Chris started his engineering career not in the construction industry but in large diesel and gas turbine engineering projects. From the age of 22 he lived outside of the UK in various parts of the world working on marine propulsion, power generation, oil and gas pumping schemes. He tells that in his early days the diesel engines he worked with powered Abu Dhabi which, in the 1970’s, was a small fishing village!
Having travelled the world Chris became tired of the constant flying which was rapidly losing its glamour with the introduction of wide-bodied jumbo’s so, at the age of 35, Chris returned to the UK and joined a company involved in fire protection systems in large commercial buildings and for the on and offshore oil industries.
Here he met a fellow minded colleague and, somewhat surprisingly, they decided to set up a business designing and installing clean room linings in hospitals, scientific research facilities, food prep etc. using high pressure laminate panels. Before securing their first project they were approached to look at recladding seven army barrack buildings near Southampton in Trespa Meteon and the rest, as they say, is history. A couple of years later they acquired a Schuco fabricator dealer which was in financial trouble and from there on in they could offer the complete building envelope.
Chris completed many successful projects including the rebuild of St Pancras station so every piece of glass you will see there, apart from the shop fronts, Chris and his team did. Even today Chris still gets a thrill every time he passes through the station.
Having sold the company in 2005 Chris was asked by Sir Robert McAlpine to help to set up a façade group as they had recognised the high risk aspect of the build element and wanted to de-risk it as much as possible. After 15yrs, still helping, and at the age of 70, Chris stepped back from five day a week work and after 3yrs with Schindler Fenster + Fassaden GmbH, is now a non-executive director of CGL Systems Ltd., designers and manufacturers of metal rainscreen systems.
Chris is still heavily involved in the SFE and takes every opportunity to give back whatever knowledge he can to those in the façade industry and plays an active role in the SFE.
Q1 – How did you discover your passion for facade engineering, and what keeps you engaged in this field?
I’m an engineer not just at heart but in my DNA. I’ve been looking at engineering projects, problems and solutions all my life. There is nothing better than getting out on a job site to look at how the design on the piece of paper is materialising in reality.
Façades is a fascinating sector of the construction process. So many engineering disciplines are involved. Material sciences, structural engineering, civil engineering, architecture, thermodynamics, even changes to legislation and building codes can be motivational. Everything just keeps developing in leaps and bounds, if you stand still and don’t continuously educate yourself in the latest technical and manufacturing developments you will be left behind. When I think back 15 years or so a 6m jumbo sheet of glass was about as big as it got and today Super Glass 23m long is available! I find it fascinating how the industry grows and changes as the technology changes, especially the science of testing and certification, which is playing a greater and more critical role. It’s a great place to be an engineer and I have to say that having a mechanical engineering background is ideal, but then I would say that wouldn’t I being a Chartered Mech Eng! The industry is truly international with talented people and exciting products spread across the globe. The façade industry is a little like a family and as you grow in it you find fantastic people with agile, challenging and clever minds and it is always a pleasure to meet up at some event or other and catch up on what’s what, what’s in, what’s out, and of course, who’s who. I’m proud to call many of them my very best of friends, so why would I want to miss that.
Q2 – You have led prestigious projects like 62 Buckingham Gate and Maggie’s Barts. How do you approach managing complexity related to the Façade Package Management on major projects, and in particular risk, cost, quality control and stakeholder management?
As I’ve alluded to in the first question façades tend to be complex. I’ve realised over the years that no one person in the façade industry knows everything that needs to be known to successfully deliver a compliant, working finished product. If you ever meet someone who says they know it all then would recommend looking elsewhere. Knowing your own limits of knowledge and experience is paramount and knowing where to get the other components of knowledge from is down to experience. Too many people are afraid to admit they don’t know and make decisions beyond their skill set and knowledge and that’s where things can start to go wrong. Preventing that happening is absolutely key to a successful outcome. It comes down to the team, working as a team. Having the right team, matched to the project is key. I’ve often said that you will sit in a project meeting and around the table will be many people, the client representative, architect(s), structural engineer, façade consultant (hopefully), cost consultant, sub-contractors etc. etc. Everyone in that room has the same objective “to build the job” and everyone in that room has a different agenda. The skill is to be able to deliver the job and satisfy all the different agendas. I’m not pretending that’s easy but with experience and a desire on all sides to work together it can be done. Getting the best out of people and playing to their knowledge and skills, and allowing them to use these, is the art of good management. Also saying well done from time to time helps. A good design from the architect, a good specification, well-constructed scope and sub-contract agreements, a realistic programme and a full understanding of everyone one in the room what their role is, is a good place to start. My experience is that partially completed designs, incomplete or silent specifications and poorly procured sub-contracts is normally a recipe for disaster. Lowest price is not always the solution but the engineers have to fight hard to convince the financial men otherwise and a poorly procured package generally ends up in conflict later down the line. I’m sure we have all been there. If you get it right at the start you stand a chance if you don’t, watch out.
Q3 – Your significant contribution to the SFE for several years, by serving as Chair, Vice Chair, and Board Member, earned you the recent Presidential Commendation in 2023 Façade Awards. Looking back, what has the SFE achieved and how has it benefitted the entire Façade industry in your view?
Chris Macey had the vision that façade engineering was a science and those of us who call ourselves façade engineers need to be recognised for that discipline and to have a central purpose around which we can come together. The SFE is the organisation which represents the façade engineer, gives a common base and a recognition of expertise which is not found in any other engineering specialism. The SFE is striving to enhance the stature of façade engineers in the built environment industry, to get the message out to developers, architects, main-contractors and government that façade engineering is truly a specialism which is not simply covered by employing a selection of specialists from the other engineering disciplines such as architecture, structural, civil, mechanical etc and expecting it to be OK. Yes these skills are important, but the beauty of façade engineering is that it combines all of these disciplines and you need façade engineers who have the deep understanding of the elements involved to be able to get the right knowledge in the right place at the right time, as well as bringing their own knowledge and skill set to the team. The SFE is the vehicle to bring those who wish to be called façade engineers together to develop their knowledge further by meeting together and learning from each other in a productive, non-competitive environment. Now of course through the SFE and CIBSE you can apply for Chartered Engineer status and with the fallout from Grenfell and the Building Safety Act the requirement for suitably qualified façade engineers will become a must. The SFE has recognised this and is working hard with CIBSE to make sure our position and visibility in government is known and that the SFE is the go-to place for expertise and guidance. Having MSFE after your name now carries a greater impact for confirmation of ability than ever before and hopefully this impact will continue to grow.
Q4 – After spending a significant part of your career as Head of Façades in a major main contractor, how do you define your leadership style, and how do you motivate and inspire your team?
I’m not sure I’m the one to answer this question, perhaps you should ask someone who was part of a team I led! However, in the absence of such a person I would like to think that I try to be inclusive for everyone in the process. In a way I see being the leader as the conductor of an orchestra. There will be virtuosos in every instrument and as the conductor you have to respect their knowledge and abilities, understand their limits, get them to play at the right time and together produce the overall finish you require. I value everyone’s opinion, right or wrong, I always say there is no such thing as a dumb question, and I encourage people to work together. Ultimately, you need to gain the respect of the team so that they trust your judgments but are not afraid to say when they think you are wrong. We often speak of “collaborative working” and, to my mind, that’s not just management speak it is actually the way to succeed.
Q5 – If you were to share a message today to a younger Chris, or façade professionals at the onset of their career, what would this be?
When I look back at my career I could not have said at the beginning where I would end up at the end. I don’t think anyone can, life is not like that. So I say, never say no to a challenge, you have no idea what will come from it. Try different things whilst you have the chance. For example, if you work in main contracting spend a spell in sub-contracting, it’s a different world. Perhaps if you can get an exchange and work in a consultancy and see the world through their eyes, I would have found that personally very enlightening. If you work in manufacturing see if you can get a short term in an architects practice to see how they think about materials, products and system application. The more ways you can see how the others around the table look at a project and where their agendas come from, the more ability you will have to ultimately lead the team.
Of course, it goes without saying become a Member of the SFE as soon as possible. Doing so makes a wealth of information available to you and makes a statement about you and your intent which will support you throughout your career in façade engineering.
Q6 – Looking at the future of our industry, can you expand on one (or more) key challenges that façade professionals are facing today?
I think we are all well aware of two issues which have a direct impact on façade engineering today in the UK. The outfall from Grenfell and the effects of climate change.
We all know Grenfell should never have happened and the shift in legislation is having an impact on everyone involved in HRB’s and relevant buildings. The recently introduced Gateway 2 process is still evolving and causing severe delays in getting projects off the ground. I believe that the technical requirements surrounding relevant buildings will become the norm across the industry and the requirement to show the right credentials to allow one to be involved in the design and delivery will not be an option. The UK Standard for Professional Engineering Competence and Commitment Contextualised for Higher-Risk Buildings (UK-SPEC HRB) is a new Standard from the Engineering Council that sets out the competences and commitments expected of engineers and technicians who work in the built environment sector, in particular on higher-risk buildings. Understanding the requirements of these new registrations and making certain you have them in your portfolio of expertise I believe can only be a positive.
Climate change and the carbon issue will dominate future building design and materials. There are many products already claiming to deliver a greener solution but getting to the bottom of some of their marketing claims, and actually seeing the detailed EPD or test certification, is not always straightforward. It is imperative that the façade professional knows the right questions to ask and has the perseverance to get to the truth about the products’ credentials. This is still an emergent issue and there will undoubtedly be those who will get it wrong through ignorance or the drive to the bottom line. Staying informed and regularly trained in this sea of information is vital. The SFE is working hard with the CWCT and CIBSE to provide the technical expertise required and the bases for façade professionals to lean on.
Q7 – Rumour has it you’re a pink gin enthusiast! What is the backstory
I’m not sure this is a facete of my reputation I ever thought I would be measured against!
When I was a globe trotter 45+ years ago I frequently visited Cairo. Club 36 at the top of the Ramses Hilton was my regular watering hole as it allowed one a panoramic view of the Cairo skyline, which is particularly spectacular at night. On one such visit I met a British Navy Commander sitting at the bar and he introduced me to the navy officer’s wardroom favourite drink, Pink Gin. I immediately developed a great liking for the tipple and continued to teach bartenders around the world how to make it because it is so simple, easy to drink and not overly expensive. The downside was that following my introduction to the drink every time I went into the Club 36 bar George, the bartender, automatically put a pink gin on the bar even if I didn’t want one!
The perfect pink gin is made as follows:
- Take a standard goblet glass. Must be dry.
- Add a few drops of Angostura bitters. Turn the glass to coat the inside and very gently shake out the excess. The dry glass is the bitters measure.
- Add a single measure of gin, Plymouth if it’s available as it is slightly sweet and counters the bitters, but any old gin will do.
- Add a single measure of water, mix, and that’s it.
According to the Commander in the tropics you are allowed to add a single ice cube. If you want a double, make two singles and add them together. The dry glass is the bitter’s measure so never, never, never allow a bar man to put ice in the dry glass first, which is what they always want to do!
Enjoy! P.S. I still drink them should you ever wish to indulge me!