With the London 2012 Olympics preparations entering full
speed as the date approaches ever more quickly, the flooring industry is also
set to reap the benefits. Commercial real estate firm, Jones Lang LaSalle has
published a new research paper investigating the impact of sporting events on
sustainability, regeneration and industry.
Commenting on the paper, Winning Gold for Green, Katie
Kopec, head of Jones Lang LaSalle’s Development and Asset Strategy team said:
“International sporting events have been used to catalyse major regeneration
and infrastructure projects and none more so than the Olympic Games. The Games
generate the momentum through a set deadline to redefine urban landscapes and
drive innovation. It is clear that sustainable development is now at the heart
of the regeneration surrounding major sporting events and they have the
potential to act as a test bed for new processes and technologies.”
Kopec continued; “In our view, although the historic
measures of success such as economic benefits still stand true previous
research by Jones Lang LaSalle, has pointed to the need for benefits to be set
in the context of a much broader vision. For London, a mature global city, the
pure economic benefits will be relatively low but the overall opportunity to
regenerate a new quarter for London is massive and impacts a much wider range
of social and environmental benefits.”
With regards to the flooring industry, Helen McGachie, The
Resin Flooring Assocation CEO, commented:
“There is no doubt that the Olympic Games will bring a
welcome boost to the UK construction market, but as with all large development
projects the programmes will be tight with no room for error, so it is important that fully qualified
and trained specialist contractors are used to undertake the flooring work.”
Nick Gibbins, associate director in Jones Lang LaSalle’s
Sustainability Services team added; “The desire for regeneration to drive place
creation and new communities must be balanced against future demand. The
reality is that no amount of sustainable building and infrastructure investment
will guarantee the Olympic park and venues a long term legacy if the host city
is too small to generate the necessary demand to absorb the new community and
facilities.”
Jones Lang LaSalle therefore believes that real benefits for
sustainable construction can be harnessed by international sporting events in
three key ways:
Innovation - Scale allows the Games to be uniquely placed to
offer innovative approaches to common challenges on regeneration projects,
particularly in the field of sustainability. In the current market of limited
development, the ability to test the commercial viability of innovative
technology and systems is imperative. Future measures therefore, should focus
on the level of “pull through” an event will have on the broader industry.
Demonstration - Major sporting events have the opportunity
to prove that new approaches to development challenges are possible in
regeneration schemes. Regeneration
activity in East London has and will serve as a potent demonstrator of
possibilities at other UK and international regeneration schemes, and we have
already witnessed UK commercial developers and occupiers adapting Olympic
standards.
Leadership - Although the momentum of the Olympics as an
event cannot and will not be replicated elsewhere in the UK – the power
of good leadership has been critical in driving innovation on site. Long term
strategic leadership has been perfectly exemplified through the case of the
CHHP, where the development of long term, public/private partnerships, allows
commercial practices to stack up and generate returns.
Kopec concluded; “Driving down costs and converting
previously unreachable sustainability standards into the commercial mainstream
will undoubtedly be a big benefit to the commercial real estate industry. Now London's Olympic sustainability
platform has been set, the real Olympic legacy needs to follow to secure the
wholesale regeneration benefits well beyond 2012.”
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