The seminar is aimed at engineers, construction and architecture professionals, and anyone working with supply‑chain partners across major or smaller‑scale projects.
Date: 9 June 2026
Time: 1.00pm-3.00pm
Time: 1.00pm-3.00pm
Venue: University of Southampton Business School, Boldrewood Innovation Campus, Building 175, SO16 7QF
Cost: FREE for all
Cost: FREE for all
This talk at USBS will set out a bold vision for how the built environment could, and must, transform over the next decade. Drawing on Sam Stacey’s book, Brunel’s Bees, it will begin with a picture of construction in 2036: a system that will deliver not just buildings, but flourishing outcomes: health, resilience, productivity and environmental performance. It will then turn to the present. Despite technical capability, the sector will be shown to remain fragmented, risk-averse and locked into short-term incentives. These systemic issues will explain why crises in housing, safety and climate will continue to repeat.
The talk will then examine the disruptive potential of artificial intelligence. AI will not simply be presented as a tool for efficiency; it will be framed as a shift from labour-intensive production to data-enabled decision-making, with profound implications for value, skills and business models. This will create both existential risks and unprecedented opportunities for the sector. The implications for academia will be significant. If the built environment is to function as a coherent system, education and business schools in particular have a key role to play. We will need to evolve – equipping graduates with systems thinking, digital fluency and the ability to operate across disciplines. The conclusion will be clear: change will not be incremental. The conditions for radical transformation are finally in place, with profound impacts for us all.
To register please click here.
Contact details:
Anna Seitanidou, Business Development Manager, USBS
Anna Seitanidou, Business Development Manager, USBS