©Bloomberg China’s Zoomlion has quit its $3.4bn takeover pursuit of Terex, the US construction equipment maker, the latest failed attempt by a Chinese bidder to gatecrash a deal between two western companies. Zoomlion, which also makes heavy lifting machinery, said on Friday that “no agreement can be reached on the crucial terms” of a deal with Terex and that it had “therefore decided to terminate the negotiation”. More On this topic IN Construction The Chinese company has pursued Terex since late last year, in a move that would have scuppered the US group’s previously agreed merger with Finnish rival Konecranes. In March, Zoomlion increased an initial $30-a-share offer for Terex by adding a special dividend of $1m. That $3.4bn offer was rebuffed by Terex, which was holding out for a bid worth $32.75 a share. Terex shares were down 16 per cent at $20.36 by midday in New York trading on Friday. In many ways, the Zoomlion offer highlighted the audacious manner in which Chinese groups have made record splashes in the global market for mergers and acquisitions. In several examples, Chinese companies approached groups with cash offers when they were already involved in other transactions. Those include a $14bn bid by China’s Anbang Insurance to break up a planned takeover of Starwood Hotels & Resorts by Marriott International and ChemChina’s late attempt to buy BG Group, the British oil and gas company, which was in the final stages of closing a deal with Royal Dutch Shell when an approach was made last December. Zoomlion’s efforts were partially successful. Terex and Konecranes terminated their plans to merge earlier this month. Instead, Konecranes agreed to pay $1.3bn in cash and non-voting stock to Terex in exchange for a unit of the US company that produces industrial and harbour cranes. That revised agreement included a May 31 deadline for Terex to be able to walk away from the Konecranes deal in favour of a full takeover by Zoomlion, which was advised by Goldman Sachs. Since its interest became public in January, Zoomlion faced doubts over its ability to complete a takeover. The lossmaking, part state-owned company is heavily indebted. Zoomlion’s total debt to earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in the year to March 31 was 21.4 times compared with 3.6 times at Terex, according to S&P Capital IQ. Questions were also raised about the chances of Zoomlion gaining approval from the Committee on Foreign Investments in the US, which has the power to review and potentially block transactions that could harm the country’s national security. Zoomlion could not be reached for comment. Shares in the Chinese company, which were down by a quarter since the start of the year, were 0.7 per cent lower in Shenzhen trading. Konecranes shares jumped 4.6 per cent to €24.30 in Helsinki. Panu Routila, Konecranes chief executive, said in a statement that its acquisition of the Terex unit “will enhance our position as a focused and global leader in service and equipment in industrial lifting and port solutions”. Additional reporting by Don Weinland in Hong Kong Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link

9 September, 2016 By Jack Simpson The government could yet give the National Infrastructure Commission independence through statutory footing, having reassured commissioners over its commitment to the group, Sir John Armitt has told Construction News. Source link

On 23 June, 2016, the UK voted to leave the EU. The two years’ notice period required by the Treaty of Lisbon, for the government to implement this decision, means an actual exit date is very unlikely to be before June 2018. There has been lots of discussion about how this vote will impact on the UK economy in general but what are the likely implications prior and post exit in relation to the UK energy and environmental policy? And more importantly, how will they affect you in your role as a facility manager?   Will we see a rise in energy costs? We are currently seeing stable energy prices on the back of well supplied systems. However, future rates are likely to be volatile due to uncertainties in the sterling and the potential for the increased cost of gas imports. Longer term, the UK will continue to be influenced by the global energy market but Brexit may affect investor uncertainty, with consequences for energy security and investment in generation capacity and the grid. Reducing energy costs will be more important than ever in the coming years.  Will Brexit mean the end of The Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)? As ESOS has been transposed into UK law (implementation of Article 8 of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive), it is reasonable to expect this will continue although its current form may well change.  The government announced in the budget it plans to simplify energy reporting into one single scheme: further information should become available once the Government publishes its much anticipated consultation on the future of business energy reporting  In the meantime, it is safest to keep on top of your existing ESOS requirements until further news is announced to avoid penalties. Could Brexit disrupt HFC phase down? As with ESOS, the F-gas regulation has been adopted into UK law and therefore, without a change to that law, the provisions in it will still apply to the UK even after Brexit. It is unlikely the UK would repeal this legislation, as to do so would be a massive retrograde step, from an environmental perspective. There are also movements on a global scale, such as the HFC phase-out/phase-down under the Montreal Protocol, which are influencing the UK.  The European HFC phase-down, however, is based on a reducing refrigerant volume quota system imposed on EU member states as a whole.  Much will depend on how the UK decides to work with the EU. If the UK pursues the Norwegian model nothing will change but if not then the UK will have to establish its own quota allowance going forwards.   Of more pressing concern, however, will be how Brexit could impact on the price of HFC refrigerants, which will start to rise quite rapidly as the market anticipates the changes. As production of HFCs falls in line with the phase down, prices will rise, and a devalued pound will add further cost pressures on imported refrigerant supplies. In light of these changes, now is the time to review current HVAC systems, and either upgrade them to utilise lower HFC refrigerants or invest in new units, which don’t use refrigerants as a cooling method or can run on extremely low refrigerant levels.  Will Brexit impact on the UK’s climate change policies? It’s unlikely that Brexit will have much impact on the UK’s climate change policies, mainly because the UK government has already gone further than the EU when it comes to reducing carbon emissions with the Climate Change Act which compels governments to cut emissions by at least 80% by 2050. In fact, on 30 June, only a week after the Brexit vote, the UK published its fifth carbon budget. This announcement means that the UK accepts the Committee on Climate Change’s recommendations to reduce emissions by 57% below 1990 levels between 2028 and 2032. This will force many large and medium-sized companies to comply with lower carbon emissions and inform the regulator about their energy consumption and energy efficiency plans. As a Facility Manager, meeting these targets will require a combination of energy saving measures and innovation in technology to ensure your building or buildings are as energy efficient as possible.  What can I do to improve energy management in my building as cost-effectively as possible? Despite the huge amount of work you already carry out to save energy, such as by upgrading lighting technology, excluding draughts, and insulating walls, there is one area that accounts for up to 40% of a commercial building’s energy usage – HVAC systems.  Simple improvements to the efficiency of existing HVAC systems can offer considerable energy and CO2 savings, reduce costs and improve the working environment. Some potential energy efficient upgrades include: EC Fans – Replacing AC fans with EC fans allows optimisation of cooling systems for ultimate energy efficiency, potentially reducing energy usage by up to 70%. Electronic Expansion Valves – The use of Electronic Expansion Valves (EEVs) in cooling units and condensers reduces the need for high head pressure, which can result in an energy efficiency ratio (EER) increase of 30%. EEVs provide stable, fast and precise control of superheat and can be used in all types of unit.  Inverters – Installing inverters to motors allows precise control of motor speeds, which can be ramped up or down to match load requirements. This ensures that the only energy used is that which is needed.  Refrigerant – Refrigerant upgrades help to increase system efficiency which will also save you money. Controls and BMS replacements – Upgrade to the latest software platforms to improve system optimisation. The latest hardware and unit strategy can be installed on existing equipment to ensure system reliability, enhanced performance and increased control. Variable speed drives – Installing variable speed drives allows control of fan and pump speeds which can help to

Issue A gym reduced it’s 24/7 opening hours, closing overnight for health and safety reasons. Panel opinion Whilst there may be some additional health and safety considerations in operating the gym 24/7, they are all easily manageable as thousands of businesses demonstrate in providing round the clock opening. This facility chose to trump all of the other reasons behind their decision to curtail their opening hours with the health and safety card when they should have had the courage to reveal their full hand. Source link