A Midlands-based property and land company has strengthened its senior team with two promotions. Richard Mees has been promoted to Chief Executive at Rainier Developments Ltd and Josh Sinnett becomes Managing Director. Both have been with the company — which has its headquarters in Henley-in-Arden — since its early days,
Civil engineering and infrastructure specialist Barhale has promoted David Lally to the position of operations director. David originally joined Barhale in 2011 becoming senior general foreman after his work on the London Olympics projects and his leadership of the Optimise teams in the Thames Water, AMP5 programme. He was promoted
Construction technology provider Causeway Technologies has appointed Richard Longdon as non-executive chairman. One of Britain’s most respected ‘Silicon Fen’ entrepreneurs, Richard Longdon was the chief executive and subsequently president of AVEVA plc for 17 years before stepping down at the end of 2017. Under his leadership, AVEVA grew into a
Are you a construction business who’s struggling to hire the best talent? In this article, Kelly Friel from industry tools and equipment supplier Zoro shares her tips for attracting more applicants to construction roles — and keeping them on, too. It’s been an interesting few years for the construction industry,
Lincolnshire-based architects and urban designers, PolkeyCollins, has welcomed two new members to its architecture team as part of its planned growth strategy. Jason Hall and Connor Horgan have joined the practice as senior architect and architectural technologist respectively. The hires come as part of PolkeyCollins’ five-year growth strategy to further
Premier Forecourts and Construction, a specialist in forecourts and diverse construction projects, has appointed a new finance director as the company experiences a period of substantial growth after pivoting its business towards the electric vehicle charging market. Rebecca Cook has been promoted to director after serving as a finance controller
Never one to rest on their laurels, the Mick George Group have signalled further intent to expand their ever-impressive Contracting Division following the appointment of William East to their Contracting Board, as Managing Director. Considered an integral part of the growth achieved by the Mick George Group in recent times,
Premier Modular, one of the UK’s leading modular building specialists, has appointed Mark Rooney as Divisional Director for its Hire operations. Mark joins the business with 15 years’ experience in leadership roles, 10 years of which have been spent in the construction hire space. He now takes responsibility for Premier’s
East Midlands-based Franklin Ellis Architects has welcomed a host of new hires to its interior design and architectural teams at its Nottingham office. The firm, which also has an office in Leicester, has hired five new team members in a short space of time over the summer. The flurry of
In response to the increasing requirement by organisations in the datacentre, commercial, media and high-tech sectors to upgrade, modernise and expand their mission critical facilities and infrastructure, BCS Group (Business Critical Solutions), the specialist services provider to the digital infrastructure industry, has appointed an experienced Head of Critical Infrastructure. Simon
A Midlands-based property and land company has strengthened its senior team with two promotions. Richard Mees has been promoted to Chief Executive at Rainier Developments Ltd and Josh Sinnett becomes Managing Director. Both have been with the company — which has its headquarters in Henley-in-Arden — since its early days, with Richard previously Managing Director and Josh one of the team of Land Directors. Rainier Developments was established in 2015 by Eric Grove, one of the most successful property entrepreneurs in the country. Eric, Richard and Josh have grown the business to become a market leader in property and land development. There are currently 40 sites in its portfolio, which is managed by an in-house land, planning and development team. Richard Mees said: “Josh has been with Rainier since 2017 and was the first person we hired after I had arrived the year before, so his promotion to Managing Director is recognition of how he has helped the business grow. “He has immense experience in this sector and has a significant role to play in our strengthened senior team and as we look to match and improve on the rapid growth that we’ve seen in recent years.” Josh Sinnett, 32, said: “Rainier is a growing business and one with a strong reputation in the sector, so it’s a really good opportunity for me to step up to the role of Managing Director. “We’ve had a particularly successful 18 months, and I’m really looking forward to getting involved in both the strategic sites and the urban development work that we’re doing in the Midlands and in other parts of the country.” Rainier Developments recently secured funding from West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) to build 37 one- and two-bedroom apartments and commercial space in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter.
Civil engineering and infrastructure specialist Barhale has promoted David Lally to the position of operations director. David originally joined Barhale in 2011 becoming senior general foreman after his work on the London Olympics projects and his leadership of the Optimise teams in the Thames Water, AMP5 programme. He was promoted to Southern Region operations manager in 2015 and supervised the delivery of the Thames Water, AMP6 framework for eight2O. David will report directly to the new Barhale CEO, Martin Brown, who joins the business in September. Barhale director, Andy Flowerday said that David would be a great fit for the role, “With more than 20 years in civil engineering, including 10 years at Barhale, he fully understands the delivery challenges we face and the core values that the company pursues in all of its projects. “David’s role will focus on providing direct engagement between frontline operational teams and senior management throughout all business units. His primary responsibilities will be maximising productivity and resource utilisation, programme achievement and “Right First Time” delivery, together with supporting and responding to operational needs to mitigate issues and maximise opportunities.”
Construction technology provider Causeway Technologies has appointed Richard Longdon as non-executive chairman. One of Britain’s most respected ‘Silicon Fen’ entrepreneurs, Richard Longdon was the chief executive and subsequently president of AVEVA plc for 17 years before stepping down at the end of 2017. Under his leadership, AVEVA grew into a FTSE 250 technology company with a market capitalisation of £1.4bn at the time of his retirement from the board of AVEVA. Richard’s prior positions include chairman at Ideagen plc and senior independent non-executive board positions at Alfa Financial plc and Fidessa plc before it was taken private in 2018. He has also worked successfully with private equity-backed businesses, serving as a non-executive chairman at Process Systems Enterprise Ltd and non-executive director at Prometheus Inc. Richard’s appointment at Causeway follows the recent announcement of a £120m investment in Causeway by Five Arrows Principal Investments, the European corporate private equity arm of Rothschild & Co, to fund strategic acquisitions and accelerate the company’s organic growth strategy to provide a seamless digital connection across the entire construction supply chain. Phil Brown, chief executive of Causeway, said: “Richard’s addition to our board brings complimentary expertise in software business management and financial performance. This appointment is also indicative of the level of excitement about our market opportunity, and the strength of our ambitions as a business. Our core purpose at Causeway is to enable the digitisation of the construction industry to best-in-class standards, and Richard’s arrival will help us scale our capability so that we can enable our customers to best leverage technology to be distinctly impactful in their respective markets.” Richard Longdon added: “This is a very important time for Causeway. I am thrilled to have this opportunity to work with Phil and his team as well as Five Arrows — together we will accelerate the extension of Causeway’s cloud platform across multiple sub-segments of the construction supply chain. It is clear that the construction industry urgently needs and wants good technology solutions. With its recent acquisitions and the investment from Five Arrows, I see Causeway as exceptionally well placed to play a leading role in this market, especially given Causeway’s fantastic product set and deep customer relationships.” Causeway Technologies was established in 1999. Headquartered in Buckinghamshire in the United Kingdom, it serves over 2,500 customers and has over 350 employees. Causeway provides enterprise and cloud software solutions to the construction and infrastructure maintenance industries and spans the full value and supply chain. www.causeway.com
Are you a construction business who’s struggling to hire the best talent? In this article, Kelly Friel from industry tools and equipment supplier Zoro shares her tips for attracting more applicants to construction roles — and keeping them on, too. It’s been an interesting few years for the construction industry, and while we’re certainly recovering from the pandemic quicker than anyone anticipated, the boom has exacerbated pre-existing issues — such as recruitment and employee retention. It’s predicted that the industry will need to recruit an additional 216,800 new workers by 2025 just to meet demand (CITB), but with an ongoing labour shortage and an ageing workforce, you might be wondering how your construction business can pull this off. Below, I’ll suggest some of the ways you can attract, recruit, and retain the best possible talent to your construction business to prepare for the future of construction. Redefine perceptions When the average jobseeker considers jobs in this sector, it’s likely that they think of hard hats, heavy labour, and gruelling building work. While these roles are important and suit a particular type of candidate, it’s crucial that we highlight the varied roles available within the industry to ensure that every position is filled by people with the right skills. From logistics to software engineering to administrative roles, try to demonstrate that construction is a multi-faceted industry with a variety of roles to suit all skill sets. It’s also important to showcase the opportunities for professional development available within the industry. People will want to know that they can progress within a company, whether that’s through traditional vertical promotion or lateral moves. So, particularly when recruiting for entry-level roles, be sure to include information about what your employees can do after two, five, or even ten years working at your company. If you can’t promise they’ll have access to senior roles, you should explain how they can eventually choose to work in different departments elsewhere within the company. Promote diversity In addition to not being aware of the sheer scope of jobs available in construction, many jobseekers may not realise how diverse the sector can be. For example, men still outnumber women in construction roles by a significant amount, and many construction companies believe that is because they are put off applying for traditionally masculine positions, or have never considered roles in construction as being ‘for them’. While attitudes like these are changing, the construction industry needs to be at the forefront of this change to encourage women, other minorities, and non-traditional construction applicants to apply. You can help jobseekers perceive your company as a safe, inclusive space to work at by appointing mentors and role models with diverse industry backgrounds to assist in the recruitment process. Meanwhile, you should also be working on developing non-discriminatory job profiles by using inclusive language, creating comfortable and accessible workspaces with facilities to suit all needs, and offering incentives that employees of all backgrounds can benefit from. Improve company culture Company culture is more important than ever when it comes to attracting and retaining employees. In fact, many workers now believe that enjoying the culture where they work is more important than how much they get paid (Glassdoor). Company culture extends beyond social events — you need to make sure your workforces’ quality of life is being protected, including their work/life balance. A positive work/life balance doesn’t necessarily mean your staff work less hours or do less work either. Flexible working options, such as optional start-times, break formats, and remote working (where applicable), are mutually beneficial and you may even find that productivity increases as a result. Other aspects to focus on include the provision of a clean, tidy workspace to reduce stress and increase efficiency. Tools, equipment, and PPE that is high-quality and fully operational can also make a difference, as well as access to mental health and wellbeing services and valuable educational resources for continued learning and development. All these elements can help your employees to feel valued and invested in your company. Preserve future talent If you aren’t already, you need to make sure your construction company is making efforts to recruit school leavers and graduates. Having a presence in schools and colleges is more than just a great way to find new apprentices and interns — it is also playing a crucial role in preserving the future talent pipeline. It does this by encouraging children and teenagers to have an interest in STEM subjects as early as possible, so they can accrue the necessary skills to do well in construction. You should have a look into what your company can provide to schools outside of recruitment fairs so that your name and what you do is visible to students. For example, you could offer to do talks on your area of expertise, facilitate school trips to your site or places of interest, donate resources, or fund events. Embrace technology So many aspects of modern construction have been supported, improved, and made possible by the implementation of new technology, from robotics and smart tools to project management software. And, a variety of construction roles can be made more appealing to people who don’t have manual labour skills by embracing this tech. For example, automation can help address concerns about heavy lifting among the physically disabled or unfit. What’s more, much of the UK’s talent pool is comprised of IT, software, digital design, and other technology graduates, who can be tempted over to construction companies if they are modernised, digitised, and open to new innovations. As well as supporting construction skillsets, tech in this industry has opened up a new need for people who can use, troubleshoot, and even improve these technologies. The construction industry is booming, but unless you have enough talent to fill your positions, you could miss out on the opportunities this presents. Hopefully, these tips will help you attract and retain talent to your company going forward.
Lincolnshire-based architects and urban designers, PolkeyCollins, has welcomed two new members to its architecture team as part of its planned growth strategy. Jason Hall and Connor Horgan have joined the practice as senior architect and architectural technologist respectively. The hires come as part of PolkeyCollins’ five-year growth strategy to further propel the thriving business forward. Two years into the strategy, the firm is ahead of its projections – achieving its expected year third year results in year two. Jason joins the senior team and brings with him over 23 years of experience including six years working in Asia. In his new role, Jason will be working alongside directors Daniel Collins and Clive Polkey and the studio team, to continue the practice’s standard of delivering outstanding projects. Member of the Architects Registration Board (ARB), Jason completed his diploma in Architecture at The Bartlett, University College London before achieving his Part 3 qualification at Westminster University. On joining the PolkeyCollins architecture team, Jason said: “This is a vibrant practice with a fresh approach to design and client service, and a rigorous focus on quality which is what attracted me to the company. I’m joining a skilled team and I’m pleased to be bringing my global experience and to be part of the studio’s continued success and growth.” As an architectural technologist, Connor will be assisting the architectural team and supporting them to drive projects forward, while finding appropriate and buildable solutions to any challenges that may arise. With two years of industry experience undertaken alongside his studies, Connor brings plenty of energy and ideas after graduating with a degree in Architecture from Nottingham Trent University this year. “I’m really pleased to be a part of the PolkeyCollins team, I have always admired the way the practice approaches its projects and the team environment was appealing. I’m grateful for the opportunity to develop my skills and to be able to work my way towards achieving my chartership in Architectural Technology (MCIAT) while working with the great team here,” said Connor. PolkeyCollins provides architectural design services across multiple sectors including education, retail, urban design and leisure. The team are currently working on projects in London, Ipswich, Lincoln, Reading and Southampton, but cover all areas of England. “Two years ago my co-director Clive and I wrote a strategic five-year growth plan. The practice had been performing well and we wanted to harness that whilst being ambitious with our plans for growth over the next few years. We have ambitious plans for the practice, and we are proud to be ahead of our targets enabling us to recruit talented individuals, such as Jason and Connor,” commented Director of PolkeyCollins, Daniel Collins. “It’s a pleasure to welcome Jason and Connor to the PolkeyCollins team. They both bring a unique and valuable set of skills that will be most beneficial to the practice as we move forward with a number of high profile and significant projects. We have a great culture in the team and Jason and Connor will be a big part of that. They are joining at an exciting time.” PolkeyCollins has a strong pipeline of work lined up throughout 2021 and into 2022 with plans to continue hiring in the future as part of the practice’s strategic five-year growth plan.
Premier Forecourts and Construction, a specialist in forecourts and diverse construction projects, has appointed a new finance director as the company experiences a period of substantial growth after pivoting its business towards the electric vehicle charging market. Rebecca Cook has been promoted to director after serving as a finance controller with the company for over two years. Cook has a total of 27 years’ experience in finance and accounts, having previously held finance roles within well known organisations, including Bevan & Buckland and South Wales Police. Cook’s career has also included teaching AAT and ACCA accountancy qualifications, as well as A Level business and Finance/Business to degree level, at several educational institutions in the South Wales region: Neath College, Coleg Sir Gar and Swansea Metropolitan University. Cook’s own academic achievements include BTEC National and BTEC Higher Diplomas in Business and Finance, AAT Qualification, CIMA (Chartered Institute of Management Accountant – ACMA, CGMA) and also a teaching PGCE/PCE. The new role will see her taking overall responsibility and accountability for finance, procurement and commercial activities with the Swansea-based construction company. Rebecca Cook, newly appointed finance director at Premier Forecourts and Construction, said: “My career goal was to become a finance director, and it’s very exciting to take on the role at a time of growth and positive change with Premier Forecourts and Construction. The company is now at the forefront of launching electric vehicle charging points for clients like MFG, BP and Shell, and we very much see this as the future of the business. “I feel very honoured to be recognised by the board of directors and given this opportunity. Premier is a very hard-working company which upholds its values, especially that of putting people first. I’m thankful for all the support I’ve had from the board, my fellow managers and the office staff. I plan on learning more about the different processes that happen on site and start working on preparing commercial and financial strategies that align to the overall aim of the company.” Steve Evans, Premier Forecourts and Construction managing director, said: “We are delighted to be able to promote Rebecca to the role of finance director during this exciting period for the business. Rebecca’s hard work and dedication over the two years she has been with us, coupled with her impressive working background and vast experience in finance, means she has become a highly-valued member of the team. Her passion for accounts and confidence in making decisions has meant she was the ideal choice to lead the finance department.”
Never one to rest on their laurels, the Mick George Group have signalled further intent to expand their ever-impressive Contracting Division following the appointment of William East to their Contracting Board, as Managing Director. Considered an integral part of the growth achieved by the Mick George Group in recent times, William has been duly rewarded for his efforts, promoted from Projects Director, a position which he formally occupied within the business for the previous 3-years. Projected to deliver Circa £55m this year, across it’s Earthworks, Demolition and Environmental provisions, the Mick George brand now takes pride of place within the Construction Industries elite; and this recent Organisation change is anticipated to further establish their status. While serving their existing loyal client base with agile, pioneering and innovative working solutions has been pivotal in the Groups upward trajectory, concerted strides have been made to strategically increase involvement with Highways, Industrial and Government funded schemes; most notably their contribution towards Highways England’s delivery of the M1 Smart Motorway scheme. The former development is recognition of the scale and profile of where Mick George’s Contracting Division currently resides, and with an impressive pipeline of projects with similar stature imminent, things continue to look bright for the business.
Premier Modular, one of the UK’s leading modular building specialists, has appointed Mark Rooney as Divisional Director for its Hire operations. Mark joins the business with 15 years’ experience in leadership roles, 10 years of which have been spent in the construction hire space. He now takes responsibility for Premier’s highly successful Hire Division, from business development and project delivery to managing and developing the company’s expanding fleet of modular buildings for hire. According to David Harris, Managing Director of Premier Modular, “The Covid-19 pandemic has really put the modular industry in the spotlight. It has given us the opportunity to demonstrate the responsiveness of modular construction and in particular of our hire solutions. We have worked on some really high-profile projects in the past year, to incredibly challenging programmes to help the Government in its response to the pandemic.” “To help meet the increasing demand for our temporary building solutions in every sector, we invested £12m in our hire fleet in just 12 months and have an extremely high degree of fleet utilisation. As the economy is starting to return to normal levels, we are pleased to report a very strong order pipeline.” Mark Rooney, Divisional Director – Hire, added, “This is a really exciting time to join the business, which has made tremendous progress in the past year. There is enormous growth potential for Premier’s hire solutions, particularly in healthcare and education, where we are well placed to provide larger, more complex temporary buildings which may be on hire for a number of years. These projects range from decant education facilities for use during school redevelopment works to acute healthcare buildings to help NHS trusts rapidly increase capacity – from specialist ward buildings to theatre blocks.” “We also have ambitious plans to increase our market share in the provision of high quality project offices for major construction and infrastructure projects, not just in the South East but across the UK.” “Our aim is to provide additional space very quickly and with levels of quality, fitout, and comfort that make every building feel bespoke.” Premier is currently working on a number of multi-million pound contracts to provide project offices for HS2 in the South East and a £3m hire project for Kier is nearing completion at Royal Cornwall Hospital to rapidly increase ward capacity. The hiring of modular accommodation is a fast, flexible, sustainable, and cost-effective way for organisations to expand capacity or relocate services, particularly on constrained sites. The approach also gives customers greater flexibility as the facilities can be dismantled and removed for use on other sites if local needs or business requirements change. Premier specialises in more complex hire building solutions which can include facilities spanning six storeys and built on gantries on constrained city centre sites. David Harris previously held the position of Divisional Director for Hire until he was appointed Managing Director of Premier Modular in 2020, following the retirement of Eugenio de Sa. For further information, visit www.premiermodular.co.uk, call 0800 316 0888 or email info@premiermodular.co.uk.
East Midlands-based Franklin Ellis Architects has welcomed a host of new hires to its interior design and architectural teams at its Nottingham office. The firm, which also has an office in Leicester, has hired five new team members in a short space of time over the summer. The flurry of new hires comes as a result of a buoyant first half of 2021 for Franklin Ellis, and following the easing of lockdown restrictions, the company has set its sights on expanding its interior design department. This will accommodate a significant increase in client work in the hotel, restaurant and bar sectors. Joining the practice as senior interior designers are Laura Carruthers and Viktorija Perry, with more than 18 years of combined industry experience between them. Laura, who studied BA (Hons) Interior Design at the University of Huddersfield, brings more than seven years of experience with her to the new role. Her specialisms include hospitality Bar and Restaurant design and she will be responsible for handling concept and detailed designs, layouts, furniture, fixings and equipment selection and client presentations. With more than 12 years’ experience, Viktorija Perry will lead interior design projects including hotels, spas, offices and residential communal spaces. As an ‘all-rounder’ with design experience ranging from concept development and visualisation through to delivery on site, Viktorija will utilise her skills on a number of large-scale hospitality, commercial and residential projects in her new role. Three more hires were made to Franklin Ellis’ architectural and technical departments following an influx of work in the company’s pipeline – Sam Taylor and Angela Scott-Parkin who both join as architectural technologists, and Sandra Petkute as a BIM coordinator. Sam, who recently graduated from the University of Derby with a BSc (Hons) degree in Architectural Technology and Practice, has returned to Franklin Ellis after completing his placement year at the firm in 2020. Angela also graduated from the University of Derby having previously worked at an international engineering company based in South Africa, and completing three years’ work experience in the UK before joining Franklin Ellis. As architectural technologists, both Sam and Angela’s main responsibilities will include producing architectural drawings for schemes in their early stages, and managing the company’s 3D printer to manufacture physical to-scale models of building projects. Sandra Petkute joins the team as a BIM coordinator to oversee the company’s architectural building information management, adoption of digital architectural tools, development of workflow optimisation and assisting the rest of the team with BIM training. “We’re pleased to welcome Laura, Viktorija, Sam, Angela and Sandra to the team. Each bring specialist, in-depth knowledge and skills to Franklin Ellis, which I’m sure will prove to be a huge asset for the company,” said Matthew Branton, managing partner at Franklin Ellis Architects. “After the challenges of 2020 and the beginning of this year, we are experiencing substantial growth as the property and construction industries pick up speed once again following COVID-19 and it is exciting to be progressing with several large-scale projects for both our existing, repeat clients and new ones. This is a positive time for the firm as we have a strong pipeline of work and a rapidly expanding team that allows us to continue delivering excellent, high-quality service for our clients. Best of luck to all of our new starters in their roles.”
In response to the increasing requirement by organisations in the datacentre, commercial, media and high-tech sectors to upgrade, modernise and expand their mission critical facilities and infrastructure, BCS Group (Business Critical Solutions), the specialist services provider to the digital infrastructure industry, has appointed an experienced Head of Critical Infrastructure. Simon Harris will take up the role bringing with him over 20 years’ experience of delivering specialist mission critical systems and data centre consultancy across international markets. He has previously held senior roles at construction consultancy Currie & Brown and Sweett Group. His new role will include project management, cost management, procurement and construction contract administration services, tailored to clients’ specific needs. In addition, advice and guidance will be provided regarding capital allowances to support these types of initiatives. He will work closely with Chris Coward, BCS’ Head of Project Management and James Carmillet, Head of Cost Management. James Hart, CEO at BCS Group, said: “In recent months we have seen this area of our business grow substantially so we have taken the decision to have a dedicated specialist team to support this. Simon will lead this team and his knowledge and experience will bring a fresh perspective and really complement the skillsets that we already have in the business.” Commenting, Simon Harris said: “Critical infrastructure projects often face a unique and challenging collection of objectives and constraints but there is no doubt that legacy infrastructure can be refurbished to increase capacity, support new and emerging business services and reduce operating costs. With many clients also keen to deliver on their ESG commitments, this sustainable approach is increasingly appealing.”
