A roofing firm from Malton was fined today for safety breaches after a worker fractured his skull following a fall from height. Mitchell Roofing Ltd, was contracted to replace existing rooflights at Monk Bridge Construction Co Ltd, Elvington, York. The injured worker slipped and fell some seven metres through the inner roof sheet sustaining severe injuries. During its investigation, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) l learned that there was no risk assessment in place for the job, and no precautions had been taken to prevent falls from the edge of the roof or through various fragile elements. The defendant had previously clad a new building on the site without incident, using appropriate precautions, but the minor work of replacing the panels in an existing roof was not planned, and no precautions were followed. Mitchell Roofing Ltd of Derwent Road, Malton was found guilty to breaching Sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £10,000 with £1,355 costs by York Magistrates Court. After the hearing, HSE inspector Julian Franklin commented: “Basic precautions for roof work and better planning of the job should have been applied. Even short duration work on fragile roofs should be properly assessed and managed.” Notes to Editors: The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement.  More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: www.legislation.gov.uk/ HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk Journalists should approach HSE press office with any queries on regional press releases. Source link

Building services sector backs new health survey Published:  23 March, 2016 Organisations in the building engineering sector have offered their full support for the new ‘Occupational Health in Building Services Engineering Survey’. The survey, run by the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA) and the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), alongside Constructing Better Health, has six additional industry supporters, as follows: The Specialist Engineering Contractors’ Group, The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health’s Construction Group, SELECT (Scotland’s electrical trade association), The Fire and Security Association, The Joint Industry Board and Voltimum. ECA director of business services Paul Reeve said: “We are very pleased that these bodies are supporting our sector-wide occupational health survey. The survey is open to everyone in the sector, and we are particularly inviting responses from senior and operational managers and professionals. The results will provide the information needed to develop a more cost-effective approach to occupational health management.” The overall survey findings will be shared with key stakeholders across the industry in the second quarter of this year. The occupational health survey, which typically takes five to ten minutes to complete, can be viewed here, and is open until 13 April. Source link

Cambridge is a global success story, but not embracing further growth is likely to impact on its competitiveness, according to new research by Savills. The city continues to face significant pressure on housing, workplaces and infrastructure. Bold decisions need to be made soon in order to enable one of the UK’s fastest growing economies to continue to compete with other innovative cities both internationally and in the UK. Traditionally characterised by the technology and bioscience sectors and currently home to more than 4,300 knowledge intensive firms employing over 58,000 people, this influx of workers has meant a strong and continual demand for commercial space, which is not being matched by supply. Savills analysis shows that availability of office and R&D space is likely to bottom out next year, having fallen by 90% in the five years to 2017. Strong employment growth has underpinned the population of the city and its surrounds, which has risen by 11.8% in the 10 years to 2015, compared with the UK average of just under 8%. As a result, Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire has seen employment grow by more than 31% in the same time frame. This has had a major impact on both commercial space and residential values. Employment growth has pushed up the cost of housing, which is now 49% above the 2007/08 peak (on par with London levels), as it deals with a shortfall of more than a 1,000 homes a year. Susan Emmett, director of research at Savills, comments: “Competing on a global stage, Cambridge could lose out to competitors such as Boston in the US or even UK tech clusters such as Reading due to the acute lack of commercial space and the rising affordability pressures surrounding local housing.” Savills research shows that the link between salaries and residential prices is vital for Cambridge. When comparing the salaries of scientists employed by three global bioscience companies in Cambridge and Boston, it shows that UK based employees are paid 40% less than their US counterparts. However the cost of housing is broadly similar in both cities. Therefore, the attraction of Cambridge to global companies could potentially recede if housing costs continue to grow. To keep its competitive edge and meet demand for workplaces and homes, Cambridge needs to make significant changes, says Savills. The options for further growth include increasing densities in existing locations and using space more efficiently, expanding the urban area of the city by altering the inside edge of the Green Belt boundary and utilising existing satellite towns and villages along with creating new ones. The proposed infrastructure changes, such as the guided busway, improvements to the A14, a new Cambridge North station and the planned reconstruction of rail links to Bedford are all steps in the right direction for increasing capacity and opening up new sites for development. Rob Sadler, head of office for Savills Cambridge, comments: “There is no doubt that Cambridge needs to evolve in order for it to continue to grow. There is a risk that failure to tackle these pressures could constrain growth of existing companies, impacting on the city’s attractiveness to future employers, ultimately resulting in a skills shortage as jobs and talent go elsewhere. Solving the problem requires a joined up approach between Cambridge and the local authorities, setting out the challenges and exploring ways in which we can work together to future-proof our city.” Read the full Cambridge cross sector report here Source link

Norwich & Peterborough Building Society has announced that it has launched a trio of the lowest three-year fixed rate mortgages currently available to borrowers at 65%, 75% and 85% loan-to-value. N&P is offering borrowers with a 35% deposit a three-year fixed rate mortgage at 1.73%. For those borrowing more, N&P also offers a 1.92% three-year fixed rate mortgage at 75% LTV, or a 2.08% three-year fixed rate mortgage at 85% LTV. All of the mortgages are available to those buying a home or remortgaging and have a £1,475 product fee. Richard Barker, Mortgage Product Manager for N&P, had this to say: “We always try to offer borrowers a range of options and good, long-term value for money. Our new three-year fix range will give borrowers looking for security during a time of uncertainty the reassurance of fixing their mortgage repayments at a competitive rate for the next 36 months.” Source link

©Reuters Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan Chase have delivered billions of dollars in financing for coal, oil and gas companies that is “deeply at odds” with the goals of the Paris climate change accord, a new study claims. The banks rank among the top North American and European private sector backers of coal mines, coal power plants and costly oil and gas ventures over the past three years, according to the report by environmental campaign groups, the US Sierra Club, the Rainforest Action Network, BankTrack and Oil Change International. More On this topic IN Financials Deutsche Bank was the top financer of big coal miners, delivering nearly $7bn between 2013 and 2015, according to the study’s assessment of publicly available financial filings. Citigroup was calculated to have supplied $24bn for large coal power plant operators, making it the largest supporter in this category. JPMorgan Chase was ranked the largest financer of so-called “extreme oil”, financing an estimated $38bn for the biggest owners of untapped reserves in ultra-deep offshore fields, the Arctic or tar sands. Dozens of other large banks named in the study have also “engaged in fossil fuel financing practices that are deeply at odds with the global climate agreement” that nearly 200 countries reached at the December COP21 meeting in Paris, the report says. The Paris accord aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions enough to keep global temperature rises well below 2C from pre-industrial times. Burning fossil fuels — coal, oil and gas — is one of the largest drivers of emissions. Several banks publicly committed to reducing their support for some coal ventures before and after the Paris meeting. Deutsche Bank said in March it would phase out credit and the underwriting of debt and equity for mining companies that use contentious mountaintop removal methods to extract coal. JPMorgan Chase said in the same month it would stop directly financing new coal mines and coal power stations in wealthy countries. These decisions were welcome, said a co-author of the study, Amanda Starbuck of the Rainforest Action Network. But large banks had to do more to ensure the Paris accord’s goals were met, she said. “This report is saying ‘wake up, you need to look across the board here’.” Some scientists say time is running out to address the problem. A March study by Oxford university academics said in order to have a 50 per cent chance of holding warming to 2C, no new coal or gas power plants can be built after 2017, unless they are fitted with expensive equipment to capture emissions. Deutsche Bank declined to comment on the report’s findings but said the group had changed its approach to coal financing and supported “a well-balanced energy mix that takes account of economic and environmental considerations”. “In addition, we more than doubled our clean energy financing to €4.3bn between 2013 and 2015 and have over €7bn in assets under management in sustainable finance funds,” it said. JPMorgan Chase said it could not comment on the environmental groups’ report before reviewing it. But the bank pointed to its March coal financing decision and past company statements about the need for governments to implement “sensible policies” balancing the need to cut emissions with the importance of economic development. Citigroup said it would “continue to actively support a transition to a low-carbon economy. Citi has made significant progress toward reducing our credit exposure to the coal mining sector since 2011, and those efforts will continue. “Power generation in the US and globally is an industry in transition. Electricity produced from coal-fired plants has declined materially and we expect this to continue. We remain committed to working with our clients as they transition to a lower-carbon resource profile.” Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link

My last few weeks in HSE have been even busier than usual. Not only have we completed the launch of our new strategy for the health and safety system in Great Britain, but I have been out on a number of visits where I’ve seen (mostly) good and (one or two) not so good practices for myself. My travels included a return to Crossrail where I saw the remarkable progress that has taken place since I last visited three years ago. It was another reminder to me of how integral a strong health and safety culture is to major construction sites in the UK. I saw the same in-built culture at the site of our formal strategy launch event in London, which took place at the Battersea Power station site. It was really encouraging on both visits to note how health now receives the same level of attention as safety – excellent examples of the new strategy being lived out in practice. I’ve also visited a large bakery firm where I saw real management commitment to tackling priority issues in their business – one of which is associated with distribution and delivery to hundreds to retail outlets every single day of the year. I saw an impressive level of innovation put into redesign of vehicles, addition of cameras to vehicles, intensive driver training and a clear message to drivers to report any safety concerns. What also impressed me was the company has seen real, hard financial benefits from the investment they’ve made in improving safety. The company features in the Sunday Times List of best companies to work for. Another great example of the strategy in action. I was invited to Cambridge Regional Further Education College where I saw people being trained in practical skills ranging from bricklaying, carpentry and car repair to catering, hairdressing and beauty. What a great place to spend a day, seeing young people acquiring skills in preparation for their chosen field of work and also acquiring self-confidence as they go. I spoke to several students and their enthusiasm was clear – as was their commitment to learning the right way to do the job – understanding the need to manage risks was integral to the learning process. I then went to West Rise Junior School in Eastbourne. What a magnificent and inspiring place which demonstrates just what is possible in terms of providing children as young as 9 and10 years old with experiences that expose them to risks, and which they learn how to manage those risks for themselves in a proportionate manner while learning all kinds of new skills http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-35819366 I have always enjoyed going out on visits with HSE’s inspectors and my last such visit to construction sites in Manchester was no exception. These were not major construction projects on the scale of Crossrail or Battersea, but smallish refurbishment and conversion projects in the heart of the city. At one of the sites we visited, it was not the basic safety procedures which concerned me – they were by and large in good shape, it was the welfare facilities that caught my attention.The facilities were actually better than many I’ve seen but what surprised me was the lack of cleanliness and the amount of litter and detritus around the place. The site manager told us he personally cleans the toilets and kitchen on a regular basis because no one else does it. An admirable gesture on his part, but there has to be a better answer. What happened to leadership and getting people to take responsibility? This may seem like a trivial example but it is as much a part of the strategy as tackling ill health and making health and safety integral with business success. This is what we mean by wider ownership – making it part of everyone’s job to keep things in good order – not allowing people to make a mess and expecting someone else to clean it up. This visit was a salutary reminder that improvements are still to be made in many places, and hearts and minds to win over. We’ve made a lot of progress but there’s no end to the journey. It’s been a hectic few weeks at the end of a most enjoyable and challenging eight and a half years as Chair of HSE. I’ve enjoyed writing this blog and I hope you’ve found some of it thought provoking. I will be continuing to #HelpGBWorkWell as I move on to pastures new. My thanks and best wishes go to you all – keep up the good work! Source link

Date: 26 April 2016 The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced Martin Temple as the new Chair of HSE. Details of the announcement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/martin-temple-appointed-as-the-new-chair-of-hse               Press enquiries All enquiries from journalists should be directed to the HSE Press Office Source link

Category: Construction Industry Today | Subscribe to Construction Industry Today Feed Published Wed, Mar 16th 2016 A precast concrete holding tank from Kijlstra’s Vario range has helped contractors knock weeks off a programme to upgrade a waste transfer station on Merseyside. Posted via Industry Today. Follow us on Twitter @IndustryToday A precast concrete holding tank from Kijlstra’s Vario range has helped contractors knock weeks off a programme to upgrade a waste transfer station on Merseyside. Local contractor LCM Group was employed by waste firm Biffa to install a new underground liquid waste storage tank at the site in St Helens. The tank receives and stores liquid run-off from food waste delivered to the transfer station. When the tank is full, it is pumped out and tankered away for disposal. “The client’s signature idea was to install a lightweight glass-reinforced plastic [GRP] holding tank,” says Kijlstra contracts manager Steve Gainsley. In theory, a GRP tank is light, easy to handle and requires no special lifting equipment to install. “The problem is, the specification required the tank to be supported and contained within concrete poured in-situ,” explains Steve. This required formwork and reinforcing steel to be assembled within the excavation before the GRP tank was installed and the concrete poured. LCM maintenance manager David Scott said: “We brought the idea of using a Kijlstra precast concrete tank to Biffa as a more efficient alternative. We already knew some of the people working at Kijlstra although we’d never used their products before. We looked at the precast option and quickly realised this was a much better alternative for this project.” The Kijlstra tank, from the company’s Vario range, is a simple cube measuring 3m x 3m x 3m with openings for pipework and a level sensor to indicate when the tank needs emptying. The one potential disadvantage, compared with the GRP tank, was that a mobile crane was required to lift the concrete tank, which was installed in one piece. “But the crane was only on site for four hours so it was hardly expensive,” says David. LCM having dug the excavation and levelled the bottom with sand, it was then just a simple matter of trucking the tank in and lifting it into position. “The tank was in position within an hour of it arriving on site,” says Steve. “And they were already back-filling the excavation by the time I left the site.” LCM’s David Scott says the excavation was dug, the tank installed and the hole back-filled all within 36 hours. Had a plastic tank been installed, the task of assembling formwork and reinforcement, plus the time taken for the concrete to cure, would have resulted in the excavation remaining open for several days – or even weeks. “Basically it saved us about four weeks,” says David. “It was late November and at that time of year you don’t want to leave an excavation open a minute longer than you need to.” The rapid installation of the tank impressed both LCM and Biffa, with the result that David Scott is hopeful of repeating the exercise for the same client on other sites. “We’re already talking to them about two more jobs and there could be more after that, too,” he says.   Source link