Vanessa Lopez is Head of Sustainability and Compliance at Oktra and leads the sustainability process for clients ans well as the wider business. 

Vanessa shares her expertise on the role of sustainability within the design and build industry as well as discussing the importance of ESG.  Vanessa talks about the path to change and how adopting things like circularity in design will lead to a positive change in the future. 

Vanessa believes that the driver for change is to first understand more about the materials we are using in the construction of buildings and what changes we are trying to make. There is a huge opportunity within office design and build to create a more sustainable future and Vanessa believes that technology can help drive change in the future. 

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The projects and contract values undertaken by design and build companies have steadily increased over the past 10 years with many schemes in excess of £3 million. Managing Director Rob Gregory joins the podcast to share his expertise on how the design and build market has been evolving.

Rob talks us through his experience in design and build and some of the significant projects he has delivered which have helped Oktra to develop a proven track record of projects with values in excess of £5 million. Rob shares an insight into the projects delivered for WeWork and more recently at the Amp, a new education facility in Aldgate. 

All of these projects serve as a foundation to introduce a new venture that Rob is launching at Oktra. The new offering will be designed to deliver major projects with scopes and contract values that have typically been associated with Traditional procurement.

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Health and safety is a central part of the construction industry and it’s a term that conjures a certain image. Health and Safety Advisor Chloe Peck shares her experiences of working as part of the 1% of women in the construction industry that work on site.

Chloe shares the wide range of ways she supports health and safety within Oktra and that most of the preconceptions of H&S are incorrect.  Chloe talks CCS, mental health and supporting site teams as well as giving her thoughts on how more women can be given opportunities in construction. Data shows that women represent only 13% of the construction industry with only 1% of those holding on site roles. 

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To mark the launch of our Future Workplace Report, Creative Lead Gordon Byrne joins to share his views on the future workplace and what's next for the office. He shares his thoughts on the evolving landscape that is shaping the future workplace.

Gordon gives his views on what will be important in the future workplace as he tries to shed some light on a topic that is constantly changing and difficult to define. Gordon shares examples of some of the current projects he is working on to give perspective on just how broad the future workplace can be; with every organisation shaping their own versions of the future. 

The Future Workplace Report was created by surveying 1,000 Gen Z and Young Millennial office workers to build an image of what the future workplace might look like. We use some of our data throughout the conversation but if you wish to read the full report, you can download it via our website now.

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Interior Designer Shabazz Chapman shares an insight into the variety of places she finds inspiration for her designs as well as some of the emerging trends she is working on with clients as they shape their new workplaces.

 Shabazz shares a look into the things that inspire her and how she uses inspiration to communicate stories with clients. She also shares some of the more unconventional mediums that influence her design approach, drawing a fascinating link between the Tudors and the modern workplace.

Shabazz also talks about the changes she would like to see in the coming years as office design continues to evolve in new directions. Sustainability is undoubtedly a key aspect of the way we design workplaces and her views on how the workplace could better support women raise some interesting challenges.

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Trust, advice and reliability are at the core of strong client relationships. The mark of a great office design project is when a client comes back to work with you again. 
 
Sarah Edwards is a Project Director at Oktra and is responsible for overseeing the smooth running of a project from start to finish. In this episode, Sarah talks us through the process of building briefs with clients as well as how to give the right advice without over complicating decisions. There is a huge amount of time invested into office design projects upfront and the success of a project can be determined by the quality of the relationship that is built. 

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Dominic Dugan is Creative Director at Oktra and is responsible for driving the creative process of the business. Using his 20+ years of design and architecture experience, Dominic helps shape the strategic design vision across the four UK studios.

In this is episode, Dominic shares his thoughts on the rationale and design logic that goes into making an office design exceptional. We often talk about good design and amazing workplaces based on how they look, so Dominic unpicks that concept and looks at the other important factors you don't always get to see.  

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Efficiency and accuracy are core components of delivering successful design and build projects. The adoption of BIM in the design and build sector is about implementing new technology and solutions to improve processes. 

Alex Turner is Head of Digital Design and Construction at Oktra and runs the BIM strategy for Oktra. In this episode, Alex breaks down the meaning of BIM and how it benefits Oktra and their clients. Alex also discusses the impact of digital transformation and how we can move towards a more efficient future. 

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Data plays an important role in the design process but it's not the only thing we can rely on when designing innovative offices. Understanding where we work and how to get the most out of that space is one of the secrets of great office design. 

Sean Espinassse is Creative Director at Oktra and leads workplace strategy evaluations for all of our clients. In this episode, Sean discusses workplace analysis, the role of data in the design process and how effectiveness, efficiency and experience govern our workplaces.

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