Trades & Services : Property & Facilities Management News

Britcon Announced That They Have Made Three New Senior Appointments

Britcon has announced that they have made three new senior appointments at their offices in Wakefield. The Building and civil engineering business has now increased their Yorkshire base team numbers to 12 with the new appointments. The Wakefield base was first opened in 2014 and over the past 12 months

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Beautiful show homes now open to view at Tall Trees

Award-winning house builder Kier Living Eastern has revealed three superb show homes now available for viewing at its Tall Trees development in historic Potton. The Mayfair, an attractive four-bedroom home, the three-bedroom Bluebell and The Palmerston, also three bedrooms, give visitors a glimpse of the chance of an attractive lifestyle

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Dunton Environmental Has Acquired a New One-acre in Northgate

Dunton Environmental is a remediation firm that is one of the leading companies for design and implementation or ground and water remediation solutions. This remediation is carried out for the purposes of land restoration. The remediation consultants have recently acquired a new one-acre site in Northgate. This site in Northgate,

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Consultation on the UK Air Quality Plan Has Been Published

The consultation on the UK Air Quality Plan has been published. Matthew Pencharz has spoken out after the publishing of the Plan by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, or Defra. The former Deputy Mayor of London, Matthew Pencharz has said that the Government needs to do more

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Largest 3D Master Plan Model in the UK Has Been Revealed

The largest 3D master plan model in the UK has been revealed at Barking Riverside which is one of the largest Brownfield sites in Europe. It is thought that the development will be able to offer 10,800 new homes in the East of London. The 3D printed mater plan was

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SSM Holding AB Has Been Expanding Their Presence

SSM Holding AB have been expanding their presence in the popular suburb of Spånga. The company has recently acquired a new housing project from Nils Johnny Fastighets AB. The housing development is in Spånga Centrum and has a total floor space of 11,400 square meters. It is thought that SSM

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Knowing Your Rights with Industrial Accidents

Any injury that occurs at work must be recorded and reported by your employer. Working in construction or the industrial industry means being exposed to a large number of potential hazards and dangers. Naturally, the risk of injury is much higher in a construction site than it is in a

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Latest Issue
Issue 322 : Nov 2024

Trades : Property & Facilities Management News

Britcon Announced That They Have Made Three New Senior Appointments

Britcon has announced that they have made three new senior appointments at their offices in Wakefield. The Building and civil engineering business has now increased their Yorkshire base team numbers to 12 with the new appointments. The Wakefield base was first opened in 2014 and over the past 12 months is has doubled its size. The first appointment to Britcon is Brian French, who has joined the company as a senior quantity surveyor. Brian French will be bringing more than 40 years’ experience as part of the building, civil engineering and fit out sectors to his new role where it is thought that he will be taking commercial responsibility for Eddie Stobart and York University initially. Brian has worked for a number of years and ha specific expertise in project cost management for private commercial sectors as well as the local authority and projects for the NHS. The second appointment to the Wakefield base is Tony Mulcrone, who will also be a site manager for the Britcon team. Mulcrone comes from a strong engineering background and it is thought that he will add value as part of the construction projects Britcon are involved in. Tony will be especially valuable when involved with construction projects that contain a great deal of emphasis on sub-structures and external works. The third appointment is Craig Bell, who has been recruited to the Britcon Engineering Services division as the structural steel 3D draftsman. Craig Bell has worked in the past for a number of Yorkshire steel fabrication firms in a number of different roles including draughtsman, buyer and estimator roles. Craig is currently working for Britcon Engineering Services on a Bulk Store project that is located IN King Lynn for ABP. Craig is also working on a project in Lancashire for Rolls Royce. These three appointments have been made to reflect Britcon’s continuous growth in Yorkshire. This growth is important due to major client instructions coming from York University, BASF, Eddie Stobart, Cepac and Bradford City Council. The company has also recently managed to secure a place as part of the contractors framework for Sheffield Teaching Hospitals Trust.

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Beautiful show homes now open to view at Tall Trees

Award-winning house builder Kier Living Eastern has revealed three superb show homes now available for viewing at its Tall Trees development in historic Potton. The Mayfair, an attractive four-bedroom home, the three-bedroom Bluebell and The Palmerston, also three bedrooms, give visitors a glimpse of the chance of an attractive lifestyle with spacious living areas and elegant kitchens. This impressive collection of homes is already proving popular with happy buyers already snapping them up. Kier Living Eastern’s sales and marketing director David Thomas said: “Tall Trees is a beautiful place to set up home, whether you are looking for your first house, are a growing family in need of more space or even downsizing. “I would encourage house hunters to look sooner rather than later so they do not miss out on this wonderful opportunity.” This striking collection of 31 new homes features six different property types which will offer something for everyone, and is phase one of a total 151 houses. Tall Trees is just off Biggleswade Road, close to Potton’s historic centre, which enjoys a Georgian market square, a host of independent retailers and supermarkets. Prices at Tall Trees start at £299,995 for three bedroom homes. Some properties may also be eligible for Help to Buy. Homes are available under Kier Living Eastern’s part exchange scheme, where the buyer’s existing property is given a fair offer based on independent market valuations. The initiative removes any chain from the sale, while estate agency fees can be avoided. Terms and conditions of the scheme can be found on the Kier website. To view The Mayfair, The Bluebell or The Palmerston, simply pop along to the marketing suite, which is open Wednesday to Monday from 10am to 5pm. For more information, call the sales team on 07784365760 or visit www.kierliving.co.uk. For more information about Kier Living Eastern, visit www.kierliving.co.uk

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Dunton Environmental Has Acquired a New One-acre in Northgate

Dunton Environmental is a remediation firm that is one of the leading companies for design and implementation or ground and water remediation solutions. This remediation is carried out for the purposes of land restoration. The remediation consultants have recently acquired a new one-acre site in Northgate. This site in Northgate, Aldridge includes 10,000 sq. ft. of office space that will undergo some refurbishment works. The site also holds storage yards that are used for plants and machinery. Dunton Environmental have applied technologies that are used for the treatment of contaminated soil and water as well as being able to offer expert waste management. The business offers benefits to their clients that are measurable and cost efficient. Johnson Fellows, the chartered surveyors were appointed in order to help Dunton find a site that is suitable and that met the remediation company’s requirements. Johnson Fellows is a commercial property agency that was fist established in 1984. The Chartered Surveyors practice works in a number of specialist departments and acts for a mixture of different clients which include retailers, developers, investors, financiers and occupiers of commercial property. The new site is situated north of Birmingham. Dunton’s specialist knowledge has become increasingly more popular as a reaction to the higher levels of activity within the construction industry.  While property transactions can be full of challenges, Johnson Fellows managed to help Dunton Environmental work their way through the process while also allowing Dunton to continue to work on their business. The new site in Northgate will be where Dunton Environmental relocate to in order to accommodate their increasing operations as well as allowing for more growth in the future. It is thought that the Aldridge site is the ideal place for the company to grow and expand. This site should provide Dunton Environmental an appropriate HQ in an excellent location as Dunton continue with their plans for expansion.

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Consultation on the UK Air Quality Plan Has Been Published

The consultation on the UK Air Quality Plan has been published. Matthew Pencharz has spoken out after the publishing of the Plan by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, or Defra. The former Deputy Mayor of London, Matthew Pencharz has said that the Government needs to do more to encourage local authorities in order to introduce and obtain the necessary powers to enforce environmental regulations on areas such as construction sites in order to promote the use of clean technologies following the Government Air Quality Plan that has been released by Defra. The Government Air Quality Plan that has been published appears to be quite unambitious, considering the construction equipment in London accounts for 7% of the emissions which leads to the high NO2 concentrations that are currently at a level which is unacceptable. These high levels of NO2 are high across the country and action needs to be taken in order to improve the air quality. However, the clean technologies that are available in this sector use batteries. These batteries can be used to supply temporary power for construction sites and events. These batteries are available in the marketplace and would lead to a significant reduction of air pollution if adopted more widely. Off Grid Energy is a company that works to save their customers thousands of pounds in fuel costs by using these clean technologies. These procedures could also reduce the pollution and noise created by construction sites. The former deputy Mayor of London has said that it is disappointing that the Defra Air Quality Plan that has been set out by the Government does not set out the reductions that the UK need to have a significant impact on the air pollution. More could be done to promote the utilization of these cleaner energy technologies that will save money as well as reduce emissions. The Air Quality Plan has previously set out regulations to start cleaning up the construction industry however in the newest publication, there was only mention of new machines being brought in to use in 2019, and no reference to any older and more polluting companies.

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Largest 3D Master Plan Model in the UK Has Been Revealed

The largest 3D master plan model in the UK has been revealed at Barking Riverside which is one of the largest Brownfield sites in Europe. It is thought that the development will be able to offer 10,800 new homes in the East of London. The 3D printed mater plan was created by Hobs Studio, the 3D technology specialists. It is said that the model measures 3.6m x 2.6m x 1m and covers more than 1,000 of the buildings at the scale of 1:750. The sheer size of the project is illustrated by the model, however a third of the model’s surface depicts the River Thames. This 3D model of the Brownfield site in Barking was produced over the course of 4 and a half weeks at Hobs Studio which is in Central London. This model was printed using the UK’s largest SLA 3D printer which is an iPro 9000 XL. This printer has a build size of 1500mm x 750mm x 550mm. It is thought that during the development at Barking Riverside, a focus is being placed on investment in future technology in order to create their vision of the future of the development. The model was created using 35 litres of resin and was printed by using a process which is called stereolithography. After all the pieces were printed, the model took two days to build and it will be available for viewing at the new Experience Suite at the Barking Riverside Project office. 3D printing allows model production to happen much faster as well as allowing more accurate and detailed models to be produced. The detail is added to this process through the 3D photogrammetry data that is used. After the printing, the post production of the model is vital, with a specialised team working to add the finishing touches.

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SSM Holding AB Has Been Expanding Their Presence

SSM Holding AB have been expanding their presence in the popular suburb of Spånga. The company has recently acquired a new housing project from Nils Johnny Fastighets AB. The housing development is in Spånga Centrum and has a total floor space of 11,400 square meters. It is thought that SSM will develop this recently acquired area in to around 250 cooperative apartments. The site was initially purchased for 65 MSEK and it is thought that there will be additional costs in place as a charge for future exploitation. Work of the development is predicted to start in the first quarter of 2020. If building goes to plan it has suggested that occupation of the site will occur in the final quarter of 2021. The properties will be located in Spånga Centrum where there are a lot of different shopping and restaurant options. Spånga also has a lot of different green areas and a mixture of different athletic facilities close by as well as a number of public transport options which include a commuter rail line and busses. The project to build approximately 250 houses will be run solely by SSM. The housing company focuses on one specific customer group when they are creating their properties. The market that is targeted is tomorrow’s urbanites, so SSM work to deliver functional and efficient housing to prospective buyers that are also in good central locations with easy access to public transport. It is thought that the new development in Spånga match the criteria and will be a valuable addition to the company’s portfolio. The company is also carrying out a development in Spånga Torg, and a project that will offer 80 cooperative apartments. It is thought that the apartments of this project will be complete and being filled for the latter part of 2019.

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Knowing Your Rights with Industrial Accidents

Any injury that occurs at work must be recorded and reported by your employer. Working in construction or the industrial industry means being exposed to a large number of potential hazards and dangers. Naturally, the risk of injury is much higher in a construction site than it is in a regular office. High scaffoldings, heavy loads and dangerous machinery are just a few of the possible health and safety hazards that industrial employees face each time they go to work. If an accident occurs, you may be eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits. These costs are in place to pay for any medical expenses related to the accident that occurred whilst you were at work. However, many people are unsure about how to approach claiming compensation and most don’t even know if they qualify for it. Here is all of the information you need to know regarding your rights and claiming compensation: What Steps Should You Take? If an accident occurs in the workplace, there are certain steps you and your employer should take. Your employer must report the incident, especially if it is serious. It is also their duty to ensure that you are aware of the health and safety issues that concern you as an employee. Industrial accidents can be very serious. There are lots of different types of heavy machinery and potential health hazards right, left and centre. If your employer failed to make you aware of these hazards, you may be able to claim as a result of their negligence. Accidents that must be reported include: Chemical related injuries (chemical burns for example) Major injuries such as broken limbs Accidents that occurred due to things like gas or scaffolding that has collapsed. Disease or death If your work-related injury required you to take off more than three days, that injury must be reported by your employer. Who is to Blame for your Accident? As previously mentioned, your employer is responsible for your safety in the workplace. Working in the industrial industry requires that you be equipped with the right tools for the job. However, these tools must also include things like hard hats and gloves for your safety. For example, if a chemical related accident took place and you were not wearing a pair of high-quality vinyl gloves to protect yourself, you could suffer serious chemical burns and will be eligible to claim compensation. Can you Claim Compensation? Sustaining a personal injury that was not your fault leaves you open to the possibility of claiming compensation. Of course, you will have to prove your injury was a result of a third party’s negligence and that you are not to blame. According to www.citizensadvice.org.uk, the court will decide how much you are owed in compensation. The general damages paid are to cover the pain of the injury whilst special damages are paid for the financial loss that the injury has had on your life from the moment the accident occurred, right up until the date of the court hearing.

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Irwin Mitchell Announced That they Have Appointed a New Partner to Their Team

The National Law Firm Irwin Mitchell has announced that they have appointed a new partner to their National Real Estate team. It was announced that Robert Stangroom will be joining Irwin Mitchell at their Southampton office from the 8th May. In his new role Robert will be required to assist the Partner David Fanchi and work with the other nine members of the Southampton-based real estate team. The role will involve concentrating on the more general commercial real estate aspects of the work involved. Irwin Mitchell is a company that is more than 100 years old and is classed as one of the largest law firms in the UK. The firm offers both Personal and Business Legal Services to their clients. In 2015 Irwin Mitchell merged with Thomas Eggar LL, which meant that the company expanded its presence in London and in the South Est of the UK. The Law firm has also acquired MPH Solicitors which was a specialised Personal Injury specialist, and the private wealth firm Berkeley Law over the course of the past few years. Robert Stangroom is joining Irwin Mitchell from Wannops LLP. In his previous role, Robert was a partner and before this position he worked at Shoosmiths. In the Past Robert Stangroom has worked with David Fanchi at Thomas Eggar. Hopefully their previous working relationship will lead to a successful transition and flourishing relationship going forward. The Irwin Mitchell real estate practice now has more than 40 partners spread across the UK and 81 other real estate lawyers. These figure are continuing to expand as the Law firm does. There are a number of real estate teams and they are located at Irwin Mitchell’s 9 BLS offices. It is hoped that Robert will be a useful new addition as Real Estate Partner in the Southampton based office and will boost the Southampton office and their coverage across the Southern markets.

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Actavo Has Been Working to Provide Bartholomew School With a New Building

Actavo | Building Solutions has been working to provide Bartholomew School with a new building to be used as an exam ad sixth form centre. The school is located in Eynsham in Oxfordshire and has been looking at the different ways they could reduce the pressure on the school that has been caused by an increase in the number of pupils each year. Actavo | Building Solutions has been ranked as the fastest growing modular building company for the last three years. The modular building company worked with Ridge and Partners in order to deliver the new sixth form centre. The new building will offer the students more space as well as a modern learning space. The centre is a single-storey 352m² extension that includes a multi-purpose hall that can be used for study, but also has the capacity for 130 exam desks during the exam season. The hall area of the new building also contains a new acoustic partition as well as foldaway tables and trunking that has power points to allow pupils to get plugged in access for laptops and portable devices. In the building there is also a cloakroom and a kitchen, plant room cleaner’s cupboard and two staff offices as well as storage space for furniture and three unisex WCs. For this project Bartholomew School needed to accommodate the ever increasing number of pupils attracted to the school as well as keeping within the architectural heritage of the school while offering a space that would add to the learning experience of the sixth form students. It is thought that the new centre adds a fresh aspect to the older buildings of the school that surround it. Actavo were asked to create a cost effective building that can be completed quickly while keeping high standards of performance. Increasingly schools are looking to offsite construction projects in order to offer the optimum construction solution.

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BIFM publishes new guidance for FMs managing the transition to agile working

New guidance to help facilities managers manage the transition to agile working within their organisation has today been published by BIFM. The Agile Working Change Management Guidance Note is aimed at FMs working at a senior and/or operational level and covers the benefits of agile working and how to successfully plan and implement an integrated approach to deliver sustainable change in working behaviour. Agile working describes a range of work settings that allow people and organisations to make new choices about when, where and how they work. It is underpinned by mobile technology and applies to people working both in and away from the traditional office, such as at home, on the road or remotely in other locations. BIFM’s research and information manager Peter Brogan said: “As an Institute, we recognise the importance of the workplace agenda for FMs and this newly commissioned Guidance Note aims to address the current lack of knowledge around some of the emerging workplace practices. “Workplace change is a particularly hot topic in FM, and was highlighted in The Workplace Advantage report by The Stoddart Review, of which BIFM is a founding partner, which argued the need for businesses to invest financially and intellectually in ensuring their working environment optimises employee performance. “The work environment is shifting rapidly, and this will result in new challenges and opportunities. As the workplace landscape is redefined, FMs will be at the forefront of eliminating barriers to enable people to work more effectively, helping to play a key role in the creation of flexible environments that not only meet the evolving needs of employees but help forward-thinking organisations increase productivity and the performance of their business.” The document has been authored by workplace expert Andrew Mawson, co-founder of Advanced Workplace Associated Ltd (AWA), who has worked with organisations such as Microsoft, Lloyds of London and UNICEF to help them realise the economic, social and productivity benefits linked to agile models of work, place and organisation. He is also the lead for Workplace Week, which is supported by BIFM. Mawson said: “Managing the behavioural transition to more agile, modern ways of working is a key capability for those involved in managing the modern workplace. But it takes more than a few briefings and a nice PowerPoint presentation to change the habits of a lifetime to work. “At AWA our day job is to work with leaders to help them change the world of work, and so we were delighted to be invited by BIFM to develop this guidance note to help FM professionals put in place some key steps to aid the transition.” The Agile Working Change Management Guidance Note is available to download here.

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