Flats to be demolished by Rhodar after standing empty for over 10 years. Rhodar, a leading specialist enabling works provider, has won a high-profile, competitive tender process, which will see it demolish three 18 storey tower blocks that have stood empty for over 10 years. As part of plans to
A raft of revised British Standards has prompted the publication of three new technical guides from the Guild of Architectural Ironmongers (GAI) for door and window hardware specialists. BS 3621: 2017 specifies the performance requirements and test methods for a thief-resistant mechanically operated single-point lock assembly. It gives ironmongers clarification
A family owned builder’s merchants, Chandlers Building Supplies, is looking for a number of young builders to join a panel of ‘Champions’ for a year. As part of this panel, Champions will be asked to share top tips and helpful advice for others starting out in the sector, provide feedback
Two-thirds of those running small and medium-sized (SME) construction firms are struggling to hire bricklayers and carpenters ( Bricky and Chippy )as construction skills shortages hit a ‘record high’, according to the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). Key results from the FMB’s latest State of Trade Survey, which is the
A range of leading professionals from the thriving property and construction sector in the East Midlands were invited by rg+p, the multi-disciplinary architectural practice in order to celebrate the opening of the firm’s new Leicester office. The office was officially opened in last month and sees the architectural company located
The construction company, J. Ebsworth Brickwork Services Ltd has given ‘Smokin’ Joe Mullender a financial boost ahead of her IBF European title fight. The former English Champion will be fighting for a chance at the title on the 9th of December. Joe Mullender is 31 and from Brentwood has vacated
SGB, a leading scaffolding and access system provider has revealed more details about a significant new deal that has been made with a major UK property development company. The deal is expected to last for four years and will see SGB appointed as the sole scaffolding provider for the North
The National Sales Manager of ISO-CHEMIE, Andy Swift has commented that her feels optimistic about UK sealant sales over the course of the next 12 months. This optimism has been attributed to the plans of specialist suppliers, who are looking to target more sales at the design sector. With the
Maber, the Midlands-based Architectural practice has announced that they will be celebrating their tenth anniversary with a VIP tour of one of their latest projects. Architects practice will be giving a tour of the restoration and refurbishment work that has been worked on by the company at the Great Hall
Veitchi Group, the Cambuslang-based subcontractor has announced that they have experienced an increase in business for three of their key divisions. The company is one of Scotland’s largest sub-contractors for the construction industry and has seen an increase in business for some of their key services. Veitchi Group has also
Flats to be demolished by Rhodar after standing empty for over 10 years. Rhodar, a leading specialist enabling works provider, has won a high-profile, competitive tender process, which will see it demolish three 18 storey tower blocks that have stood empty for over 10 years. As part of plans to regenerate a key area of Halifax in Calderdale, Rhodar has been appointed by Together Housing Group, one of the country’s largest social landlords, to clear the Beech Hill estate site, which is currently occupied by Cobden Court, Blenheim Court and Westbrook Court. Up to 80 Rhodar operatives are scheduled to work on the internal strip out and subsequent top down deconstruction of the tower blocks, along with a 65-metre super high reach excavator, of which only a handful exist in the UK. The excavator will remove approximately 10 storeys from each block, allowing further high reach kit to demolish the remaining structures. Four excavators ranging from 21 to 40 tonnes will be on hand to process site materials and the existing concrete and rubble will be recycled on site into a specific engineered fill material that will then be used to create a development platform for the next level of regeneration. This will contribute to a significantly reduced carbon footprint for the project by minimising vehicle movements in and around the project area. Rhodar will also utilise special water jets attached directly to the demolition equipment in addition to state-of-the-art mist cannons to mitigate dust migration generated from the demolition works. The £6m+ project win coincided with the company’s recent rebrand in June of this year. Rhodar’s new brand formally showcases its ability to provide an end-to-end specialist enabling works solution for the construction industry, offering asbestos removal, demolition and remediation services. The regeneration of Beech Hill is part of the Calderdale Together Investment Partnership, a partnership between Together Housing and Calderdale Council, which aims to deliver 500 affordable homes over the next five years, including new homes at the Beech Hill site, as well at other sites across Calderdale. Jason Davy, managing director at Rhodar, said: “This is an important milestone for our business as it will be the first major enabling works package we have undertaken since our corporate rebrand last month, and it’s extremely rewarding for our teams to be working on such a prestigious and high-profile regeneration scheme.” George Paterson, group director of Property Services at Together Housing Group, said: “I, like many people in Halifax, will be delighted to see new, affordable homes replace these outdated tower blocks. This is part of our commitment to address the housing crisis in West Yorkshire where the average home is now seven times the average salary.” The site clearance is expected to take 64 weeks with main demolition works commencing in January 2019.
A raft of revised British Standards has prompted the publication of three new technical guides from the Guild of Architectural Ironmongers (GAI) for door and window hardware specialists. BS 3621: 2017 specifies the performance requirements and test methods for a thief-resistant mechanically operated single-point lock assembly. It gives ironmongers clarification on how to conform to BS 3621 and the classification for locks in respect of other British and European standards. BS 8613: 2017 covers Finger Protection Devices for Pedestrian Doors. It will help specifiers, architects, facilities managers, health and safety and risk assessment professionals to select the appropriate finger protection products to prevent entrapment at the hanging stile of doors. In January 2018 BS 8300 was revised and the 2009 version was withdrawn. The 2018 version was split in to two standards, one covering the design of an accessible and inclusive built external environment and the other on the design of an accessible and inclusive built internal environment. The Guild’s new technical guide on this particular standard focuses on the second topic as it is the most relevant to the architectural ironmongery industry. It gives an overview of the history of accessibility legislation and goes on to give further detail about specific ironmongery products to which this that this standard applies. Douglas Masterson, GAI technical manager, says: “Architectural ironmongery companies play a crucial role, working with architects, contractors and others to schedule and specify the hardware for every door and window in a building and to produce a full fixing schedule of hardware items. So it is important that our members are up-to-date with the latest standards.” To access the latest technical briefings, go to the membership area of the GAI website: www.gai.org.uk For further information, contact Douglas Masterson on technical@gai.org.uk.
A family owned builder’s merchants, Chandlers Building Supplies, is looking for a number of young builders to join a panel of ‘Champions’ for a year. As part of this panel, Champions will be asked to share top tips and helpful advice for others starting out in the sector, provide feedback on various products and services, and share brief updates on building projects they work on during the year. Each Champion can also nominate a charity that they would like to benefit from their Champion status, with Chandlers Building Supplies making a small monthly donation on the Champions behalf to their charity. Sue McKinney of Chandlers Building Supplies said: “Supporting the next generation of builders is important to us so we are launching the Chandlers Champion programme. We hope this will provide a better understanding of young builders, identify the issues that affect them and establish what support they need to flourish in the construction sector.” Champions will be remunerated on a monthly basis, as well as receive other benefits to include products to test and branded work clothing for free. Eligible champions will be builders aged 18 to 35. For more information and to apply for the opportunity, email: sue.mckinney@chandlersbs.co.uk by April 3, 2018.
Two-thirds of those running small and medium-sized (SME) construction firms are struggling to hire bricklayers and carpenters ( Bricky and Chippy )as construction skills shortages hit a ‘record high’, according to the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). Key results from the FMB’s latest State of Trade Survey, which is the only quarterly assessment of the UK-wide SME construction sector, include: More than two-thirds (68%) of construction SMEs are struggling to hire bricklayers and 63% are struggling to hire carpenters and joiners – the highest figures since records began in 2008; The number of firms reporting difficulties hiring plumbers and electricians (48%), plasterers (46%) and floorers (30%) also reached record highs; Construction SME workloads grew at a slightly slower rate than in Q3 2017, but new enquiries and expected workloads slowed more sharply; expected workloads among those firms building new homes showed a negative net balance for the first time since 2013; Fewer construction SMEs predict rising workloads in the coming three months, down from 41% in the previous quarter to 38% in Q4 2017; 87% of builders believe that material prices will rise in the next six months, up from 82% in the previous quarter; Nearly two-thirds (61%) of construction SMEs expect salaries and wages to increase in the next six months. Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said: “Skills shortages are sky rocketing and it begs the question, who will build the new homes and infrastructure projects the Government is crying out for. The Government has set itself an ambitious target to build 300,000 homes every year in England alone. More than two-thirds of construction SMEs are struggling to hire bricklayers which is one of the key trades in the building industry. This has increased by nearly 10% in just three months which points to a rapid worsening of an already dire situation. What’s more, nearly as many are facing difficulties hiring carpenters and joiners. These figures are the highest we’ve noted since records began a decade ago. As a result, the wages for these increasingly scarce skilled tradespeople continue to rise sharply; that’s a simple consequence of supply and demand. This, coupled with the fact that small construction firms continue to face significant material price increases, will inevitably squeeze their margins and put a brake on growth.” Berry continued: “The Government must take account of the worsening construction skills shortage with Brexit looming large on the horizon. The Prime Minister must ensure that the immigration system that replaces the free movement of people can take account of the particular needs of key sectors such as construction and house building. Without skilled labour from the EU, the skills shortages we face would be considerably worse, and it is not in anyone’s best interest to pull the rug out from under the sector by introducing an inflexible and unresponsive immigration system. On the domestic front and in the longer term, to ensure we have an ample supply of skilled workers in the future, the Government must continue to work with industry to set the right framework in terms of T-Levels and apprenticeships.” Berry concluded: “The silver lining to current skills shortages among construction SMEs is that the numerous tradespeople and professionals, who may find themselves out of work following the collapse of Carillion, have a ready supply of alternative employers. The FMB is working with the Department for Work and Pensions and the Construction Industry Training Board to match-make ex-Carillion workers with small construction employers in need of skilled workers. We’re also working hard as an industry to re-home the 1,200 Carillion apprentices who are the innocent victims of the major contractor’s demise. It’s in everyone’s interests to ensure that these young people continue on their path to a rewarding career in construction.”
A range of leading professionals from the thriving property and construction sector in the East Midlands were invited by rg+p, the multi-disciplinary architectural practice in order to celebrate the opening of the firm’s new Leicester office. The office was officially opened in last month and sees the architectural company located at Waterloo House in the city centre. The new Leicester office has been converted by rg+p into approximately 6,500 sq. ft. of open plan, design-led office space that will be able to cater for as many as 100 people. The new office includes a range of dedicated meeting rooms that have been fitted with the latest touch screen technology, a central collaboration space to be used for presentations, workshops and seminars as well as a kitchen and breakout zone that has games tables and a welcoming reception area. The new office has led to the complete transformation of how the company operates. Discussing the decision to move, the Director or rp+g, James Badley has said that part of the move was to create more space for the growing business, as the company now employs 96 members of staff across two different office locations. However, the main intention of the move was to re-imagine the work environment in order to be more inclusive for clients and colleagues. The integration of interactive technology means that the company is instantly more connected, and allows clients to better engage with the working drawings while also being able to work alongside their London team in a situation that emulates face-to-face communication. The creation of an open plan office allows sub teams to work more closely together. The result has been a greater amount of expertise drawn from their landscaping, interiors, animation, planning and architectural divisions drawn into one scheme. In order to celebrate the new scheme rp+g invited clients and contacts for an evening drinks reception which included a tour of the premises, technology demonstrations/workshops and a presentation about the architectural firm’s refreshed approach to working.
The construction company, J. Ebsworth Brickwork Services Ltd has given ‘Smokin’ Joe Mullender a financial boost ahead of her IBF European title fight. The former English Champion will be fighting for a chance at the title on the 9th of December. Joe Mullender is 31 and from Brentwood has vacated the English Strap in order to aim for the European title which will be fought for at the Copper Box Arena in London. The fight will be captured by BT Sport. Joe’s former employer, Jason Ebsworth has signed up to support his fight for the title when they were approached by TR Sports Agency, which is the management team that handles all of ‘Smokin’ Joe’s’ commercial interests. When commenting on the new partnership that will help to boxer with his title tilt, Jason said that he had known Joe for a number of years from the gym. Since Joe used to work for J. Ebsworth Brickwork Services Ltd, the employer wanted to support the boxer. The Brickwork company is a family business and wanted to show their support for a local boy experiencing success while also giving something back to the local area. It would be great to see Joe bring back another title to Essex and hopefully inspire the future generation of boxers in the area. As part of their support, J. Ebsworth will be a prominent feature on Joe’s fight kit for the stacked show which has been called, ‘The Boys Are Back in Town’ and will feature two world champion headliners in IBF world super-middleweight titleholder James DeGale and IBF world featherweight king Lee Selby. The IBF European title fight will be televised on the Box Nation on December 13th. J.Ebsworth specialises in the delivery of high-end residential brickwork projects as well as a wide range of other services, operating in the South East of England.
SGB, a leading scaffolding and access system provider has revealed more details about a significant new deal that has been made with a major UK property development company. The deal is expected to last for four years and will see SGB appointed as the sole scaffolding provider for the North West division of Countryside. This amazing deal with the housebuilder has a contract value of around £13 million. The negotiations for this new deal were led by the Business Development Manager of SGB, Jason Milner. The company has said that they are proud to announce this new partnership with Countryside. The scaffolding and access company is currently at work on 23 live sites, with more expected to follow. The major contract with the property development company will be a great boost to the company’s planned growth strategy that will take place over the course of the next four years. The Countryside work will be managed mainly at SGB’s Manchester Depot. The General Manager, Alan Arthur has said that the company has successfully proved to their new partner they have the size, strength and capabilities for this deal, offering an opportunity that few other scaffolders, if any, will be able to match. SGB is a part of the Brand Energy & Infrastructure Services group, and has managed to make this deal with Countryside due to the hard work and commitment shown by their team working in Manchester, who have managed to deliver around 3,400 units of scaffolding over the course of the past five years in this area alone. Now that the North West division partnership has been agreed, SBG is working with Countryside in order to extend the contract model to other areas of the UK. The company has already managed to secure contracts that relate to two new sites developed by Countryside’s Midlands office, and it has been predicted that there will be more project agreements to follow.
The National Sales Manager of ISO-CHEMIE, Andy Swift has commented that her feels optimistic about UK sealant sales over the course of the next 12 months. This optimism has been attributed to the plans of specialist suppliers, who are looking to target more sales at the design sector. With the increasing challenges of cost pressures and the possibility of further interest hikes alongside the ongoing negotiations for Brexit, it is thought that there will be a great deal of uncertainty in the construction industry throughout 2018. However, despite this rather gloomy forecast, companies such as ISO-CHEMIE, which works to deliver foam sealant tapes window and door installation projects, feel that they will benefit if there is a downturn in construction. This is because the companies are looking to target the designer as opposed to the installer sector. There is a vast amount of opportunities available for companies such as ISO-CHEMIE, and it has been predicted that there will be more and more of a focus on selling to designers over the course of 2018 in order to help increase sales and help to future proof companies. The construction industry will continue, regardless of the outcome of Brexit, and it will be equally as vital in a number of years as it is now in order to help meet the demand for new homes in the UK. Therefore, companies need to look ahead, to alternative business relationships that could turn out better than previously expected. Following the tragedy at Grenfell Tower, it is expected that fire protection will receive greater emphasis on future projects, which could then lead to increases in the number of opportunities for tape based sealing solutions, offered by ISO-CHEMIE. The business is one of the main producers of impregnated foam sealants in Europe while also specialising in the manufacture of foam products from polyethylene, polypropylene and polyurethane and the latest production techniques available.
Maber, the Midlands-based Architectural practice has announced that they will be celebrating their tenth anniversary with a VIP tour of one of their latest projects. Architects practice will be giving a tour of the restoration and refurbishment work that has been worked on by the company at the Great Hall of Leicester Castle. This VIP tour will celebrate the latest work of Maber’s Leicester office, which has been open for ten years. The Architectural firm has roots that extend back over 30 years. The company employs 70 people across a number of offices in the Midlands and London. Since the Leicester office was first opened in 2007, it has managed to expand, and now employs ten people in the city. The Leicester office of Maber has been responsible for the design of some of Leicester’s best known buildings as and architectural work. One of the Directors of Maber, Ian Harris, is the head of the Leicester office and is proud of the success that has been achieved by the branch over the course of the last ten years. The hard work that has led to this milestone, and the work and reputation that has been developed has been attributed to the long-term relationships that have been formed with their clients as well as the amazing talent shown by the team working at the practice. The Guests at Maber’s anniversary celebrations will have the opportunity to take a tour of the newly-refurbished Great Hall, which is thought to be the largest medieval hall of its kind in Europe. The space has been converted into a new Business School to be used by De Montfort University and utilised many different skills from Maber’s team, including architecture, interior design, landscape design and conservation. As well as having the opportunity to tour the Great Hall, the birthday celebrations will have the chance to experience some of the latest technology used by Maber, including Virtual reality, 3D design and 3D printing.
Veitchi Group, the Cambuslang-based subcontractor has announced that they have experienced an increase in business for three of their key divisions. The company is one of Scotland’s largest sub-contractors for the construction industry and has seen an increase in business for some of their key services. Veitchi Group has also recently celebrated their 100th anniversary in March, and the company has attributed their recent increase in success to their ‘Metframe’, an award winning construction solution as well as a number of other significant flooring projects that the company has been involved in. Veitchi Interiors is the group’s most rapidly expanding division. This division is Scotland’s only approved installer of Metframe, which is a lightweight steel structure that is constructed offsite and delivered for each project in a pre-panelised form. Over the course of the past 24 months, 14 projects have been carried out across the UK, with a combined value in excess of £8 million have been carried out by the Veitchi Interiors division. These projects include a student accommodation block located in Edinburgh which was 7-storeys high when completed. The company has also completed a 2-storey hotel extension in Glasgow and 3-storey hotel in Oxford as well as projects that have been located in London and Cambridge. Metframe is a construction solution that has become attractive to contractors who are working on projects in tight city locations. The solution offered by Veitchi Interiors is beneficial as it can significantly reduce construction time. The Haddington Place accommodation in Edinburgh was awarded a Silver in the Judge’s Category of the Scottish Finishes and Interiors Sector Awards Ceremony recently, further helping to promote the company and their construction system. This product has seen a great amount of initial success, and the company are hoping to build on this going forward. The company is at the moment working through an order book of contracts worth £7 million.
