16 September 2016 | Jamie Harris NIC Services Group has been awarded a £50 million contract with retailer Morrisons. Under the terms of the deal, which marks the first time Morrisons has outsourced its services, NIC will be responsible for cleaning services across 500 stores in the UK. NIC was
Higher land sales and increased property development activity more than compensated for a dip in construction at contractor/developer Henry Boot in the first half of 2016. Above: Chairman Jamie Boot Henry Boot has reported interim revenue for the six-months to 30th June 2016 up 35% to £107.3m (2015 H1: £79.2m).
Morgan Sindall has started work on a £13.7m leisure extension to White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds. Above: The extension will house a Cineworld Imax cinema The contractor will build a 6,000 m2 (65,000 sq ft) extension for an 11-screen, Cineworld Imax cinema complex and six chain restaurants. Completion is
Date: Wednesday, July 27, 2016 – 2:29 pm 1 September marks the deadline by which theatre owners should have had their suspended plaster ceilings inspected by a specialist to ensure that they are safe. New guidance about this which was co-written with HSE following the collapse of the Apollo Theatre
Insulation specialist Actis has promoted East Midlands area sales manager Jemma Harris to northern regional sales director. Above: Jemma Harris The former Royal Navy weapons technician is now in charge of sales for Actis across the north of England, Scotland, North Wales and the East Midlands. Mark Cooper continues to
17 June 2016 | Martin Read Arthur McKay is to provide National Records of Scotland (NRS) with facilities management services including mechanical and electrical maintenance, building fabric, cleaning, cleaning supplies, waste management and grounds maintenance. NRS is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government that performs many functions including registration,
9 April 2016 – by Louise Clarence-Smith Ask Real Estate has secured its first new project since being backed by construction giant Carillion. The developer, in which Carillion acquired a majority stake in January, has bought a 1.7-acre site for a £300m, 750,000 sq ft scheme next to the Manchester
NEWRY FIRM BUILDS ON SUCCESS WITH GROWTH LOAN FUND SUPPORT – Newry-based Healthy Buildings (Ireland) trading as HBE has secured a £500,000 loan from the Growth Loan Fund. The funds will be used to create 10 new jobs and support the group’s BlueZone Technologies subsidiary, to further develop and market
New guidance to help facilities managers manage the transition to agile working within their organisation has today been published by BIFM. The Agile Working Change Management Guidance Note is aimed at FMs working at a senior and/or operational level and covers the benefits of agile working and how to successfully
Last week it was announced that the International real estate development company, HB Reavis, has acquired Elizabeth House. The site is located on London’s South Bank known as One Waterloo. The 945,000 sq. ft. development on this site has been given planning permission. This acquisition is the fourth development for
16 September 2016 | Jamie Harris NIC Services Group has been awarded a £50 million contract with retailer Morrisons. Under the terms of the deal, which marks the first time Morrisons has outsourced its services, NIC will be responsible for cleaning services across 500 stores in the UK. NIC was awarded the deal after a successful pilot scheme, where it said it showcased its knowledge of the retail sector. The contractor has also worked with Tesco for more than 30 years. John Spencer, group chairman at NIC, said: “This award is particularly significant, given that Morrisons have never outsourced their services before. I am sure our extensive experience in this sector will ensure the highest standards of service delivery for Morrisons and their customers and colleagues.” Source link
Higher land sales and increased property development activity more than compensated for a dip in construction at contractor/developer Henry Boot in the first half of 2016. Above: Chairman Jamie Boot Henry Boot has reported interim revenue for the six-months to 30th June 2016 up 35% to £107.3m (2015 H1: £79.2m). Profit before tax was up 49% to £20.8m (2015 H1: £14.0m). Most of the increase was due to the sale of land at Marston Moretaine near Bedford. “Whilst construction turnover has been slower than anticipated in the first half of the year we expect this to be recovered through the second half,” said chairman Jamie Boot. However, the construction order book has grown and Henry Boot has secured its budgeted turnover for 2016 and 50% of 2017’s budgeted turnover – “which, at this time of the year, is slightly ahead of our expectations,” said the chairman. “We recently completed the £34m Fox Valley retail development for the Stocksbridge Regeneration Company Ltd, which opened in June 2016. We also secured the first phase of the £35m Better Barnsley Town Centre Redevelopment for Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council, and have commenced the pre-construction works. We are also delivering the Snowhill Retail Park, Wakefield, for Kier. “Looking to the future, we secured a place on the new YORbuild2 framework. We previously delivered a good number of schemes under the existing YORbuild framework, including two schemes in progress for Leeds City Council; structural repairs to a number of tower blocks and the £7.7m, 45 unit extra care housing development in Yeadon. “The higher education sector continues to provide good opportunities and we are currently delivering schemes for the University of Sheffield, University of Derby, University of Huddersfield and University of Lancaster. Furthermore, work on the new spa facility at the prestigious Rudding Park Hotel in Harrogate is progressing well.” He added that “Banner Plant continued to trade well through the first half of the year with turnover and profit slightly ahead of 2015”. Temporary site accommodation and access equipment were strong performers and the new Ossett Power Tool unit that opened a year ago and is already delivering results in line with established tool hire units. So far, Jamie Boot said, there had been no Brexit fall-out. “Two months after the EU referendum, it is probably a little early to judge how the UK property market will react over the longer term,” he said. “However, our experience is that the trading activity and any deals we had in progress are proceeding as envisaged and the future pipeline is coming to fruition as we would have expected.” This article was published on 25 Aug 2016 (last updated on 25 Aug 2016). Source link
Morgan Sindall has started work on a £13.7m leisure extension to White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds. Above: The extension will house a Cineworld Imax cinema The contractor will build a 6,000 m2 (65,000 sq ft) extension for an 11-screen, Cineworld Imax cinema complex and six chain restaurants. Completion is expected in summer 2017. The contract also provides for a 15-month maintenance period. Shopping centre owner is Land Securities, whose portfolio director Rob Jewell said: “The decision to appoint Morgan Sindall to deliver this latest improvement to White Rose Centre was an obvious one given its exemplary previous work on the project.” Morgan Sindall refurbished the shopping centre’s food and beverage court in 2014. This article was published on 15 Jul 2016 (last updated on 15 Jul 2016). Source link
Date: Wednesday, July 27, 2016 – 2:29 pm 1 September marks the deadline by which theatre owners should have had their suspended plaster ceilings inspected by a specialist to ensure that they are safe. New guidance about this which was co-written with HSE following the collapse of the Apollo Theatre ceiling in 2013, can be found on the ABTT website at http://www.abtt.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/ABTT-Guidance-Note-20-19May2015.pdf If you have not managed to get your ceiling inspected within this period you are advised to contact your licensing authority (normally the appropriate Local Authority) to discuss how you can demonstrate that the ceiling is safe for an audience to sit beneath. The hazards from suspended plaster ceilings are not limited to theatres or places of entertainment but will be present in any building with this type of construction. Those responsible for premises with suspended plaster ceilings are strongly advised to read the ABTT guidance referred to above. Category: Construction, Construction bulletin, Entertainment and leisure bulletin, Film, theatre and broadcasting, Local Authorities, Local authorities bulletin Source link
Insulation specialist Actis has promoted East Midlands area sales manager Jemma Harris to northern regional sales director. Above: Jemma Harris The former Royal Navy weapons technician is now in charge of sales for Actis across the north of England, Scotland, North Wales and the East Midlands. Mark Cooper continues to cover the southern region. Actis reports an upturn in sales for its Hybrid range of insulation and insulating membranes, attributing it to a 60% increase in the timber frame market and the imminent arrival of new EN markings governing the thermal efficiency of off-site constructed buildings. This article was published on 13 Apr 2016 (last updated on 13 Apr 2016). Source link
17 June 2016 | Martin Read Arthur McKay is to provide National Records of Scotland (NRS) with facilities management services including mechanical and electrical maintenance, building fabric, cleaning, cleaning supplies, waste management and grounds maintenance. NRS is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government that performs many functions including registration, statistical and archival services. The contract, won through a competitive tender, covers six buildings and will run for four years, with an option to extend for a period of up to two further years. Arthur McKay has provided FM services to NRS for the past six years, but the new deal extends the range of services provided. Last month, the service provider landed a contract with the London Borough of Croydon, where it is to provide hard FM services over five years. Source link
9 April 2016 – by Louise Clarence-Smith Ask Real Estate has secured its first new project since being backed by construction giant Carillion. The developer, in which Carillion acquired a majority stake in January, has bought a 1.7-acre site for a £300m, 750,000 sq ft scheme next to the Manchester Hilton in Deansgate, where residential values are consistently the highest in the city. The company is led by managing director John Hughes after the departure of Ken Knott in 2013. The project marks the start of a dramatic turnaround for a company which struggled with its debt during the downturn. It is now debt free and reported a pretax profit of £1.1m in the 12 months to March 2015. The site was bought from the family owners of the former Bauer Millett luxury car dealership in Albion Street, which sold Ferraris, Rolls-Royces and Maseratis to Manchester’s rich and famous. Ask now plans to develop a £300m scheme on the site, with early plans including 350,000 sq ft of offices, 400 prime flats, a 150-bedroom four-star hotel and around 30,000 sq ft of leisure space adjacent to the Deansgate-Castlefield metrolink station, with a new passenger connection to Great Bridgewater Street. All the content from this weekís magazine, including this article, is available in the new app. Talks have already begun with global hotel companies for the project, but no occupiers have yet been secured. Local food and beverage operators are in talks over pop-up opportunities in the former car showroom space. Hughes said Ask’s new relationship with Carillion had given it the “platform to move quickly” to acquire the site. The development will be delivered in a partnership between Ask, Manchester City Council, Transport for Greater Manchester and Manchester Central, the conference and events venue adjacent to the site. Ask is considering a number of funding options, which could include forward-selling, bringing in an equity partner, or taking it forward itself using debt. SimpsonHaugh & Partners will design the scheme and a planning application is expected to be submitted in October. Ask hopes to start building in October 2017 with a target completion date of December 2019. Source link
NEWRY FIRM BUILDS ON SUCCESS WITH GROWTH LOAN FUND SUPPORT – Newry-based Healthy Buildings (Ireland) trading as HBE has secured a £500,000 loan from the Growth Loan Fund. The funds will be used to create 10 new jobs and support the group’s BlueZone Technologies subsidiary, to further develop and market its innovative ‘manager’ software platform. Finance for the £50m Growth Loan Fund – which provides loans to established Northern Ireland SMEs seeking to access growth finance – has been provided by Invest Northern Ireland and private investors, Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committee (NILGOSC). BlueZone Technologies is a specialist software solutions company that develops products for the management of Supply Chain, Health & Safety, Inductions and Compliance eLearning within the built environment. Adrian Byrne, CEO, commented: “BlueZone Technologies has been developing our manager product for the past 18 months and launched it into the market in March. Research has shown that many customers want less software in their organisations. With each department having their own software packages to undertake one or two specific compliance tasks, this has led to data variations between systems, which makes decision-making and planning difficult. There is a clear demand for an all-in-one solution to optimise business operations. ‘manager’ is a unique system that can control, monitor, report and manage all aspects of health and safety within the built environment. BlueZone Technologies will help eliminate paper records and allow companies to access critical data about their estate, anytime and from anywhere. The program also includes a number of eLearning courses and an induction module for staff and supplier development. Customer response to date has been excellent. We’ve started rolling manager out to a number of existing clients within our sister company, HBE, and we’ve recently secured contracts with two major brands, one in Northern Ireland and one in Scotland.” Looking ahead Mr Byrne added: “The support from the Growth Loan Fund will enable BlueZone Technologies to continue with the software development and will support our marketing initiatives. We’re currently developing mobile apps and will add further eLearning modules to meet the needs of different sectors. Over the next two years we will build new relationships in Great Britain and Ireland and plan to break into mainland Europe. With busy times ahead, we expect to take on an additional ten staff this year, with four of these positions already filled.” Jenna Mairs, Investment Manager at WhiteRock Capital Partners, commented: “With more businesses shifting to digital data management, Adrian and his team have created an innovative product that will be used by some of the world’s largest brands. “The IT sector is one of the fastest growing sectors of the Northern Ireland economy and it continues to go from strength to strength. The company has ambitious targets for growth over the next two years and we look forward to supporting the firm’s future successes.” Brian Murphy, Partner at BDO Northern Ireland, commented: “As advisers to the Group we are delighted that BlueZone Technologies has secured such a positive outcome to this funding round. “The investment by WhiteRock not only underpins the financial foundations of the business; it also enables the management team to establish the necessary structures for the successful launch and growth of the manager product throughout Great Britain. It represents an excellent opportunity for BlueZone Technologies to grow to the next level with a dynamic new partner and we wish the business and the team every success as they do so.” WhiteRock Capital Partners LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the FCA, was established in 2012 to manage the Fund and is owned by a consortium of three partners – WhiteRock Finance Limited, NEL Fund Managers and Clarendon Fund Managers. Companies seeking funding from the Growth Loan Fund must be based in Northern Ireland, demonstrating growth and generally be in the manufacturing, engineering or tradable services sectors. Loans will be typically unsecured and personal guarantees will not be sought. The loans provided are expected to be complementary to existing sources of finance, including banks, trade finance sources and equity investors. Loans are provided on a fully commercial basis, with monthly loan repayments required over typically a five-year term. For more information about the Growth Loan Fund’s criteria please contact info@whiterockcp.co.uk or go to www.growthloanfund.com. Follow BlueZone Technologies on Twitter @BluezoneTech1 or LinkedIn.
New guidance to help facilities managers manage the transition to agile working within their organisation has today been published by BIFM. The Agile Working Change Management Guidance Note is aimed at FMs working at a senior and/or operational level and covers the benefits of agile working and how to successfully plan and implement an integrated approach to deliver sustainable change in working behaviour. Agile working describes a range of work settings that allow people and organisations to make new choices about when, where and how they work. It is underpinned by mobile technology and applies to people working both in and away from the traditional office, such as at home, on the road or remotely in other locations. BIFM’s research and information manager Peter Brogan said: “As an Institute, we recognise the importance of the workplace agenda for FMs and this newly commissioned Guidance Note aims to address the current lack of knowledge around some of the emerging workplace practices. “Workplace change is a particularly hot topic in FM, and was highlighted in The Workplace Advantage report by The Stoddart Review, of which BIFM is a founding partner, which argued the need for businesses to invest financially and intellectually in ensuring their working environment optimises employee performance. “The work environment is shifting rapidly, and this will result in new challenges and opportunities. As the workplace landscape is redefined, FMs will be at the forefront of eliminating barriers to enable people to work more effectively, helping to play a key role in the creation of flexible environments that not only meet the evolving needs of employees but help forward-thinking organisations increase productivity and the performance of their business.” The document has been authored by workplace expert Andrew Mawson, co-founder of Advanced Workplace Associated Ltd (AWA), who has worked with organisations such as Microsoft, Lloyds of London and UNICEF to help them realise the economic, social and productivity benefits linked to agile models of work, place and organisation. He is also the lead for Workplace Week, which is supported by BIFM. Mawson said: “Managing the behavioural transition to more agile, modern ways of working is a key capability for those involved in managing the modern workplace. But it takes more than a few briefings and a nice PowerPoint presentation to change the habits of a lifetime to work. “At AWA our day job is to work with leaders to help them change the world of work, and so we were delighted to be invited by BIFM to develop this guidance note to help FM professionals put in place some key steps to aid the transition.” The Agile Working Change Management Guidance Note is available to download here.
Last week it was announced that the International real estate development company, HB Reavis, has acquired Elizabeth House. The site is located on London’s South Bank known as One Waterloo. The 945,000 sq. ft. development on this site has been given planning permission. This acquisition is the fourth development for the London portfolio of HB Reavis. The project is an office-led development and is situated on York Road and next to Waterloo Stations. This high-profile development has been ear-marked for regeneration for over ten years. Elizabeth House is a 1960s office building that is looking dated and in need or refurbishment. It is thought that planning permission has been granted for two new buildings to be constructed. There is the possibility that this permission will lead to wider regeneration in the surrounding area. Elizabeth house, though dated, is located in a strategically import and well-connected section of the South Bank, so wide regeneration plans will be positive. The proposed new development will be made up if a 29 story building to the north of the site that will hold offices and residential units and a 10 storey building that s located in the south of the site that will provide office and retail space. The proposed development scheme will create a 945,000 sq. ft. of developed space which will include 753,000 sq. ft. of commercial floor space and 142 homes. There will also be public space that will amounts to 192,000 sq. ft. For HB Reavis, Elizabeth house is a great property to have in their portfolio, especially since it has been considered for development for more than a decade. This successful acquisition follows the launch of the company’s flagship project, Varso Place in Warsaw. Varso Place is a 1.5 million sq. ft. mixed use development scheme that will be Europe’s tallest high rise building when it is completed in 2020
