1. Steve Farrell Front Cover Picture CALLING KLN COMMUNICA John
Henry Pilot Edition | 2015 The Trench Revolution How new expertise
means next- gen fibre networks could reach your house twice as
quickly Talking Civils Taking Safies Not Selfies How smartphones
are changing health and safety Recruitment Taking a look at the
skills demands in Civil Engineering Danger On The Road Stepping out
onto Britains highways to discover the dangers to civil engineers
EXPERT COMMENTARY: How investment in fibre networks is changing
Africas future Exploring ANGA COM with our Chief Technical
Director, Steve Farrell
2. EDITORS NOTES I TS exciting to be able to welcome you the
inaugural edition of our new COMMUNICA magazine - the official
publication of the John Henry Group. For us, 2015 has already been
a very busy year, as weve started work on some major and exciting
new projects across various parts of the United Kingdom with both
new and existing clients. Weve welcomed dozens of new colleagues
into our company and nearly doubled the size of our corporate fleet
- its fair to say, that for the John Henry Group, these are very
exciting times of progression and growth. On this very subject,
recruitment and growth are two important points of consideration
for successful business building and with this in mind, COMMUNICA
invited Richard Gelder, Director from global recruitment company
Hays PLC, to contribute his thoughts on where civil engineering
recruitment is heading in the UK and what companies must now do to
attract the best talent into their organisations. In this first
edition of COMMUNICA, we travel to the city of Cologne with our
newly appointed Chief Technical Director, Steve Farrell, to take a
look at ANGA COM, Europes largest internet and satelite
communications exhibition, as well as exploring how new narrow
trenching construction techniques are changing fibre infrastructure
build in the UK and, how smartphone technology is helping to change
safety and productivity in civil and communications engineering. We
also hear from Stefan Stanislawski of international internet access
consultancy Ventura Next, who shares first hand knowledge of how
fibre is changing Africas future in COMMUNICAs Final Thoughts
section. Id particularly like to take this opportunity to thank all
of this editions contributors and supporters for their input and in
future editions I would also like to invite you, as colleagues and
clients, to contribute your ideas views, news and product updates
in each edition. I hope you enjoy the first edition of COMMUNICA
and we look forward to bringing you the next edition in six months
time. ROB ANDREWS Editor, COMMUNICA | 3 John Henry Group, (Head
Office) The Sidings, Longstanton, Cambridge Cambridgeshire, CB23
3DS Telephone and email information T 01954 288011 E marketing@
johnhenrygroup.co.uk W johnhenrygroup.co.uk Creative Editor Rob
Andrews Photographic and Digital Content Jonny Shields John Henry
Group logo and strapline 30 years of Engineering Excellence are
commercial property of John Henry Group. Geo-sight and associated
marker branding is property of Cardinalis Developments Ltd. All
reports were assumed accurate at the time of publication and are
delivered without prejudice and in positive interest.Group John
Henry WELCOME TO COMMUNICA: THE INAUGURAL EDITION Talk to John
Henry Group on our official social media pages OR Tweet us: @JHG
COMMUNICA Want to suggest an article for COMMUNICA? Email the
marketing team at: [email protected] HIGHWAY
INDUSTRIAL POWER RAIL TELECOMS With over 30 years experience in the
telecommunications industry Emtelle is a leading global
manufacturer of blown bre and ducted network solutions. It has a
proven track record, and a reputation for exemplary customer
service. Emtelle has not only evolved as a direct result of
telecommunications. Its innovative and forward thinking approach to
solving problems for customers has ensured it is a leading edge
proponent of modern telecommunications and a global market leader
in multiple sectors. In addition to being a world leader in blown
bre and ducted network solutions, its product portfolio
incorporates multiple solutions for various market sectors. Emtelle
operate in sectors including Power Duct Systems, Underground
Drainage, ITS for Highways & Rail in UK & Ireland, Water
Supply in Scandinavia, Drip Feed Irrigation systems in India.
Emtelle is a truly global company. It has over 800 employees
worldwide. It operates manufacturing facilities in Scotland, India
and Denmark. It is this Global-Local approach to operations that
enables Emtelle to service its ever-expanding customer base in 67
countries. ENGAGE.LISTEN.INNOVATE.DELIVER. Emtelle | Haughhead |
Hawick TD9 8LF | Scotland tel: +44 (0)1450 364000 | fax: +44
(0)1450 364001 | www.emtelle.com | [email protected] COMMUNICA |
Pilot Edition COVER PHOTO John Henry Groups Chief Technical
Director, Steve Farrell, by Jon Shields, for COMMUNICA Steve
Farrell Front Cover Picture CALLING KLN COMMUNICA John Henry Pilot
Edition | 2015 The Trench Revolution How new expertise means next-
gen fibre networks could reach your house twice as quickly Talking
Civils Taking Safies Not Selfies How smartphones are changing
health and safety Recruitment Taking a look at the skills demands
in Civil Engineering Danger On The Road Stepping out onto Britains
highways to discover the dangers to civil engineers EXPERT
COMMENTARY: How investment in fibre networks is changing Africas
future Exploring ANGA COM with our Chief Technical Director, Steve
Farrell
3. INSIDE? Whats EDITION SNAP SHOT ANGA COMs isles are a
futuristic and souk-ish maze of bustle, technological progression
and fibre- related frivolity - COMMUNICA reports on Europes largest
internet and fibre exhibition Page 32 8 | THE TRENCH REVOLUTION
Narrow trenching, John Henry Groups revolutionary fibre network
construction method is speeding up the way fibre reaches Britains
homes. 14 | TAKING TO THE EXPERT COMMUNICA talks to Richard Gelder,
director at global recruiter, Hays, about recruitment trends in
Civil Engineering. 16 | DANGER ON THE ROAD Exploring the risks to
traffic management personnel working on Britains highways. 28 |
TAKING SAFIES How the Geo-sight smartphone and cloud application is
changing health and safety in construction. 32 | ANGA MANAGEMENT
Catching up with John Henry Groups chief technical director, Steve
Farrell at ANGA COM, Europes largest internet exhibition. 42 |
FINAL COMMENT Ventura Next CFO, Stefan Stanislawski, shares his
thoughts on Fibre network growth in Africa. COMMUNICA | Pilot
Edition COMMUNICA | Pilot Edition Compiled by the John Henry Group
marketing and technology teams. Narrow trenching photography
provided by Virgin Media and used with permission of Virgin Medias
communications team. | 54 |
4. EXPECT EXCELLENCE 30 years of ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE
johnhenrygroup.co.uk For three decades John Henry Group has
provided the total knowledge, expertise and turnkey project
delivery solutions needed to successfully grow infrastructure
footprints across thousands of civil engineering, power and
telecommunications growth projects. Today were trusted to deliver
innovative and market leading consultancy solutions across the
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Excellence. Discover solutions online by scanning the QR code.
5. A s human beings it appears we are becoming more and more
impatient. A recent survey by the software giant, Microsoft,
releaved unequivocally, that as of May 2015, the average human
attention span is now the same as the average household goldfish -
Back in 2000, our attention span slightly more than 12 seconds.
Today its less than nine seconds, which means that in the last 15
years, our attention span is dwindling as our desire to obtain
information faster and easier increases as we look to receive
content at the touch of a button to fit in around our increasingly
busy schedules. Enter global corporations like Apple and Android,
which have marketed mobile tablets and phones to help humans
satiate this global and gargantuan desire for content and
information, all of which must arrive nearly instantaneously. The
rise of the smartphone, tablet and other associated gadgetary and
their capablities - iTunes, app stores et al - has also led to an
unprecidented and undwindling demand for a faster internet
infrastructure to support them. As we continue to buy more of these
products, consumers also want faster, better broadband connections
to support these gadgets effectively at home - especially if youve
missed the latest episode of Game of Thrones, or at least, youre
hoping to see it before someone from the office reveals who
actually dies in the fifth season! Internet Service Providers
(ISPs) have been racing to provide better internet to current and
future customers, investing huge amounts of cash into building and
upgrading the spine of the UKs fibre networks to capture this
market. And its with the provision of fibre networks becoming more
and more competitive, more cost-effective and faster construction
methods are being sought after by large and small telco providers
alike, as they seek to sign up the masses of potential customers to
their latest offerings - One solution that has received Its not
just broadband thats getting faster, network construction methods
could now also halve the time it takes for new broadband networks
to reach your home THE TRENCH REVOLUTION COMMUNICA | Pilot Edition
| 98 |
6. acclaim in the media and industry press, is narrow trenching
- a technique which has been developed exclusively by John Henry
Groups communications and fibre network engineers. Where as the
words micro trenching may strike fear into the hearts of some
cautious councils or local authorities after a series of
unsuccessful and controversial attempts, narrow trenching is a
compliant construction method, which has been carefully designed to
comply with the various elements and rules of monitored highways
specifications. Firstly, lets be clear, narrow trenching is not at
all like micro trenching. Engineers from John Henry Biscomm and
John Henry Comms actually started trialling narrow trenching
techniques last summer in a spare corner of the office car park.
But it was investment from Virgin Media, which allowed the method
to be refined for the highways, where it was trialled in Papworth,
a quiet corner of Cambridgeshire, usually more renowned for its
world-class hospital specialising in heart operations. The Papworth
narrow trenching trials have subsequently led to staggering
results, capturing the attention of the national and trade press at
the same time. SPECIAL PROJECTS The technique, which currently has
a patent pending, was the outcome of trials by the special projects
team at John Henry Group, where after several months of testing, it
was technically refined for the roadway, before being declared
ready for use in Papworth and a Virgin Media project. As its name
suggests, narrow trenching relies on reducing the size of a fibre
trench by roughly a quarter of its usual width, to 10 cm, simply
meaning less digging and effort is required, leading to faster
construction speeds at lower construction costs. Whats really
incredible about narrow trenching is the fact it can actually be
used remotely without support from complex machinery, which can be
prone to breaking down, says John Wilson, John Henry Groups special
projects manager, who has been overseeing the trials of the new
trenching technique in Papworth. The whole idea of the narrow
trenching technique is to cut down on the cost of trench work per
home, whilst using a method thats more environmentally friendly,
compliant and is less disruptive to future customers and members of
the public. This is the fastest construction method by which you
can get genuine fibre to the home. From its conception all the way
through to actually deploying on site, the technique has been
revised numerous times to achieve some staggering results as we
have had to overcome some difficulties, says John. We actually
started off with small trials in an area of the company car park
using different methods until we were able to perfect the method
for the highways. We had a problem digging a trench at the narrow
width required without damaging the existing footway - success was
achieved by the use of an opticutter - a rotating top cutter and
devised a delivery method for foam concrete into the trench which
eliminates spillage onto the exiting footway. All in all, the roll
out of the narrow trenching technique has been a huge success and
we now actually starting to use it to commercial gain on other
projects across the UK, where we are working with partners to
deliver other fibre networks. Part of the secret of the method lies
in construction technique, which actually relies on people, rather
than complex machinery, to carry out the trenching work. 100 33 In
Papworth 100 homes received broadband which was delivered 33
percent quicker offering a speedy 152Mbps connection 152 COMMUNICA
| Pilot Edition | 1110 | The narrow trench is roughly a quarter of
the size of a conventional fibre trench, speeding up network
construction times
7. faster network construction rate at a cheaper price in
comparison to other communications engineering companies and we see
this being important in the tender process for new business going
forward. We are extremely pleased with the trials we have conducted
in Papworth and we never quite expected the return appetite and
interest from both the national press and the industry media,
members of the public, who have actually praised and embraced this
progressive method and other service providers, which are seeking
less costly, or more speedy and innovative solutions to bring
broadband to their customers. We are currently exploring at least
two other projects in the UK where we might be able to use the
technique to reduce the cost of network construction for our
clients seeking to provide broadband into areas which, at the
moment, have typically poor coverage. All of which is good news for
members of the public, especially those who might already be
waiting for fibre to reach their homes, so that they can benefit
and experience quicker download and upload times. These are
exciting times for members of the public too, Jim Henry explains.
Whilst narrow trenching is not a total solution to delivering fibre
to the UK faster, we do expect narrow trenching to speed up
construction over previously slower methods. It can be used
remotely without the need for complex machinery COMMUNICA | Pilot
Edition COMMUNICA | Pilot Edition | 1312 | Specially designed and
patented trench boards will cover the narrow trench until re-
instatement can occur by civils teams PAPWORTH PRAISE At current
speeds, engineers from John Henry Communications and John Henry
Biscomm are estimating that narrow trenching methods could mean
that fibre networks could be built twice the speed of a usual
trench construction on certain hard surfaces, such as pavements and
roadways, which means significant commercial savings could be
achieved in network construction. This means that potentially,
internet service providers which are currently exploring cost
effective methods of bringing fibre to the home in new or existing
areas, may now have a solution in narrow trenching which could
offer a more affordable alternative during the construction phase.
Whilst the commercials are pretty self explanatory, the method has
also attracted significant media coverage for its environmental
considerations, which also include improved safety aspects from
specially designed trench boards, which can quickly be placed over
the trench, reducing trip hazards to members of the public.
Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC) welcomes the development of the
new trenching techniques such as these being trialled by Virgin
Media and John Henry Group, which can help to minimise disruption
to highways and the environment while improving the network, CCC
officer Nicola Denham has been quoted as saying in the media, both
locally and nationally. Conservative Party MP Savid Javid has also
lent support to narrow trenching, praising Virgin Media for
embracing progressive network construction techniques as the
business continues its 13billion expansion to its network. Virgin
Media is to be commended for their continued exploration and
development of new technologies which are helping transform the UKs
digital landscape, Mr Javid has said. He said that Virgin Medias
use of the technique is playing a significant role in driving the
UKs economic growth, which is one of the reasons the method should
become attractive to other ISPs. BRIGHT FUTURE For the John Henry
Group, narrow trenching has lent a significant string to the bow in
terms of a USP which is now being deployed to deliver a progressive
solution in network construction. Narrow trenching has also caught
the eyes of Telcos aross the United Kingdom, all of whom are
seeking quicker network construction methods at lower rates,
explains Jim Henry, John Henry Group director. This method has
certainly attracted a lot of interest from both the major and minor
telecom provders in the UK,as well as the national media. The
significant commercial gains to itelecom providers are quite
obvious, they can provide areas with services quicker and could
reap the rewards by building networks faster. Using the technique,
John Henry Groups construction costs can also be more competitive,
meaning that in some cases we are able to offer a Teams in Papworth
have noticed faster results when installing fibre cable
8. TALKING TO THE Richard Gelder, a Director of Civil
Engineering recruitment from at global recruitment company Hays PLC
talks to COMMUNICA about the current UK careers marketplace for
civils professionals EXPERT COMMUNICA | Pilot Edition 14 |
COMMUNICA MAGAZINE (CM) What is the current market like for the
recruitment of civil engineering professionals in the UK? RICHARD
GELDER (RG) For many employers, a major obstacle to achieving
growth in the year ahead will be their ability to recruit and
retain skilled individuals. In the past 18 months we have seen a
dramatic pick-up in recruitment of civil and structural engineers.
Confidence over future work pipelines is fuelling the desire to
recruit permanent staff, but as the supply of engineers is limited,
employers must move quickly to find the right people. We have
already seen an increase in demand for engineers with one to four
years experience across all sectors and deal daily with engineering
businesses seeking to increase staffing levels as workloads
improve. Quality candidates are scarce, vacancies can be tricky to
fill and high-calibre professionals can move easily into new roles,
creating many opportunities for both permanent and contract
professionals. CM :Which areas are seeing the greatest demand? RG:
All areas are buoyant, but housing and infrastructure projects
continue to have the highest demand. Recruitment for those with
drainage expertise has escalated, and the Governments aspiration to
have all centrally procured projects hit Level 2 Building and
Information Modelling (BIM) by 2016 has seen Revit software
experience becoming ever more prized. We have noticed that house
builders are opening new offices to cope with the increasing
workload and bringing design teams in house. Confidence over future
work pipelines is fuelling the desire to recruit permanent rather
than contract staff, however the shortage of suitable candidates
means employers are often turning to temporary or interim
professionals as they simply cant afford to hang around until the
right permanent staff member comes along. CM: What impact is this
having on pay and benefits? RG: The prospect of an ever-draining
talent pool, for the time being at least, is having a knock-on
effect in terms of salaries. Employers are being more competitive
from graduate level upwards in terms of the money theyre offering.
Improvements in other benefits have so far been less pronounced,
though in some regions firms are beginning to question whether
their packages are attractive enough. Employers will have to think
beyond pay if they are to compete in this competitive market,
offering clear opportunities for career development to both attract
and retain the people they need. CM: What should be done to address
skill shortages in engineering? RG: One of the causes of these
skill shortages is too few people entering the profession,
particularly at graduate level, so it is vital that we invest in
and motivate the next generation of engineers. Engineering UK
predicts that engineering companies will need 182,000 people per
year with engineering skills in the decade to 2022 but there is a
current annual shortfall of 55,000 skilled workers. To inspire and
encourage more young people to pursue studies and careers in
engineering, businesses need to partner with education authorities
to create education systems that ensure we have sufficient
graduates with the skills that closely align with what businesses
need. This means education authorities working directly with local
businesses to deliver a curriculum that provides students with the
skills demanded by employers in their area. This includes
encouraging more young people, particularly girls, to pursue GCSE
and A level physics, and creating more apprenticeship schemes to
provide alternative routes into the professions. These long-term
solutions must be addressed in tandem with an approach to
immigration that gives businesses access to the talent they need.
The market for engineers is international, and while this creates
exciting career opportunities for individuals it also means
employers must be able to compete at an international level to
attract highly skilled workers, and need policies to enable them to
do so.
9. DANGER ON THE ROADSpeed and wreckless driving are just some
of the day to day risks that traffic management teams face when
theyre working on the road. COMMUNICA finds out more about one of
the UKs most dangerous jobs COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA |
Pilot Edition | 1716 |
10. East Anglias A14: One of the regions most dangerous and
busiest roads COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition |
1918 |
11. Avantis crews like to be seen when theyre working on the
road and theyre using a variety of safety technology to avoid
conflict with unwary motorists S TANDING on the back of an Impact
Protection Vehicle on a cool but promisingly clear May evening, the
A14 is unsually peaceful, considering its one of the most important
and busiest roads in the east of England. Although Its just before
8pm, the sun is already setting and darkness is making driving
conditions more challenging. But as the light cracks across gaps in
the clouds and last elements of daylight disappear, conditions on
the road for civil engineers and traffic management professionals
are becoming increasingly more dangerous by the minute. The
statistics in relation to injury and death of traffic management of
civil engineers on the roadside speak for themselves, more than 20
civil engineers have been killed in the past 5 years on Britains
roads - hundreds more having also been injured, meaning its
actually Britains third most dangerous job - it only becomes the
fourth if the country is at war. On this particular evening,
Avanti, the specialist traffic management division of the John
Henry Group, was preparing to close the lane on the A14 - a vital
vein in the flow of traffic across East Anglia - so that John Henry
Biscomm, our fibre network design and cabling specialists, could
carry out important cabling works at the side of the carriageway.
On patrol and overseeing site safety is Avantis traffic safety
officer, Tony Carr, who will be on site throughout the night with
his team ensuring safety and standards are maintained so that work
can be carried out without risk or delay. Make no mistake, danger
is everywhere, night time is actually the most dangerous time for
anybody working in traffic management, explains Tony, who has
nearly a decade of experience of working in these conditions.
Although this is actually the third most dangerous profession in
the country, with danger everywhere, its even more risky at night
because, as you would expect, the light is fading and we are
relying on motorists seeing signage and cones. Make no mistake,
danger is everywhere COMMUNICA | Pilot Edition | 9 COMMUNICA |
Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition | 2120 | The Impact
Protection Vehicle drops its safety cushion to protect teams
standing on the back when setting out the closures
12. Tony and his teams operate in this type of environment,
both through the day and into night, to ensure the safety of civil
engineers working on the roadside and motorists using the
carriageways. At the end of the day we are here to help and not
hinder, he says. We do appreciate that sometimes traffic
management, or road closures can be viewed as a hinderance or it
really slow things up for drivers as they might be in a hurry but
its there for a reason, its actually there to save peoples lives
from the worst possible scenarios. We always try to offer
significant warnings of road closures to alert motorists to lane
closures so that they are aware that we are working on a live
carriageway and they can either slow down to drive safely through
the works, or plot another route around the lane closure. If youre
unfamiliar with how traffic management professionals operate, you
may also be unfamiliar with some of the safety gear thats in place
to protect them. We are incredibly concerned with all the safety
aspects and its a primary focus for us, for good reason, Tony
explains. Safety is always the most important aspect of this job
and to work safely and effectively, we use some fantastic bits of
technology and adhere to the latest industry standards. One of
which is Geo-sight, which allows Avanti to pictorially capture our
work sites to evidence safe working practices on the road. The
Geo-sight app is issued to the smartphones of all Avanti
professionals and means we can also get a second opinion from a
remote health and safety expert when the picture is sent via the
cloud to our headquarters for another review, Tony explains. We are
currently the only traffic management Tony Carr checks his site
safety plans before setting out to carry a recorded site audit
Safety is always the most important aspect company to use this
technology and its really been a massive help to us as a
preventative tool. Avanti also uses impact protection cushions on
the back of its vehicles, which are lowered when teams are laying
cones out onto the road. Essentially, the impact cushions act as a
potential buffer between a vehicle travelling at high speed and the
Avanti crews, who have slowed down to a crawling speed when they
are laying cones on the roadway. I also have a dashboard camera on
my car which records site activity, this camera can also be
attached to our crews safety helmets, Tony says. This is a great
piece of equipment as it allows me to video sites for audit. As you
can probably imagine, motorists get very angry when there are
delays on the road, especially when they might be in a hurry and we
are also open to abuse from members of the public, which can be
captured on camera. Our cameras help us mitigate in case our
workforce endure any verbal or physical assault - which is also not
unheard of in traffic management. For Tony, who is responsible for
on-site safety of the public and his teams during the set-up
process, there is also a meticulous and regimented site audit
process which must be completed to ensure injury is avoided, which
involves carrying out patrol-like movements inside and outside the
cordoned off sections of the roadway to ensure signage and cones
are placed in the right order. For audit and evidential purposes,
the Geo- sight, smartphone app has become a particularly useful
tool because it allows our teams to take pictures which are sent
remotely via the cloud, where headquarters and a third party can
also instantaneously review the images submitted, with any flaws in
the worksite highlighted immediately if they are not initially
spotted by crews on site. We conduct a full audit of the site using
Geo-sight and filmed recordings to ensure that our teams and the
workforce inside our road closure are protected to the best
possible standards, Says Tony. This involves checking everything
from the type of COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition
| 2322 |
13. Speeding drivers make the job of traffic management
professionals more dangerous COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA |
Pilot Edition | 2524 | Sometimes motorists just dont pay
attention
14. cone, to the way in which we deploy cones on the motorway
or to check that we are weighing down our signs correctly with
sandbags. Its all captured and recorded, which has proved to be
very useful in mitigation against unwarranted fixed penalty notices
issued by authorities. In my opinion, every traffic management
company should be using this sort of technology to protect its
crews when theyre working in these sorts of environments. Being
alert is an essential part of this job because some motorists just
dont pay attention, even when they see us dropping cones off of our
Impact Protection Vehicles, which are lit up like Christmas trees!
The Impact Protection Vehicle (IPV) is the traffic management teams
staple vehicle. Its a slow-moving flat bed lorry that carries the
teams cones - up to 400 at a time - whilst traffic management
personnel equip the cones with special solar responsive lights that
light up when its dark. The IPV has a cone well in which a member
of the team stands and leans out of the lorry to place the cone
onto the open carriageway. The zone inside the coned off area then
becomes the property of the traffic management team, who control
the section inside the buffer zone so that civils crews can work
safely, protected from the open carriageway by the cones.
Unfortunately, despite the fact that we do our very best to give
motorists warnings well in advance of any lane closures or areas
which were operating in, you would be surprised how many drivers
just dont pay attention to the lights and signs that are about 800
yards ahead of our crews - this is when it becomes particularly
dangerous, says Tony. If youre unattuned to this sort of working
environment, or youve not had any experience of working in
high-speed conditions, it can catch you by surprise just how close
cars come to your vehicle. Its not so bad at this time of the year
but for the crews in winter its quite bad - when the lorries use
their window wash you tend to get caught, or worse, the slush from
the snow can make things dangerous, especially with slippery
conditions. We generally try to work as efficiently as we can but
its not made easier with the dangers that we encounter on the
roads, especially with speeding drivers. I would ask that all
motorists should perhaps take a few moments and think before they
pass traffic management crews. The focus is always on safety, dash
cams record motorway happenings whilst measures are ensured to
place cones and signage correctly Staying alert is essential
Traffic can travel at very high speeds in close proximity to teams
workspaces COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition |
2726 |
15. TAKING Smartphones have become part of our everyday life.
COMMUNICA discovers that they are now making a difference in
engineering and construction. Words: Rob Andrews Photos: Jon
Shields COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition | 928 |
SAFIES W hether youre on a building site, or youre working on the
side of the road, the risk of accidents occuring is an ever-present
spectre in the construction industry. It doesnt take health and
safety expert to realise that there are many potential hazards
present when working in a construction related environment. But if
you talk to anybody in a position of responsibility on a
construction site, they will state that the safety of the workforce
is the highest priority. The industrys workers constantly put
themselves in potentially hazardous situations on a daily basis;
working atop of tall buildings, underground, or maintaining and
developing the UKs railways, highways and utility infrastructures.
Accidents, both minor and major occur annually and if procedures
are not enforced and monitored, injuries can occur. According to
the most recent UK Government white paper report, more than 50
people died working in construction and civil engineering in 2013
and staggeringly a further 264 members of the public were also
fatally injured, the report said. On top of this, work sites are at
risk of fines from Geo-sight technology works with nearly all touch
screen smart phones on the market with touch, meaning its becoming
an important tool for civil engineers across the UK. COMMUNICA |
Pilot Edition
16. statutory bodies, such as highways authorities, who are
able to fine companies who do not evidence the industry defined
working standards correctly, such as the correct way to display
site signs or traffic cones and cordons. On some ocassions its fair
to say that fines are not always deserved, due to third party
interference of site equipment - and by this, I mean university
students who might have indulged in an evening of frivolity on the
town, who might borrow an essential sign that warns the public
about impending works in their area or a traffic cone thats been
laid out to protect part of the works - whatever it is, if this
happens, companies are also now open to statutory critique and some
very hefty fines. Thankfully theres a new tool which has now been
rolled out across major works carried out by the John Henry Group
thats changing the way we work. Its called Geo-sight and its a
simple to use smart phone application, with a suppporting cloud
system, that can be accessed anywhere in the world through an
internet browser. Ironically unlike the traditional office
workplace, where smartphones are sometimes ironically seen as the
anti-christ to productivity, they are now vital in helping
construction teams in civil engineering to not only become more
productive but to work smarter and safer, by introducing strong
management information and KPIs. Whilst youngsters (and sometimes
adults) these days are focussing on taking selfies on social media,
John Henry Group personnel are now using Geo- sight technology -
taking safies which help them highlight potential dangers in their
workplace whilst recoring issues or auditing their work.
Blackberry, iPhone and Android occupy more than 95 percent of the
smartphone marketplace making them perfect platforms for the
Geo-sight application, which works with the phones camera to take
live pictures of live happenings on site. The pictures are sent to
a cloud database which can then be accessed anywhere in he world
with an internet connection through the Geo-sight portal. The
pictures are completely tamper proof and are stored securely within
the Geo-sight database, which also records the location of where
the photos have been taken, along with the time and can cross
reference the information with Google street view. Martin Cook,
John Henry Groups director of health, safety and quality (HSEQ),
explained that since the applications development, its been a
revelation in health and safety in the business. John Henry Group
has been using the Geo-sight application to record all stages of
our works in the public highway, from actually proving that we have
left the site properly signed and guarded to protect members of the
public, or we have carried our our duties correctly to reinstate
the highway by evidencing the work with pictures. In 2014 we also
avoided a costly fixed penalty notice during the reinstatement
process which claimed that we hadnt completed a section of yellow
lining. With evidential capture proof from Geo-sight, we were able
to mitigate against the fine. On top of this, with local
authorities taking measures to clamp down on work sites without
adequate signage, Geo-sight has been a god-send. Whilst our crews
are trained to sign and guard sites with cones and other road
furniture, we cant always guarantee this has not been moved from
the site by a third party, so when the council comes to audit the
site when we have packed up for the evening, we are left open to a
potential fine or penalty notice. Having Geo-sight on board in the
company means that we now have the proof to combat any unwanted
fines by providing evidential proof from point of picture capture
by our frontline crews, which can arriving on site and assessing
the situation, such as the condition of the footway conditions,
then recording the Road Works Guarding (RWG) set up to final site
clearance, he said. In addition we use it to record or spot defects
and to highlight any issues on work site, such as hazards that
might require further advice or support. We have also adapted the
app to record vehicle checks and to submit near miss reports.
Utilising the GPS capabilities allows us to identify a location and
to assess the site by means of Google maps with the street view
function. The technology has also been used as a unique tool to win
new business and is also now integrated with the group control
systems. Geo-sight has been ingrated with our bespoke workflow
management systems to help us monitor productivity on Virgin Media
contracts and at various stages of work, we are able to record
progress, capture essential measures, and status of works in real
time, which can in turn, be accessed by our clients - which is
great for proving what we have done for evidence for pavement. For
more information and a free trial visit:
johnhenrygroup.co.uk/partners/geo-sight/ Geo-sight allows remote
monitoring for health and safety professionals, with each image
time stamped and Geo- tagged to Google maps which means costly
signing and guarding fines can be avoided through evidential
capture. Geo-sight works with all major smart phones and can be
downloaded from app stores COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA |
Pilot Edition | 3130 | Geo-sight technology works with nearly all
smart phones on the market with touch screen function, meaning its
becoming an important tool for engineers across the UK. With
evidence captured from Geo-sight, we were able to mitigate against
the fine Were using the technology to record all stages of works in
the public highway
17. ANGA MANAGEMENTIn a special report from Cologne, Germany,
COMMUNICA catches up with John Henry Groups Chief Technical
Director, Steve Farrell, at ANGA COM, Europes leading business
exhibition for broadband and content. COMMUNICA | Pilot
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18. Held at Colognes Koelnmesse, ANGA COM is Europes largest
exhibition and business platform for internet companies COMMUNICA |
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19. T hroughout German history, Cologne has been celebrated as
an important trading point, a commercial gateway into the mainland
through its important strategic position on the Rhine, also one of
Europes most important waterways. Established in Roman times, the
picturesque cathedral citys name comes from the roman word Colonia,
because of its strategic value to the empire. Its therefore
actually quite fitting that the city should now host one of the
worlds largest broadband and communications exhibitions, where the
industrys major players meet to showcase their latest products,
share ideas, network and generally talk all things fibre and
internet related. The exhibition, named ANGA COM after the -
Association of German Cable Operators - attracted more than 17,000
visitors from 35 countries in 2014, with more than 450 exhibitors
to the citys Koelnmesse exhibition centre, an Earls Court-esque
arena, located a couple of miles from the famous Rhine river and
the citys centre. ANGA COMs isles are a futuristic and Souk-ish
maze of bustle, technological progression and fibre- related
frivolity. Amongst the international conglomerate present at the
event, the UK has slightly over five percent of the representation,
out-matched by more a more local presence from Netherlands and
Germany at 55 percent, across more than 74 countries in 2015. Six
weeks before the event, the ANGA COM was already on a growth path,
with the rented space for exhibition exceeding the 2014 event. ANGA
COM 2015 was a huge success for us, says Thomas Braun, ANGA COM
president. This applies in particular to the new first class at-
tendee numbers and the high-level of internationality. This year, I
really appreciated the especially high-quality and large number of
industry coopera- tions. - Feature continues on Page 38 COMMUNICA |
Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition ANGA COM attracts thousands
of guests from multiple countries each year with major companies
exhibiting technology BIO: STEVE Prior to joining the John Henry
Group, Steve worked for equipment supplier Technetix, where, as
Director of Product Management and then Technical Director, he was
responsible for defining and designing their Access Network product
portfolio and for providing technical consultancy services across
the company and externally to outside telecoms organisations.
Before this Steve worked for Virgin Mediafor 14 years, performing
many senior technical roles across the business, finishing up as
the national Head of Access Network Delivery and Support,
responsible for all civils contractors, civils contracts, business
support services, network upgrades and project implementations.
Steve has joined the John Henry Group to assist with the
development of our existing innovations and to define and drive our
national managed service offerings. FARRELL You could probably walk
for miles around the event stands, theres lots to see and do if
youre into fibre Steve brings a huge knowledge base to the group
from a career in the upper eschelons of senior management- Steve
Henry, Director John Henry Group | 3736 |
20. Two halls of the Koelnmesse are set aside for the
exhibition, with other areas for conferences and networking
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21. SHOPPING LISTS For John Henry Groups technical experts,
ANGA COM offers a fantastic opportunity to examine the latest
products from across the European, American and Oriental
marketplaces, laid out like a Soukh-ish maze of bustling
technological stalls and stands. Steve Farrell, John Henry Groups
technical director, who is taking his gadget shopping list with him
on a mission to find the latest tools to refine and deliver the
turnkey client solutions for John Henry Groups clients, believes
the exhibition will be of particular importance not only to JHG
staff members but for our clients. As a technical director, its
great to be able to visit events such as this to represent the
interests of John Henry Groups Biscomm (fibre solutions), Comms
(Communications CIvil Engineering) and Educomm (Educational network
provision) divisions, as we hope to examine whats going on in other
countries and explore bringing reciprocity in terms of internet
fibre and construction solutions back to the UK, says Farrell, who
has been attending the event for most of its ten year existence and
was a guest speaker at ANGA COM in 2014. This place never ceases to
amaze me, year after year, the stands appear much more impactful,
its not uncommon for marketing budgets to be escalated so that
exhibits can be showcased at this event. What is amazing is how
quickly some of the rep- resentative companies gain traction in
this market- place, if you go back a few years, China had a fairly
slim representation with a few pull up blinds but today, some of
the major players are Chinese busi- nesses with some fantastic
products, spread across a vast floor space. Ive been to this event
before and literally walked miles through the maze of stands,
booths and private meeting rooms. Walking through the temporary
maze of more than 450 special exhibitors at ANGA COM, there are
some amazing products on offer, which could change the way the
fibre and internet community operates. One such product is from PCT
international, which has released an intelligent app tool kit which
recog- nises QR codes on installation kits to help the engi- neer
make sure the right parts are not only present during the
construction phase but are installed in the right order. Another is
a fibre coring tool from Belgian company See Telecom which should
help speed up what can sometimes be the fiddly process of
connecting or joining fibre cables together. Both of these products
are on Farrells radar because hes a man who wants to ensure that
John Henry Group offers turnkey expertise as well as fibre build
solutions. And including the potpourri of products on display,
there is also an opportunity to listen to indus- try experts talk
and lecture about future changes to the industry on the Tuesday and
Wednesday In Speakers Corner, products and discussions take place
at designated times for all things broadband and internet ANGA COM
is a hive of activity, day four is the busiest with people also
attending talks at the events congress lounge Year on year,
exhibits become much more impactful with talks covering everything
from WiFi to WLAN solutions and splicers, new chamber designs and
other progressive materials, to satellite broadband are all on show
to visitors. Amongst the bustle of the exhibition, there are also
special corners where lectures take place, given by forerunners in
the industry in ANGA COMs congress area, hosted from Tuesday to
Thursday. This year, amongst the 39 presentations given, topics
included Technical Implcations and Opportunities,TV Cloud Services
and Innovative Solutions for Fibre Networks. Throughout the three
days over which the event is held, it becomes progressively busier,
with crowds reaching their peak on the Thursday. Three days of ANGA
COM with a buzzing exhibition hall and outstanding attended
congress panels proved that we can look forward to further boom
years, says Dr. Peter Chariss, managing director of ANGA COM.
Especially, new TV products like multiscreen, TV Everywhere and
coud TV lead to new potentials for both industry sectors, media as
well as broadband. ANGA COM 2016 will take place from 7 to 9 June
2016, again in Cologne. For more information on the event, visit:
www.angacom.de COMMUNICA | Pilot EditionCOMMUNICA | Pilot Edition |
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22. I t may surprise some readers to learn that not only is
there already FTTH in Africa but it is growing at an astonishing
rate that could actually overtake the UK. This growth is often
driven both by appalling or non- existent copper networks and is
coupled with fast economic growth in many developing countries.
Earlier this year in South Africa, Ventura Next enabled the first
ever Gigabit broadband in Africa for our customer Vumatel. Vumatel
has shaken up the market by deploying fibre to single homes in the
suburbs of Johannesburg and Capetown. From an initial pilot area of
2,100 homes, the company is now constructing furiously to a dozen
more suburbs and is enjoying an excellent take-up rate on its
product. At the current rate of progress, we expect to see South
Africa overtake the UK sometime next year. This ought to be a
source of embarrassment to UK policymakers, but they seem oblivious
to just how far behind we are falling in terms of having a modern,
cheaper to operate yet fantastically capable broadband
infrastructure. South African start-ups can enjoy broadband of a
quality and speed simply unimaginable in the neighbourhood of our
own so-called silicon roundabout - the techy area near Shoreditch
in London. Several other African countries already have, or are
about to build some FTTH including Egypt, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal,
Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Mauritius, the latter of
which is already quite highly fibred. The big two potential
markets, apart from South Africa, are of course Nigeria and Egypt -
both offering a population of more than 250million people. Nigeria
is the rising power in Africa with 170m population and a middle
class of around 30million people who would love the entertainment,
education FINAL THOUGHTS Ventura Next CFO, Stefan Stanislawski,
discusses FTTH growth in Africa and convenience of a fibre
broadband connection. Policy has recently changed to lay the basis
for future investment but the hopelessly corrupt and inept state
phone company has been effectively closed down, selling off its
assets. The government has licenced two regional open access
broadband backbone operators to take fibre around the cities and
these open networks will enable FTTH to be built by others. By
mandating open access and selecting tower / datacentre companies
with no structural conflicts of interest the government is
following an enlightened policy and smart strategy. In the medium
term fibre construction could boom. In Egypt the outlook is much
less clear, with policies much more in line with the UK and
protective of the incumbent Telecom Egypt, which as a result
invests little in the access network. Nonetheless, earlier this
year Telecom Egypt announced CAPEX of $449.3 million with reports
suggesting that a major part would be going towards fibre including
access fibre. If you have ever been to Cairo you will have seen
mile after mile of high density apartment blocks. In those
buildings a thousand guerrilla networks exist to share broadband
locally and if politics allow, these might one day grow into the
source of an aggressive FTTH race to build in much the same way
happened in South Korea. There is also a grand plan to build an
entirely new capital city in the desert to relieve pressure on
Cairo. It seems reasonable to assume this will be all fibre from
day one. For more information on Ventura Next, visit:
www.venturanext.net At the current rate of progress, South Africa
will overtake the UK in the next year or so COMMUNICA Cape Town,
South Africa, part of the growing sub- Saharan footprint COMMUNICA
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