Adam Newell
It is an honour to be able to address you and ask for your support in my bid to be elected as your Vice-President Practice. Anyone who knows me knows of my passion for our profession, and I would be proud to represent us. Please take some time to read my manifesto, which introduces me and outlines what I hope to contribute.
Who am I?
Some of you may know me from my work with CIAT, or from meeting at the AT Awards or AGMs. I always try to meet as many members and affiliates as possible. I am Adam Newell FCIAT, born in 1983. I have worked as an Architectural Technologist since 2006, currently with BDP on prestigious landmarks. I have been an active member of the Greater London Regional Committee since 2013, where I have played a key part in building a strong team, holding roles like Secretary, Chair, Treasurer, and Councillor. As Councillor for the past five years, I have served on the Conduct Committee, Executive Board and represented CIAT at various events.
I value my CIAT membership and consider becoming Chartered a key career milestone, thus I help the next generation through mentorship. I have developed a keen interest in both sustainability and our built heritage, for which I think there is a unique challenge with respect to conservation requiring an innovative solution for a sustainable future.
As I apply for the Vice-President Practice position, I want to emphasise my generalist experience across various practice forms through my journey to date, which gives me a unique insight into the vast range of different practices and skillsets our membership has to offer.
My journey
When I began my journey in 2002, I was unsure of my career path. I enrolled in an undergraduate BSc in Architectural Technology at Napier University in Edinburgh, driven by my passion for our built environment. Promoted by my lecturer, Robert Mason PPCIAT MCIAT, I joined CIAT and have since built a career aligned with my strengths and interests. Over the past 20 years, I have worked on prestigious landmarks across the UK and Ireland, thanks to the support and recognition I have received as a member of CIAT. After completing my undergraduate degree in 2006, I moved to Galway to work for Dooley Architects. I worked on various projects, including a town centre development, using Revit.
While enjoying the work, I began planning my next career step. With guidance from my old lecturers, I enrolled in the MSc in Technical Architecture at Sheffield Hallam University. Returning home for the summer, I worked for William Lippe in Inverurie to assist with barn conversions. Upon starting my Masters, I joined WCEC in Chesterfield, where I worked on supermarkets. The experience was enjoyable and provided valuable insights into large-scale projects, contracts, sites and processes. My interest in sustainability led me to become a BREEAM assessor and BREEAM AP. I have always been interested in history and our built heritage, possibly from growing up in a 300-year-old Coaching Inn in Aberdeenshire. I started an MA in Conservation and Regeneration at Sheffield University in 2011. To diversify, I moved to London in 2012 and worked on very high-end residential projects for a prestigious little practice in Notting Hill.
I completed my Masters and became Chartered in 2013, joining the Greater London Regional Committee. A move to McBains, a medium-sized multidisciplinary company, broadened my experiences working on exciting projects like police HQs, care homes and motor retail. I was offered a chance to work on the Palace of Westminster, leading me to join BDP in 2019, where I remain. In addition to my work with BDP, I own Penguin Architecture, a small CIAT Chartered Practice. I enjoy the personal connections that accompany small-scale domestic work while I learn to run a business. I became a Fellow member of CIAT in 2023.
Why me?
I do not advocate radical change. I believe the Institute is in a great place as we continue to grow. Our Central Office staff team and members and affiliates who support us have made this possible. Without their support, we would not be in this strong position. I want to continue helping and supporting the team as we enter our 60th year. I bring my personal strengths, interests and varied career to the team, providing a broad understanding of our diverse membership and their unique talents.
I have a proven record as an ambassador for the CIAT brand and come to this with the full support of BDP, giving me the time, passion, and energy to fulfil the role. I wish to promote a culture of curiosity and community. I am very good at being the catalyst which brings people together. I can build and lead teams and provide enablement and direction. I think we are stronger together. I work for a global organisation, from which I am able to help support our recognition out with the UK.
With an understanding of sustainability and part of the Building Safety group at BDP, for which I am completing my BRPD HRB registration, I am well placed to support our main goals of low carbon and building safety.
What I hope to achieve during my term?
While supporting the Practice Department and representing CIAT when appropriate, I would like to focus on my interests aligned with our strategic plan: low carbon and our built heritage. The success of CIAT relies on our prestigious brand being recognised in the highest regard. This recognition comes from demonstrating a trusted sense of accountability, responsibility, and integrity; simply put, by doing a good job. Being part of a larger team, sharing resources and ideas, helps us achieve this. CIAT is the catalyst that helps us connect.
A core goal of our strategic plan is recognition. As we continue to prove our worth, this recognition will follow. This is evident within the industry; a change I have witnessed over recent years. With this recognition, others will want to work with us, and this in turn promotes the values of being a member. For me, we are a small family, and strength comes from our collective efforts.
As Vice-President Practice, I want to focus on helping people connect. I do this already at a local level at work and within the Greater London community and can scale this up as Vice-President Practice by strengthening links and building relationships. I am keen to engage with as many members and affiliates in all varieties of practice as possible. It is important to understand the challenges our membership is facing and work to overcome them.
Collaboration with the other Vice-Presidents is essential to this as we draw people through university and give them the tools to perform their unique skills. I understand the intricacies of the rapid pace of legislation change in the built environment and will be available to assist members and affiliates in addressing challenges like the Building Safety Act or potential planning reforms.
The new societies, Digital and Sustainability, I think are a great initiative. I can help build on this as I bring my own expertise. We are a global organisation which I think can feel difficult sometimes to bring people together when considering there are so many things which are different: legislations, markets, etc. There are, however, many things which make us the same. Sustainability and conservation are global common values that unite us. Bringing people together to focus on a particular subject where there is a common theme will give us the basis to foster collaboration from which other conversations will grow. Using my interest and accolade in conservation, I would like to champion the creation of a Heritage and Culture Society. I believe this, along with our Sustainability Society, holds the key in helping our global community come together. Our industry has so many facets; however, it is the desire to build sustainably within the context of our built heritage and culture that is central to the DNA of Architectural Technology and the common thread which we all understand and have something to contribute towards.
To conclude
The world has changed since CIAT’s inception on 12 February 1965. However, in 1965, the Institute was formed by a group of individuals of like-minds who came together with a common purpose. They met regularly, becoming friends, and the Institute grew from this fellowship. The way we communicate has changed. The way we work has changed. However, the sense of camaraderie and being part of a team is still true today.
Yes, CPDs, technical conferences, etc., can and should be centralised; however, getting people together, face-to-face, is where the real magic happens, and remains the key to the continued success of the Institute. I wish to help and promote this as much as possible.
I am thankful for the opportunity to serve for the past twelve years in various capacities and look forward to the busy times ahead. The success of the Institute is very important to me, and it would be a great honour to serve you in this position. I am a strong believer in the work of our Institute and believe that we have an opportunity to make a real difference for the benefit of all our members, affiliates and the wider society. With this, I seek your vote, as I strive to work on your behalf for the betterment of our Institute.
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https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-newell-fciat-8436