Trades & Services : Property & Facilities Management News

British Safety Council Gets Involved to Aiding Various Businesses

It is clearly more important than ever before that the British Safety Council gets involved and committed to aiding various businesses in construction on how they can improve their safety measures in the workplace. Having been in place for an impressive total of 60 years, the British Safety Council will

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Salary Earners to See Increase According to Worldwide Survey

Robert Walters, a surveyor that has been in operation conducting surveys around the world since the year 2000, has released figures this year that indicate that the salary earners working in the field of mid-level supplies will go up by a very significant 11 per cent. This is without a

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25 Million Pounds Devoted to Hackney Wick For Upgrades

A grand total of no less than 25 million pounds are set to be devoted to turning Hackney Wick Overground into a brand new and well-functioning location for commuters and business outlets in the vicinity. The architectural firm Landolt Brown has indicated through various pictures made today that the revolutionary

Read More »

Prepping for Paint: Everything You Need to Know

From time to time, you’ll need to deploy a lick of paint in your business. Whether it’s for aesthetic or practical reasons – or both – a coating of paint is often needed to provide the finishing touch to machinery, buildings, vehicles and a host of other things. Yet, this

Read More »

New Competition in Place

Two leading investing companies known as Seedrs and Intebridge have united their support with the 2017 exciting new China Innovation & Entrepreneurship International Competition. Not your ordinary school raffle, this particular competition offers awards to entrants valuing to figures of up to a billion pounds, with 64 cash bursaries in

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Latest Issue
Issue 336 : Jan 2026

Trades : Property & Facilities Management News

Building Services Supplier, Albion Attributes Secret of Success to its People

With the end of the financial year approaching Albion Valves (UK) Ltd, a leading UK valve supplier to the building services and industrial markets, has reported phenomenal business growth over the last ten years, with the company having more than tripled their turnover during this period and the workforce at it’s base in Barnsley growing by over 100%. Albion attributes the secret of success to having a loyal and highly skilled team of people supporting the business and its distributors. During the coming year, one third of Albion staff will have been with the company for ten years or more, with the original core founding team clocking-up over 20 years each in the business. From a commercial perspective, it is Albion’s empathy with customers and their responsiveness to ever-changing industry needs that has helped them build a reputation as a preferred supplier. Whilst the team’s expertise and product knowledge – particularly keeping abreast of new product development has helped the business grow and expand into new areas. The company has also been quick to reinvest in the business. During 2016 Albion invested significantly into expanding its premises in Barnsley, enabling them to increase stock densities and improve stock availability to customers.  A new in-house test facility for testing and setting safety valves was also added as was a staff canteen and increased office space to accommodate Albion’s growing team. In recruitment, sustainability has been key in the growth strategy to help ensure the team retains exactly the right balance of skills to best service distributors. Last year Albion recruited dedicated managers in both quality control and marketing for the first time, to further support its sales and operations team.  David Keys, Managing Director, Albion Valves UK Ltd commented: “We are very fortunate to have such a great group of people working with us. The team is always willing to go the extra mile for customers and continually strives to provide a first-class service. It is their skills and knowledge that really makes this business the success story it is today. To help us grow further and continue to offer the best possible service to customers, we are also keen to develop young talent and pass the skills developed by our senior staff onto the next generation. As a business, we have always offered apprenticeships and have a one hundred percent track record of extending our apprenticeships into full-time employment. This year we will be recruiting again to fulfill another apprenticeship, as well as adding to our sales team.” Albion currently stocks over 5000 lines of commercial valves, suitable for applications predominantly within the process, water, building services and HVAC industries, all available from its distributor network.

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Leading property companies to deliver new £50 million mixed-use scheme for South Yorkshire

Leading property companies Dransfield Properties Ltd and Harworth Group Plc have announced a joint venture agreement to deliver a new £50 million retail, office and leisure scheme at Waverley, Rotherham – home to Yorkshire’s largest ever brownfield mixed-use redevelopment. The new 12-acre development is a key part of the strategic regeneration of the 740 acre Waverley development, just two minutes from Junction 33 of the M1.  The planned high-quality local centre is expected to bring hundreds of new jobs to the region and will deliver: A 24,500 sq. ft. food store High quality office space Medical centre Transport hub A new hotel 70,000 sq. ft. of further retail space A gym as well as good quality restaurants and coffee shops 470 car parking spaces The development will formally link the internationally renowned Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) and the residential area through a masterplanned retail and leisure development, incorporating much-needed community facilities. Shops, restaurants and cafes will be set around a central car park area with a good mix of independent and national names. There will be high quality office space created above the retail units as well as attractive walkways, landscaped piazza areas with water features and a “town square” where regular Farmers’ Markets can be held. A planning application is scheduled to be submitted in Spring 2017 and will include a transport hub for Rotherham to improve connectivity to the region as well as a hotel and a new medical centre to serve the growing business and residential area. This is the latest phase of Waverley’s development.  Yorkshire’s leading brownfield development is already home to 600 homes and the AMP which includes world-leading firms including Rolls-Royce and Boeing.  The next 15 years will see up to 3,400 further homes built, in addition to a further 1m sq. ft of manufacturing space to further grow the AMP. It also marks a further high-profile development for Dransfield Properties, which has just opened the company’s flagship Fox Valley development in north Sheffield on a former steelworks site.  It has also won a number of awards for similar developments elsewhere, including a BCSC Gold Award for its Marshall’s Yard scheme in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. This is a really exciting project to be involved with. Mark Dransfield, Managing Director of Dransfield Properties, said: “This is a really exciting project to be involved with. We are delighted to work alongside Harworth, bringing our team’s experience and knowledge of delivering retail developments to this new community. “Waverley is an exciting development which has great potential for creating a high-quality retail and leisure environment, designed to support the growing community and the wider region. We look forward to being a part of this project.” Owen Michaelson, Chief Executive of Harworth Group plc, said “We are delighted to partner with Dransfield for this significant development on our flagship site, given their track record across the UK and their absolute focus on quality. “We expect the local centre to become central to the Waverley community, as it co-joins the AMP and the residential area, offering a range of essential facilities and bringing hundreds of job opportunities to the region.”  About Harworth Group Listed on the main market, Harworth Group plc is one of the leading regeneration specialists in the UK.  Harworth owns and manages over 22,000 acres of land across 150 sites, ranging from residential development land to commercial properties, low-carbon energy schemes and agricultural estates. To find out more about the company visit www.harworthgroup.com Harworth Group is the landowner and developer of Waverley. The development to date includes 600 homes and the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) which is home to world-leading firms including Rolls-Royce and Boeing. The next 15 years will see up to 3,400 further homes built in addition to a further 1m sq. ft of manufacturing space to further grow the AMP. About Dransfield Properties Formed in 1992 Dransfield Properties is a South Yorkshire based company which specialises in retail led regeneration, primarily focussed on town and district centres. The company works with some of the leading names in the retail industry and has a property portfolio which includes award winning centres in both Morpeth in Northumberland and Gainsborough in Lincolnshire – a sympathetic redevelopment of a former industrial site, which won the BCSC Gold Award. In the last 12 months the company has also launched its flagship Fox Valley development in Stocksbridge, north Sheffield on a former steelworks site. To find out more about the company visit www.dransfield.co.uk

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Farmers Demand Right to Build but Brownfield Sites More Favorable?

Farmers have pleaded with chiefs for the right to build as they claim they can help to solve the rural housing crisis. Landowners have said they can help solve the crisis and also regenerate countryside communities but the barriers to development need to be lifted. The head of planning at the Country Land and Business Association, Fenella Collins, has noticed that the growing attention to problems relating to the affordability of housing are causing strain in the rural communities. Members of such communities want to work in a countryside that is socially diverse and thriving economically and developing housing is a great way to do this, however, the planning system has brought frustration to landowners and their plans. Over half of all permitted development rights applications to convert farm buildings into dwellings are still being turned away. And whilst calls have been made on the government to intervene and change regulations to offer clearer guidelines for planning bosses. However, it’s becoming seemingly obvious that are exceptions being made for rural sites. Housing development on rural sites is only allowed if its affordable as seen with statistics surrounding Cornwall and Northumberland. The latter has had no sites built since last year, while 300 homes were allowed to be built in Cornwall. There has also been calls for affordable housing to be made exempt from capital gains and inheritance tax in a bit to make it seem financially attractive. Whilst house building did increase last year, it was down by almost a quarter on pre-recession levels with house prices rising 7% from October 2015 and October 2016. Sheep farmer William Ashley has developed housing on rural land by converting two barns into three dwellings and chicken sheds into a further 12 live-in work units. Mr. Ashley has claimed there is a desire to develop but people are being put up against a brick wall and a frustrating one at that as there is a sense of desperation for housing and farms are being prevented from helping. Instead, housing developers such as Strata Homes and the government are building on brownfield sites as this is a lot cheaper than building on green land. There is a strong local interest to build thousands of homes on hundreds of brownfield sites in the coming years. This will be part of a government strategy to help first time young buyers afford a home whereas on a great site, they would massively struggle to afford the housing. Up to thirty areas across England will receive funding from the Start Homes Land Fund which is said to be a project worth £1.2 billion. Not only are brownfield sites more affordable but it also allows housebuilders to be in closer proximity to the urban amenities. However, planning brownfield land cannot solve the housing crisis alone and does come with its own issues. Planning on such land is an extremely lengthy and complex process due to the heritage impact on the land

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British Safety Council Gets Involved to Aiding Various Businesses

It is clearly more important than ever before that the British Safety Council gets involved and committed to aiding various businesses in construction on how they can improve their safety measures in the workplace. Having been in place for an impressive total of 60 years, the British Safety Council will deliver its event on the 22nd February of this year. Taking place over the course of half of a day, the event will feature various talks and speeches by leading professionals in the field that will range from members of the British Transport Police all the way to Olympic champions such as Nathan Douglas. It is evidently hoped that the site’s location next to Hilton Manchester in the Piccadilly area will act as a welcome reminder to businesses and individuals around the world that it is more important than ever for them to commit to installing health and safety measures. Indeed, with the hope that the event will be widely attended by members from all over the country, it is clear that the event is set to be a success and welcome news that the safety of businesses in the industry are being held in high regard. It is evidently clear that the British Safety Council is incredibly committed to ensuring and promoting the safety of individuals in the workplace all over the place. Through its investment in social media and concern for the promotion of such events as the Manchester conference, it is clear that the British Safety Council will consolidate its 60 years as one of the most dedicated services to enabling the security of workers all over the United Kingdom for the challenging years ahead that are to come. Indeed, it will be more vital than ever for them to do this what with the turbulence and civil unrest all over the country and the rest of the world today.

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Salary Earners to See Increase According to Worldwide Survey

Robert Walters, a surveyor that has been in operation conducting surveys around the world since the year 2000, has released figures this year that indicate that the salary earners working in the field of mid-level supplies will go up by a very significant 11 per cent. This is without a doubt a very welcome piece of news to salary earners in this bracket of the work industry as it contrasts greatly to the mere 4 per cent average rise in the salaries of people in other senior positions in work. This evidence is clearly a sunnier alternative to the gloomy news and prospects that have been put in place as a result of fluctuating economies, the EU referendum and the surprising election results in the United States. This is clearly an encouraging sign to employers in the field who will want to encourage the popularity of the profession, and it is clear that the amount of applicants for positions in this sector is consistently high, due to the lucrative salary schemes available. In addition to this, members employed in the contract acquisition sector will see their annual salaries also rise, to slightly less impressive degrees, to a total of 8 per cent. As Mister Neil Morgan of the managing team of Robert Walters explains, it is evident that this strengthening of salary growth is a good sign for the contracting industry and a sign that there will still be a large demand for such senior positions in the years to come. Such skills as time management and an ability to multitask and juggle a number of different duties are essential to the job description of these senior roles in the business, and these are skills at least that will not be in shortage among those members of the British population wanting to get their foot in the senior careers door. And with an 11 per cent increase, who wouldn’t want to give it a go at some point in their life?

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Manchester Will Witness a Useful Lesson on Health and Safety in Workplaces

On the 22nd February of this year, Manchester will witness a useful new lesson in how to maintain the values of health and safety in an increasingly digitized workplace universe. The event, organized and implemented by the British Safety Council, whose unbridled authority on the subject of health and safety is key, will be useful to members from a wide variety of trades and work backgrounds from all over the country. Running for half a single day, the event is catered to those who wish to be made more aware of the pitfalls that can occur in the workplace, from work hazards to maintaining one’s own physical and mental health in the workplace. With the increasingly alarming statistics revealing the unhappiness and discontent of individuals in the workplace, it is more important than ever that those workers in the building trade and indeed in any other are made fully aware of the variety of different kinds of solutions to problems that are open to them. The event will involve talks by individuals from a variety of different working environments, from spokesmen for the police force to transportation methods and even the governing bodies of this country. Ms Louise Ward, who herself will be delivering the initial welcome and introductory talk to individuals to kick off the event at 09:30, has highlighted such colossal events as the EU referendum result and the inauguration of Donald Trump as President of the USA as having a huge impact on workers’ sense of worth and wellbeing in their environment. She emphasizes that it is more important than ever for the British Safety Council to show what it can do to help workers and individuals in need of support, and to design and construct new ways and methods of implementing safety along with progress in all working environments around the country.  The event is set to be a success for all involved.

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25 Million Pounds Devoted to Hackney Wick For Upgrades

A grand total of no less than 25 million pounds are set to be devoted to turning Hackney Wick Overground into a brand new and well-functioning location for commuters and business outlets in the vicinity. The architectural firm Landolt Brown has indicated through various pictures made today that the revolutionary new changes to the conditions of the station, such as a rebuilt way into the station and a brand new elevators to allow easier access to the various floors, will make it a much easier place to use for all. The ambitious project will also allow for the rebuilding of staircases and elevators to make it a safer and better place for passengers and individuals working in and around the Hackney area in London. By collaborating closely and diligently over the next few months with the councils of Tower Hamlets and Council, who have already invested 1 million pounds towards the initiative, Network Rail has high hopes that with the help of all of these new schemes the project will finally be complete by next year in 2018. Network Rail are also being supported by the LLDC (or the London Legacy Development Corporation) to vastly ameliorate the state of the station and its facilities. Indeed, David Goldstone of LLDC is delighted that the plans to help the station live up to the expectations of its users will coincide with the increased investments in the Hackney community for building better housing and encouraging businesses to set up shop in the area. Through this, the infrastructure of this particular area of North London will be greatly improved, allowing for better property conditions, better employment opportunities and of course better transport conditions for its locals. Mister Jon Fox of Transport for London also put in a word in for the advancement of Hackney Wick Overground, which will improve the conditions of millions of people from all over the capital.

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Prepping for Paint: Everything You Need to Know

From time to time, you’ll need to deploy a lick of paint in your business. Whether it’s for aesthetic or practical reasons – or both – a coating of paint is often needed to provide the finishing touch to machinery, buildings, vehicles and a host of other things. Yet, this isn’t as simple as painting at home. You can’t just pop to the local DIY store and pick up a tin and get cracking. Industrial paint work has to be carefully planned and executed to have the desired effect. Specifically, you need to think about cleaning, preparing your surface, picking the paint that will do the job for you and the method of application. Cleaning A dirty surface is one that is not fit for painting. Dirt, grease, dust or mould cannot just be painted over. This will simply store up a problem that could leave you in trouble down the line. Take the time to have a thorough clean of any surface – with particular attention to grease or mould – or your efforts will be undermined before they begin. Take a look at this video on YouTube to see some industrial grease removal in action and see what the process entails. Surface preparing Cleaning is only the start; a surface also needs thorough preparation. You might well want to remove the previous layer of paint or strip away any rust, for example, to return it to its original state. Such tasks can be carried out in controlled conditions in a blast cabinet. Without this, the paint that you apply might well not grip to the surface. Some paints carry a guarantee with them to last a certain length of time if they are applied after the right level of surface preparation. Choosing the right paint There are lots of factors that need to be considered when it comes to selecting the right paint for your job. First, you need to consider the surface – some paints are more suited to metal, plastic, wood, etc. Then you need to consider the environment that the surface will be exposed to. Specialist paint can handle exposure to the elements when positioned outdoors or the sorts of extreme temperatures that can occur in an industrial setting. Then, it’s time to consider aesthetics. Is your surface customer-facing? Does it need to display your branding? If this is the case then, clearly, the way that it looks matters too. How to apply the paint There’s more than one way to apply your chosen paint. This will depend on the paint and the surface in question, but it’s important to be aware of the different methods and their relative strengths. As this blog demonstrates, there are principally five different ways to get this done: sprays, rollers, dip coating, brushing or airless spraying. Take some time to research which of these is the most appropriate to your circumstances. Once you’re cleaned, prepared, painted and armed with the right paint and method of application you’re good to go.

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New Competition in Place

Two leading investing companies known as Seedrs and Intebridge have united their support with the 2017 exciting new China Innovation & Entrepreneurship International Competition. Not your ordinary school raffle, this particular competition offers awards to entrants valuing to figures of up to a billion pounds, with 64 cash bursaries in the mix for the lucky winners and runner ups. With up to 10 different potential business winners available in the United Kingdom, the ten happy few will be transported by aeroplane to the affluent location of Shenzhen in China for the final stages of the lucrative competition. Hosted by the IEIC in this area of the global superpower, Shenzhen is indeed an ideal location for such awards, due to its proximity to the central business empire of the whole of the Asian continent that is Hong Kong. Indeed, the competition is open to entrants from all over the world and is committed to promoting good global relations between different businesses and enterprises. For the lucky British entrants, the first trials of the competition will take place in London on March 28th this year to eliminate the cocksure entrants who want to test their mettle and have a shot at the big prize. Of these entrants, three will be awarded cash prizes amounting to ten thousand pounds, and the best ten will then be taken to Shenzhen for the penultimate stages of the competition. Mr Jeff Lynn of Seedrs is delighted to play a leading role in the competition’s success, and those interested are urged to apply themselves to the juicy challenges of the competition and submit their applications. Potential entrants are wished good fortune in their quest and are advised to submit by Tuesday the 28th February when the timely barriers of the competition will close so that the competition can begin in London.

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