A Tristan Capital Partners fund has bought a £68m UK logistics portfolio from the Richardson family which includes Cransley Park, Kettering and Velocity 42, Redditch developed in partnership with St Francis Group. The portfolio which also includes a unit of 105,000 sq. ft in Avonmouth developed by Curtis Hall, consists
Winvic Construction Ltd, a leading main contractor that specialises in the design and delivery of multi-sector construction and civil engineering projects, has been appointed by IM Properties to construct Mercia Park. The 238-acre employment park is located in north west Leicestershire, adjacent to junction 11 of the M42, and will
Caddick Construction has won a contract to help Leeds United Football Club expand its coach park and upgrade its broadcasting facilities as they prepare for their first premiership season in the top flight. The Knottingley-based company will start work next month to create a new £1.3m coach park on the
Overall level of insolvent business debt across UK drops by 10.7% during last quarter Insolvent debt in construction and property sectors rises by 2.2% to £371m* Construction and property sectors account for highest levels of insolvent debt in the UK The impact of COVID-19 has seen a sharp drop
Yourkeys and ContactBuilder have announced an alliance which enables housebuilders to put their lead management and sales progression ‘on autopilot’. Yourkeys is the first platform to fully digitise the new homes sales process, from onboarding and reservation through to exchange and completion. It recently introduced a function which allows sales
Stewart Milne Homes has secured an additional £13million from Homes England to accelerate the delivery of new homes across a number of its developments in North West England. This funding announcement, which follows on from a 2018 award of £11.5million, brings the total number of new homes to be delivered
The electricity grid is undergoing its first evolution since the invention of the power transmission system, and energy storage devices, particularly mechanical energy storage devices, will play a solid role in this evolution. Decarbonization, renewable energies, and energy storage devices are all factors involved in the current evolution of the
Your kitchen is the heart of your home. It’s where you cook for your family, where you entertain friends and bake with your kids. When you’ve got a kitchen that you love, you are more likely to eat a healthy diet, experiment with different foods and cook from scratch. It’s
If you are looking to decorate, redecorate or modernise your home or office and you are looking for new floor covering, there are several options available to you. These include traditional carpet, hardwood, lino, tile and possibly the most versatile floor covering, laminate. Laminate is a great low maintenance all-rounder
Marketing communications agency, Jam, has demonstrated its value and extraordinary thinking in driving its clients forward through the pandemic, with two clients placing additional investment and trust in the delivery of integrated marketing strategies. National PropTech company, MakeUrMove, has tasked Jam with positioning the firm as the leading provider of
A Tristan Capital Partners fund has bought a £68m UK logistics portfolio from the Richardson family which includes Cransley Park, Kettering and Velocity 42, Redditch developed in partnership with St Francis Group. The portfolio which also includes a unit of 105,000 sq. ft in Avonmouth developed by Curtis Hall, consists of 11 new-build logistics buildings. St Francis Group, a leading UK-based property development and investment group and an expert in brownfield development sold development ready sites to the Richardson family in December 2017 and have since worked in partnership to deliver an ambitious speculative development programme. At the time of sale 145,000 sq. ft of space was either occupied or under offer. Talking about the deal Gareth Williams, Director at St Francis Group said: “During difficult times we are delighted to have been able to capitalise on continued investor appetite for high quality and well-located industrial warehouse stock. The St Francis Group building specification has evolved into a superior yet economical product and having regenerated both former brown field sites, we are delighted to see them sold into long term ownership.” For further information visit : www.cransley-park.co.uk and www.velocity-42.co.uk
Winvic Construction Ltd, a leading main contractor that specialises in the design and delivery of multi-sector construction and civil engineering projects, has been appointed by IM Properties to construct Mercia Park. The 238-acre employment park is located in north west Leicestershire, adjacent to junction 11 of the M42, and will be home to leading international businesses Jaguar Land Rover and DSV Group. Winvic’s £21 million civils and infrastructure contract comprises an extensive earthworks programme, where over 1 million m3 of material will be excavated and remodelled to accommodate the development plateaux and 3000m of screening bunds. The earthworks have been designed to transport as little excavated earth from the site to reduce HGV traffic in the local community and highways network. Currently, a Volvo EC950 Crawler Excavator is being utilised on site to carry out a large proportion of the vast earth moving task; it is the very first of its kind and the largest crawler excavator to be used in the UK. The 90-tonne machine is capable of excavating 7m3 of material – and lift up to 39,900kg – in each bucketload, facilitating fast and efficient movement of earth. Additionally, 7,500m of underground drainage will be installed also by Winvic, three areas of highway improvements and footpaths throughout the park will be constructed and extensive landscaping works – including up to 30 acres of new woodland – will be undertaken. The civils and infrastructure works began on 2 June and are due be complete in December 2021. Rob Cook, Winvic’s Director of Civils and Infrastructure, commented: “Having completed some vast earthworks programmes in the last few years, Winvic’s reputation in this area is becoming ever more robust. Our clients understand that we deliver schemes of any scale in a safe, expeditious and commercially viable way. Having worked with IM Properties on many other projects, it’s rewarding to know their team have confidence in everything we deliver; utilising the specialist trimble based machines and remodelling the plateaux intelligently to avoid disposing of excesses of material off-site illustrates our strategic outlook to design, regardless of the sector or size.” Jason Jasper UK Project Director, from IM Properties, added: “When developing a scheme of this scale, it’s important to partner with trusted suppliers who not only have the resources and skills to deliver the project, but share in our commitment to create a best in class scheme, working with the local community and creating a positive lasting legacy we can all be proud of.” For more information on Winvic, the company’s latest project news and job vacancies please visit www.winvic.co.uk. Join Winvic on social media – visit Twitter @WinvicLtd – and LinkedIn.
Caddick Construction has won a contract to help Leeds United Football Club expand its coach park and upgrade its broadcasting facilities as they prepare for their first premiership season in the top flight. The Knottingley-based company will start work next month to create a new £1.3m coach park on the Fullerton Park and West Stand car park, a Sky Compound and a pedestrian walkway for fans to make their way safely to the Elland Road stadium. The improvements are expected to be completed in December this year and will help the Club manage the anticipated increase in away coaches for the Premiership fixtures, when spectators are once again allowed in to watch live matches. This isn’t the first time Caddick Construction has worked for Leeds United. Over the years Caddick has been involved in various projects with Leeds United including the design and construction of its 27,000 sq. ft. 1200-seat banquet, conferencing and exhibition facility. Caddick also refurbished the Elland Road East Stand which included new hospitality areas and kitchens, improvements to terrace seating and the construction of 28 new executive boxes. The company also built the club’s training facility at Thorp Arch, north of Leeds. “The new coach park, pedestrian walkway and broadcasting compound will help ensure that Elland Road will be worthy of its Premiership status,” said Caddick Senior Contracts Manager Chris Allott “It’s great that we are once again working with the Club to improve the ground’s facilities and make sure it is fit for purpose to welcome back fans when the time is right.” Mark Broadley, Head of IT and Facilities at LUFC added: “We are delighted to be working with Caddick Construction again, and we are looking forward to seeing the upgraded ground facilities completed and in use for our first Premiership season for 16 years.”
Overall level of insolvent business debt across UK drops by 10.7% during last quarter Insolvent debt in construction and property sectors rises by 2.2% to £371m* Construction and property sectors account for highest levels of insolvent debt in the UK The impact of COVID-19 has seen a sharp drop of £189 million in the UK’s insolvent business debt during the last quarter, according to corporate distress data analysts Red Flag Alert. The firm’s ‘Write Off Report’ shows that total levels of insolvent business debt at 30thJune 2020 were £1.577billion, down 10.7% from £1.766bn at the end of March. At the same time, the construction and property sectors saw bad debt rise from £363million at the end of April to £371million at 30thJune 2020. The 2.2% rise in the last quarter compares to a decline of 5.3% in insolvent debt during the same period last year. Despite the contrasting year-on-year changes in construction and property, data analysts that compiled the Write Off Report caution that the financial effects of COVID-19 can’t be fully seen yet. Mark Halstead, a partner at Red Flag Alert, explains: “This quarter’s Write Off figures have been skewed by the COVID-19 measures introduced by Government and positive steps quickly taken by companies during lockdown. “This means the impact of the pandemic hasn’t yet been that pronounced on the construction and property sectors because struggling companies have been able to draw on financial support from the Government and provided with more breathing space by businesses they owe money to. “Our financial modelling since we started records in 2004 shows that the construction and property sectors typically operate with some of the highest levels of insolvent debt. The biggest risk these sectors are now facing is uncertainty around office-based working caused by the pandemic. If home working trends cause a significant long-term dip in demand for commercial property, it could burst this debt bubble.” Other sectors that saw rises in insolvent debt include retail, where levels during the last quarter increased by £6million (12.6%), while the manufacturing sector saw a 17.4% increase from £89.6m to £105.2m. Logistics saw a marginal change of +0.84%, taking debt levels to £62.3m at the end of June. Mark Halstead concludes: “We’re now coming to the end of the Government’s COVID-19 support and can expect businesses to enter a more protectionist mode as they fight for survival. With this in mind, it’s likely that overall insolvent debt in the UK will see a sharp upwards trajectory over the next six months.” DownloadThe Write Off Report. *£371million debt based on debt (12 months to 30th June 2020) in ‘construction’ and ‘real estate and property services’ sectors (see appendix). Appendix Total insolvent debt by sector for the 12 months to 30thJune 2020, compared to 12 months to 30thJune 2019 and 12 months to 31stMarch 2020. Sector 12 months to 30th June 2020 change vs 12 months to 31st March 2020 (%) change vs 12 months to 30th June 2019 (%) Automotive 26,207,165.29 -2.27 42.06 Bars & Restaurants 32,566,532.57 -12.63 37.02 Construction 258,992,969.50 0.57 37.97 Financial Services 199,404,178.41 14.19 10.67 Food & Beverages 32,042,123.25 4.25 -3.98 Food & Drug Retailers 8,636,733.89 3.27 -41.14 General Retailers 58,736,055.67 12.65 -37.06 Health & Education 21,151,409.40 8.87 4.70 Hotels & Accommodation 12,398,472.23 108.42 268.73 Industrial Transportation & Logistics 62,303,920.75 0.84 -21.47 Leisure & Cultural Activities 14,385,935.16 -12.74 8.47 Media 32,347,949.51 3.92 0.35 Not Available 44,146,572.93 9.54 -21.83 Other Manufacturing 105,273,016.29 17.43 30.52 Others – not reported 25,768,057.87 5.63 39.44 Printing and Packaging 10,156,207.78 -27.67 -30.34 Professional Services 57,414,715.53 -4.51 -13.78 Real Estate & Property Services 111,584,416.48 6.21 2.87 Sport & Health Clubs 6,043,245.90 -1.06 -56.13 Support Services 245,905,077.29 -47.55 -49.49 Telecommunications & Information Technology 71,717,398.52 -8.33 1.99 Travel & Tourism 9,101,343.55 79.05 175.23 Utilities 34,708,379.41 -10.94 34.54 Wholesale – not reported 96,153,240.38 -15.12 -30.02 TOTAL: 1,577,145,117.56 -10.71 -11.52
Yourkeys and ContactBuilder have announced an alliance which enables housebuilders to put their lead management and sales progression ‘on autopilot’. Yourkeys is the first platform to fully digitise the new homes sales process, from onboarding and reservation through to exchange and completion. It recently introduced a function which allows sales proceed without the customer being present in response to the COVID-19 crisis. ContactBuilder is the gold-standard customer relationship management (CRM) package specifically designed for housebuilders. The alliance means that housebuilders will be able to take reservations using the Yourkeys platform from inside ContactBuilder’s CRM system. This will help them to retain house buyers, reduce the time to exchange contracts by around half, and save many hours currently spent by sales staff on progression. Yourkeys CEO Riccardo Iannucci-Dawson said: “This marks a significant moment for Yourkeys. ContactBuilder is one of the leading CRM suppliers to housebuilders and, by integrating our platform, we have immediately made it accessible to ContactBuilder’s sizeable client base. “Many of our clients have adopted ContactBuilder’s CRM ahead of the launch of our collaboration, so together we have created a ready-made audience who will immediately benefit from the two systems working together. “Managing leads and progressing sales are functions which have caused many a headache for housebuilders. Now they can switch both functions to autopilot and focus their efforts on selling more homes, supporting the wider economic recovery.” Yourkeys will automatically create documents to manage ID checks, deposit payments and mortgage updates. This information is securely held in a document store within ContactBuilder. Yourkeys will then link to one of 1,100 law firms and 1,400 mortgage brokers to progress the sale, with real-time updates visible to all parties. Danielle Mitton, operations director of ContactBuilder, said: “ContactBuilder’s fundamental strength is its ability to streamline a housebuilder’s sales process by collating leads from multiple sources and empowering users to efficiently manage the sales process through to reservation. Our alliance with Yourkeys provides the next logical step and allows the sale to be managed right through to completion.” Yourkeys launched in January and already has 46 clients, as housebuilders increasingly seek to digitise their entire sales process. June had been a record month for new home sales activity through the platform. The numbers were six times higher than April and showed a 50 per cent increase since May, demonstrating pent-up demand. July’s figures were higher again. With the government announcement about the Stamp Duty holiday, this is set to increase transactions significantly. ContactBuilder was established in 2008 and currently provides a CRM platform for over 50 of the UK’s most forward-thinking housebuilders, ranging from small, local developers through to top 10 PLCs. Throughout the recent lockdown period, interest in ContactBuilder has increased dramatically due to it being the perfect solution for home-workers, with access to the system available from any internet-connected PC, tablet or smartphone. For more information or for a free demonstration, go to Yourkeys.com. To find out more about ContactBuilder’s lead-management platform and to arrange a free demonstration, see Contact-Builder.co.uk.
Stewart Milne Homes has secured an additional £13million from Homes England to accelerate the delivery of new homes across a number of its developments in North West England. This funding announcement, which follows on from a 2018 award of £11.5million, brings the total number of new homes to be delivered by this ongoing partnership to almost 1,000, boosting the economy, adding to community infrastructure and supporting the creation of new jobs. The funding will support the Scottish independent, award-wining housebuilder in delivering the new homes across eight developments in Alsager, Broughton, Chester, Congleton, Hooton, Prescot, Warton and Willaston. These developments, which will create desirable communities with a balanced mix of family homes, around 30% of which will be affordable, will help meet the country’s housing shortfall. The developments are at various stages, with Callenders Green in Prescot due to complete this month and Broughton Park due to commence in the next few weeks. Working in partnership with Homes England, Stewart Milne Homes secured the loan from the £3billion Home Building Fund which aims to increase the number of new homes being built across the country with a target of delivering 300,000 new homes per annum. Paul Challinor, managing director of Stewart Milne Homes North West England, believes the fund, which was already helping to address the country’s long-term housing challenge pre-COVID, is more important than ever as the country embarks on the road to recovery following lockdown. He said: “The construction industry can play a major role in getting the economy back on its feet after lockdown. It’s crucial in terms of supporting jobs and the supply chain as well as closing the gap between supply and demand for homes. “As we emerge from lockdown, private, independent developers, like ourselves, will find it even more challenging to make the up-front investment required to close that gap. “The Homes England funding enables us to accelerate the delivery of outstanding new communities for local residents and help the UK Government meet its housing targets. “Securing the funds is testament to the strong relationship we’ve built with Homes England over a number of years, demonstrates the confidence they place in us to deliver and underlines our commitment to investing in the North West.” Terry Errington, head of structured real estate finance, Homes England, said: “Our relationship with Stewart Milne Group continues to strengthen and we are pleased to advance additional loan funding to deliver much needed open market and affordable homes across the region. We are supportive of building capacity and productivity in the construction sector, and Stewart Milne Group’s off site manufacturing model is a key element of this focus.”. Stewart Milne Homes North West, a division of Stewart Milne Group, was established in 2006. Since then it has been on a steep upward growth trajectory. This exceptional growth, along with its high levels of customer service, has been recognised by several awards, most recently three winners in the NHBC Pride in the Job awards for construction quality on site. Mr Challinor added: “Having experienced rapid growth in the North West in recent years, we have become a recognised brand in the region with a reputation for delivering quality, family homes in desirable new communities with a focus on craftsmanship and very high design specifications. “We will continue to invest in the region through our strategy of acquisition of sites in prime residential locations, to create communities where demand is strongest for our new mix of family homes.”
The electricity grid is undergoing its first evolution since the invention of the power transmission system, and energy storage devices, particularly mechanical energy storage devices, will play a solid role in this evolution. Decarbonization, renewable energies, and energy storage devices are all factors involved in the current evolution of the electricity grid. In the last decades the integration of renewable energies, pushed by the necessity to decarbonize the electricity sector, led energy storage devices to become increasingly important to stabilize the electricity grid. The increased adoption of variable renewable energy led the electricity grid operator to adopt energy storage systems to smoothen the variability of renewable sources. Li-ion batteries, currently dominating the storage sectors in all of its aspects. From portable electronics to MW scale storage systems, Li-ion batteries will struggle in the future to address the MW scale power and daily storage duration, when Mechanical Energy Storage systems will enter the market. Power and storage compacity comparison of different technologies. Source: IDTechEx In the brand-new report “Potential Stationary Energy Storage Technologies to Monitor”, IDTechEx has investigated these emerging technologies. With a simple working mechanism, Mechanical Energy Storage systems are addressing the bigger spectrum of the energy storage devices: large power output, and long storage time. This new class of storage systems includes older and newer technologies. It includes elderly technologies like compressed air energy storage, already installed in the 1980s, and some of the younger gravitational energy storage, like in the case of Highview Energy, and Energy Vault recently backed with millions of dollars. These interesting devices are now entering the electricity market with demonstration projects, to prove the technical concept. The constant integration of variable energy sources will require additional storage devices to stabilize the electricity grid, where the Mechanical Energy Storage device could play a fundamental role. Electricity is an essential element of modern society, and reaching a stable electricity grid is a fundamental target to improve the economy of each and every country. The adoption of these innovative devices will surge in the next future, allowing an improvement of the electricity grid, and boosting the integration of variable energy source. For more information on this report, please visit www.IDTechEx.com/PotentialSES or for the full portfolio of Energy Storage research available from IDTechEx please visit www.IDTechEx.com/research/ES. IDTechEx guides your strategic business decisions through its Research, Consultancy and Event products, helping you profit from emerging technologies. For more information on IDTechEx Research and Consultancy, contact research@IDTechEx.com or visit www.IDTechEx.com.
Your kitchen is the heart of your home. It’s where you cook for your family, where you entertain friends and bake with your kids. When you’ve got a kitchen that you love, you are more likely to eat a healthy diet, experiment with different foods and cook from scratch. It’s certainly worth taking the time to design the kitchen of your dreams, and a high-quality remodel can improve your home, and even increase its value. But a kitchen renovation can be exceptionally stressful. It’s perhaps the room that causes the most disruption to your home life. Trying to live without a functional kitchen is tough. It can cause stress and upset and make life significantly more difficult. If you are thinking about a renovation, or in the middle of one, here are some tips to help you reduce the stress. Create a New Kitchen Instead of trying to live without your kitchen, create a new kitchen in a different part of your home. But, keep things simple. Don’t try to move everything out, and don’t think that you’ll be able to create culinary delights from a corner in your lounge. Move out the essentials, and create a small yet functional kitchen in a different area of your home. Stick to the basics, don’t put any pressure on yourself, and do your best to keep it clean. Remember, you won’t die if you live off sandwiches for a week. Find Contractors You Trust Renovations become more stressful when we’re worried, or when we’re working with someone who we don’t think shares our vision or understands what we are trying to achieve. Take your time to find designers and contractors that you trust, and things will be easier. Eat Out When stress reaches its pinnacle, get out. Don’t try to cook, don’t worry about food, escape it all by booking a table at your favourite restaurant. Don’t Take Too Much On Being comfortable and relaxed at home helps us to manage other areas of our lives. When we can chill out at home with a grav glass, a hot bath, our favourite meal and a good book, we feel as though we can take on the world. When your house is in chaos, it stops being your haven. So, while you’ve got a lot going on at home, try to cut your workload. Schedule your renovation for a quiet time at work, or a time when you’ve got no birthdays or holidays to worry about. Have an Emergency Budget One of the biggest stresses when it comes to any kind of home project is money. Renovations often run over budget. We worry that we’re spending too much, or that we can’t afford to finish the job. So, reduce stress by budgeting more effectively. Make sure you’ve got an emergency budget so that you don’t have to worry if things go wrong, take longer than expected, or if you need to make changes along the way. Perhaps the best way to manage your stress is by remembering what you are working towards. Keep your dream kitchen in mind, and remind yourself when it all gets too much.
If you are looking to decorate, redecorate or modernise your home or office and you are looking for new floor covering, there are several options available to you. These include traditional carpet, hardwood, lino, tile and possibly the most versatile floor covering, laminate. Laminate is a great low maintenance all-rounder and can be used in all rooms and spaces. Here are just a few reasons what you should choose a laminate floor. Durability One major benefit of laminate is that it is more durable than its counterparts. This makes it a great choice if you are looking to cover a heavy traffic area. This includes hallways, kitchens, office spaces etc. Laminate flooring is much stronger and less easy to scratch than hardwood flooring options. Therefore, high heels, kids, and even animals will not be able to mark it as easily, Therefore ensuring it lasts longer. This is because it has a tough external layer and is coated in resin, making it extremely hardwearing. Economical Laminate flooring is often less expensive than other flooring options. This does depend on the quality you opt for of course. Therefore if you like to redecorate frequently as fashions change, depending on your budget, laminate may allow you to do so. However, as it is so hardwearing and durable, compared to other floor coverings, especially carpet, if you are decorating on a budget, you probably will not have to replace it as quickly. This, in turn, is likely to save you money in the future too. Installation Laminate is also easy to install. The majority of laminate floor options do not require glue and instead use the Uniclic, or similar, system. As this mess-free system makes installation easy, many people choose to install their laminate floor themselves. This is, of course, the more cost-effective option. However, if DIY is not your thing. not to worry, you can hire a professional to do it for you. Many of which offer a guarantee for the work they carry out should you have an issue at a later date with regards to the installation. Maintainance As mentioned, laminate flooring is extremely low maintenance. Many laminate flooring options have a stain, fade and moisture-resistant coating. This ensures that if something does get spilt, you can simply use a damp cloth to wipe it away quickly and easily. Therefore again making it a great option if you have children and/or animals. As laminate does not require waxing or varnishing as hardwood does, it means you can clean it as frequently as you like without taking the top layer off and then having to reseal it. Styles One of the major reasons so many people opt for a laminate floor is because of the range of styles available. There is an option to suit everyone’s taste. Many laminate floors are even designed not to look like laminate. Therefore if you would prefer a hardwood or stone floor but simply do not have the budget for one, laminate is a great option. Also, there are numerous colours available. This means you are more than likely going to find the perfect shade to fit in with your colour scheme.
Marketing communications agency, Jam, has demonstrated its value and extraordinary thinking in driving its clients forward through the pandemic, with two clients placing additional investment and trust in the delivery of integrated marketing strategies. National PropTech company, MakeUrMove, has tasked Jam with positioning the firm as the leading provider of smart technology for landlords and tenants and increasing brand awareness through PR, and implementing marketing campaigns to increase web traffic and leads. Jam has enjoyed a partnership with MakeUrMove for over two and a half years, working collaboratively to deliver elements including a brand refresh, website design, digital content strategy and establishing a presence in the media through a hard-working press office. Specialist housing recruitment agency, Andersen James, has enlisted the support of Jam to deliver an integrated strategy on its road to post-coronavirus growth and support its ambitious scale up plans of tripling turnover and profit by 2023. Having worked with Andersen James since 2015, delivering ad hoc creative assets, including brochures, presentations and a website build, Jam has now been awarded an ongoing retainer and trusted to supply a long term strategy of increasing awareness of the firm and positioning them as industry leaders through B2B PR and digital content. Jaime Gee, Managing Director and co-founder of Jam, said: “With our long standing partnerships with MakeUrMove and Andersen James, we’re thrilled that our clients see the real value in the services we deliver. While many businesses have paused or scaled back marketing activity due to the current climate, our clients trust us in our ability to deliver an integrated approach to help drive their businesses forward and ensure a resilient future. Alexandra Morris, Managing Director of MakeUrMove, said: “It’s been a challenging time for the property industry, but the sector is already seeing a bounceback and so we believe that now is the right time for investing in a long term integrated marketing strategy with Jam. As a result of our established partnership with Jam, we are confident that Jam’s understanding of our sector, and proven experience of delivering fantastic and meaningful results will support us in our future growth journey and plans of becoming a household name in the industry.” Jam’s roster of clients includes Argos Pet Insurance, UAE based IRE Oil & Gas FZE, Koura, Survivors Manchester, Sync, The Furniture Recycling Group, and Printworks.