Ground-Breaking Sustainability Tool Launched

Source: ARUP (www.arup.com)
Release date: 07/28/2000

SPeAR Routine set to revolutionize the way companies assess sustainability

Arup, the global engineering, planning and environmental consultancy, is launching SPeAR, (Sustainable Project Appraisal Routine), a universal design tool enabling companies and organizations to demonstrate sustainability. The tool represents a step-change in both the understanding and application of sustainability theory and practice. It is an innovative approach to an often-uncertain issue.

SPeAR can be used for assessing the sustainability of projects, products and organizations. Central to the project is the 'SPeAR rose diagram'. It combines in a graphical format the diverse issues that need to be considered for sustainable design, including the social, economic, natural resource and environmental issues. The diagram can show both negative and positive effects.

The SPeAR diagram can be used in a vast array of different organizations to assess sustainability, from buildings and other construction projects to agriculture, transport, town planning, manufacturing and many more.

The SPeAR program is also a global tool, which has already been trialed by Arup in various parts of the world where it is equally applicable and met with overwhelmingly positive reaction. Peter Braithwaite and Lorna Walker, Directors of Arup, and leaders of the SPeAR project, explain its value:

"SPeAR represents a major change in the way companies look at the issue of sustainability, both the theory and the practice. It allows the sustainability of a project to be assessed and illustrated graphically at all project stages; demonstrating continual improvement. It highlights the evolution of a project over time, as the design develops or as alternative strategies are adopted. As a result, it is significantly different from previous sustainability initiatives."

Already, both public and private sector organizations are feeling the benefit of the SPeAR program. David Rooke, the Regional Water Manager for the Environment Agency's North-East region, commented:

"Successful projects that contribute towards sustainable development are essential for clients now and in the future. SPeAR appears to provide a simple, visual means of assessing how sustainable options are and thereby provides a means for selecting the most sustainable. Such tools will be essential over the next few years.

"We are all used to doing cost/benefit analyses. We are all going to have to do sustainability analysis in future and SPeAR at first look appears to be a good tool to do it."

Deborah Blackburn, Manager, Environmental Affairs, Jaguar Cars Limited, said:

"Jaguar is committed to achieving long-term sustainability. We are very interested in the SPeAR program and its potential application within all areas of our business."

The SPeAR approach has been developed along similar lines to the UK Government's recent publications on the subject of sustainable development in order to ensure compatibility between the government's approach and the SPeAR process.

The key benefits of using SPeAR can be summed up thus:

• Allows the sustainability of a project to be assessed and illustrated graphically at all project stages, demonstrating continual improvement;
• Allows the various aspects of sustainability to be balanced and the inter-relationship of these assessed;
• Demonstrates the evolution of a project over time, as the design develops or as alternative strategies are adopted;
• Identifies where there may be room for improvement and so achieve optimum benefit;
• The logical and transparent methodology is fully adaptable;
• Demonstrates the interaction between the various social, environmental, economic and natural resource indicators of sustainability;
• The spreadsheet behind the production of the SPeAR Diagram ensures that all assessments are fully audit traceable;
• Prompts innovative thinking to include sustainability into project design.

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