The UK cement industry is facing increasing pressure to reduce its emissions profile in line with government targets (net zero 2050) and end-users that a looking for 'low-carbon' concrete solutions. Furthermore, there is a shortage of supply versus demand for cement throughout the UK, whereby 5% of concrete goes to waste on construction projects and Covid19 has exacerbated supply constraints. Cloud Cycle's innovation looks to address these issues through redistributing surplus concrete onsite, linking into BIM to allow for improved design, procurement and quality control. This project will also allow for the integration of LCA/emissions reporting functionality, improving oversight of full supply-chain emissions from cement production to end-use. Access to this data and capabilities will make the UK cement industry more sustainable and competitive in the face of extreme production challenges caused by Covid19\.

Over the next few years, the construction sector will witness a wave of infrastructure projects (£60 billion of spend each year over the next decade) and ground work will be undertaken to set future financial settlements. The pace of this growth, and the size of this opportunity, demands a construction sector that is the best in the world. To maximise the opportunities to drive efficiency savings across the delivery of the transport infrastructure pipeline, this proposal brings together key UK Transport Client groups, Suppliers and academic experts to establish a Transport Infrastructure Efficiency 'Living Lab' to build capability within delivery, innovation and managing construction risk. The UK has had a modest track record of infrastructure delivery with some programmes completed late; over budget; failing to secure the benefits expected; or cancelled after a significant investment. With the increasing challenge and complexity of the government's pipeline of major projects, the capacity to deliver is being stretched. The estimation of cost and schedule can be improved and major projects and programmes are tending to avoid innovation risk. These attitudes to uncertainty and risk are deeply engrained and cultural, with inconsistencies across Departments and ALBs. Together, they create barriers to the greater uptake of Modern Methods of Construction and driving productivity. This proposal offers a strategic, scalable and sector wide approach with Government, Client Groups, Suppliers and Academia working in partnership. To overcome these challenges, the 'Living lab' will work in collaboration with i3P and the CIH to tackle the systemic issues that still obstruct the use, integration and adoption of innovations that could drive productivity and wider social benefits through major construction schemes. It will be a catalyst for cultural change, shifting focus within infrastructure delivery decision-making from the costs of construction to an understanding of its whole life value. Statement from Professor Lord Robert Mair, Cambridge University, Chair of the DFT Science Advisory Council and Member, Transport Research & Innovation Board: "This demonstrator is a transformative collaboration. It uses data, technology and Modern Methods of Construction within live transport infrastructure projects to showcase the value of data visualisation through real-time data control rooms and demonstrates where we can drive even greater productivity and efficiency through innovation transfer. By implementing advanced construction and engineering techniques on live projects, we will deliver significantly better outcomes for society and provide the evidence needed to scale how we drive productivity across the transport infrastructure sector."

"**Vision** The construction industry is currently very inefficient at designing solutions from concept with accurate **cost** & **carbon** data. This current state often leads to delays and cost inflation which are accepted as the norm within the sector (McKinsey, 2016). The vision is to deliver a solution that bridges this gap by developing a standard data structure and mapping methodology that enables an automated quantity take-off from Uniclass to Standard **Methods of Measurement** (MoM) in cost planning. This solution will enable construction projects to leverage the full benefits of Building Information Modelling (BIM), leading to shorter pre-construction phases, reduced project management costs, greater visibility of carbon emissions and overall improved cost & carbon control. AACE (AI-enabled Automated Cost and carbon Estimation) will be an applied demonstrator, proof of concept (80% industrial and 20% experimental), focusing on commercial growth for the consortium partners as well as productivity improvements for the sector. AACE will deliver: * Development of a software solution to **automate take-offs** from the BIM model using **Artificial Intelligence** (AI) * An information workflow that enables the efficient use of BIM models in a process of project take-offs for cost and carbon planning and estimation * Deployment of a comprehensive and standardised approach to whole life cost and carbon estimation The project consortium consists of: * **Skanska** - Cost and carbon estimating technical specialists * **Nomitech** -- SME - provider of 5D BIM software and development * **Mott MacDonald** - BIM authoring and developing standardised libraries * **MTC** -- Expertise in developing and implementing AI solutions * **HS2** -- Infrastructure owner providing a demonstrator environment and route to market * **RICS** -- professional body responsible for setting and regulating standards in surveying. It has an extensive experience in production and distribution of cost and carbon libraries The best practice guidelines and standardised libraries will be openly shared to commercial and carbon estimating specialists through RICS. AACE outputs will be disseminated to the wider construction industry (i3P and Construction Innovation Hub). **Benefits** Skanska estimate that these improved data flows and working practices will significantly reduce project pre-construction and constructions costs by c.13% across the delivery life-cycle. This will: * reduce carbon by 30% and 10% embodied and operational carbon respectively * deliver cost savings of c.£2.4m pa for Skanska, potentially leading to a £2.5bn saving across the sector AACE forms part of strategically aligned projects that have been reviewed and endorsed by i3P to maximise the industry-wide impact."