The Ipswich Tidal Flood Barrier has won a top award from the leading international engineering institution. The project, which better protects over 1,600 homes and 400 businesses from the risk of flooding, has won an Exceptional Merit Award from the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) East of England Merit Awards.
A pilot project has been introduced to help fast-track the training of new bricklayers in the construction industry. This Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) scheme is part of a drive to address a national shortage of bricklayers. Brickwork Academy is working with students at Wirral Metropolitan College and Hugh Baird
Westcountry homebuilder Cavanna Homes is celebrating a hat-trick after being shortlisted for three awards in the 2019 national Housebuilder Awards. Two of the firm’s developments; Primrose Hill in Torquay and Yarners Mill in Dartington, have been shortlisted in the ‘Best Design for Three Storeys or Fewer’ category, alongside eight other
The Ipswich Tidal Flood Barrier has won a top award from the leading international engineering institution. The project, which better protects over 1,600 homes and 400 businesses from the risk of flooding, has won an Exceptional Merit Award from the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) East of England Merit Awards. The Barrier was recognised in the Technical Excellence and Innovation category. ICE is a professional membership body, supporting more than 90,000 engineers around the world. Costing almost £70million, the Ipswich Flood Defence Management Strategy comprises a mix of new and refurbished flood walls and gates along 1,100 metres of the River Orwell. The barrier’s centrepiece is a 200-tonne rotating Radial Sector Gate, which can be raised in minutes in the event of a tidal surge. The barrier was officially unveiled by Floods Minister Dr Thérese Coffey in February. The flood gate has a design similar to that of the Thames Barrier and is so large that it is coated with 6 tonnes of protective paint. The flood gate rotates upwards out of the sea floor into the closed position, holding back dangerous tidal surges that could flood the town. The new defences provide a much higher level of protection from the type of tidal surge which threatened the town in 2007 and 2013, both of which were close to spilling over the existing defences. Aside from the reduced flood risk benefits, the flood defence scheme has the added advantage of helping to boost the local economy through freeing up hectares of land for regeneration. The Environment Agency project was approved by Defra in 2006 and has been delivered by contractor VBA – a joint venture between VolkerStevin, Boskalis Westminster and Atkins. The barrier scheme has an exemplary health and safety record. Risk on the project was designed using 3D and physical modelling, along with VolkerStevin’s behavioural safety programme. This resulted in no reportable incidents throughout the three year construction process, which comprised more than 300,000 hours of work. As a result, the project is now being used as a case study for other Environment Agency works including the Boston Barrier. Andrew Usborne, the lead officer on the scheme, said the award was welcome recognition for the Environment Agency and its partners.
A pilot project has been introduced to help fast-track the training of new bricklayers in the construction industry. This Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) scheme is part of a drive to address a national shortage of bricklayers. Brickwork Academy is working with students at Wirral Metropolitan College and Hugh Baird College in the Liverpool city region, and Warwickshire College in the West Midlands, to give them the work experience they need to take up jobs in construction. The students have been chosen in partnership with participating local employers and will complete an additional seven weeks of practical skills training at their college, along with work experience days on local construction sites. After this they will spend the next 24 weeks working onsite with their employer, to achieve their NVQ Level 2 brickwork qualification. In addition to developing their practical trowel skills, the extra college training supports students to be better prepared for the construction sector, covering topics such as employability skills and self-employment. CITB will evaluate the pilot project and if successful, it could be rolled out to more colleges across the country, and to other construction trades. This comes after CITB research showed 70% of construction employers regard work experience as of significant value when recruiting, twice as many as those who value academic qualifications. They also found 29% of college graduates poorly prepared for work, due in part to a lack of practical, on-site experience. “We know that construction employers are struggling to recruit skilled bricklayers, while too many students on construction-related courses lack the onsite experience and employability skills that will get them their first job in construction. We’re really encouraged by the enthusiasm shown by the colleges and employers involved in the Brickwork Academy. We hope that its results will make the case for expanding the Academy approach with more employers and into other trades, to join together with other CITB initiatives to help more learners become site-ready for employment,” commented Steve Radley, CITB Strategy and Policy Director.
Westcountry homebuilder Cavanna Homes is celebrating a hat-trick after being shortlisted for three awards in the 2019 national Housebuilder Awards. Two of the firm’s developments; Primrose Hill in Torquay and Yarners Mill in Dartington, have been shortlisted in the ‘Best Design for Three Storeys or Fewer’ category, alongside eight other national developments. Cavanna Homes’ successful apprenticeship scheme has also been shortlisted for ‘Best Training or Recruitment Initiative’, alongside six others. The Housebuilder Awards, in partnership with the National House Building Council (NHBC) and the Home Builders Federations (HBF), recognise innovation and excellence in the housebuilding industry. Michael Newman, Head of Design at Cavanna Homes said: “These prestigious awards shine a light on the best developments and initiatives in our industry. To be shortlisted, not once but three times is something to be really proud of! “This is a brilliant reflection of our teams’ passion and commitment to building high-quality beautiful new homes, and the firm’s investment in the next generation joining our exciting industry. We have our fingers crossed for the awards ceremony in October”. Primrose Hill in the seaside town of Torquay is a development of 155 new 2, 3 and 4-bedroom properties set on a hilltop site within green, landscaped areas that form an impressive gateway to Torquay. Primrose Hill has only two homes remaining for sale; a two-bedroom bungalow with a master en-suite, and a four-bedroom family home with an open plan kitchen / dining room, a garage and parking. Cavanna Homes’ Yarners Mill development transformed a redundant work space into a vibrant community of 30 open market and affordable new homes, complementing the small Devon village of Dartington, near Totnes. As part of the homebuilder’s commitment to nurturing up-and-coming talent in construction, Cavanna Homes has welcomed its largest intake of apprentices to date, which has been reinforced with the appointment of Managing Director, Keith Miller. Keith Miller added: “We’re major supporters of apprentices, and have been for years. Each year we’re keen to increase the number of apprentices we support, and it’s really rewarding to see our apprenticeship initiative recognised in the Housebuilder Awards, as well as two of our outstanding developments. “We’re thrilled to be shortlisted in the awards, and we’re looking forward to the finals in October!”. The awards ceremony will be taking place on 24th October 2019 at the InterContinental in London – The O2.
