A HISTORIC development in the West Midlands has moved one step closer to completion following a topping out ceremony held by contractor Clegg Construction. Located in Great Hampton Street, Birmingham on the edge of the Jewellery Quarter, the scheme comprises four different buildings, one of which is listed. The scheme includes
Crossrail has today handed over the Woolwich Elizabeth line station to Transport for London, following the successful delivery by Balfour Beatty; marking the fourth central London station to be transferred ahead of Trial Operations beginning later this year. Delivered alongside its design partners, Mott MacDonald, the revitalised station will ensure
The body representing town planners in Scotland has called on Scottish Government to provide more support for communities and planning authorities to allow local people to shape how their places develop. In responding to the consultation on draft proposals for the framework of regulations for Local Place Plans, the Royal
Leading compliance expert Bureau Veritas has revealed that construction businesses looking to bid for UK government contracts worth more than £5m will need to step up their sustainability credentials as a new rule requires them to commit to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – and demonstrate how they
Glasgow Caledonian University research finds rise in suicide rate for construction workers and labourers The data also shows no change in historical ratios, with people in the construction industry three times more likely to take their own life than those working outside it The results will inform a new dashboard
The Housing Forum (THF) has set up a Futures Network for a cohort of prospective future leaders who are at an early and promising stage of their development. THF is in a unique position to actively support the growth of the skills the housing industry needs and to widen diversity
Market-leading single ply roofing manufacturer Sika and five of its Certified Contractors have triumphed at this year’s Single Ply Roofing Association (SPRA) Awards. The awards, which recognise best practice within the single ply roofing industry, saw Sika Sarnafil, working with Berkshire-based Malone Roofing, take home the Best New Build award
One of the most important and common materials used in construction is steel. Many buildings—be they residential, commercial, or industrial—heavily rely on steel. Currently, the use of secondary steel is heightening. It’s manufactured from the remains of primary steel to be recycled and molded. This kind of steel has no
A HISTORIC development in the West Midlands has moved one step closer to completion following a topping out ceremony held by contractor Clegg Construction. Located in Great Hampton Street, Birmingham on the edge of the Jewellery Quarter, the scheme comprises four different buildings, one of which is listed. The scheme includes the regeneration of the grade II* listed former J. Ashford and Son jewellery factory building, which is being revitalised, with three further distinct blocks each with their own innovative and contextual architectural style. The three and four storey build-to-rent (BTR) development will provide 158 new high-quality rental homes and 10,000 sq ft. of ground level commercial space. Clegg Construction was appointed to complete the BTR project, which includes the grade II* listed former factory, with works due for completion in early 2022. Dave Swift, operations manager at Clegg Construction, said: “We’re really excited to have reached this significant milestone as it’s a great scheme to be involved in. We very much enjoy working on projects that combine heritage buildings with new development to create something really special. “We are therefore proud to be part of scheme that offers much needed residential and commercial space in the city centre. We’ve made excellent progress to reach this point and we’re very much looking forward to seeing the scheme progress to a finished product, delivering high quality rental homes in this vibrant part of the city.” The scheme aims to address the national housing shortage and boost the West Midlands’ residential offering, as well as contributing towards economic growth with the inclusion of 10,000 sq ft of commercial space that can be utilised by local businesses.
Crossrail has today handed over the Woolwich Elizabeth line station to Transport for London, following the successful delivery by Balfour Beatty; marking the fourth central London station to be transferred ahead of Trial Operations beginning later this year. Delivered alongside its design partners, Mott MacDonald, the revitalised station will ensure quicker, easier and more convenient travel for commuters, residents and visitors each day both into and out of Woolwich, whilst also supporting wider regeneration in the local area – creating numerous jobs and opportunities for local businesses. Works to the much-anticipated station involved the delivery of a 276-metre-long underground station, with Balfour Beatty Ground Engineering providing the associated diaphragm walls and bearing piles. In addition, Balfour Beatty was responsible for installing Mechanical and Electrical plant at two portals as well as station operations rooms where the Elizabeth line trains will surface from either end of the Thames Tunnel at North Woolwich and Plumstead. Andy Lambden, Balfour Beatty Project Director, said: “This is an incredible milestone for both Balfour Beatty and Crossrail – one that signifies another step towards the official opening of the long-awaited, iconic, Elizabeth Line. “Testament to our unrivalled expertise from across the Group, we are delighted to have safely and successfully delivered a station which will transform travel across south east London, whilst also supporting economic growth in the area through new employment and business opportunities.” Mark Wild, Crossrail Chief Executive, said: “I am delighted that Woolwich station has been handed over to Transport for London. Woolwich is a beautiful station, surrounded by history which has been brilliantly captured by all those working on the station build. I am proud of everyone who has worked so hard to get this magnificent new railway station over the line.” David Eastland, Mott MacDonald’s project design director, C530 Woolwich Station, said: “This has been a remarkable programme of works with some amazing people and skills. The station is a living legacy providing, transport homes and jobs, so it gives me great pleasure to see the station handed over as part of the transformation of the Woolwich area and the wider contribution to London.” Located on the site of the Royal Arsenal which was home to a military academy and previously used for the manufacture of guns and explosives, munitions testing and the production of medals including the ‘Dead Man’s Penny’ which was given to the next of kin of those killed during World War One, the station’s design subtly references the military past of the site. Why not watch the video below and learn more from Andy Lambden, Balfour Beatty’s Project Director?
The body representing town planners in Scotland has called on Scottish Government to provide more support for communities and planning authorities to allow local people to shape how their places develop. In responding to the consultation on draft proposals for the framework of regulations for Local Place Plans, the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Scotland says that there is a need for more funding, resources for capacity building and guidance. RTPI Scotland Convenor Barbara Cummins said: “This is an important moment for the planning system and the future of community engagement. Local Place Plans provide a golden opportunity to support communities to be more engaged in discussions about the future of the places where they live. “This means that we need to make sure that they have the resources they need to do this, that they can access expertise and that they are able to engage people across their area in the discussion. These resources need to be targeted to communities that need them the most so we don’t exacerbate existing inequalities in Scotland. “We cautiously welcome the light-touch approach taken by Scottish Government to this legislation, striking the difficult balance between providing a robust framework for development whilst ensuring that the process to produce Local Place Plans is not over-complicated for communities and allows for local flexibility.” In its response, RTPI Scotland has called on Scottish Government to bring greater clarity as to how the new future of community-led plans will be implemented in areas such as resourcing, timing and development planning and management procedures. Read RTPI Scotland’s full response to the Scottish Government consultation here
Leading compliance expert Bureau Veritas has revealed that construction businesses looking to bid for UK government contracts worth more than £5m will need to step up their sustainability credentials as a new rule requires them to commit to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – and demonstrate how they will manage their impact on the environment throughout the contract. Earlier this month, the UK government announced it will require businesses to commit to net zero by 2050 and publish clear and credible carbon reduction plans before they can bid for major government contracts1. A carbon reduction plan sets out where an organisation’s emissions come from and the environmental management measures that they have in place. Some large companies already self-report parts of their carbon emissions, known as Scope 1 (direct) and Scope 2 (indirect owned) emissions. However, the new rules are set to go further, requiring the reporting of some Scope 3 emissions, including business travel, employee commuting, transportation, distribution and waste. Scope 3 emissions represent a significant proportion of an organisation’s carbon footprint. Welcoming the new measures, Bureau Veritas, which has helped some of the world’s largest organisations improve their sustainability performance, has described the move as a ‘quantum leap’ for sustainability. As such, the firm is pressing construction businesses to revisit, review and independently verify their environmental strategies in preparation of the upcoming changes, due to be implemented from September. David Murray, Technical Director for Sustainability at Bureau Veritas, comments: “Considering the government spends more than £290 billion on procurement every year, these new requirements are a ‘quantum leap’ for sustainability across the UK. “However, it also means that companies hoping to win these lucrative government contracts can no longer simply pay lip service to their environmental policy but instead must demonstrate a credible, robust and ambitious plan for achieving net zero carbon emissions. “Ahead of these changes, firms that haven’t done so already will need to review their existing sustainability strategy and be confident about how they plan to reach net zero carbon emissions, which includes a focus on coherent data collection, reporting and action. “Whilst this process can be inherently complex, the good news is as a third-party sustainability expert, at Bureau Veritas, we’ve built up specialist experience in supporting businesses with the sustainability credential in recent years – invaluable expertise which we’d urge all construction business to utilise now.” Bureau Veritas has experience and technical expertise in helping some of the world’s largest organisations improve their sustainability performance in a number of sectors including food, pharmaceutical, financial and manufacturing. With a proven track record in verification of environmental, health & safety and social data, including conducting audits against the requirements of ISO 14064 Part 3, Bureau Veritas is also a GRI Community Member, an AA1000AS Licensed Provider and a UKAS accredited ISO 14064-1 Verification Body. To find out more, call 0345 600 1828 or visit www.bureauveritas.co.uk
Glasgow Caledonian University research finds rise in suicide rate for construction workers and labourers The data also shows no change in historical ratios, with people in the construction industry three times more likely to take their own life than those working outside it The results will inform a new dashboard for policy makers aimed at making sure mental health initiatives reach the right people in the industry Initiatives aimed at protecting the mental health of construction workers may not be getting to those who need them, leading to an increased risk of suicide, researchers at Glasgow Caledonian University have warned. The new findings come after academics at the University’s Research Centre for Built Environment Asset Management (BEAM) Centre helped develop a ‘dashboard’ of wellbeing for the industry, commissioned by construction mental-health charity, the Lighthouse Club. The dashboard will be an interactive database, bringing together in one place measurable data in the public domain on construction safety, health and wellbeing. This will be updated yearly, allowing industry organisations, policy makers and researchers to view trends via graphs generated by the data, as well as use it to track progress of industry initiatives, inform decision making and undertake further analysis using the source data. The work involved bringing data together on suicides – seen as the ‘acid test’ as to whether mental-health initiatives are working – for the period immediately before and subsequently after the UK Government Independent Review on mental health ‘Thriving at work’ in 2017. Analysis of suicides by occupation, conducted by Professor Billy Hare, who is leading the study, demonstrated that the number per 100,000 for construction workers rose from 26 to 29 in the four years to 2019, despite various initiatives and thousands of awareness training sessions put in place since publication of the Government report in 2017. The data also shows no change in historical ratios, with people in the construction industry three times more likely to take their own life than those working outside it. There also appears to be some variation between certain occupational groups within the industry. Those working in non-manual occupations, such as managers and professionals, have lower rates, which have also seen an overall drop in rate from just under 7 in 2015, to just under 5 per 100,000 in 2019. Conversely, unskilled workers, such as labourers, have seen their rate rise year on year from 48 to just over 73 suicides per 100,000. Professor Hare said: “This occupational group is usually higher than average for suicides, but the sharp rise and widening gap over the period analysed, in contrast to their non-manual colleagues, is concerning and may indicate recent initiatives are not reaching these more vulnerable sectors of the industry. “Unskilled workers tend to fall into the lowest socio-economic classes, which are associated with lower life expectancy in general, and tend to display the classic characteristics linked to poor mental health, such as alcohol and substance abuse, financial and relationship problems and suffer multiple stressful life events.” Professor Hare cautioned, however, that these are just preliminary findings and more robust data needs to be obtained so that factors such as age can be controlled for. Usable data was only available for England and Wales, and the team are hoping to also add those for Scotland and Northern Ireland in due course. Meanwhile, researchers led by Professor Hare are also undertaking a review of construction-specific factors around suicide, funded by the Samaritans. This research will inform the charity’s development of intervention strategies to reduce the high rates seen in the construction industry.
The Housing Forum (THF) has set up a Futures Network for a cohort of prospective future leaders who are at an early and promising stage of their development. THF is in a unique position to actively support the growth of the skills the housing industry needs and to widen diversity and build new networks. Through this initiative, THF will benefit from access to different approaches and enable THF to actively address succession and relevance to the membership and industry. Stephen Teagle, The Housing Forum Chairman said ‘This Futures Network supports a group of prospective promising future leaders who will be empowered to provide a unique perspective and sustain the future of the work of The Housing Forum, learning from board mentors as they contribute to and promote the benefits of the network during their careers’. The first cohort nominated by their organisations are – Will Gregory and Mustab Ahmed from Baily Garner Daniel Love from Polypipe Building Products (part of the Genuit Group) Phena MacNamara, Kotey Nikoi from Pollard Thomas Edwards Thomas Bugler, Anna Barrett from Bugler Group Richard Johnson from Platform Housing Group Phil Wilsdon from Airey Miller Scott Batty, Mary Zhang from The Guiness Partnership Emma Colin from Vistry Stuart Brown from Trowers & Hamlins Rory Kemp Camilla Budd from Wates Development Eleni Stathi from HTA Design Lauren Williams from Fusion Build
Market-leading single ply roofing manufacturer Sika and five of its Certified Contractors have triumphed at this year’s Single Ply Roofing Association (SPRA) Awards. The awards, which recognise best practice within the single ply roofing industry, saw Sika Sarnafil, working with Berkshire-based Malone Roofing, take home the Best New Build award for their contribution to St George’s college’s new sports facility and its bespoke freeform glulam roof. The lightweight system was ideal for the complex curved roof. Also the addition of Sika décor profiles meant rainfall could be interrupted and guided across the roof area ensuring high pitched areas could provide more slip resistance, offering substantial health and safety benefits. Sika, working with Perth-based AIM Developments Ltd, also came out top in the Best Safe Working category for their work on the iconic dome shaped Bell’s Sports Centre roof in Scotland. The contractor’s expertise in working with the flexible single ply system for over 35 years meant the complicated project was installed safely and finished on time. The Best Refurbishment category was won with Oxfordshire’s Owlsworth Roofing, for their work on the University of Reading’s immense library overhaul. 13 different roof areas on 8 separate levels didn’t faze the Sika contractors, with technical guidance and support in creating bespoke specifications for each roof area. Throughout the full roof refurbishment, the library was still safely accessible to students. A further two Sarnafil projects were highly commended: one for Refurbishment work on historic treasure the Royal Gunpowder Mills with Essex-based Contour Roofing, and one for Best Safe working on the Waterside Theatre in Aylesbury with Bedford’s Delomac Ltd. Announced at SPRA’s first ever virtual conference and awards ceremony, held on Wednesday 16 June, this year’s awards celebrated projects completed in 2019 across five project categories, with 2020 projects now to be carried forward to an event next year (2022). This year’s event focused on ‘Driving Confidence and Developing Competence’ with live keynote speeches from a host of influential speakers within the construction industry including senior figures from the CPA, Peter Caplehorn (CEO) and the BBA, Hardy Giesler (CEO). “Despite not being able to attend this year’s SPRA Awards in person, it was great to join virtually and saw us overjoyed to see so many of our Sika Sarnafil projects shine. From roofs that curved in multiple directions and domed roofs that were difficult to manoeuvre around, to roofs with multiple areas and levels, we saw a real diverse selection of projects succeed this year. They all endured challenges, but thanks to a combination of Sika’s technical expertise and the hard work provided by some fantastically skilled Certified Contractors, each one was a testament not only to Sika Sarnafil Single Ply flexibility and robustness, but to the brilliant working relationships we share with our trusted contractors,” said Tim Halls, National Sales Manager for Roofing New Build in England and Wales at Sika.
One of the most important and common materials used in construction is steel. Many buildings—be they residential, commercial, or industrial—heavily rely on steel. Currently, the use of secondary steel is heightening. It’s manufactured from the remains of primary steel to be recycled and molded. This kind of steel has no mill certifications, and it’s cheaper compared to primary steel. Secondary steel can also be the result of processes such as steel slitting. It serves to fulfil specific customers’ needs. There are several benefits associated with secondary steel. Here are just some of them: How Is Secondary Steel Used? Given how advantageous secondary steel is, it’s not surprising that it has many industrial applications, including the following: 1. Surface Casing Surface casing is a pipe installed in gas and oil wells. It’s placed near a well to safeguard water sands against leakage or contamination resulting from gas or oil drilling projects. Surface casings are used in concrete pilings in many construction processes, too. 2. Frame Construction Secondary steel can be utilized in forming the frame that supports primary frames in the construction of houses. That kind of support is crucial to ensure that the main frames don’t twist or break. Frames made from secondary steel also help in attaching walls and roofs. These are several common framing parts you may encounter: 3. Pipe Making Recycled steel can also be used to manufacture pipes, which could be irrigation, plumbing, or water pipes. These end products of recycled steel work as well as their counterparts made from primary steel. 4. Packaging Uses Secondary steel can be used in manufacturing food packaging materials and beverage containers. The process involved is usually cost-effective and doesn’t harm the environment. 5. Automobiles Secondary steel is considered a strong and affordable material in the production of some vehicle parts. Even old automobiles are recycled to make new ones. This is possible because steel doesn’t degrade quickly. 6. Home Furniture And Appliances Couches, tables, and chairs can have legs made from secondary steel. When it comes to designing modern furniture, steel can be incorporated in order to come up with stylish designs. What’s more, offices can have modern cabinets and sleek desks manufactured from secondary steel. Lightning fixtures, refrigerators, stoves, and dishwashers have parts constructed from recycled steel as well. These home appliances and furniture are all durable. 7. Signs And Creative Endeavors Secondary steel can be used for outdoor road and entryway signs. Meanwhile, some communities turn to secondary steel to produce outstanding sculptures. These artistic pieces can last a long time. 8. Creation Of New, Sturdy Metal Products With the aid of an electric arc furnace, secondary steel can be refined and turned into quality products. During the process, less energy is used, which ultimately helps in lowering costs. The metals manufactured can be used in railway and bridge construction. Takeaway The use of secondary steel in various industries is increasing. This is because of the benefits that come with this metal, among them being durability and affordability. In the long run, it may help contribute to the reduction of steel materials in landfills. Moreover, utilizing secondary steel is a great way to save on costs associated with primary steel.
