Demand for office space across major Australian markets is on the rise in 2016, according to new data from Colliers International. According to the firm’s latest Office Demand Index, a total of 507,799 square meters of demand was recorded in the first quarter of 2016, a 33% increase from the
The rapid growth of the buy to let market in the UK during 2015 was at the expense of first time buyers despite Government initiatives to encourage home ownership, new research has found. The proportion of buy to let mortgage enquiries grew by 4.4% to 18.2% during 2015 compared with
A report out today says that the government’s house-building statistics under-report new build totals by as much as 20%. The Home Builders Federation (HBF) report Ghost towns shows how flawed methodology and poor returns from Local Authorities mean 30,000 new builds a year are not being counted in the official
The clearing price for next four-year-ahead (T-4) capacity market auction is unlikely to be high enough to secure investment in new combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT), Cornwall Energy has predicted. The government’s efforts to stop small-scale diesel generators from winning contracts will only have the desired effect
Category: Construction Industry Today | Subscribe to Construction Industry Today Feed Published Fri, Apr 8th 2016 The portland cement market demand in 2013 was worth 3,670.8 million tons and is expected to reach 5,165.1 million tons by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 5.1% between 2014 and 2020. Posted
Lendlease and Multiplex have entered the race to bid for Google ’s £600m HQ in London, alongside Mace and Sir Robert McAlpine. Bids were submitted last Friday for the mammoth project, ahead of an announcement by the internet giant this week that it was committing to building the scheme. Construction
A date has been given for the reopening of Marlow Bridge. Closed to traffic since September 24, it is hoped it will open on Friday November 25, weather permitting. The decision follows the outcome this week of structural engineering tests, which have been carried out since a 37-tonne lorry tried
Mr Galloway has joined Triflex with responsibility for the development of business in the education sector, where the company has delivered a significant number of successful roofing and walkway projects over the last few years. Having been directly involved in the roofing sector for some 23 years, he has an
A couple of years of boundless optimism about the Internet of Things has been tempered by the recent DynDNS attacks. Suddenly thought pieces are proclaiming that the IoT might be set for an early death, with consumers, businesses and facility managers fearful of the potential security risks to their data
Demand for office space across major Australian markets is on the rise in 2016, according to new data from Colliers International. According to the firm’s latest Office Demand Index, a total of 507,799 square meters of demand was recorded in the first quarter of 2016, a 33% increase from the fourth quarter of 2015. Large businesses looking for more than 3,000 square meters of office space accounted for over 50% of the total area enquired for in the first three months of 2016, while representing just 9% of the total number of enquiries, by volume. Small businesses looking for 1,000 square meters or less accounted for almost 80% of the total number of enquiries recorded in the first quarter this year. ‘We have found that compared to this time last year, on average, businesses are enquiring for more space,’ said Simon Hunt, Colliers International managing director of office leasing. ‘On a national level, the average area enquired for as of the first quarter of 2015 was about 888 square meters. In the first quarter of 2016 it increased to 1,050 square meters,’ he added. Notable increases were recorded in Brisbane, where average size required increased to 1,287square meters in the first quarter, up from 774 square meters in the first quarter of 2015, and Canberra, which recorded a significant jump in average size enquired for from 1,167square meters to 1,942 square meters. There was also an increase in average size requirement in the Sydney CBD, from under 1,000 square meters in the first quarter of 2015 to over 1,600 square meters in the first quarter of 2016. Locations that saw a small drop in average size included Sydney Metro and Melbourne CBD. ‘This quarter, we have seen the greatest number of large businesses enquire for office space in almost 10 years, which has contributed to the increase in the average area currently in demand,’ Hunt said. ‘This trend is also flowing through to transactions. In the first quarter of 2016, we have seen an increase of more than 15,000 square meters or 22% in the amount of office space leased. Larger businesses are doing the deals at the moment and this is showing up in both transactional and demand data. In the coming months, we expect smaller businesses will also increase their activity,’ he added. According to Simon Crouch, Colliers International head of tenant advisory, much of this smaller demand had been created by the compulsory acquisition of buildings associated with the Sydney Metro project. ‘Since February 2016 we have been appointed by 10 businesses averaging 300 square meters in size who require expert advice to help them through the relocation process,’ he pointed out. BOOKMARK THIS PAGE (What is this?) Source link
The rapid growth of the buy to let market in the UK during 2015 was at the expense of first time buyers despite Government initiatives to encourage home ownership, new research has found. The proportion of buy to let mortgage enquiries grew by 4.4% to 18.2% during 2015 compared with 2014, whereas the proportion of enquiries for first time buyers fell by 3.7% to 23.5%. According to price comparison website comparethemarket.com the inverse correlation indicates that the buy to let market has gained a chokehold over first time buyers, as many struggle to get out of rented accommodation and on to the housing ladder. January showed no signs of a reducing market, as the first month in 2016 showed year on year growth of over 16% and 62% increase compared to December, reinforcing the sentiment that the current buy to let market may be unsustainable. Evidence indicates that if the market continues in its current direction, the number of enquiries for buy to let mortgages will outstrip the number for first time buyer enquiries, which would be a blow to the Government’s home ownership drive. Overall the buy to let market saw growth during of over 23% in enquiries on the website in 2015 and the initial cut on tax relief also did little to reduce the swelling of the buy to let market as enquiries rose by 14% in the three months after the announcement made by the Chancellor at the Summer Budget, compared to the three months before. However, with the new stamp duty on buy-to-let properties, announced at the Autumn Statement, coming into effect this spring, many expect the market will finally dampen. Elsewhere, January proved to be a particularly buoyant month for the mortgage market as the number of enquiries rose by more than 8% compared to 2015. It seems that January is the time that consumers get their respective houses in order with a recent study by comparethemarket.com finding that 44% of consumers used the month to ‘sort out’ their finances. ‘The buy to let market has been subject to both extensive discussion and criticism over the past year with even the Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee labelling it a risk to the UK’s financial stability,’ said Jody Baker, head of money for comparethemarket. ‘This data only reinforces the view that over the past year, families and others looking to get a foot on the housing ladder are being priced out by landlords. It was great to see the Government take action in the Autumn Statement but time will tell as to what the material impact will be on the market after 01 April,’ Baker added. BOOKMARK THIS PAGE (What is this?) Source link
A report out today says that the government’s house-building statistics under-report new build totals by as much as 20%. The Home Builders Federation (HBF) report Ghost towns shows how flawed methodology and poor returns from Local Authorities mean 30,000 new builds a year are not being counted in the official numbers. Analysis indicates that the house-building statistics published quarterly and annual by the Department of Communities & Local Government (DCLG) under-report new build completions in 75% of local authorities with an average of 153 new homes ‘lost’ in each of those areas. More than half of new build homes in some areas, including Birmingham, Liverpool, Leicester, Salford and many London boroughs, are completely unaccounted for in the quarterly series, the HBF says. HBF executive chairman Stewart Baseley said: “Housebuilding has increased significantly in recent years but the continual publication and use of inaccurate statistics is painting a negative picture that is undermining the progress being made in tackling the housing shortage. The government’s housing policies and the industry are delivering, and it is incredibly frustrating that official statistics are not reflecting what is happening on the ground but instead presenting an open goal for critics.” According to HBF analysis, the published data excluded: At least 75% the London Boroughs of Brent, Wandsworth, Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea, 1,280 new homes in Birmingham (two-thirds of all new build completions) 920 new homes in Liverpool (63% of all new build completions) 640 new homes in Salford (half of all new build completions) 570 new homes in Leicester (6 out of 10 new build completions) 570 new homes in Sheffield (40% of all new build completions) 400 new homes in Chester West & Chester (29% of all new build completions) This article was published on 19 Sep 2016 (last updated on 19 Sep 2016). Source link
The clearing price for next four-year-ahead (T-4) capacity market auction is unlikely to be high enough to secure investment in new combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT), Cornwall Energy has predicted. The government’s efforts to stop small-scale diesel generators from winning contracts will only have the desired effect in certain circumstances, it said in analysis. The market intelligence firm said there is a “significant level of uncertainty” over the T-4 auction for delivery in 2020/21. It estimated that the auction could clear at anywhere between £20/kW and £50/kW due to wide-ranging assumptions over the “the level of embedded participation, interconnectors, coal closures and the effects of changes in demand”. Small-scale diesel generators were awarded the majority of contracts for new capacity in the first two auctions. To stop this happening again the government has made efforts to remove the ‘embedded benefits’ experienced by the generators, and has increased the target volume for the auction to 52GW. Cornwall Energy estimated that a clearing price of £42/kW would be needed in the next auction to secure investment in new CCGTs. It therefore said the government’s attempts to stop the return of small-scale diesel would only pay off “in the scenarios where we assume low interconnection, low embedded participation and coal closures”. If the auction clears at the middle of the range (£30/kW), it would cost around £1.5 billion in the first delivery year (£17.80 per household). This would be “enough to replace all of the current CCGT fleet with 33GW of CCGT”. If the auction did clear at £42/kW, the annual cost would rise to £2.1 billion. Cornwall Energy also estimated that the extra auction for 2017/18 – brought in to replace the Supplemental Balancing Reserve a year early – will clear at between £19.8/kW and £27.5/kW. With 53.8GW of capacity being secured, this would result in an annual cost of just over £1 billion. The T-4 auction for delivery in 2020/21 is due to take place in December this year. The early auction for delivery in 2017/18 is scheduled for January. Source link
Category: Construction Industry Today | Subscribe to Construction Industry Today Feed Published Fri, Apr 8th 2016 The portland cement market demand in 2013 was worth 3,670.8 million tons and is expected to reach 5,165.1 million tons by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 5.1% between 2014 and 2020. Posted via Industry Today. Follow us on Twitter @IndustryToday Transparency Market Research has released a new market report on the Portland cement market, titled “Portland Cement Market – Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2014 – 2020.” The report states that the global Portland cement market, which totaled over 3.6 bn tons in 2013, is expected to amount to 5.2 bn tons by 2020, expanding at a CAGR of 5.1% from 2014 to 2020. The study analyzes the product value chain and evaluates the market based on Porter’s five forces model, analyzing the degree of competition in the market. Portland cement is crucial for construction applications such as the construction of commercial or residential structures. Growing urbanization in Asia Pacific has led to a rise in demand for housing and other infrastructure development. This, in turn, leads to a rise in the demand for Portland cement in the region. Since nations such as India and China are expected to require basic infrastructure facilities to be built, these countries are anticipated to be the major segments of the Asia Pacific regional market propelling the Portland cement market in the future. Moreover, the Rio Summer Olympic Games in 2016 and the FIFA World Cup in Russia in 2018 will require world-class infrastructure developments for the stadiums and other auxiliary amenities. The Russian government has allocated US$16 bn for the development of essential infrastructure for the FIFA World Cup. This is expected to drive the demand for Portland cement in Russia and Brazil. One of the major factors limiting the growth of the Portland cement market is the environmental regulations put forth by several governments. Cement production is an energy-intensive process, which can cause many regions to impose various regulations regarding emissions from the cement industry. Geographically, the Portland cement market is segmented into Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, and Rest of the World. Out of these regions, 60% of the global market was held by Asia Pacific in 2013 in terms of total consumption. North America and Europe followed next as the major consumers of Portland cement. View exclusive Sample of this report: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=1891 Based on application, the market is categorized into residential, commercial, infrastructure, and others. In 2013, the residential and infrastructure segments collectively accounted for over 70% of the global Portland cement market. Commercial construction applications were the third largest segment of the market. Some of the key market participants providing high-quality Portland cement are: Holcim, Lafarge SA, Heidelberg Cement, Anhui Conch, CNBM, UltraTech Cement Ltd., and Italcementi. The report profiles these leading players and thus provides interested individuals and enterprises a competitive edge above the rest. Growth strategies implemented by the leading manufacturers of Portland cement as well as other critical data such as product price, pictures, and specifications of each company have been included. This fruitful information assists readers in making wise and informed decisions regarding investment in the Portland cement market. The global Portland cement market is segmented as follows: Application Residential Commercial Infrastructure Others (Including cement bricks, farm construction, etc.) Regional North America Europe Asia Pacific Rest of the World (RoW) Contact information Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a market intelligence company, providing global business information reports and services. Our exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. Source link
Lendlease and Multiplex have entered the race to bid for Google ’s £600m HQ in London, alongside Mace and Sir Robert McAlpine. Bids were submitted last Friday for the mammoth project, ahead of an announcement by the internet giant this week that it was committing to building the scheme. Construction News reported in June that Mace and Sir Robert McAlpine were among those interested in the project. Google chief executive Sundar Pichai told the BBC: “We see big opportunities here. “This is a big commitment from us – we have some of the best talent in the world in the UK and to be able to build great products from here sets us up well for the long term.” Google said it planned to invest more than £1bn in the new King’s Cross building, designed by BIG and Heatherwick Studios, and hire thousands more staff. The scheme was put on hold in November 2013 after Google called for it to be redesigned. Bam Construct had been appointed as main contractor for the original scheme in March 2013, in a deal worth £300m. Plans for the new London HQ have an estimated construction value of more than £600m: £400m for the shell and core, and around £200m for the fit-out. Google’s staff are currently spread across offices in Covent Garden and Victoria, with the new offices bringing them together under one roof. The tech giant already has a presence at the King’s Cross redevelopment site, having taken 6 Pancras Square (pictured). It is also developing a 280,000 sq ft office block known as S2 on the site, which was given the green light by Camden Council in March. The 27 ha King’s Cross site is one of the largest redevelopments in London, with the masterplan including 50 buildings and 1,900 homes. It is being developed by the King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership, which includes Argent, DHL and London & Continental Railways and was formed in 2008. Argent declined to comment. One of the key ways Google brings in revenue is through ‘adwords’. Because this service is so important to many companies, you must make sure you use the best google adword agencies.
A date has been given for the reopening of Marlow Bridge. Closed to traffic since September 24, it is hoped it will open on Friday November 25, weather permitting. The decision follows the outcome this week of structural engineering tests, which have been carried out since a 37-tonne lorry tried to cross the bridge. Engineers’ rigorous inspection, ultrasound and magnetic particle testing revealed no serious damage. In the coming week, they will restore sections exposed for weld testing with three coats of paint, remove scaffolding surrounding the bridge’s two towers, and reinstate timber work removed for inspection. Mark Shaw, Buckinghamshire County Council’s transport cabinet member, said: “We needed to make sure the bridge was safe and secure for all to use before opening it, and I’m pleased the engineers’ go-ahead has come ahead of the Christmas trading period.” Engineers have been examining every part of the structure since the lorry, owned by the Lithuanian haulage company Girteka, tried to cross the bridge. A special inspection platform and a river barge were commissioned to enable testing above and below the road deck. The 19th century bridge has been open to pedestrians and cyclists. County Councillor Richard Scott said: “Christmas is a very important time for the town’s retailers, so this will come as a great relief to them. “Residents, visitors and commuters will also be pleased that traffic congestion on the Marlow bypass will be considerably reduced.”
Mr Galloway has joined Triflex with responsibility for the development of business in the education sector, where the company has delivered a significant number of successful roofing and walkway projects over the last few years. Having been directly involved in the roofing sector for some 23 years, he has an appreciation of the benefits to be derived from building robust working relationships with property and asset management companies, fundamental to the continued growth and development of Triflex. Speaking of his new appointment Mr Galloway commented: “I am delighted to have joined Europe’s leading manufacturer and supplier of cold applied liquid waterproofing systems at such an exciting time in the development of the company. The product offering continues to evolve and strengthen and I look forward to working closely with the UK team promoting the trusted Triflex brand.” Prior to joining Triflex UK, Mr Galloway’s time was spent at IKO. His role as business development director involved assisting with the growth and development of a wide range of waterproofing products and systems for the roofing sector, within specification, education and commercial distribution sectors. Triflex UK national sales manager Craig Smith commented: “Alan brings with him a high level of professionalism, expertise and knowledge of the roof waterproofing sector which will be key to our future key account development strategy in the UK.”
A couple of years of boundless optimism about the Internet of Things has been tempered by the recent DynDNS attacks. Suddenly thought pieces are proclaiming that the IoT might be set for an early death, with consumers, businesses and facility managers fearful of the potential security risks to their data and environmental controls. While we should all be more vigilant about the security of our digital data, this sort of prophesying is jumping the gun. Like disasters in other parts of our infrastructure, these attacks ultimately serve as a lesson that should inform the creation and use of IoT devices going forward. Consumers are a likelier target When you think of IoT in the home, you think fridges and washing machines. These devices are built to massively varying standards and would be expected to last half a decade or more. Microsoft has ended software support for operating systems used by tens of millions of people after less than a decade. The influx of Smart TVs was an early indicator of this problem. Early adopters will have found that many of the included apps don’t even exist anymore. This is not to mention the litany of smaller devices that are indulgently being connected to the internet, from the more reasonable – heating and baby monitors – to ‘smart’ toothbrushes and piggy banks. So many models are created with such different specifications that it simply isn’t cost effective for manufacturers to keep them all up-to-date through their entire lifecycle. Combine this with a propensity to leave routers insecure for convenience or through a lack of technical knowledge, and consumers make a far bigger target for access and appropriation than security conscious businesses. DDoS =/= data breach The devices in this distributed denial of service attack (DDoS) were hijacked with the intention of harnessing their power to send data, not to access it. These volumetric attacks bombard data with the aim of shutting a website or network down, but this is purely disruptive. With the tools they used to auto-locate and access vulnerable devices across the internet, it would be obstructively difficult to figure out what belonged to who. With a large enough shield it is possible to deflect even the biggest attacks. Cloudflare is an example of a DNS company which also provides businesses with the capability to ward off attacks of this magnitude. In Layman’s terms, this kind of attack is rarely deployed to steal data, only to soften up a website and stop people from accessing it. The more destructive effects of hacking are generally harder and involve fewer devices, which makes them easier to trace. You can protect against it While consumers tend to ignore updates, you definitely shouldn’t. Integrate updates as part of your security strategy, and make sure you only allow internal access to IoT devices. The Internet of Things connected to a BMS can be more like an Intranet of Things, with devices only reporting to an internal hub with its own stronger protection. Increasingly cloud solutions are allowing DNS enabled IoT devices to update themselves, and learn from others across the manufacturers’ network (you may have seen Tesla’s cars doing this to improve their self-driving capabilities). In this case a large portion of security responsibility is ceded to bigger companies who are better equipped to deal with it. And if someone gains access to one device that doesn’t necessarily mean they can do anything to the wider network, or even do much with that device, depending on what the backend is capable of. Indeed, many of the same tools hackers use can also be wielded against them. Services like Shodan, which allows you to search the web for unprotected IoT devices, also allow you to check your own systems for weaknesses. AIl developments are improving network security Deep learning is allowing systems to be reactive and adapt to threats, and means of protecting against these kinds of attacks are improving. Innovative solutions like Netflix’s Chaos Monkey randomly stress-tests their colossal network, while multiple DNS providers allow them to mitigate risk by spreading the damage. And as algorithms and better mobile processors boost the capabilities of smart devices, they will stop simply carrying out orders given to them and reporting in on it and start making more decisions for themselves. This has the potential to bar certain dangerous inputs against human interference, based on their readings of the surrounding environment. Much of the talk around regulating the dangers of AI is about so-called Guardian AI – machines keeping tabs on machines. This may well be the future of network security; ‘stupid’ networks of sensors with a more intelligent and capable overseer, reacting to attacks in the same way an onboard computer might dodge lasers on a sci-fi spaceship. LiveScience already describes a ‘code jam’ event where a system was breached and patched its own vulnerability in under 15 mins. In a DDoS attack the weight of numbers will always be a difficult barrier, but in more substantive hacks a smart enough system could fight off bigger forces with relative ease. Attacks will bolster the IoT Security experts have long warned that the IoT could open up vulnerabilities in networks. Following an attack of this scale, it’s fair to say governments and businesses will be pushing for greater safeguards. Several manufacturers of devices used in the attacks have already owned up and issued updates, encouraging users to install them, including one major manufacturer in China. Given the size of the country, its manufacturing output and the growing demand for consumer goods, this is a vital area for IoT expansion and security. The ability to use botnets should scare China as much as anyone else, as should the ability to compromise networks in a country that values its Great Firewall and the integrity of its national network. Devices will improve their storage/processing power, utilising stronger security protocols and better checks on access attempts. They will be sent out with unique admin passwords much as
