Guest Post by Jessica Rayif-Pearson
Computer generated image of N06. Credit: Hawkins\Brown
Jessica's Blog
This week we welcome a blog post by Jessica Rayif-Pearson, a runner-up in our Home of 2030 Young Persons’ Design Challenge. Jessica recently completed her BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Construction and The Built Environment and is currently undertaking a Civil Engineering degree apprenticeship at Mace Group. In her post, Jessica tells us how MOBIE has helped inspire her career path and offers words of encouragement to others pursuing a career in homebuilding.
“Age and gender do not matter in construction – if you have drive and ambition, you will be able to flourish and succeed”
Taking part in the MOBIE Challenge allowed me to explore my innovation skills and the process of making an idea a reality. The successful completion of my project (INTERLOCK) has given me the confidence to put forward my ideas at work as I have gained experience in the reality of materials cost, labour, and the challenging process of constructing buildings. I will be participating in the MOBIE challenge again, and would advise anyone else looking at a career in construction or already in the industry to take part, as it is a great way to exercise your imagination and imparts transferable skills which can be utilised in a professional capacity.
In June 2020, I finished my 2-year course at college studying for a BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Construction and The Built Environment. In September 2020, I started my Civil Engineering degree apprenticeship at Mace Group - this is a 5-year programme. I have now been working at Mace for 9 months on site as a Site Engineering Assistant. I work on site 4 days per week, and I attend university at UEL every Monday. I am currently based on the NO6 project, a residential scheme in Stratford, London - the project value is £178 Million.
We are constructing two towers, 26 and 31 storeys respectively, both have a separate 10 storey building attached to its side. Overall, this development will provide 524 apartments for the community. Between the two towers, there is a sky bridge allowing access to shared amenity spaces for residents.
The business unit constructing this project is ‘Mace Tech’. As a business unit, we are championing new and innovative construction methods which improve safety, sustainability, and ease of process. At N06, we used a hybrid offsite construction process:
- The design team send the detailed drawings of specific building elements to our factory in Brandon.
- The factory will then manufacture each part.
- When manufactured and ready to be installed on site, the individual part will be picked up and delivered to N06 site.
- Once the element has arrived to site, we use our cranes to lift into position and securely install.
- We place the pre-fab element onto temporary props to hold into place whilst awaiting the concrete pour.
- Lastly, we stitch together the separate elements, by using reinforcement and concrete.
- Once the concrete has cured to a safe strength, we gradually release the props to help the newly installed parts adapt to carrying the building's load efficiently.
By using this method, we have been able to complete a weekly floor cycle on both towers; this has resulted in significant programme savings compared to a traditional approach which could take anywhere up to 4/5 weeks per floor completion. This quick progression has beneficial effects on the environment due to the reduction in the demand for energy.
The future for construction is exciting due to the large amounts of opportunity for all types of people. I believe construction is currently going through a transition; as the traditional approaches to building are no longer appropriate in this day-and-age, which means innovation, imagination and problem-solving skills are highly valued within individuals.
Computer generated image of N06. Credit: Hawkins\Brown
As a young woman starting my career, I can confidently say I have chosen the right path for me, as every day is a surprise which keeps me on my toes. Each day on site is unpredictable no matter how much you try to plan/organise your time, this is due to the multiple factors which can impact the project for example: weather, supply chain, deliveries, client/HSE inspections, incidents, damages and dealing with different types of people both on site and in the office. You must always be prepared to provide solutions, and due to the potential high risk environment on site you must always be alert and aware of your own and others' safety on site, by ensuring the correct health and safety precautions are in place and being followed.
I would advise anyone interested in a career in construction to research the many different job roles as there is such a huge variety. The atmosphere in construction/on site is very team based; you are never alone in making large decisions or carrying out important works, successful completion of the project is a team effort. As an apprentice on site, all my colleagues are more than happy to help with any questions I may have with my university work or my role on site.
Although I have only been on site for 9 months, I am already managing certain work scopes, checking sustainability requirements are consistent around the site, presenting inductions to the site for sub-contractors and running daily activity briefing meetings for the following day etc. Age and gender do not matter in construction – if you have drive and ambition, you will be able to flourish and succeed.
Jessica was a highly commended runner-up in our Home of 2030 Young Persons’ Design Challenge. You can read the MOBIE Outocmes Report by following the link below.