Insights5 Jan 2025
Data Centre Construction: Managing Risk in a High-Growth Sector
The UK data centre market continues to expand rapidly. We explore the unique health and safety challenges these complex projects present.
Data Centres &
Utilities
Quality assurance and CDM compliance for mission-critical infrastructure where construction quality determines operational reliability.
In mission-critical construction, the margin for error during commissioning is zero. What you build is what you operate—there's no remediation once the facility goes live.
Programme pressure is constant. Capacity demand drives aggressive timelines, but cutting corners on quality creates reliability debt that compounds across the asset lifecycle. The question isn't whether you can go faster—it's whether your QA regime will hold under that speed.
What we control in critical infrastructure
We bring rigorous governance to accelerated programmes. Our role is to ensure quality verification keeps pace with construction—not catching defects at commissioning, but preventing them at source.
Quality assurance regimes aligned to Tier III/IV certification requirements
M&E interface coordination across civil, electrical, and mechanical packages
Design change governance with impact assessment for commissioning milestones
Commissioning readiness verification before live load introduction
Security protocol compliance for construction within operational facilities
ITP development and hold point management for critical systems
Critical infrastructure capabilities
Principal Designer
Design coordination for critical facilities
Quality Assurance
ITP development and inspection regimes
M&E Coordination
Mechanical and electrical interface management
Commissioning Support
Pre-commissioning and IST readiness
Change Control
Design change governance and tracking
Security Protocols
Secure facility construction compliance
What you get
Commissioning Readiness Pack
Verification checklist before IST and live load
ITP with Hold Points
Inspection and test plan for Tier certification
Change Control Log
Design change tracking with commissioning impact
M&E Interface Matrix
Coordination tracker between civil and services
Security Compliance Record
Documentation for vetting and access control
QA Dashboard
Real-time quality status for critical systems
Common failure modes
Where critical programmes fail
Mission-critical projects don't fail from single defects. They fail because quality verification was sacrificed for speed—and the accumulated shortcuts surfaced at commissioning when remediation cost peaks.
1
Design changes introduced without assessing commissioning timeline impact
2
QA inspections compressed to recover programme, missing critical hold points
3
M&E coordination gaps discovered at commissioning, not construction
4
Security requirements treated as operational concern, not construction gate
Built for Tier compliance
We support hyperscale operators, colocation providers, and enterprise clients delivering facilities where uptime is the only metric that matters. Our QA regimes are designed for Tier III and IV certification requirements.
100+
MW supported
Tier III/IV
Compliance
Zero
Commissioning delays
Latest insights
Discuss your critical project
Whether hyperscale, colocation, or utilities infrastructure—our team understands the quality imperatives of mission-critical delivery.
Client Portal
The Client Portal provides secure access to project documents, progress updates, and direct communication with your Matthews & Roberts team.
Request access: info@matthewsroberts.com
Portal access is provided to approved clients. Contact us if you need support.
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