Talking Infrastructure

Airports are under increasing pressure to expand, modernise and deliver more – for passengers, for communities and for the wider economy. But with public funding constrained, how can this level of investment be delivered at pace and scale?  As demand for air travel grows and infrastructure comes under strain, private finance is playing a central role – often through partnerships between the public and private sectors. This is reflected in our Rebuilding Britain report, which highlights that unlocking private capital is essential to bridging the UK’s infrastructure gap and enabling complex, large-scale projects to move forward.  In this episode, host Toby Sadler is joined by Nick Platts (Managing Director, Luton Rising), Javier Echave Espot (Chief Operating Officer, Heathrow) and Crawford Burden (Managing Director, Aviation, Europe & India, AECOM) to explore how private finance is acting as a catalyst for airport growth in practice.  Drawing on insights from Heathrow and Luton Airport, the discussion highlights how investment and a variety of partnership models are enabling expansion and improving performance, while delivering wider value for passengers, communities and the economy.  Private finance is about more than capital. It brings the expertise, delivery capability and commercial insight needed to turn ambition into viable, investable projects – and ultimately into infrastructure that works.  At AECOM, we support clients across the full project lifecycle – combining advisory, engineering and deep aviation expertise to help shape investment strategies and translate growth into infrastructure that can be delivered and sustained over the long term.  Listen to our latest Talking Infrastructure episode over on: https://insights.aecom.com/insights/talking-infrastucture Useful links:  Project: London Luton Airport’s expansion: building capacity for the future  Project: Hong Kong International Airport 2030 Study  Blog: People Spotlight: Meet Patricia Ribó Sörensen - Blog  Thought Leadership: Rebuilding Britain: Unlocking growth from the UK’s infrastructure strategy | AECOM Insights    Connect with us on social:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/aecom/  https://www.instagram.com/aecom/

Across the world, extreme weather is putting the systems we rely on under increasing pressure.   At the same time, we’re entering a historic era of infrastructure growth. Electricity demand is rising rapidly – and around 75 per cent of the infrastructure that will exist by mid-century hasn’t yet been built.    So how do we ensure the systems we depend on today – and the infrastructure we build tomorrow – are ready for a changing climate?   In this first episode of Talking Infrastructure’s Season 5, our host Toby Sadler is joined by Marcene Mitchell (WWF), Jane McMillan (SP Energy Networks) and Sally Vivian (AECOM) to discuss what it will take to build climate resilience across critical infrastructure systems.    They cover topics such as:  Why the scale of infrastructure growth ahead creates a critical opportunity to build resilience in from the start   How nature-based solutions can complement traditional engineering to reduce climate risk    Why the incentives shaping infrastructure investment may need to evolve to better support resilience   Why today’s infrastructure decisions could lock in resilience – or vulnerability – for decades to come   Find out more over on: https://insights.aecom.com/insights/talking-infrastucture Useful links:  Come and work for AECOM: discover the recruitment opportunities here: https://acm.to/aecom-jobs Thought Leadership - https://acm.to/Lessons-from-the-Natural-Capital-Laboratory-on-connecting-nature-and-business Project -  https://acm.to/FIDIC-and-WWF-Playbook Project- https://acm.to/Building-climate-resilience Department of Transport’s Sectoral Adaptation Plan (T-SAP II) – a tailored plan assessing infrastructure across all transport modes and how governments and communities can effectively plan and deliver climate-resilience infrastructure (systematic level resilience)  Report – Royal Meteorological Society research report on climate impacts on energy sector (AECOM research report published at end of October). Connect with us on social:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/aecom/  https://www.instagram.com/aecom/

We’ve all seen the headlines—over the past decade, the UK has seen record-breaking rainfall, with climate change driving more intense weather. But our drainage infrastructure, much of it built over a century ago, was not designed to cope with these extremes.  Combined sewer overflows (CSOs)—originally developed to prevent flooding by discharging excess water when sewers reach capacity—are now being triggered more often, increasing the risk of surface water flooding. As populations grow and cities expand, drainage networks are now being pushed to their limits.  While larger pipes and storage tanks might help in the short term, they too have limited capacity and are both costly and carbon intensive to build. Clearly, grey infrastructure alone won’t fix the problem. The UK needs a smarter, more sustainable approach to managing water—one that eases pressure on sewers before storms hit.  In this episode, we focus on blue-green infrastructure, which combines natural features like wetlands and rain gardens with conventional drainage systems to manage water more effectively, reduce flood risk and create greener, healthier places to live.   Host Toby Sadler speaks to those at the forefront of the innovative projects already making an impact, from the UK’s largest sustainable drainage scheme in Mansfield, Derbyshire to Glasgow’s Smart Canal, which pairs blue-green principles with digital technology, to Castle Archdale’s integrated constructed wetland in Northern Ireland, which functions as both a wastewater treatment system and a community asset.  Together, our speakers tackle the key questions: could nature help solve the UK’s sewer overflow challenge? And what are the steps needed to implement blue-green infrastructure on a wider scale?  Tune in now to hear from:   Simon Parsons, Director of Environment, Planning and Assurance (Scottish Water)   Paddy Brow, Head of Living with Water Programme (Northern Ireland Water)  Hannah Howe, Principal Consultant (AECOM)  Find out more over on: https://aecom.com/podcasts/talking-infrastructure-podcast/  ------------------- Welcome to season 4 of AECOM’s Talking Infrastructure podcast. Talking Infrastructure delves into the industry’s hot topics, key projects, and the ground-breaking innovations that are helping to solve some of the world’s most complex infrastructure challenges. -------------- Useful links:  Come and work for AECOM: discover the recruitment opportunities here: https://aecom.jobs/  Blog: Living With Water Programme: protecting, enhancing and growing Belfast Blog: Mansfield: designing the UK’s largest sustainable drainage scheme Connect with us on social:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/aecom/  https://www.instagram.com/aecom/

"We’ve got to think about this all together as a whole-systems holistic solution, whether it’s a single rural community or whether that’s at an industrial cluster level. It’s the same—the whole nation is a system in itself. So, we’ve got to have that whole-systems approach from the top down, whether that’s transmission networks right the way down to [...] the final mile on the grid." – Kate Gilmartin, British Hydropower Association For too long, we’ve tackled energy challenges in isolation—treating renewables, grid capacity and infrastructure as separate pieces of the puzzle. But real progress demands a systems approach—one that connects people, politics, places and portfolios.  In this first episode of Talking Infrastructure’s Season 4, our host Toby Sadler is joined by Kate Gilmartin (CEO, British Hydropower Association), Dan Nicholls (Chief Product Officer, SNRG) and Sarah Falconer (Energy Planning, Consenting and Development Lead, AECOM) to discuss why systems thinking is key to delivering a successful transition to clean energy.  They cover topics such as:  How local energy solutions like microgrids could shift power back into the hands of communities  The role of hydropower in providing reliable power, flexibility and storage—and the barriers to scaling it up in the UK   What’s needed to better align policy, planning and investment to accelerate clean energy projects  How systems thinking can help tackle skills shortages and build a long-term workforce for the sector  Find out more over on: https://aecom.com/podcasts/talking-infrastructure-podcast/  ------------------- Welcome to season 3 of AECOM’s Talking Infrastructure podcast. Talking Infrastructure delves into the industry’s hot topics, key projects, and the ground-breaking innovations that are helping to solve some of the world’s most complex infrastructure challenges. -------------- Useful links:  Come and work for AECOM: discover the recruitment opportunities here: https://aecom.jobs/  Blog: Systems thinking in the energy transition: a people-centric approach  Project: Great Grid Upgrade  Blog: Realizing the multi-generational opportunities of the energy transition    Connect with us on social:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/aecom/  https://www.instagram.com/aecom/

We’re back with another installment of Talking Infrastructure—and this time we’re live at UKREiiF: the UK’s real estate investment and infrastructure forum.  In this episode, James Banks hosts a live panel discussion about the people-centric strategies needed to navigate the energy transition in an equitable way.  ------------  Welcome to season 3 of AECOM’s Talking Infrastructure podcast. Talking Infrastructure delves into the industry’s hot topics, key projects, and the ground-breaking innovations that are helping to solve some of the world’s most complex infrastructure challenges.   We'll be discussing everything from driving cost and time efficiencies within the rail industry to the importance of collaboration in bringing hydrogen projects forward.    ----------------  About the host   👉 James Banks, Director of Marketing and Communications. Been at AECOM for 6 years.    Hosting the Talking Infrastructure is a real highlight of my role at AECOM. Having launched the podcast back in 2019. I’ve seen it grow from something that was, to be honest, a bit of an experiment, to something that is now adding real value to our clients and the industry. With a growing and diverse audience, I’m always amazed when I receive emails and social comments from listeners all over the world. So, keep them coming!    Useful links:   Podcast survey – take part in our podcast survey to help shape the future of the podcast. You could win your very own exclusive Talking Infrastructure podcast mug (T&Cs apply): https://forms.office.com/r/6DcYTjsgza    Come and work for AECOM: discover the recruitment opportunities here: https://aecom.jobs    Get a copy of our FOI report here: https://infrastructure.aecom.com/   Connect with us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aecom/,https://www.instagram.com/aecom/, https://twitter.com/aecom