trajectory
changed. Iwasheadhuntedinthelate1980s
to work as a senior services consultant and
propertymanagerinLondon,whichfurther
focused my mind to explore the world of
property.Intheearly1990s,Iworkedclient
side for the Royal Bank of Canada, and in
1996 when they decided to do a sale and
leaseback of their portfolio, I moved to
Estimate the embodied
carbon of your building or
project. Use a benchmark
and multiply by the floor
areatogivearoughstart.
There are benchmarks
emerging in this area, for
examplefromRICSandnow
waste consultant WRAP.
Source the carbon factor.
The Inventory of Carbon
Emissionspublishedbythe
UniversityofBathisfreely
available, although there
are charges for reissue
data. For operational
emissions, there are
severalconversionfactors
tomakethiseasier–see
ukconversionfactors
carbonsmart.co.uk.
Carry out the calculation
(energy consumption x
carbon conversion factor =
embodied carbon). Ensure
youdothisforeachelement
of your building: floor, roof,
external walls, foundation,
frame, windows, etc.
Analyse the results.
Embodied carbon is
measuredoverthelifeof
the building – from raw
materials, to delivery,
on-site activities and
maintenance to end of
life. Then consider what
reductionscouldbemade
using a mitigation plan.
SeanLockieFRICS
is directorofsustainability
andcarbonmanagementat
Faithful+Gould
rics.org/carbon
DIRECTOR,HEADOFUKFACILITIESMANAGEMENT,DTZ
MY WAY
VaughanTaylorFRICS
MEASURE
EMBODIED
CARBON
HOW TO
“My whole career trajectory
changed after I was headhunted
to work as a senior services consultant and
property manager, which further focused
my mind to explore the world of property”
DTZ and delved further into the property
business from an investor standpoint.
I’ve ended up being responsible for areas
where you would usually have different
individuals doing different roles, but my
background has helped me cover a variety
of disciplines. I’ve had the pleasure of
workingwithsomeofthebestpeopleinthe
business and made some good friends.
I was also extremely pleased to achieve
RICS fellowship status earlier this year.
My time at DTZ has flown and I’ve been
a director for 10 years, heading up UK
facilities management operations and
business development. But because I’ve
been involved in setting up new sections
within the business, it’s almost felt like a
new job at every turn. Currently, we’re
doing a lot of research and development to
roll out our systems across the EMEA
regions. It’s not about putting “a flag in
every country”, especially when diverse
regions have differing perceptions and
needs surrounding facilities management.
Itallseemsalongwayfromthosefreezing
cold mornings up a lamppost on the M62.
rics.org/vaughantaylor