We are pleased to invite you to the 20th “Study UK: Discover You” Fair on 2-3 February 2019 in Moscow and 5 February 2019 in St Petersburg

The ECM education agency and the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy in Moscow invite you to the 20th “Study UK: Discover You” Fair on 2-3 February 2019 in Moscow (Ritz-Carlton hotel) and 5 February 2019 in St Petersburg (Corinthia hotel).

Visit the Study UK Fair to meet over 30 leading UK universities and other educational institutions, including boarding schools, and get the information you need directly from their representatives.

ABOUT STUDY UK FAIR The Study UK Fair is an initiative of the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy in Moscow as part of its work to develop cultural and educational relations between Russia and the UK. Prospective students and their parents are invited to attend the fairs in Moscow and St Petersburg to get information from representatives of universities and learning institutions about current UK qualifications. The official delivery partner of the Study UK Fair in 2019 is the ECM agency.

REGISTRATION Registration and entry to the exhibition is free of charge. Please register here: Moscow / Saint-Petersburg

BECOME A PARTNER Would you like to take part in this educational event? All companies offering relevant products and services to youth and students are welcome to apply to promote their services to the exhibition audience. For information on partnership packages, please contact maria.popova@ecmcentre.com

Published 26 November 2018

The UK will provide vital food, shelter and clean water to Afghans affected by one of the worst droughts the country has ever faced, Penny Mordaunt announces.

• Construction pipeline forecasts £600 billion of infrastructure investment over next decade
• Ministers want more projects to be delivered using digital manufacturing techniques
• Call for evidence launched on offsite building

A massive £600 billion investment in our roads, hospitals and schools over the next ten years has been set out today, alongside proposals to harness modern technologies to build infrastructure in the most effective way.

The Government’s National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline reveals the vast scale of public and private investment underway and expected by 2028. It includes schemes announced by Chancellor Philip Hammond in his recent Budget, like the £28 billion national roads fund, as well as other flagship projects like East West Rail, upgrading the M6 to a smart motorway and Hornsea Project One – the largest offshore wind farm in the world.

To ensure maximum efficiency in building these projects ministers are encouraging greater use of more modern approaches to construction. This includes the manufacturing of components in factories using the latest digital technology before being sent for assembly on construction sites. The Government has committed to increasing use of these methods in public-funded projects and today asks for views on how to encourage greater use of these cutting-edge techniques.

Despite significant contributions to the UK economy, the construction sector’s productivity is weak compared to other sectors like manufacturing. Applying modern manufacturing approaches to building projects can boost productivity and reduce waste by as much as 90 per cent. For example, a school that typically takes a year to build could be completed in just over four months.

This manufacturing technique has already been used to great success in several projects, including the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon improvement scheme. Parts of these bridges were developed in a factory, meaning they were built more efficiently than if traditional methods of construction had been used.

The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Robert Jenrick said:

“We are committed to renewing our infrastructure to drive economic growth in all parts of the United Kingdom. Over the course of this Parliament, investment in economic infrastructure will reach the highest sustained levels in over 40 years.

“And as the pace of technological change accelerates, we are stepping up our commitment to digital infrastructure, use of data to drive greater productivity and embrace new methods of construction.

“With £600bn of investment over the next decade, including the largest ever investment in our strategic road network, we are taking the long term action required to raise productivity and ensure the economy is fit for the future.”

Chief Executive of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, Tony Meggs said:

“Government is the largest client for infrastructure projects so has an important role in using its purchasing power to drive improved productivity in their delivery.

“We recognise there is significant momentum within the sector to scale up the adoption of more modern and innovative practices and it is the role of the IPA to help coordinate this approach across new infrastructure projects.

“We would like to hear from a range of industry experts on government’s proposals for a Platform Approach to Design for Manufacture and Assembly.”

Chief Executive of Highways England, Jim O’Sullivan said:

“At Highways England we recognise the productivity and efficiency challenges that the U.K. construction industry is facing. In recent years we have encouraged more computer-led design, automation, and pre-assembly across all of our construction activities. As well as driving productivity and efficiency, it improves worker safety and reduces delays and frustration for road users passing through our works.

“We will adopt ever increasing levels of automation and off-site construction on road improvement schemes and smart motorways in our next five year road investment programme.”

Notes to Editors:

• The government is committed to using its investment in infrastructure to drive the modernisation of the construction sector and improve the delivery of economic and social infrastructure projects.
• Working with industry and public and private sector clients, today the government publishes details of a proposal for a preferred approach to building infrastructure called a Platform Approach to Design for Manufacture and Assembly or “P-DfMA”; a modern method of construction which is a specific form of design for manufacture and assembly.
• These proposals will contribute to the government’s objectives as outlined in the Industrial Strategy, the Construction Sector Deal and the Transforming Infrastructure Performance programme, including a presumption in favour of offsite construction announced at Autumn Budget 2017.
• A platform approach rolled across a range of government programmes means that we will use a set of digitally designed components wherever possible, on different types of buildings. For example, a single component could be used as part of a school, hospital, prison building or train station.
• Offsite construction is already being used by four government departments: the Ministry of Defence, the Department for Health and Social Care, the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Education. The Department for Transport is also testing and rolling out a manufacturing approach on selected parts of their capital programme.
• Using a common platform approach will ensure we achieve efficiencies of scale and government can leverage its buying power to create a critical mass to accelerate change and innovation in the industry.
• Government will not define the components, these will be developed by industry whose responsibility it is to innovate and provide best value solutions.
• It will be underpinned by significant further research to design, test, provide assurance for and develop the components, standards and practices needed.
• Everyone is invited to respond to and help shape the proposal, with it being of most relevance to industry groups, academics and businesses from the construction, engineering, design, architectural and consulting sectors.
• Non-social housing is out of scope for this call for evidence as the interaction between the public sector and the non-social housing market is different from that between the public sector and construction projects relevant to this proposal. However, MHCLG are aiming for similar outcomes in the residential housing market as outlined in Homes England’s Strategic Plan; including higher productivity and greater cost efficiency.

The UK will provide vital food, shelter and clean water to Afghans affected by one of the worst droughts the country has ever faced, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt announced today (Monday 26 November).

Afghanistan has faced a series of droughts in recent decades, which severely affect harvests and can destroy the livelihoods of farming families.

Speaking ahead of the Geneva Conference on Afghanistan (Tuesday 27 November), International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

This deadly drought is already affecting millions of Afghans, many of whom have had to leave their homes and livelihoods in desperate search of basic necessities.

UK aid will provide life-saving assistance to hundreds of thousands of Afghans, including food, clean water, and tents.

But others must step up alongside the UK, other donors must do more if we are to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.

Today’s package, provided by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), will:

• Provide tents and urgent relief items for up to 260,000 people who have fled their homes ahead of a bitter severe winter
• Provide 602,660 people with food or cash transfers to buy essential items, with a monthly ration of special nutritious food to prevent malnutrition in young children for every household
• Provide drought affected people with access to healthcare, clean water and sanitation so they can remain in their homes over winter.

The UK is the second largest humanitarian donor in Afghanistan. UK aid is helping to build a more stable, prosperous country for all Afghans.

Notes to editors

• Today’s UK aid drought response package for Afghanistan totals £35 million. This includes £25 million of new funding from the UK Department for International Development’s crisis reserve fund and £10 million provided earlier this year. This brings DFID’s total spend on the humanitarian response in Afghanistan this year to £67 million.

• £12.5 million will be given to the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund (AHF) to provide immediate shelter and relief items to 260,000 people who have fled their homes, as well as access to healthcare, nutritious food, clean water and sanitation for thousands of Afghan families this winter.

• £12.5 million will be given to the World Food Programme to provide cash transfers or food to 602,660 drought-affected people for 3 months.

• UK support is helping to build a more stable Afghanistan that is less dependent on external support over the long term. The UK is supporting the Afghan people by helping to provide them with greater access to healthcare, education, and safe drinking water, as well as helping to create jobs, boosting economic development, and tackling corruption.

• The Geneva Ministerial Conference on Afghanistan takes place on 27 and 28 November 2018, co-costed by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Afghanistan (UNAMA) and the Government of Afghanistan. It is the latest in a series of biennial international ministerial conferences held since 2002 to secure Afghanistan’s long-term stability and development.

ENDS