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Sam Caborn

Senior Lecturer

Sam is a senior lecturer in the School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing. A Chartered Building Surveyor (MRICS) and MIFireE, Sam previously worked as a managing building surveyor before moving into academia, bringing valuable industry expertise to teaching.

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Sam Caborn

About

Sam is a senior lecturer in the School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing. A Chartered Building Surveyor (MRICS) and MIFireE, Sam previously worked as a managing building surveyor before moving into academia, bringing valuable industry expertise to teaching.

Sam is a senior lecturer in the School of Built Environment, Engineering and Computing. A Chartered Building Surveyor (MRICS) and MIFireE, Sam previously worked as a managing building surveyor before moving into academia, bringing valuable industry expertise to teaching.

Sam is currently a module leader for Building Design Through the Ages, Building Pathology, Defects and Repairs, and Building Surveying Commercial Management. Sam also teaches on Introduction to Construction Technology and Construction Technology. In addition to teaching responsibilities, Sam supervises undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations (BSc and MSc) and supports students during their industry placements as a placement supervisor.

Sam is also undertaking a PhD on a part-time basis alongside his full-time role as a senior lecturer. His research focuses on the application of artificial intelligence in building surveying. Recently, Sam contributed to a published paper titled "A Macroeconomic Analysis of Insolvency in the UK Construction Industry."

Research interests

Sam is currently undertaking his PhD, with research interests focused on building fabric defects and the use of artificial intelligence to support defect diagnosis. Drawing on his expertise as a Chartered Building Surveyor, Sam explores how AI can be effectively integrated into professional surveying practice.

Publications (1)

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Journal article
A macroeconomic analysis of insolvency in the UK construction industry
Featured 17 March 2025 Engineering, Construction and Architectural Managementahead-of-print(ahead-of-print):1-28 Emerald
AuthorsYung P, Saka AB, Caborn SE

Purpose This paper examines macroeconomic factors affecting insolvency level in the UK construction industry. Design/methodology/approach A lagged dependent variable (LDV) model is proposed which adequately addressed the serial correlation and endogeneity problems commonly existed in time series data. Objective macroeconomic data from Q3 1997 to Q4 2023 are used to evaluate seven refutable hypotheses. Findings It is found that higher unemployment rate or annual interest burden leads to higher number of insolvencies, while higher construction output value or interest rate leads to lower insolvencies. Domino effect in construction insolvency is also confirmed. Research limitations/implications The proposed solutions to the missing data on 3 quarters and the changes in the industry breakdown methods during the study period might have affected the accuracy and consistency of data. Practical implications The paper provides objective insights to factors affecting construction insolvency, offering tools for future policy formulation. Social implications Knowing factors affecting insolvencies helps formulating solutions. Originality/value Previous studies on insolvency in construction industry have largely focused on prediction of insolvency of individual companies using firm level financial data, which are symptoms of failure rather than root causes. Studies using questionnaires could be subjective and the limited studies using macroeconomic factors often have methodological issues. This paper bridges the gap by analysing objective macroeconomic data with a sound methodology.

Current teaching

Sam is currently a module leader for Building Design Through the Ages, Building Pathology, Defects and Repairs, and Building Surveying Commercial Management. Sam also teaches on Introduction to Construction Technology and Construction Technology. In addition to teaching responsibilities, Sam supervises undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations (BSc and MSc) and supports students during their industry placements as a placement supervisor.

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Sam Caborn
25820