The latest Office for National Statistics data revealed output fell 1.9 per cent year on year in May and 2.1 per cent compared with April. In the period from March to May, output was down 1.7 per cent compared with the same time a year ago. Both all new work and repair and maintenance output declined month on month, falling by 2.6 per cent and 1.4 per cent respectively, compared with April 2016. Reaction Rob Domeney, head of the Manchester office of consultant RSK Group, said: “Although some developers in the North-west are looking to reassess their land purchase and development decisions, most report business as usual – although we need to monitor if any low levels of uncertainty translate into a wider reluctance in the construction industry to commit to new projects, which would pose a risk to the ambitions of a Northern Powerhouse.” Stirling Ackroyd managing director Andrew Bridges said: “Housing has typically been one of the most reliable areas within construction. “Demand is consistent and people are crying out for new homes, not just in London but across the whole of the UK. Uncertainty about Brexit has placed extra strain on the industry recently, placing overseas deals in doubt and the sector’s workforce on the line. “Now the vote has been decided, it’s crucial action is taken to bolster the sector. The laying of cement and bricks is slowing – and a new momentum is needed. Planning is an extra drag. Just 61 per cent of new homes were allowed by London borough councils in Q1 2016 and if that carries on London’s housing deficit will worsen even further.” Markit chief economist Chris Williamson said: “A drop in UK construction output in May adds to what’s looking like an ugly run of data for the sector. Construction output fell 2.1 per cent in May, which would be an alarming rate of decline had the sector not seen a 2.8 per cent increase in April. “However, it looks like there’s worse to come – possibly much worse. Markit / CIPS PMI survey data recorded the steepest contraction of construction activity for seven years in June as projects were put on hold in the lead up to the EU referendum. Housing and commercial construction were especially badly affected.” Source link

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Kite projects Is providing construction, engineering and facilities management to provide edge protection, vertical access and hand railing solutions to Industries in United Kingdom! Safety gates are a type of investment in your home security. Consider them as protection, and treat your requirement for them truly. Before you start looking for your security gates, you ought to do an intensive stroll through your home. Consider all the diverse territories which ought to have limited access. Distinguish between restricted areas: Without any uncertainty, you should put wellbeing doors at the top and base of all staircases. The quantity of falls and consequent wounds that stairs cause wandering kids is obscure, basically in light of the fact that minor ones are not frequently reported. Of those that are accounted for, the mishaps cause serious agony and wounds. In any case, there are different regions that ought to be shut off also, including the kitchen, which holds multitudinous threats, and your study which secures your vocation (and all the stylistic layout things you have moved from different rooms). As a rule, basically shutting the way to these rooms is impossible.   Taking different measurements: Door edges and stairwells are not as a matter of course standard from home to home. Regardless of the fact that your entryways are the very same size as your neighbors, they may not be the same width as the openings in your old home. Measure every territory to be encased, and ensure you measure from the tightest point (for the most part around the evading sheets). Stairwells may give you a test, however there are connector packs that will empower you to introduce your wellbeing entryways adequately in these regions. Exact estimations are pivotal, so request help on the off chance that you require it.   Unique Factors:Before choosing your safety door, it is good to envision the future for a couple of minutes. Do you see more kids later on? Assuming this is the case, you might need to consider taller entryways that oblige all you’re developing kids without a moment’s delay. The term of utilization, and additionally any pets you have to separate kids from ought to be a thought while picking the number, width and tallness of the infant doors you require.   Fit pressure gates: These types of safety gates are ideal for blocking doorways to zones that may not generally be required. You can dismantle and move these doors with no pulverization to your dividers. Not at all like early security entryways, have today’s weight had models had extra wellbeing components, for example, twofold bolts and the capacity to open the door in both headings. Since weight fit entryways have a U-molded configuration, they are not prescribed for establishment at the highest point of stairs where they can show a stumbling peril. Equipment Installed Gates: These doors are semi forever introduced in your home. They do require legitimate establishment as they are attached to your dividers. In spite of the fact that these are not moveable (at any rate all the time), they may give you more noteworthy true serenity; your more seasoned kids and pets are not prone to thump them down – nor will anybody stumble over ground level equipment. Since equipment security doors ought to be introduced at the top and base of your stairs, you ought to consider introducing these all through your home for comfort, particularly in the event that you plan to have more youngsters and require a tyke confirmation house for an augmented period of time. Address: Littleton Ln, Littleton, Winchester SO21 2LS, UKWebsite: http://kite-projects.co.uk/Phone  : 01962 886290Email  : sales@kite-projects.co.uk Source link

Select, campaigning trade body for the electrotechnical industry in Scotland, has re-appointed Eric Rae as its president. Rae, of E. Rae & Son in Turriff, Aberdeenshire, has been influential in Select activity in Aberdeen and the North-East for many years. Elected to the post in 2015, he is now entering his second year of office.   He will maintain his full schedule of branch involvement and strategy discussions, as well as focusing on areas of interest such as training, employment affairs, health and safety and public sector procurement. Rae said: “I am delighted to have been re-appointed to continue my work as Select president and carry on the organisation’s mission of seeking to influence legislation for the long-term benefit of the industry. “Select has done, and continues to do, sterling work to create industry conditions which enable member firms to both provide a quality service to their clients and to maintain the high standards that characterise electrical installation in Scotland and, of course, Select.” Newell McGuinness, managing director of Select, said: “Eric has proved himself to be an extremely able and conscientious president, putting the interests of our industry first at all times. “We are very pleased that he will be in post for another successful year, directing his energies to seeking and securing outcomes which create the infrastructure for a sustainable future not only for the industry but for the Scottish economy as a whole.” David Wright, head of external affairs at Select, said: “Eric has been a strong supporter of the electrotechnical sector in Scotland for many years and has brought considerable influence and experience to the role of President. This will serve us well as we continue to campaign for statutory Regulation of the industry to protect Scotland’s householders from sub-standard work carried out by unqualified individuals.”   Source link

In spite of the sharp fall in the price of oil since 2014, the Russian oil industry is healthy and production, confounding many predictions to the contrary, is growing steadily. Indeed, boosted by the launch of several greenfields this month, Russian oil output has gained around 200,000 barrel per day in September alone to a post-Soviet record of 11.18m barrels per day. Although this booming rate of output gains cannot be sustained; slow, steady production increases from these levels will remain the norm at least until 2020. So how is this dichotomy of rising production and sharply lower oil prices possible? First, Russian oil production is highly profitable on a pre-tax basis, much more so than is generally understood. Second, both the Russian oil tax regime and the rouble are highly geared to oil prices, cushioning wellhead margins and keeping overall well economics for producing companies surprisingly stable in almost any oil price environment. The precipitous fall in oil prices since mid-2014, from over $100 per barrel to just below $50 a barrel today, has resulted in a rapid reduction in investment in the global oil industry, which has naturally resulted in a significant reduction in field-level activity. Most visibly, the number of working US oil rigs has collapsed by about 75 per cent from the 2014 peak. Canada (-79 per cent), Latin America (-54 per cent), and the Asia-Pacific region (-32 per cent) also all saw significant drops in rig activity. Even in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia is in the process of taking market share, the number of rigs in operation has fallen 12 per cent from 2014 peak levels. Russia, however, is clearly bucking this trend. Although upstream capital expenditure in the country has fallen in dollar terms, that has been entirely due to the sharp fall in the rouble. Drilling activity itself has actually risen by 25 per cent since 2014, driving a steady rise in Russian oil output even as the rest of the non-OPEC world sees various degrees of declines. This increase in oil production despite sharply lower oil prices has caught many observers by surprise. In December of 2014 Opec forecasted a small, 10,000 bpd production loss for Russia in 2015, while the International Energy Agency predicted a more significant 90,000 bpd fall. In reality Russian output went up by about 140,000 bpd. Lex The oil cartel beast stirs itself again In December of 2015 Opec again predicted a decline in Russian output for 2016, this time of around 70,000 bpd, while the IEA anticipated “largely flat” output. In the event, Russian production broke through the 11m bpd level in early September, and with the launch of several new greenfield projects hit 11.18m bpd by September 20, the highest level since 1989 when Russia was still part of the Soviet Union. Looking forward, we expect Russian oil production to continue to climb, if less dramatically, for the medium term until hitting about 11.5m bpd in 2020. So how has Russian oil production been able to outperform the forecasts of knowledgeable observers, increasing production in spite of low oil prices? We see two general reasons: First, contrary to common misconception, Russia’s oil production is not a high-cost venture. Instead, the typical Russian barrel of oil resides far down the cost curve, generating economic value even at oil prices below $20 per barrel, although the bulk of that economic value goes to the Russian government via taxes, rather than to producers in the form of profit. Second, both Russia’s oil tax regime (explicitly) and the free-floating rouble (in effect) are tied to the price of oil. The combination of an automatically-adjusting tax burden and rouble work to act as a very effective cushioning mechanism for wellhead operating margins. The Big Read New drilling in Soviet-era brownfields makes it unlikely Russia will help ease global glut The union of only modestly lower, and generally stable, wellhead margins and sharply lower upfront well costs has served to keep new well economics for producers surprisingly stable in almost any oil price environment for Russia’s oil companies. Indeed, we estimate that the returns a standard vertical well in West Siberia today is the same or even higher than what would have been earned on that same well in June of 2014 when oil was around $112 a barrel. This somewhat counter-intuitive result — that field-level returns could be stable in spite of sharply lower oil prices — is probably what has caused otherwise knowledgeable observers to serially underestimate Russia’s production potential the last few years. So what does this imply for Russian oil production going forward? In short, with a stable return environment and substantial geological resources left to tap, we see Russian oil production continuing its slow climb for at least the next five years. While the increase in any given year is unlikely to be large enough to move the needle on global oil markets, neither can other global producers look to Russia for help in reining in output to boost the price of oil. Ronald Smith is Citigroup’s senior Russian oil and gas analyst Source link