Episode 32 : Inside the data centre challenge

In a special edition of the First Site podcast, we’ve gathered a trio of top executives from the country’s leading construction companies to discuss Chancellor John Healey’s 2026 Budget. CN’s features editor, Matt Davies, is joined by Jason Millett, the chief executive of Mace Construct, John Wilkinson, the chief operating officer for BAM UK & Ireland and Peter Burnside, the chief executive of Keltbray. They give their views on the Chancellor’s taxing and spending plans and what 2027 could hold in store for the UK’s construction industry.

In this episode, we explore whether the construction industry can deliver enough data centres to satisfy the UK’s AI ambitions. What are the main challenges facing the construction sector when it comes to data centres?  What are the potential solutions? CN deputy editor Ben Vogel is joined by David McDonnell, managing director of data centres at main contractor McLaren;  Sam Stacey, director of systems integration firm A7C; and James Halse, Director and Data Centre Project Management Lead UK Turner & Townsend UK

In this episode we look at the effects, both immediate and lingering, of Brexit on the construction industry. It’s now 10 years since the British electorate voted in a referendum to leave the European Union. Are the ramifications of that decision, which only passed by a narrow margin, still being felt in the UK’s construction sector today? What have been the long-term effects on the labour market and the prices of materials? How has it affected the pipeline of apprenticeships coming into the industry? CN’s features editor, Matt Davies, is joined by John Wilkinson, the chief operating officer at Bam UK & Ireland, Kelly Boorman, the head of construction at the audit, tax and consultancy firm, RSM and Graham Robinson, global infrastructure and construction lead at Oxford Economics and global business consultant at Pinsent Mason.

In this episode we look at retentions. In late March, the government announced it was proposing to ban the use of retentions in construction contracts. The proposed ban is part of a wider package of measures aimed at tackling late payments across the UK economy as a whole, which the government says forces 38 small business to the wall every day. In construction, banning retentions might protect smaller firms from losing money when contractors further up the supply chain won’t pay or become insolvent. But for some, retentions are a vital tool that incentivise contractors to meet their obligations, especially when it comes to the quality of a build and correcting any defects. CN’s features editor, Matt Davies, is joined by Rob Driscoll, director of legal and business at the Electrical Contractors' Association, Melanie Leech, the chief executive at the British Property Federation and Chris Hallam, a partner at the law firm CMS.

In this episode, we’re taking a look at safety. Even though UK construction sites have some of the strictest regulations in the world, accidents still happen and fatalities still occur. So, can standards be raised and the number of fatalities and non-fatal injuries be reduced? CN’s features editor, Matt Davies, is joined by Peter Bennett OBE, the chair of the No Falls Foundation, Tom Jewell, the co-founder of the Soteria Group and Dr Keith Whitehead, senior consultant with the British Safety Council.

In this edition, we take a closer look at competence, an issue that’s been under scrutiny since the Grenfell tragedy and the advent of the Building Safety Act. Competence frameworks are being set up, but how will they make a difference to the worker on a building site? Construction News Features Editor, Matt Davies, is joined by those at the centre of improving competence standards in the construction industry: Jon Vanstone, chair of the Industry Competence Committee (ICC), Gill Hancock, co-chair of the Industry Competence Steering Group (ICSG) and Faye Burnett, programme director of Sector-Led Group 10 (SLG-10), a super-sector group within the ICSG, which is creating the competency frameworks for installation and maintenance roles.

In a special end-of-year episode of First Site, the CN editorial team picks out the big themes in our coverage over the past 12 months. CN deputy editor Ben Vogel is joined by features editor Matt Davies, news editor Nicky Harley and senior reporter Josh Stein.

In this edition of First Site, Construction News deputy editor Ben Vogel explores the fast-emerging world of digital product passports and their implications for transparency, accountability and sustainability across the construction supply chain. Joining him to unpack how the technology could reshape regulation, procurement and data management are Peter Caplehorn, chief executive of the Construction Products Association; Dr Stephen Hamil, innovation director at NBS; and Matt Brinklow, sustainability lead at Mace. 

In this episode of First Site, Construction News Deputy Editor Ben Vogel is joined by MHA’s Atul Kariya and Lloyds Bank’s Max Jones to unpack the latest CN100 index of the UK’s top construction contractors. With profits and margins rebounding to pre-pandemic highs, how sustainable is this recovery? How are firms managing cash, risk, and resilience? The discussion also looks into the future of contracting models and whether the £725bn infrastructure pipeline will deliver long-term strength or new financial pressures. Find out more about a CN Premium Subscription which will enable you to compare and contrast previous CN 100s here: https://www.constructionnews.co.uk/subscribe/

In this edition, we ask if the government’s £725bn infrastructure strategy will deliver on time and on target? And is £725bn enough to boost the UK’s attractiveness as an investment destination? Joining CN’s features editor, Matt Davies, to discuss the infrastructure pipeline, spatial planning, regionalisation and the involvement of the private sector are Jonathan Willcock, Managing Director for Transportation at Costain and Rachel Skinner, Executive Director at WSP.