Big projects rely on far more than one type of expertise.
Last month, Nicole Porter and Tom Harnett had the pleasure of supporting a Kier Open Doors event at Heathrow, hosted at the Heathrow Employment & Skills Academy.
The event brought together colleagues from Kier, TFT Consultants, and Anderson Acoustics – teams that already work together delivering the Quiet Neighbourhood Support (QNS) scheme at Heathrow, helping improve the acoustic performance of homes affected by aircraft noise.
Around 30 students from Lampton School joined us to learn more about construction, infrastructure and the wide range of careers involved in delivering projects like this.
Tom and Nicole helped run an activity exploring how noise insulation in buildings can change the noise experienced inside. Students built small structures, used sound level meters to measure noise, and then experimented with different insulation materials to see how the results changed.
What really stood out was how engaged and curious the students were.
It was great to introduce some of the basics of acoustics while also showing how projects like this rely on many different skills working together – from construction, project management and delivery to acoustics, surveying, quality assurance, communications, media and technical consultancy.
Days like this highlight something important: the built environment depends on a wide range of careers and expertise, including roles many students may never have heard of before.
A big thank you to Kier for organising the event, to colleagues from TFT Consultants, and to the students for bringing so much enthusiasm and curiosity to the day.
