February 2, 2018

HFI announces new programme to help councils build more homes

HFI announces new programme to help councils build more homes The Housing & Finance Institute (HFI), in collaboration with Local Partnerships, has launched a major new programme to help councils build more homes. The programme, called ‘Housing Business Together’, will sit within HFI’s flagship Housing Business Ready scheme, both of

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Construction firm sentenced after worker falls down a lift pit

Cardiff-based construction company, Jehu Project Services Ltd, has been sentenced after a worker was seriously injured falling down a lift pit. The incident happened on 8 July 2015 at a construction site in Pontcanna, Cardiff. Stephen Harrison, a specialist drilling contractor, was employed by Jehu to help refurbish a 73-bed

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Anglian Water helps hospital cut carbon

Anglian Water Business is helping a major hospital in Cambridge save energy, reduce costs and cut carbon. The water company worked with Addenbrooke’s Hospital, and consultancy firm SaveMoneyCutCarbon, to replace dated and inefficient fluorescent lamps with 650 LED panels and tubes in the hospital. It said this

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TRA Launches New Updated Website

The Trussed Rafter Association (TRA) has launched a new and improved website for housebuilders and architects that can benefit from roofing guidance and free technical advice and downloads. The website is now a lot easier to navigate, ask for information about products and services, access downloadable guidance for delivery, installation,

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BooBoo Plant Hire Upgrades Its Solar Powered Equipment

The Hertfordshire based plant hire firm, BooBoo Plant Hire, has decided to increase its fleet of solar powered equipment. It has strong links to the demolition and construction markets in and around London, which have started to seek out emission free construction site machinery. BooBoo’s one of the first investments

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Saint-Gobain Weber Goes on YouTube

Saint-Gobain Weber is known for its dedication to train people in the specification and application of their innovative and market leading materials. Those in need can access a team of technical advisors that will give them information on the correct use of the diverse product offering, wither over the telephone

Read More »
Latest Issue
Issue 328 : May 2025

February 2, 2018

HFI announces new programme to help councils build more homes

HFI announces new programme to help councils build more homes The Housing & Finance Institute (HFI), in collaboration with Local Partnerships, has launched a major new programme to help councils build more homes. The programme, called ‘Housing Business Together’, will sit within HFI’s flagship Housing Business Ready scheme, both of which are designed to help accelerate housebuilding in the UK.   The national Housing Business Together programme will be delivered to councils across the country and assist them with their housing strategy.   Council leadership and senior council officers will work with the HFI team to carry out an intensive strategy assessment, using shared tools and techniques to improve delivery. The Housing & Finance Institute has already worked with over 30 councils on the HBR programme to help them to better assess, monitor and build the homes needed to sustain and develop their communities. Chief Executive of the HFi Natalie Elphicke OBE said: “The HFI is delighted to be working with Local Partnerships to jointly deliver the Housing Business Together programme. The programme aims to give councils support and strategic clarity in their growth and housing agendas. By helping local government devise a more effective housing strategy that collaborates closely with the private sector, we will continue to deliver the homes that we need across the country.”  Sean Hanson, Chief Executive Officer of Local Partnerships, had this to say: “The UK faces major challenges to deliver the housing that is needed for the future. Most of the councils we currently support are becoming more actively involved in housing delivery, with many considering implementing housing delivery vehicles of one form or another. Local Partnerships and HFI are currently developing a support package that will take local authorities through the process as well as including guidance and common templates. The ‘Housing Business Together’ programme is a logical extension of the Housing Business Ready scheme and Local Partnerships is delighted to support HFI with this programme”   The Housing Business Ready brochure 2016, which sets out how the programme works, is now available to download on the HFI website. Source link

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Construction firm sentenced after worker falls down a lift pit

Cardiff-based construction company, Jehu Project Services Ltd, has been sentenced after a worker was seriously injured falling down a lift pit. The incident happened on 8 July 2015 at a construction site in Pontcanna, Cardiff. Stephen Harrison, a specialist drilling contractor, was employed by Jehu to help refurbish a 73-bed care home when he fell into the basement of a lift pit that was under construction. Mr Harrison stepped onto the ground floor having been working off a tower scaffold, but stood on a loose concrete block causing him to fall backwards, head-first, into a skip full of rubble on the floor below. A specialist Fire and Rescue team were nearby and after stabilising Mr Harrison, attached him to the hook of a tower crane and winched him out of the pit, over the site and into the carpark of a housing estate nearby where an ambulance was waiting. Mr Harrison suffered shattered vertebrae, five broken ribs, a punctured lung and spent 18 days in hospital. He is still recovering and although not paralysed, his injuries were life-changing and he will not return to work. HSE investigated the incident and found that Jehu had been using a system of lightweight barriers around the edges of the drop, along with bean bags at the bottom of the hole, but these were incompatible with all of the work that needed to be done by the different contractors and had been removed. Following the incident, all of the danger areas were fenced with scaffolding. Newport Crown Court heard that there were numerous management failings associated with this project, which included a lack of effective site management and supervision, a construction plan that did not properly consider obvious working at height risks and a lack of an effective Temporary Works Management System. Jehu Project Services Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, Regulation 13(1) and Work at Height Regulations 2005, Regulation 6(3) and was fined £143,000 and ordered to pay full costs of £15,029.30. HSE Inspector Liam Osborne, who brought the case, said: “Jehu had been given many warnings in the past by HSE about the lack of effective planning, managing and monitoring on their construction sites, as well as warnings about unsafe working at height. The court heard some really positive steps the company are now taking to put these matters right, including making substantial management changes. “It is crucial that construction firms properly think through the risks involved before starting work, they then need to ensure there is a workable plan to iron-out or manage the resultant dangers. “There is a clear hierarchy for managing work at height risks, site managers need to prevent it if possible and then provide suitable fixed barriers. Lower-order measures, such as soft-landing systems or the use of harnesses should only be selected as a last resort and if it is safe and appropriate to do so”. For further information on working at height safely, go to http://www.hse.gov.uk/work-at-height/index.htm Notes to Editors: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement. www.hse.gov.uk More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/ HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk Journalists should approach HSE press office with any queries on regional press releases. Source link

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Anglian Water helps hospital cut carbon

Anglian Water Business is helping a major hospital in Cambridge save energy, reduce costs and cut carbon. The water company worked with Addenbrooke’s Hospital, and consultancy firm SaveMoneyCutCarbon, to replace dated and inefficient fluorescent lamps with 650 LED panels and tubes in the hospital. It said this will result in an overall energy and carbon reduction of 53 per cent, and generate savings of £15,000 a year and a return on investment in less than four and a half years for the hospital. Anglian Water Business (AWB) already serves Addenbrooke’s entire wastewater treatment needs. The LED replacement project forms part of its commitment to proactively identify ways to add value for customers. AWB account manager Paul Vincent said: “We are delighted to help Addenbrooke’s implement significant financial and efficiency savings. “At [AWB], we are committed to working collaboratively with our customers to ensure they lower costs and consumption, whether it’s water or energy. “This project was made possible thanks to our partnership with SaveMoneyCutCarbon and interest-free funding from Salix Finance.” Energy manager at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Denis Garnham, said: “Energy, carbon and cost saving, whilst improving the quality of the hospital’s healthcare environment, lie at the heart of our sustainable development management plan. “This lighting upgrade programme is an excellent example of how we achieve this by bringing together our Salix funding stream, [AWB’s] forward thinking value-added services, and the impressive quality of SaveMoneyCutCarbon’s supply and installation teams. SaveMoneyCutCarbon chief operating officer Holden Cook said: “We know the financial pressures facing the NHS and so we were delighted to work with Addenbrooke’s Hospital and use our expertise in both the Salix Funding application and fully managing the LED lighting retrofit. “The money saved by the Trust in energy and maintenance costs can now be diverted into other essential areas, which is fantastic.” Anglian Water Business is a national water retailer, which supplies more than 140,000 businesses and public sector bodies across the UK. Source link

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TRA Launches New Updated Website

The Trussed Rafter Association (TRA) has launched a new and improved website for housebuilders and architects that can benefit from roofing guidance and free technical advice and downloads. The website is now a lot easier to navigate, ask for information about products and services, access downloadable guidance for delivery, installation, and design of trussed rafters, metal web joists, and spandrel panels. “In the busy world of construction, having practical and technical guidance at your fingertips is a must have for housebuilders,” said TRA Chairman, Jonathan Fellingham. “We’ve designed the website with exactly that in mind. It now works as a fantastic resource for everything you need to know about roofing and flooring structures,” he added. Due to the improved member enquiry function, housebuilders can search for the product and service they need by the nearest location. The results will then show the nearest ten members along with their credentials and contact details. Online enquiries can be made quickly and the files for drawings can be dropped straight into the enquiry box and sent to selected TRA firm, making it faster for builders to get quotes. The downloads and technical advice are put into categories and organised by product and additionally, as the website is fully mobile responsive, PDFs can be downloaded in a matter of seconds onto the mobile phone or tablet device. The TRA is the respected voice of the trussed rafter and metal web joist industry in the UK and Ireland. They are committed to stringent standards of quality and service and set professional benchmark for the industry. Its members include the principal manufacturers of trussed rafters, metal web joists, suppliers and professionals involved in roof and floor design and construction. All of them have a third-party supervised Quality Assurance and Professional Indemnity insurance, helping to ensure quality and peace of mind for the customer.

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BooBoo Plant Hire Upgrades Its Solar Powered Equipment

The Hertfordshire based plant hire firm, BooBoo Plant Hire, has decided to increase its fleet of solar powered equipment. It has strong links to the demolition and construction markets in and around London, which have started to seek out emission free construction site machinery. BooBoo’s one of the first investments in low emission products was the purchase of EasyCabin 16’ and 20’ Ecosmart Solar welfare units. The Ecosmart Solar delivers sustainable energy to power the electrics and is fitted with a unique, patent pending, solar box, with ‘on demand’ power usage combined with a further patent pending ECO water system that makes hot water always available. “We have started to add the solar powered units to our fleet as we believe that with the increasing focus on emissions, particularly in London, these will be in big demand,” explained Terry Guilder, director of BooBoo Plant Hire. “We are now almost exclusively an EasyCabin supplier, as we find that they are the most reliable, cost efficient and just as importantly, the back-up and support is exceptional.” EasyCabin is the brand name for static and mobile welfare accommodation units manufactured by AJC Trailers Limited. The company has been producing a range of environmentally sustainable units since 1964 and presently operates from a modern 32,000 sq. ft. plant, based in Luton, Bedfordshire. BooBoo is confident that solar is the way forward, therefore they started adding solar powered lightning towers to their fleet. It has recently acquired a brand new fleet of plant consisting of 13 to 40 ton excavators, small and mini differs, and dust suppression systems suitable for both small and large jobs. It also provides a wide range of demolition attachments and access to additional plant and machinery. BooBoo operates throughout the entire country, but mainly in the south.

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Saint-Gobain Weber Goes on YouTube

Saint-Gobain Weber is known for its dedication to train people in the specification and application of their innovative and market leading materials. Those in need can access a team of technical advisors that will give them information on the correct use of the diverse product offering, wither over the telephone or on site. Additionally, they have now created a YouTube channel where they post a diverse range of ‘How To’ videos, specifically designed for specifiers and applicators that are not able to attend a related course at the academy. The videos address some of the most frequently raised technical enquiries received by Weber, such as external wall insulation systems, flooring products, renders, and tile preparation. Weber’s most recent video approaches the problem of the growth of algae, bacteria, fungus, and mould on external surfaces including render and brickwork, experienced in the UK and Europe. It illustrates how to remove it using the high performance weber CL150. “This is an easy to use water-based masonry wash containing carefully selected biocides to clean and sterilise substrates,” said Rob Speke, Training Academy Manager at Saint-Gobain Weber. The weber CL150 must be applied undiluted to a dry substrate, saturating the affected area with the use of a brush or sprayer. If the problem is more advanced, agitate the surface with a nylon bristle brush which will speed up the process and improve the results. The algae will be killed in 48 hours and the treated area will need jet washing at low pressure. In case of more severe situations, the process can be repeated. “Once treated the substrate will be protected for a considerable period although in areas of high algae growth, such as north facing walls with limited sunlight, it is advisable to repeat the process every few years to maintain best aesthetics,” said Rob. The video can be found here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EdI4XaJYUY and is one of the 30 currently posted ‘How To’ videos.

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