About Jackie Portman
Building services design engineer and design manager. Author, Building Services Design Management: Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford (July 2014)
EngineerI have led the design management process of a range of projects in terms of complexity, size and uses: university complexes (libraries, archive buildings, state of the art education and research facilities), healthcare projects (wards, laboratories, clinical areas), single and mixed-use commercial office complexes, residential developments and schools. My particular areas of expertise are in consultant selection and appointments, managing the design and pre-construction activities. Also ensuring commissioning management procedures are put in place, and closing out and handing over successful projects. Thereafter, instigating post-occupancy studies to understand how the building services engineering designs worked for the building occupants, operations and maintenance staff.
I fully appreciate the challenges in design management – where design issues cannot be resolved by squeezing the design process, achieving milestones but with less information or making explicit decisions to change design sequences. There are a lot of factors to be considered and many disciplines and stakeholders involved. Non-existent or ineffective design management results in extended design timescales.
I have always been keen to enthuse and motivate students and trainees and has used her ‘hands-on’ perspective to support full-time academics and teachers. She has been a visiting lecturer at the University of the West of England and the City of Bristol College: also, contributing to the development of the syllabuses, in particular, ensuring the relevance to current industry trends and requirements.
I was awarded my doctorate from the University of the West of England, researching into ways and means of improving the contribution of building services engineers to the building design process: looking at how they are perceived by the rest of the construction industry and what tools and processes would help improve their performances.
Featured articles and news
The long list with in the frame of key historical events.
Competence frameworks for sustainability in the built environment
Code of practice, core criteria consultation draft for comment.
UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard Sept update
Pilot version for testing and feedback on its adoption due.
New Floods Resilience Taskforce
With a wet met office autumn prediction.
National Retrofit Hub takeover of Net Zero stage
At Birmingham UK Construction Week in October.
AT Awards 2024 finalists announced
With more to come, prior to the Awards ceremony in October.
London construction cools as hotspots appear nationally
Increases in the East of England, Yorkshire and Scotland.
ARB proposals for a new Architects Code
Announced in the shadow of the final Grenfell Inquiry report.
Combining human creativity and tech innovation now and in the future
Building automation and control systems market study
BSRIA 2024 North America BACS software & services.
Impact of digital technology on productivity in construction
New CIOB academy guidance for companies of all sizes.
Demolition and retrofit approaches in Planning Policy
MHCLG demolition and retrofit survey to inform future updates to national planning policy.
Expert taskforce to spearhead new, new town generation
Sir Michael Lyons given 12 months for recommendations.
Government policy statement on new towns
A coded vision for a new generation of new towns.
AT Principal Designer exemplars published
Supporting clear and comprehensive demonstration of the skills required.