Commercial development
The focus of our commercial development programme is on large scale
urban regeneration programmes to provide growth opportunities in
the future. The economic downturn that emerged in the latter part
of 2008, strengthened our view that the commercial development
programme should concentrate on long-term strategic investment. The
short–term programmes previously reported have been deferred as a
result. To ensure our environmental standards are met, our
Environmental Policy and Guide is provided to all consultants and
contractors. Compliance with this document is a contractual
requirement and is monitored throughout a project. We work with our
specialist teams, who advise us on environmental best practice and
buildability, taking into account the relevant BREEAM rating of
“Good” or better and the Code for Sustainable Homes rating of Level
4 or better, where residential development is included. We
integrate sustainable measures at the design phase, where possible,
and have integrated features such as water harvesting and renewable
energy into the design of recent projects. The Environmental
Statement prepared for all major projects reflects this approach
and includes issues such as environmental impact, sustainability
reports and access statements. We award construction contracts to
companies which can demonstrate the necessary skills and experience
to complete the work to our specification, timetable and budget,
and whose approach to the environment reflects our objectives. Our
project management team works with the contractor to monitor
on-site activity to ensure the minimum of disruption to the local
community and environment. Compliance with national/local
considerate contractor schemes is a requirement on our sites.
Contractors on larger projects e.g. SD2, Cardiff, are now providing
CSC with a range of CR information on a monthly basis as part of
their monthly progress meetings. These figures include, as a
minimum:
- Water
- Energy
- Waste & recycling
- Commercial vehicle movements
- Diesel consumption on site
- Communications
- Neighbour relations
- Industrial relations
- Community development
In November 2008
we updated again the Environmental policy and Guide to take into
account new legislation, such as the Site Waste Management Plans
Regulations 2008 and Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates
& Inspections) Regulations. This is in line with our intention
to review the Environmental Guide on a regular basis the in light
of ongoing advances in the field of sustainable design and
construction.
Managing our Assets
We believe passionately in actively managing our assets to ensure
that they consistently provide shoppers and occupiers with the
highest standards of customer care and services. This requires
constant attention to detail, meeting and maintaining the exacting
standards expected of a market leader.
