28/09/16_First Birthday Party

Sponsorship partners and Cake

Young Professionals in Construction is 1 year old and to celebrate, we hosted our 1st Birthday Party. 

In its first year YPiC has grown to 650+ members, we threw a party to get as many of us as possible together, network and enjoy some tasty birthday cake. As is now expected, the evening began with an informal networking game -  a YPiC version of pass the parcel. The abridged format of the birthday classic went down well with all in attendance; the parcel circulated the small groups for 6 seconds, the music stopped giving the holder 10 seconds to speak on a random topic. We were delighted at the laughs had and the positive feedback we received.

As this was a birthday party, we took the decision to tweak the evening format slightly. In lieu of a key speaker, the night was given over to a live DJ to provide background beats and some exciting sponsor unveiling. Between the drinks, networking game, cake and a short committee speech, the night passed at pace.

A key component of the evening was our formal announcement of two YPiC headline sponsors; Savills and Thomson Gray. Each company recognises the importance of what YPiC does for below Director level engagement and the YPiC committee are delighted to have them onboard. The support offered by Savills and Thomson Gray for the next year allows YPiC to continue to grow and bring another four events to market, towards the end of 2016 and into 2017. Exciting times indeed.

22/06/16 YPiC_04

Summer Talk

Returning to Glasgow, this time to the 29 Club, the YPiC team were delighted to have secured David Page, Head of Architecture at Page\Park, as our evening speaker. David gave a fascinating insight into how the business operates as an Employee Owned Business. He discussed how the change in company structure has positively impacted on their workflow and the access to new and exciting projects, the restructuring has offered.

David then went on to talk about the Glasgow School of Art Restoration project. Operating as design team lead, David described the approach to the restoration, cataloguing of salvaged items and the programme for the works. The talk was positioned either side of a networking opportunity, with the evening opening on a short card game.

05/04/16 YPiC_Site Visit

The new Queensferry Crossing

Facilitated by YPiC and hosted by Arup, the networking game winners from the spring meeting were given a guided tour of the fabrication yard, new bridge north pier and the south carriageway approach. The group of 14 toured the three sites via shuttle bus and despite the Edinburgh rush hour traffic, managed a couple of hours on site and managed to squeeze in a hot cup and biscuits at the Bridges Education Centre.

Many thanks to Sarah Breen of Arup for arranging the pass and conducting the informative and insightful tour.

09/03/16 YPiC_03

Spring Meet

The first YPiC Wednesday of 2016 saw the event return east, to Edinburgh.

After the successful introduction of an icebreaker networking game at the second event, the committee announced the evening’s activity to alleviate the intrigue as to why the 130 attendees were in possession of a single domino tile. In earnest, the dominos with pizza evening commenced with individuals circulating the room to complete a circle of 10 connecting domino tiles.

Our key speaker for the evening was David Stewart, Funds Manager for Standard Life Investments. David discussed their funding model and financial approach to the 3-8 St Andrew Square development. The Q+A session focussed on specific questions towards the listed façade retention, effect of Brexit and the demand for grade A office space in Edinburgh.

The event closed with the award of the networking prize; a guided tour of the new Queensferry Crossing sites, hosted by Arup.

09/12/15 YPiC_02

Christmas Drinks Reception

Building on the huge success that was our inaugural event, YPiC hosted the second event in Glasgow, at The Corinthian Club. Responding the positive feedback received, the format remained largely unchanged, save for the introduction of an icebreaker.

Glasgow based icecream architecture took to the stage, as our key speaker, describing their own unique approach to project work and community collaboration. Sarah Frood began by revealing the origins of the company name, including the fate of the original ice cream van. She then went on to describe how they set themselves apart in the marketplace - delivering social led architectural and master planning solutions.

To complement the discussion, the YPiC team facilitated an icecream icebreaker; a short sharp networking game to start the evening and promote chat. The game saw suitably mixed up the room, with the attendees circulating to find constituent parts of ice cream cones, flakes and flavours.

30/09/15 YPiC_01

The Inaugural Event

This first Young Professionals in Construction event was held in the sixth floor of Quartermile One, Edinburgh. Any nervousness held by the committee, prior to the launch, proved to be unfounded as just over 120 construction professionals attended, to network and engage with YPiC as an event.

The Committee were delighted to have Chris Stewart, CEO of The Chris Stewart Group as our inaugural key speaker. On the night Chris addressed the room on a series of topics, opening on the importance of the generation represented and how they can be activated through the forum YPiC offers. Chris went to discuss his developments at Advocates Close, St Andrews Sq and George Sq, in Glasgow. Additionally, Chris described his role with the Scottish Property Federation and the importance of challenging ourselves in our career. 

The Q+A session proved popular, with Chris being challenged on a range of topics, from investment risk to historic building restoration.