Contracts Awarded for construction projects in the UK fell £11.1bn to £69.2bn in 2023, a 14% reduction from a record £80.4bn in 2022, according to the latest analysis from construction analysts Barbour ABI. Sectors hit by the cost-of-living crisis were particularly affected with residential housebuilding down 14%, commercial developments down
Latest set of results for the prior 12-month trading period show a strong improvement in profitability, whilst maintaining its core focus on consolidation and building a strong and resilient platform for the future. Glencar, a leading UK construction company that was recently ranked amongst Europe’s fastest growing businesses, has today
Leading capital infrastructure and engineering services company, Avove, has been awarded a multi-million-pound design and build framework agreement with Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) as part of NWG’s Asset Management Period 8 (AMP8) £3.6 billion investment programme. The design and build framework, which commences in January 2024 for up to 12
SFG20, the industry standard for building maintenance, has launched a new software solution designed to address the ‘once in a generation’ challenges facing the facilities management industry. Facilities-iQ, a completely new ‘smart’ software solution has been designed to aid regulatory compliance, improve auditing, and facilitate better collaboration between building owners,
Plans have been approved to redevelop Catterick Garrison town centre in a move aimed at bringing jobs and vital new facilities for local communities as well as military personnel on one of England’s largest Army bases. Permission to build a new community and enterprise building and a multi-use events space
The latest research by Zero Deposit, the tenancy deposit alternative, has revealed that London remains the most competitive region for letting agents, having seen the largest increase in the number of residential letting agents in the last year, while London letting agents also have the highest average number of current
Travelodge, the UK’s first budget hotel brand which operates nearly 600 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Spain, today announces it has promoted and appointed Kirsty Berry as the Company’s new Head of Estates. Kirsty joined Travelodge in 2022 as Regional Estates Manager and has been an integral member of
A major event for the South West construction industry brought together 150 industry leaders and professionals to shine a light on major challenges facing the sector. Attendees gathered at the Future Skills Centre in Exeter for the Constructing Excellence South West Construction and Housing Summit and participated in an exclusive
Construction company placed in administration after workers given ‘no notice’ Unite the union recently confirmed on Friday 12th of December that it is to hold meetings in Aberdeen and Dundee today following the announcement that the Stewart Milne Group has been placed into administration. Unite stated this week that it
Provider of powerful AI-based water management systems elevates expectations entering 2024 As organizations around the world face rising costs related to water damage and increased focus on water sustainability, WINT Water Intelligence is building on its success in 2023 to continue solving these challenges for insurance, construction, facilities, and property
Contracts Awarded for construction projects in the UK fell £11.1bn to £69.2bn in 2023, a 14% reduction from a record £80.4bn in 2022, according to the latest analysis from construction analysts Barbour ABI. Sectors hit by the cost-of-living crisis were particularly affected with residential housebuilding down 14%, commercial developments down 15% and Hotel and Leisure falling dramatically by 29%. A lack of confidence in the market was also reflected in applications for new construction projects, which fell by 16% to under £100bn. Housing applications are now 21% down on pre-pandemic levels. Barbour Consulting Economist Kelly Forrest commented: “2023 was challenging for the UK construction sector. In addition to viability challenges from higher construction costs and borrowing rates, consumers and business confidence remained weak. 2023’s good news stories were largely confined to the public sector as the government’s flagship school and hospital building programmes finally started to build some momentum amid moderating cost inflation and mounting political pressure.” Barbour ABI found that education awards bounced back to £6.1bn in 2023, a 20% uplift compared with 2022, and a 19% increase from 2019. Meanwhile, Healthcare beat 2022 by 4% and is now 160% higher than pre-pandemic levels. Forrest continued: “Overall weakness concealed pockets of buoyant sub-sector activity. Energy was a particular bright spot as investment poured into energy from waste and energy storage facilities, along with offshore wind.” Infrastructure Infrastructure spending, including government-funded projects, remained an important crutch for the industry in 2023. Contract awards fell 22% to £15.2bn but remained 47% higher than in 2019. Energy projects were a big driver. Windfarms, battery storage facilities and large waste-to-energy contracts all helped maintain awards momentum. Meanwhile, applications remained 62% higher than pre-pandemic levels and analysis of demand side approvals, still double pre-pandemic levels, suggests infrastructure will continue to perform in 2024. Looking ahead Forrest concluded: “In early 2024 there are a few reasons to be optimistic. Interest rates are likely to have peaked and inflationary pressures have eased markedly. Entering what is very likely to be an election year there is a risk there will be a hiatus in public sector investment as key decisions are postponed. The speed and resilience of the private sector recovery will be pivotal.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Latest set of results for the prior 12-month trading period show a strong improvement in profitability, whilst maintaining its core focus on consolidation and building a strong and resilient platform for the future. Glencar, a leading UK construction company that was recently ranked amongst Europe’s fastest growing businesses, has today announced its latest set of results for the prior 12-month trading period. The results show an improvement in underlying profitability, alongside a core focus on business consolidation and building a strong platform for the future with significant investments in people, technology, working environment, H&S, processes and the operating platform. Amongst the highlights include: The results also show a fully secured and robust order book of projects worth £350m for 2024 across multiple sectors including Industrial & Logistics (I&L), Data Centres, Pharma/Life Sciences, Film/Studios, Fit out and refurbishment. Speaking about the latest set of results Glencar CEO and Co-founder Eddie McGillycuddy said: “Throughout the last 12 months, our focus has been on consolidation and building a strong platform for the future. This has included substantial investments across the company, most notably in our people, working environments, ESG, processes and our operating platform. Our commitment to doing the right kind of work has resulted in better delivery and improved profit margins. A key indicator of our success is the remarkable increase in high levels of repeat business, which now account for 65% of our turnover, compared to 40% last year. This growth is indicative of our dedication to cultivating long-term customer partnerships. To ensure sustained growth and efficiency, we have undertaken significant ongoing investment in our head office and core business support functions. We have positioned ourselves within the market to take on upcoming opportunities with the availability and mobility of the right people and teams”. Also commenting Glencar Director and Cofounder Chris Gleave also: “With an order book of £350 million already secured for 2024 we look forward to another encouraging year of growth to come. Our commitment to innovation and the integration of smart processes and technology is on the rise, ensuring that we stay at the forefront of industry trends. We are targeting 10-20% revenue growth in the next financial year. This ambitious goal is underpinned by our strategy of cultivating repeat business with our customer community while actively exploring strategic opportunities with new clients and in emerging markets. Our success is based on our culture, our people who deliver the service and way of working. Simultaneously, we direct our investment towards strengthening our internal processes and training our people ensuring their resilience to provide both our customers and supply chain partners with the best possible service”. To watch a video showcasing some of Glencar’s highlights during 2023 please click here. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Leading capital infrastructure and engineering services company, Avove, has been awarded a multi-million-pound design and build framework agreement with Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) as part of NWG’s Asset Management Period 8 (AMP8) £3.6 billion investment programme. The design and build framework, which commences in January 2024 for up to 12 years, covers the delivery of large capital investment programmes, including renewal, refurbishment and replacement for clean and wastewater networks and assets. Avove is one of 12 partners who are part of the Living Water Enterprise, the innovative vehicle developed to deliver large-scale construction programmes on behalf of NWG for AMP8. Avove’s Executive Chair, Mark Perkins, said: “We are delighted to have secured our place on Northumbrian Water Group’s framework for AMP8, which represents a significant contract win for Avove and aligns with our ambitious development plans. “During the tender process, it became clear that our strategic focus on being expert, agile and responsible aligned with the requirements of the Living Water Enterprise. Our delivery model is deeply rooted in our technical expertise, extensive experience, and commitment to service excellence across our entire business. We demonstrated that we are a collaborative provider of infrastructure services focusing on ESG, carbon reduction and innovative approaches to engineering, design and ways of working, whilst offering value for money.” With supply chain partners appointed, Avove will join NWG to form a highly integrated, collaborative delivery organisation which will play a key role in delivering NWG’s upcoming business plan commitments effectively and efficiently. This will consider the complete lifecycle of assets to ensure smarter spending and risk-based planning for the long term. Mark continued: “This is an exciting partnership, creating economic growth and opportunity in the region through a committed and thoughtful deployment of our design and construction expertise. We look forward to collaborating with Northumbrian Water Group and its partners as part of the Living Water Enterprise, driving the best value and capital solutions across the programme and delivering really positive social impacts.” Monisha Gower, Assets Director at Northumbrian Water Group, said: “The market has never been so competitive, when it comes to adding the best partners and people to our team in the run-up to AMP8. We have had to be agile and move fast, employing innovation throughout our procurement practices, and it has paid off, building our new stable of partners and creating the capacity we need for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. “Already this year, we have worked with those previously-appointed partners to start the important work of creating a strong culture, centred around collaboration, innovation, safety and wellbeing, all with a clear focus on solutions that work for customers and the environment. “We have brought on board some of the most capable and innovative partners in our sector, each of whom will bring their energy and passion with them for the journey ahead. These partnerships aren’t just going to build more resilient services for our customers, they will build reputations and careers along the way. “The level of integration that we will build with all of our partners requires a lot of work, and we are excited to get started.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
SFG20, the industry standard for building maintenance, has launched a new software solution designed to address the ‘once in a generation’ challenges facing the facilities management industry. Facilities-iQ, a completely new ‘smart’ software solution has been designed to aid regulatory compliance, improve auditing, and facilitate better collaboration between building owners, managers, maintenance teams, contractors, and consultants. The new product has been launched to help users stay on top of ever-changing legislation and regulation whilst also routinely managing maintenance tasks and their financial and technical risks. FM professionals will also find the content available through Facilities-iQ will also support them in striking the right balance between compliance and business criticality. The launch has followed a rigorous development process guided by the findings from FM professionals who shared the unprecedented challenges they’d experienced from a barrage of new legislation. The Fire Safety Act 2021, The Building Safety Act 2022, and the Fire Safety Regulations (England) 2022 are just three examples of how legislation has shifted priorities and responsibilities for everyone involved in the maintenance of built assets. A major benefit of this new smart software solution for FM professionals is that it allows users to tailor SFG20 content to suit the unique needs of their facility, while still benefiting from automated update notifications whenever SFG20 content is updated to align with regulatory landscape changes. This means users can update the library of best practice and compliance information combined with their own unique knowledge of a site and its assets. This will help them accurately target resources, including external contractors, to minimise costs and improve efficiency. Facilities-iQ is the latest innovation in the 30-year journey of SFG20. Kirsty Cogan, Managing Director at SFG20, said: “This launch is very much in tune with this new era of digital facilities management. “We have come a long way from the paper-based schedules created by those pioneering HVCA members whose work was also revolutionary in its day. “Today’s industry can now harness the power of the latest software tools to transform the way they manage their valuable and complex assets. As well as helping them achieve compliance with their increasingly onerous regulatory responsibilities, Facilities-iQ is a great way for FMs to provide evidence of how their work adds value by making our built environment safer, healthier, and more comfortable.” Facilities-iQ will be available on Wednesday 31st January. For more information about Facilities-iQ and how it can manage your building maintenance compliance with its revolutionary features and benefits, please register for SFG20’s pre-launch event on Wednesday 17th January at 12 pm here: https://www.sfg20.co.uk/webinar/facilities-iqCustomers can attend a unique preview on Tuesday 16th January at 12 pm Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Plans have been approved to redevelop Catterick Garrison town centre in a move aimed at bringing jobs and vital new facilities for local communities as well as military personnel on one of England’s largest Army bases. Permission to build a new community and enterprise building and a multi-use events space as well as create a new public square was given by members of the Richmond (Yorks) Area Constituency Planning Committee. Plans also include landscaping improvements, upgrades to Coronation Park and Shute Road, improved play spaces, accessible routes to the town centre and improvements to footpaths and cycleways. Richmond (Yorks) Area Constituency Planning Committee chairman, Cllr David Webster, said: “This scheme will see significant improvements to the centre of Catterick Garrison as well as contribute to our work to reduce carbon emissions through the use of sustainable design and renewable energy.” The redevelopment of the town centre, which covers four acres of land around Shute Road, will see us working with the Ministry of Defence (MOD). We have received £19 million from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund, with the remaining match-funding coming from the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) and ourselves. It is hoped they will be brought to fruition by summer next year (2025). The community building will house offices for small businesses and include space for community groups and food retail. Improvements to the park will include new play areas for all ages from toddlers and woodland play areas to a skatepark for older users. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
The latest research by Zero Deposit, the tenancy deposit alternative, has revealed that London remains the most competitive region for letting agents, having seen the largest increase in the number of residential letting agents in the last year, while London letting agents also have the highest average number of current rental listings on the books versus every other region of Britain. Zero Deposit analysed the number of residential letting agents across each region of Britain*, before looking at current rental market stock levels in each region* to determine where letting agents are having the busiest start to 2024 when it comes to available rental market stock. The research shows that there are some 24,237 residential letting agents operating across Britain today. This number has increased by 3% year on year, with 601 more letting agents operating across the market versus January last year. With 132,723 rental properties currently listed for rent, that equates to an average of five available properties per letting agent. London, along with Wales, has seen the largest increase in letting agent numbers, up 4% year on year. However, this 4% increase is far greater in the capital, where it equates to an additional 232 letting agents, versus an increase of just 36 in Wales. As a result, London remains the most competitive market for letting agents, with a total of 6,189 in business across the capital, by far the most of any region, with the South East sitting second with 3,967. However, the research by Zero Deposit suggests that the London rental market is most in need of this year on year boost to letting agent numbers. There are currently almost 50,000 homes listed for rent across the capital, with again just the South East coming close to this level of rental market stock with 20,574 current listings. As a result, the figures from Zero Deposit show that each of London’s 6,189 residential letting agents currently hold an average of eight available rental properties in the current market. The East Midlands sits second in this respect, with the average agent currently listing seven rental properties, with the West Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber following with six and the South East completing the top 10 with five. Sam Reynolds, CEO of Zero Deposit commented: “Demand for rental homes remains high and we’ve seen the number of letting agents operating across Britain increase across the board in order to help service this demand. London certainly remains the heart of the lettings market in this respect, with the capital not only home to the largest number of letting agents, but having also seen the largest increase in transaction numbers. London’s letting agents have also had the busiest start to the year, currently listing the highest average number of available rental properties per agent of all regions of Britain. Of course, this doesn’t take into account the resource requirements related to the ongoing management of these rental properties and they remain a vital cog in the machine of the nation’s rental market.” Data tables and sources: – Data tables and sources can be viewed online, here. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Travelodge, the UK’s first budget hotel brand which operates nearly 600 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Spain, today announces it has promoted and appointed Kirsty Berry as the Company’s new Head of Estates. Kirsty joined Travelodge in 2022 as Regional Estates Manager and has been an integral member of the UK Estates team since. With a background consisting of a vast range of property experience with a number of multi-site businesses including Domino’s UK and Majestic Wines, Kirsty has been crucially involved in various sublet deals and lease regears. This includes leading a unique sublet agreement for one of the UK’s first Popeyes Louisiana Chicken drive-thrus, at the Travelodge Northampton Way site, which the Group announced last year. Over the past year, a key strategic priority for the Property and Development function of the Travelodge business has been expanding the Estates team and its remit, due to the Company’s growing hotel portfolio and opportunities to improve its assets. The team is dedicated to supporting the hotels and the wider business with general estate matters and is also responsible for asset management, rent reviews, service charges, business rates, sublets, insurance, asset management, lease renewals and landlord approvals. Members of the Estates team are field-based so that they can make regular hotel visits, allowing full access to the Travelodge hotel portfolio and providing hands-on support for Travelodge’s hotel colleagues and its landlords. Reporting into the Chief Property and Development Officer, Kirsty will be overseeing all operations of the Estates function, made up of six team members, and is currently looking to expand the team further by the appointment of a Regional Estates Manager (South). For more details of this vacancy, please visit: https://www.travelodge.co.uk/careers/ Steve Bennett, Chief Property and Development Officer, Travelodge, comments: “We are delighted to be promoting Kirsty to the position of Head of Estates, as she has proven to be integral to the recent success of the Estates function. Kirsty’s industry expertise and experience represents a significant benefit to Travelodge as a business, and she has already played a crucial role in the growing and improving Estates Management team since joining in 2022.” Travelodge has a significant estate of nearly 600 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Spain, with over 580 of these hotels located throughout the UK. In addition, the group has a large sublet estate, with over 150 subtenants. Furthermore, with over 200 Bar Cafes, Travelodge is also one of the largest Food & Beverage operators in the country. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
A major event for the South West construction industry brought together 150 industry leaders and professionals to shine a light on major challenges facing the sector. Attendees gathered at the Future Skills Centre in Exeter for the Constructing Excellence South West Construction and Housing Summit and participated in an exclusive one-day event. In true Constructing Excellence South West (CESW) style the agenda was jam-packed. The day kickstarted with a speech from Chair of the Great South West, Karl Tucker, who highlighted the enterprise’s ambitions to lead and influence economic growth, job creation, and prosperity across Devon, Plymouth, Somerset, and Torbay. A series of panellists then took centre stage as attention turned to critical matters impacting the industry including ongoing environmental issues, leadership within construction, the supply chain and procurement processes, the Building Safety Act, housing challenges – namely planning permission, offsite and building regulations – as well as acquiring new skills. As a cross-sector, cross-supply chain member-led organisation, CESW has a keen focus on creating opportunities for like-minded professionals to work more collaboratively so a different approach was adopted for this year’s annual conference. Attendees were given the chance to discuss every topic with their peers and ask each panel a series of questions, completely transforming the summit into an engaging and collaborative open forum. Kevin Harris, CEO of Constructing Excellence South West, said: “It’s not often that so many people from across the South West Construction industry are together in one room, so we knew we needed to make the most of this opportunity. We switched up the format of the summit to make sure everyone could get involved in the discussions taking place throughout the day. “We’ve recorded everything that was mentioned during the summit and will be using these findings to create exclusive best practice content that will be shared more widely with our members. “The feedback we’ve received from those who attended has been incredible and I look forward to seeing what the next few months have in store as we continue to look at how we can bring the region together to continue sharing their knowledge, experience, and examples of best practice.” Charged with connecting industry professionals to shape the future of housing and construction practices, CESW is a member-led organisation that exists to produce a better-built environment. To find out more information about how you can get more involved, visit: https://constructingexcellencesw.org.uk/ Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Construction company placed in administration after workers given ‘no notice’ Unite the union recently confirmed on Friday 12th of December that it is to hold meetings in Aberdeen and Dundee today following the announcement that the Stewart Milne Group has been placed into administration. Unite stated this week that it is actively exploring legal action against the Stewart Milne Group due to its failure to consult the workforce or Unite in a redundancy situation as ‘no notice’ was given. The two meetings to be held on TODAY will take place at: · 10.30am to 12.30pm – Dundee – Apex Hotel, 1 West Victoria Dock Road, Dundee, DD1 3JP. · 2.30pm to 5pm – Aberdeen – the Beach Ballroom, Beach Promenade, AB24 5NR. Members of the press are invited to attend sections of these meetings but some will be reserved exclusively for workers to discuss protective award claims and further legal support. Interviews with workers can be facilitated by Unite officers at the venues upon request. Unite represents over 60 tradespersons at the construction company in various locations including in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Unite general secretary, Sharon Graham, said: “Unite will do everything possible to support the Stewart Milne Group workers. The company has treated its loyal workforce disgracefully.” The administrator’s Teneo stated that 217 trade roles will be lost but it is feared that hundreds more in the supply chain will lose their jobs. Unite has demanded the Scottish Government and local authorities urgently work with the union to explore how the workers can be found suitable alternative employment on public procurement contracts. It has since emerged that the Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) will be hosting two webinars – one was last Friday at 2pm, and an upcoming one on the 16 January at 10am for employees affected by redundancy. Unite has criticised the Scottish Government and PACE for this approach stating the hosting of webinars ‘fails to understand the nature of the construction industry’. Unite is highlighting evidence which indicates construction workers face greater reading and writing difficulties, and IT proficiency challenges compared to other workers. The union is therefore demanding public meetings, organised by PACE and the Scottish Government, in the various locations to fully support the workers. John Clark, Unite industrial officer, added: “Unite will be stepping up our efforts to provide legal support for the Stewart Milne Group workers by hosting these meetings in Aberdeen and Dundee. We are crystal clear that the company has acted in a potentially unlawful way, and these events will help our members make protective award claims.” “It’s also extremely disappointing to discover that PACE will be hosting two webinars instead of physical events. We hope this is immediately reviewed because it fails to understand the nature of the construction industry and the proficiency challenges which many workers face.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals
Provider of powerful AI-based water management systems elevates expectations entering 2024 As organizations around the world face rising costs related to water damage and increased focus on water sustainability, WINT Water Intelligence is building on its success in 2023 to continue solving these challenges for insurance, construction, facilities, and property management companies. In 2023, WINT helped over 400 leading global enterprises mitigate water damage and reduce their environmental footprint; these customers saved a total of 652 million gallons of water which would have resulted in the release of 22,000 metric tons of carbon emissions. In addition, WINT’s solutions prevented over 900 water damage incidents with a total damage potential of tens of millions of dollars. WINT’s success in preventing water damage has helped accelerate the growth of its insurance network, which includes carriers, brokers, MGAs and risk-engineering firms and has nearly tripled during the year. “The economic impact of water damage in buildings and construction sites, combined with increased water stress and scarcity, has ripple effects that impact a wide variety of industries,” said Yaron Dycian, chief product and strategy officer for WINT. “Rising insurance costs for construction and commercial and residential buildings are adding to the impact of the climate crisis and global water shortages. We’re proud that we’ve managed to help our customers avoid the pain of water damage in their facilities, and of having helped reduce the environmental impact of building on water supplies.” Throughout the year, WINT implemented a variety of innovative solutions to help contractors, insurers and property and facilities managers meet the challenges associated with water waste and damage. Over the last 12 months, the company has: “Our achievements in 2023 reflect the serious need for lasting solutions to the problems and costs associated with leaks, water waste and water damage,” said Alon Geva, CEO of WINT. “As we continue to build on our innovation and passion for helping organizations thrive in demanding circumstances, we’re using these accomplishments as the foundation for the results we deliver to customers and our shared future success.” WINT equips contractors, developers, owners and facility management teams with a cutting-edge solution for managing water throughout the lifecycle of a building, from construction to operation. The WINT platform includes automated leak mitigation with real-time detection and auto shutoff; unparalleled anomaly detection and analytics powered by advanced AI algorithms; and enterprise-grade management for operation in large and mid-sized facilities. WINT is used globally by customers including the Empire State Building, HP, PepsiCo, Suffolk Construction, as well as many other leading enterprises, general contractors (GCs) and facility owners. For more information about WINT, visit https://wint.ai.
