Maple Building Services have found themselves in the headlines after becoming a finalist in the LABC Awards. The family run company, part of the Maple Group had their work recognised by the prestigious Local Authority Building Awards. The company hosts offices in Sudbury, Bury St Edmunds and Long Melford were
Specialist investor Bridges Ventures has recently had a new investor purchase a bid for a prominent office and retail building based in central Leeds, the investor and successful entrepreneur has come a long way from his roots as an Army Officer after a string of clever investments, patience and hard
Great news for the international infrastructure group Balfour Beatty. The company has won a contract with by BAE Systems, the leading global defence company, to carry out the £82.5m contract to build their engineering and training facilities at a site in Norfolk. The RAF Marham in Norfolk will be getting
When compared to the first quarter of 2015, it has been highlighted in the latest batch of figures (provided by Registers of Scotland) that sales for residential properties has seen an increase of 18.2% within this year’s first quarter. This also comes as average residential property prices has also reportedly
The Heating & Hotwater Industry Council has most recently stated the reformed Renewable Heat Incentive scheme to be “flawed”, warning that it will be unable to deliver any meaningful impact on the delivery of renewable heat – a concerning notion, giving the scheme’s very goal. As such, the Heating &
Developing in line with rising property prices, it has now been highlighted in the Generation Rent Report that around one third of UK youths expect to still be paying off mortgages when they’re over 60, and around half then drawing concerns as to how they will then be able to
Tying in with the national surge in the take-up of office space, it has been highlighted by Savills that the Cambridge city centre has also seen a considerable increase in the amount of takeup over the last half year – this seen through the culmination of a number of smaller,
Recently winning a Gold RoSPA Occupational Health and Safety Award, Keyline has recently been highlighted as one of those organisations taking health and safety as a foremost concern. The company, renown as a specialist in the provision of drainage and civils solutions, as well as heavy building materials, came into
It has been reported that, of those property purchases made within the prime London market, three out of five were in fact by buy-to-let investors and owners of second homes for 2016’s first quarter. Also playing a role in boosting the volume of sales undertaken with cash, as highlighted in
Good news for Armstrong Ceilings, as the company has achieved record-breaking levels in recycling for the second year on the run, seen with the recycling of some 142,000m2 over the course of last year, with a notable nine members of the company’s Omega network (approved installers) then showcasing their expertise
Maple Building Services have found themselves in the headlines after becoming a finalist in the LABC Awards. The family run company, part of the Maple Group had their work recognised by the prestigious Local Authority Building Awards. The company hosts offices in Sudbury, Bury St Edmunds and Long Melford were shortlisted in the finals for the national awards. The company are in the running for the final awards of the LABC Awards held at a later date in Cambridge. A bespoke building that the company build has won the company the shortlisting in two catergories at the awards. Maple Building Services have been invited to the finals in July for the two catergories they’ve shortlisted in, including Best Local Builder or Traditional Craftsperson and for Best Individual New Home. The LABC Awards recognise local authority building companies in England and Wales for the work they do in the construction, planning and completion of projects. The Maple has won awards in previous years for their work in the industry and projects and have become renowned for a high quality of service. This year the team was one of many hundreds in the running, more than 500 properties were nominated with only four properties shortlisted for each category for the finals. The property built by Maple Building Services was described as one of its kind and an ambitious and brave build. The company have been running for over 20 years and managing director Darren Howard stated that he was elated that the company had been nominated in the awards and further shortlisted mentioning further the importance and the values of the company to take care with providing service of quality and trust. The team have shown a commitment to that ambition and that work has been recognised with these nominations and successful shortlisting.
Specialist investor Bridges Ventures has recently had a new investor purchase a bid for a prominent office and retail building based in central Leeds, the investor and successful entrepreneur has come a long way from his roots as an Army Officer after a string of clever investments, patience and hard work have landed him the opportunity to purchase the Airedale House on Albion Street in Leeds for £6.6m. Graham Goodwin has successfully purchased the 41,432 sq ft property on Albion Street, the office building sits in the heart of the city’s commercial district and was originally acquired by Bridges for £4m in 2013 via its first Bridges Sustainable Property Fund. The Airdale House has undergone an environmentally-led refurbishment and has been multi-let to a list of tenants including highstreet brands and services with companies such as Sally Salon Services, Slaters Menswear, Optical Express and The Prince’s Trust included. The building has now been bought by GM Legato Property, an investment company set up by Yorkshire-based investor Graham Goodwin. Who formed a successful recruitment business in 2002. The company now has offices across the UK based in Leeds, Birmingham and London. The company had sales of £38m and an EBITDA of £5.4 by the time it sold it’s management in 2014 in a private-equity buyout. The former British Army officer toured The Falkland Islands, Northern Ireland and Germany now has a very different life as a director of Ling Bob a developer business specialising in listed buildings. Bridges was advised by CBRE, whilst Knight Frank acted on behalf of GM Legato Property. Lloyds Banking Group provided the debt required to support the investment. Guy Bowden, parter at Bridges Ventures stated that the investment in Airedale House was an illustration of how positive societal impact and things like commercial value growth can go hand in hand.
Great news for the international infrastructure group Balfour Beatty. The company has won a contract with by BAE Systems, the leading global defence company, to carry out the £82.5m contract to build their engineering and training facilities at a site in Norfolk. The RAF Marham in Norfolk will be getting new state of the art facilities in preparation for the arrival of the first F-35 Lightning II aircraft in the UK, the aircraft is set to be in the UK by 2018. The news has been well accepted since the announcement in March 2013 from the Secretary of State for Defence confirming that RAF Marham would soon become the chief operating station for the F-35 Lightning II jets of the UK’s fleet. The Balfour Beatty will be constructing 3 new facilities on behalf of BAE Systems to support the appearance of the F-35 Lightning II aircraft in 2018, the new builds include an Integrated Training Centre, Logistics Operations Centre and a Maintenance and Finishing Facility. The company will be utilising digital tools like 4D modelling and BIM throughout the construction of the 25,000m2 technical accommodation across three individual sites on the base. Balfour Beatty MD of UK Construction Services, Dean Banks, stated that they were committed to making the development a success. He mentioned the company had an excellent track record BAE Systems and their history of delivering defence projects in the UK. Their expertise in the industry of defence and aviation stemmed their progress in successfully acquiring new bigger projects. The company developed technically advanced delivery solutions, in an aim to ensure the RAF Marham’s operational capability is maintained efficiently throughout the construction activities on the base. Balfour Beatty has worked with the UK Ministry of Defence’s Lightning Project Team and BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin, and Royal Air Forces Marham over the past 6 months as one of their Preferred Suppliers.
When compared to the first quarter of 2015, it has been highlighted in the latest batch of figures (provided by Registers of Scotland) that sales for residential properties has seen an increase of 18.2% within this year’s first quarter. This also comes as average residential property prices has also reportedly dropped by 8.4%, with the now-average price for a property sitting at £159,198. Despite the drop in price, the sheer number and value of sales did indeed show considerable growth within the quarter, with the number of sales (19,802) being the largest reported number since 2007-2008, whilst the value of the sales showed an increase of 8.3% from the previous year – this totalling in at a notable value of £3.15bn. This also being highlighted as an extension of sustained growth in property sales, the news does come with a positive edge to it, perhaps suggesting the potential for further sustained growth in the new financial year. Of course, as for the drop in pricing, it is key to note that the figures from last year did indeed involve a considerable spike in the pricing of residential properties, thus bringing a degree of uncertainty as to whether the reported drop in price is due to a continued trend for depreciation or more the resettling of the market after the spike. Additionally, the rise in sales could also then be attributed partly to the drop in pricing, yet, only time will tell on both notes as we see the market stabilise. Good to see is the fact that all property archetypes did indeed see an increase in sales volumes this time, highlighting that the results are not limited to high-value properties alone. In fact, flats were reported to see the largest increase in sales, with a reported value of 24.2% – a clear spike in demand.
The Heating & Hotwater Industry Council has most recently stated the reformed Renewable Heat Incentive scheme to be “flawed”, warning that it will be unable to deliver any meaningful impact on the delivery of renewable heat – a concerning notion, giving the scheme’s very goal. As such, the Heating & Hotwater Industry Council has outlined a number of changes it both recommends, and would like to see changed if the Renewable Heat Incentive is to bring about positive change; the most prominent notion being that the scheme needs a far more clear focus, as well as a change in the a targeting of funding so as best to provide improvement. Highlighting that the scheme should target funding towards homes actually able to have a renewable heating system, as well as also being one with a presently carbon-intensive heating system, Director of the Heating & Hotwater Industry Council, Stewart Clements nods towards the importance of a proper incentive scheme to achieve goals, and does indeed reiterate the organisation’s commitment towards decarbonising heat; the concerns primarily revolving around the how and where this can be done. On this very note, Stewart Clements stated: “We are legally committed to achieving our 2020 renewable targets with the RHI the flagship policy for helping to decarbonise heat. Unfortunately, as it stands the RHI will simply not deliver.” Of those further changes highlighted by the Hotwater Industry Council, the three most notable are its encouragement for: the broadening of the spread of technology available within the scheme (perhaps seeing the biopropane and gas-absorption heat pumps to be included), the keeping of solar thermal within the scheme as a way of improving heat pump efficiencies, and also further support in the development of the wider heat pump market. In agreement, the Energy & Utilities Alliance also agrees on the note that the Renewable Heat Incentive is fundamentally flawed and will be unable to deliver upon the results required.
Developing in line with rising property prices, it has now been highlighted in the Generation Rent Report that around one third of UK youths expect to still be paying off mortgages when they’re over 60, and around half then drawing concerns as to how they will then be able to afford making mortgage repayments once they have entered into retirement. Despite the rise in prices and associated mortgage implications, demand for housing still remains high, with people, no matter how difficult it may now be, seemingly still determined to own their own home. Of course, when considering woes as to the ability of youths to afford residential property, this brings with it concerns as to how both the individual can garner personal housing if their capacity to repay a mortgage is questionable. One way in which people may be looking to overcome this is through continued work. Though not a favourable option for most, some 34% of people predict that they will be working beyond retirement so that they can pay off their mortgage, with 44% people drawing up concerns that they would not be able to do so if in retirement. Additionally, 51% of individuals have laid out concerns as to how paying for a mortgage may hinder the capacity to save up for retirement. As for how property can be made more affordable, or justifiable, around 49% of individuals regard having a partner as one of the key measures for judging the affordability of owning their own home, whilst 34% agree with the extending of a mortgage beyond 25 years to be one of the key ways to make the investment more affordable. Despite all these concerns, however, it has been reported that the quantity of first time buyers has increased considerably over the past few years, as some 300,000 individuals made their leap into the property market over the course of 2015.
Tying in with the national surge in the take-up of office space, it has been highlighted by Savills that the Cambridge city centre has also seen a considerable increase in the amount of takeup over the last half year – this seen through the culmination of a number of smaller, 10,000 square foot space deals. When looking to where Savills attributes this increase, the firm highlights the increased recognition seen from “technology” occupiers in the positive consequences of a central business district location; these locations then offering improved accessibility to local amenities, as well as transport links and further convenient facilities, such as for for cycling. In fact, it has been reported that the take-up from “technology” occupiers actually managed to outgrow that of incubator space, specifically within key areas of interest for technology firms, such as innovation and business parks, with technology firms looking to grow their business into more centralised space. This sees a number of scientific and technology-led organisations such as Malin Life Sciences, Raspberry Pi, Microsoft, Astra Zeneca and Apple now with central business locations. As demand has risen for space, so too has the supply of Grade A space dropped, with the market struggling to keep up with the demand. This has led to surges in rents for Cambridge (amongst other locations) as interested parties fight for the space still available. In fact, the rents reported for prime business parks hit £30 per square foot in certain areas of Cambridge, serving as a figure not too distant from the ever-high city-centre rents which now sit at around £35 per square foot. Of course, with the recovering economy in hand, it has been seen that occupiers are now slightly less concerned with the price of premises, and instead more focused on finding the best possible space, with the best location.
Recently winning a Gold RoSPA Occupational Health and Safety Award, Keyline has recently been highlighted as one of those organisations taking health and safety as a foremost concern. The company, renown as a specialist in the provision of drainage and civils solutions, as well as heavy building materials, came into the award following on from being celebrated for its markedly responsible standards for health and safety as perceived over the course of the past year. Most specifically, praise was given for the integral role played by both senior managers and directors in the overarching health and safety stratagems of the company. This saw a heavy focus on integrating all members of the Keyline team in the health and safety process, as well as typical forms of engagement to ensure a complete health and safety culture. A core part of this saw a considerable focus on proper risk assessments, enabling the company to adapt health and safety procedures in line with the relative risks perceived by a health and safety conscious workforce. Nodding towards the company’s delight in receiving the award, as well as how it underlines how far the company has come in achieving first-class results for health and safety processes, Keyline’s Safety Director, Richard Byrne provided commentary on the win. He said: “Our obligation to health and safety extends to our colleagues, the contractors we employ, our customers, stakeholders that we work with, and members of the public. We are extremely proud that this effort has been acknowledged by RoSPA.” The event also tied in with RoSPA’s 60th anniversary for its Health and Safety Awards, with the scheme having existed for a more extended period of time than any like-schemes in the industry. As such, success at the RoSPA awards is quite traditionally looked upon as the premier mark of success for health and safety procedures.
It has been reported that, of those property purchases made within the prime London market, three out of five were in fact by buy-to-let investors and owners of second homes for 2016’s first quarter. Also playing a role in boosting the volume of sales undertaken with cash, as highlighted in Marsh & Parsons’ latest London Property Monitor report. Highlighted as the most prominent buyer archetype for the first quarter, it can be observed that buy-to-let investors made up some 36% of all those purchases in the first quarter. This comes during the build-up to the stamp duty reforms, of course, with predictions being that many buy-to-let investors rushed to push their purchases through before the new regulation would come into force. The spike can be best highlighted when compared with the figures of the final quarter of 2015, where a far lower proportion of 26% was reported. Of course, this has then also showcased a renewed influence of investors within the wider property market, but not yet hitting the highs of 2014, where the share of the market estimated to be of investors reached a notable proportion of 47%. Following on from buy-to-let investors, buyers of secondary homes then made up the second largest portion of the market for the prime London sector, serving a value only marginally shy of a doubled proportion of market investment – 14% for the final quarter of 2015, then jumping up to 23% for the first quarter of this year. These combined figures then make up some 59% of the total amount of purchases within the prime London market, yet this value is reportedly even higher when looking more specifically at the prime central London market, where figures showed a 76% proportion of the market being attributed to the combination of these two investor archetypes.
Good news for Armstrong Ceilings, as the company has achieved record-breaking levels in recycling for the second year on the run, seen with the recycling of some 142,000m2 over the course of last year, with a notable nine members of the company’s Omega network (approved installers) then showcasing their expertise in the field of recycling enough to quality as “Green Omegas”. In total, the amount recycled has been estimates to have saved contractors approximately £100,000 in landfill tax, but also represents a great result in the field of corporate social responsibility. As for the materials recycled, these are presently, and will continue to be used entirely for the creation of mineral ceiling tiles, then serving to save the company in excess of £28,000 in materials. Looking at to where we can attribute such success, it has been reported that it is specifically the Green Omegas network which has achieved great success in breaking the records, serving as a network of highly specialist subcontractors, both in the fields of traditional subcontracting as well as in that of recycling itself. One of the Armstrong Omegas since, PFP, also then provided commentary on the Omega network through its Managing Director, Boyd Sinclair, who commented: “The benefits of becoming an Omega installer were the closer working relationship with Armstrong, PFP being recommended to clients by Armstrong for projects, and receipt of project leads from Armstrong.” Also as a reputable installer of Armstrong products specifically, the company has seen considerable benefit in competing against organisations only offering labour services. Most notably, this providing an extra layer of confidence in the company when main contractors draw up comparisons between sourcing materials themselves, with labour-only operatives to deliver, against that of the company to offer a complete procurement and installation package – this is partially because it is very unlikely for the average labour-only subcontractor to actually be certified by Armstrong Omega.
