The construction industry is at the forefront of the UK’s vibrant business community; working in partnership with clients and suppliers to keep Britain at the lead of domestic and international markets. But, those working within the construction industry have a lot more to contend with than just ‘building a better
Goodman European Logistics Fund (GELF or Fund) notes the corporate credit ratings upgrade assigned by credit ratings agency, Moody’s Investors Service (Moody’s) from Baa2 to Baa1. Moody’s commented that the upgrade reflects “GELF’s continuing strong operating performance, improved credit metrics and the stable to improving outlook for the logistics property
The Managed Services Community Fund, in partnership with Wickes, has donated £5000 of funding to the stand-out community project, following a competition at CIH Housing 2015. Northampton, UK (October 2015) – Managed Services, part of Travis Perkins plc, which provides maintenance materials and supply chain planning for public sector
Having a backup generator in your office is an essential part of emergency procedures should you face a power cut or blackout. If you are not adequately prepared for such a scenario, you will find you and your workforce unable to work and thus at a loss, both professionally and
Solar installation businesses are caught in a “perfect storm”, experts have warned, following a slew of government green policy reversals. The warning comes after two firms went into administration within a day of each other last week, resulting in the loss of more than 1,000 jobs. Mark Group, which employed
Exclusive: Developers of gas-fired plant that could power 2.2 million homes admit project is behind schedule and yet to secure investors The Government’s plans to keep the lights on have suffered a fresh setback after it emerged the only new large gas power station due to be built in coming
Talk of Leicester’s Royal Infirmary updating their A&E floor has taken over the Midlands, and we have asked the experts at Geobond for their take on the progress. The hospital’s five year plan is costing £300 million, and as part of this strategy, the A&E department is being demolished in
The construction industry is at the forefront of the UK’s vibrant business community; working in partnership with clients and suppliers to keep Britain at the lead of domestic and international markets. But, those working within the construction industry have a lot more to contend with than just ‘building a better Britain’ (if that weren’t enough) and navigate a highly competitive marketplace daily both as vendors and suppliers. So, imagine if we told you that you could potentially save up to 30% on your rebates, would you like to know how? Evolve are market leaders and innovators, helping organisations deliver sustainable change. Managing rebates can be a timely and costly process, not only for suppliers, but for buyers across all industries. However, with Evolve’s cloud-based solution e-Bate, there is now a better solution. Leanne Bonner-Cooke, MD at Evolve, explained, “Our e-Bate platform was born from the needs of our customers’. We had multiple clients contacting us to develop bespoke systems for them to manage their rebate process and make it more effective and auditable. Each one of them needed fundamentally the same thing: a solution which was simple to use, but had the flexibility to deal with setting up complex rebate agreements and accurately calculate the accruals and payments, providing them with workflow authorisation and a comprehensive audit trail.” Currently, many builders, extractors, merchants and maintenance companies still retain manual systems for managing their rebate process. Although they work for some businesses, rebate systems are open to human error, which can lead to costly results. They can be extremely complex to setup, maintain and run, as they often require a multitude of multi-tier calculations, including retrospective and one-offs. Impossible to audit, old systems are unable to offer clear evidence of your calculations, should they come under scrutiny from your company or auditors. In addition, they are unable to offer real-time rebate information, which could support your sales and buying teams to negotiate the most preferential rates and agreements. In short: manual rebate systems present a real risk to the construction industry, where buying and selling materials are often on a much higher scale. Leanne revealed, “On average manual rebate systems carry a 30% error rate. To put that in context: if you process £3m of rebates, that’s a potential loss of £900,000. Now, some businesses may be able to take that hit to their bottom-line (although I can’t imagine many want to!) but consider a small business with £10,000 of rebates – that’s a substantial £3,000 hit to them year after year.” e-Bate has been developed to fulfil even the most complex of rebate requirements. It is fully scalable and can be integrated with your existing ERP and IT landscape, which provides both commercial and finance teams with a clear view of their rebate position at any time. The availability of rebate data in a single source allows businesses to effectively manage cash flow, and helps to drive better decision making; both from a sales and marketing or procurement perspective. If you’re not certain if this has an impact on you, can you afford not to find out? Evolve have created an ROI calculator [www.evolve-consultants.co.uk/roi/] to help you assess the impact, with a conservative 25% error rate factored in, it’s got to be worth seeing for yourself? Website: www.evolve-consultants.co.uk Tel: 0116 298 7460
Goodman European Logistics Fund (GELF or Fund) notes the corporate credit ratings upgrade assigned by credit ratings agency, Moody’s Investors Service (Moody’s) from Baa2 to Baa1. Moody’s commented that the upgrade reflects “GELF’s continuing strong operating performance, improved credit metrics and the stable to improving outlook for the logistics property sector”. Moody’s also noted that the rating was underpinned by GELF’s high-quality portfolio of modern prime logistics properties, its broad geographic diversification and its moderate leverage. Emmanuel Van der Stichele, Fund Manager GELF said: “We are pleased with this second ratings upgrade by Moody’s, which recognises GELF’s recent achievements, including a successful repeat bond issuance, the active asset management of its portfolio and a dynamic transaction strategy. The upgrade underwrites GELF’s continued success in maintaining its leading position in the European logistics market and the Fund’s ability to generate stable, long-term returns from a modern, high quality investment portfolio.” GELF is a core fund which aims to deliver stable, income-driven returns to investors. With a portfolio valued at €2.2 billion, GELF is one of the largest unlisted real estate funds in continental Europe, with 95 assets in a portfolio totalling 3.7 million sqm of warehouse space across 11 countries.
The Managed Services Community Fund, in partnership with Wickes, has donated £5000 of funding to the stand-out community project, following a competition at CIH Housing 2015. Northampton, UK (October 2015) – Managed Services, part of Travis Perkins plc, which provides maintenance materials and supply chain planning for public sector organisations, in partnership with Wickes, has awarded £5000 to Friends of Westfield Farm, a community project based in Dormanstown, Redcar, following a competition held at CIH Housing 2015. The community of Dormanstown, Redcar is an area of deprivation and high unemployment, with many children and elderly people living in food poverty. Westfield Farm, a community hub in Dormanstown, seeks to combat this situation through a variety of initiatives, including a gardening volunteer programme to provide home grown produce and meals, as well as a schools education projects on healthy eating. Work Hubs provide careers information, advice and guidance, whilst Digital Champion volunteers support residents to access online services and improve their skills – all of which can help with future employment opportunities. Friends of Westfield Farm submitted a comprehensive project proposal on how the funding could support all areas of their work and would allow them provide support for 500 additional local people, an increase from the 2000 they currently work with. Judges were impressed and awarded the organization the full £5,000 worth of funding. The competition field was narrowed to 10 finalists, so it was a tough decision for the judging panel, which consisted of three independent judges. However, they felt Friends of Westfield Farm really was a standout project which covered all categories: Investing in your community; Employment, education, skills and training; Health and wellbeing and Environment. Samantha Cox, Groundwork UK and one of the judges commented: “As Groundwork is a charity that supports communities across the UK, I was delighted to be involved in the selection of a project to receive a grant through this scheme. Friends of Westfield Farm is delivering a range of opportunities including gardening and cookery skills and is a great project that I feel will make a massive difference in their community.” Another judge, Jenny Osbourne, from TPAS, adeded: “Friends of Westfield farm was an outstanding application and is well deserving of its win. A well designed project with scale and variety that is clearly having practical and long lasting positive effects on the community. I was particular impressed with the work being undertaken on employment, skills and training.” Barry McBride, Westfield Farm coordinator, said: “We’re really grateful for the funding from Travis Perkins Managed Services. It will allow us to build on our success by giving us the scope to expand and improve our current offerings, as well as develop new programmes. “Our community gardeners are really excited about the funding as it means they’ll be able to recover the poly tunnel, allowing them to continue to grow produce into the winter months. “You don’t need to be a Coast & Country tenant to come and use our services. We are here for the entire community. If you want to learn new skills, gain new qualifications or volunteer on the Farm, please do in get in touch. We’re always happy to help.” Chris Pentland, Social Housing Specialist at Wickes for Business commented: “The Friends of Westfield Farm project will greatly benefit the local community – actively supporting and assisting those that are most in need. We are proud to have partnered with Travis Perkins on this worthy initiative and feel the £5k will go a long way.” Stuart Hough, Managing Director of Managed Services, says: “Community projects are a really important part of what we do here at Managed Services, and we are really pleased to be able to support Friends of Westfield Farm. We think the judges have made the right choice and look forward to seeing the project progress.”
Having a backup generator in your office is an essential part of emergency procedures should you face a power cut or blackout. If you are not adequately prepared for such a scenario, you will find you and your workforce unable to work and thus at a loss, both professionally and financially. As per MarketWatch according to analysts at Technavio the global diesel portable market is to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 7.8% between 2014-2019. Proving that diesel generators are becoming more and more popular. Imagine you have a client visiting and you are faced with the embarrassing situation of having to halt your meeting as you have no back up power? It certainly would not reflect well on your brand or business. What kind of generator should I have? Generators come in various shapes and sizes based on their kVA output and engine size. These qualities are objective and therefore best decided upon by consulting an expert who can properly determine the right model for you. The more subjective differentiating quality is what kind of fuel the engine runs off. Similar to a car, the most popular fuels are petrol and diesel. Petrol Large selection available Cheaper to purchase but not as efficient as diesel Diesel Fuel efficient Cost-effective Operate for longer periods of time Long-lasting if maintained correctly All businesses should have a backup generator and it’s clear that the advantages of a diesel powered generator far outweigh the advantages of a petrol one. Whilst a petrol fuelled generator might be tempting due to its low initial price, you will likely end up paying more in the long term than you would have done should you have paid slightly more for a diesel version. If you want to ensure your business can operate regardless of any power outages, make sure you invest in a good backup generator for your office. Tarplett Generator Services supply a range of diesel generators, everything from SDMO T22k, to LSA 432 models.
Solar installation businesses are caught in a “perfect storm”, experts have warned, following a slew of government green policy reversals. The warning comes after two firms went into administration within a day of each other last week, resulting in the loss of more than 1,000 jobs. Mark Group, which employed 1,165 staff, was the first to go under, followed by Climate Energy, which had a headcount of 138. News of the administrations came just six weeks after the Department of Energy and Climate Change shocked many in the sector by announcing a consultation on a proposed 87 per cent cut to feed-in tariffs, the subsidy available to encourage the installation of small-scale renewable energy generators. “The dramatic shift to anti-sustainability has shocked everybody; you’ve got massive companies not knowing what will happen” Andrew Eagles, Sustainable Homes The cut, which will come into effect from January, comes on top of the axing of the Energy Companies Obligation, being discontinued in 2017, and the end of funding for the Green Deal. “What’s happening now is a perfect storm,” said Sustainable Homes managing director Andrew Eagles. “The dramatic shift to anti-sustainability has shocked everybody; you’ve got massive companies and tens of thousands of jobs not knowing what will happen. “I think there will be more impact for people in the future because it’s a really tough environment for people out there.” Mr Eagles added that the 1 per cent cut to social housing rents, announced in chancellor George Osborne’s summer Budget, would also contribute to a decline in uptake of solar PV as social landlords adjust to smaller revenues. “What they [installation firms] like to do is talk to large landlords,” Mr Eagles said. “For the last two months they’ve not been able to do anything, as they have been reconsidering their whole business plan.” Mark Group, which was taken over by US solar giant SunEdison in July, said in a statement that its plan to turn around the business has been “focused on solar PV but the government’s recent policy announcements mean this is no longer viable”. “If what’s being proposed happens, a lot of companies that have based their business on subsidies won’t be able to adapt quick enough” Sesh Diu, Aniron Renewables Administrators at Climate Energy this week confirmed that no buyer could be found for the business and that all staff would be made redundant. They cited “the withdrawal of public subsidies” as a reason behind the company’s demise. Solar Century head of public affairs Seb Berry called the announcement “the tip of the iceberg”, saying that he was aware of “two smaller firms” also facing possible administration. Last month, 47 organisations including Ikea and Panasonic warned that feed-in tariff cuts could lead to 20,000 job losses. Sesh Diu, founder and chief executive at £3m-turnover-Aniron Renewables, said that the financial backers of solar companies had also had their belief in the industry shaken by recent government u-turns. “The problem is that three or four announcements on the back of one another clearly have shifted investor confidence,” he told Construction News. “If what’s being proposed happens, a lot of companies that have based their business on subsidies won’t be able to adapt quick enough.” Mr Diu also echoed previous warnings from the Solar Trade Association that a sudden slashing of subsidy will create a “boom and bust” scenario, with thousands rushing to install panels before the 1 January cut-off. “DECC talk about spikes and wanting to get rid of that but the spike you’ll see over the next three to six months will be the mother of all spikes,” Mr Diu said. The DECC consultation is set to end on 23 October. “What we need is a long-term vision. What we are seeing in solar is the ultimate in silly short-term thinking” Leonie Green, STA The STA explains it had begun putting together a “rescue plan” in a bid to preserve some government investment. STA head of external affairs Leonie Green said: “This is about coming up with something urgently. “You have got some workers being given notice, others being laid off, companies going into liquidation, others desperately looking into other sectors. It is heading for an almighty bust as it stands. “What we need is a long-term vision. What we are seeing in solar is the ultimate in silly short-term thinking. “We need more sensible and depoliticised thinking.” Speaking after the announcement by Mark Group, a DECC spokesman said: “All job losses are regrettable and we sympathise with those affected, but commercial decisions are a matter for the company concerned. “Our priority is to keep bills as low as possible for hardworking families and businesses. “Government support has driven down the cost of renewable energy significantly and these costs are continuing to fall. “We are protecting existing investment and billpayers, while reducing our emissions in the most cost-effective way.”
Exclusive: Developers of gas-fired plant that could power 2.2 million homes admit project is behind schedule and yet to secure investors The Government’s plans to keep the lights on have suffered a fresh setback after it emerged the only new large gas power station due to be built in coming years is now in doubt. Energy firm Carlton Power was awarded a subsidy contract by the Department of Energy and Climate Change last year to build a new 1.9 gigawatt plant at Trafford in Greater Manchester – big enough to supply power to 2.2 million homes. The £800 million plant was due to start generating in October 2018, but Carlton Power told the Telegraph it could no longer meet that date – and had so far failed to secure financial backers for the project to go ahead at all. Mike Benson, Carlton Power’s business development director, said securing investment had proved “more difficult than we would have hoped” due to a combination of long-term policy decisions that had skewed the market, and uncertainty caused by recent cuts to wind and solar subsidies. The Trafford plant had been supposed to begin construction this summer after getting a subsidy contract through the Government’s ‘capacity market’. The scheme is designed to ensure there will be enough power plants to keep the lights on by paying their owners to guarantee they will be available. arlton Power signed up to build the Trafford plant in return for subsidies of more than £30 million each year for 15 years. On top of the ‘retainer’-style payment, it would then get revenues from selling electricity into the wholesale market. Mr Benson said long-term political intervention through “continuing direct subsidies for low carbon technologies such as wind, nuclear and solar” skewed the wholesale power market, making the price artificially low and making it harder to invest in gas plants. “Despite the widespread acceptance of the need for new gas fired generation, there is no market signal to support that investment,” he said. He added: “The recent changes in government support for renewables is an issue that concerns the investors we are talking to, as this demonstrates an increase in political intervention and uncertainty over the long term structure of the UK market.” If Carlton Power fails to secure investment for the Trafford plant by next summer its subsidy contract will lapse and it will face an £8 million penalty. Ministers would then be left to make up any shortfall in electricity supplies for 2018 by offering subsidies to other plants, such as old mothballed coal or gas plants, or diesel generators.
Talk of Leicester’s Royal Infirmary updating their A&E floor has taken over the Midlands, and we have asked the experts at Geobond for their take on the progress. The hospital’s five year plan is costing £300 million, and as part of this strategy, the A&E department is being demolished in order to build a new floor that will cater for over 180,000 patients a year. The A&E department was built 10 years ago and was designed to care for 100,000 patients – but this number is growing rapidly each year. “We’re really pleased with progress to date and the arrival of the piling rigs marks completion of another milestone on our journey to the new emergency floor.” Richard Kinnersley, Major Projects Technical Director at Leicester’s Hospitals The Major Projects Technical Director has stated that the plans for Leicester Royal Infirmary include bigger cubicles for patients, more room for ambulances, an integrated mental health department and a brand new children’s emergency department. The extra room and additional services will improve the environment of the emergency floor as well as allowing for a faster and more efficient service. The aim of this development is to prepare for the growing amount of patients the department receives each year as well as increasing patient experience and decreasing waiting times. The floor itself will cost an estimated £43.3 million and has been called ‘frailty friendly’ as its specific design caters for the rising amount of elderly visitors that the floor receives. The department will also turn paper-free and will rely fully on an electronic system to further decrease patient waiting time. The large concrete structures forming the stair towers to the new 438-spaced multi storey car park can now be seen from Aylestone Road in Leicester. The plans haven’t run as smoothly as first anticipated though, as hundreds of people wrote to Leicester City Council to sign a petition objecting to demolishing St Luke’s Chapel – a Victorian Chapel including prayer rooms located in the vicinity of the building plans. A temporary chapel has been opened including three prayer rooms until a more permanent structure can be built. The Leicester’s Hospitals website includes further information on the progress of both the emergency floor and the car park and even includes a virtual tour of the new A&E department.
