Construction news

• First viaduct completed on HS2: Video site report

  04-09-2024 08:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  A viaduct in Northamptonshire has become the first on the HS2 project to be completed as engineers installed the last stretch of parapet along the sides.
  The 163m long Highfurlong Brook Viaduct, near the village of Aston le Walls, is one of more than 50 being built as part of the new rail project.
  Consisting of seven spans, the viaduct crosses Highfurlong Brook’s floodplain at a height of around 9m. Each span is made up of four beams weighing up to 56 tonnes which were lifted into position
  
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• Mace and Arcadis land lead role on £2.5bn Luton Airport expansion

  03-09-2026 16:47 via constructionenquirer.com
  A team of Mace Consult and Arcadis have landed the lead programme management role on the £2.5bn-plus expansion of London Luton Airport.
  Airport owner Luton Rising has brought in the consultants to provide programme, project, cost and commercial management services as the major expansion moves into its delivery phase.
  The team will establish the programme schedule, systems, controls and decision-making framework for the phased growth plan, which will increase airport capacity to 32 million
  
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• McLaren starts on industrial site at Hinckley

  03-09-2026 09:22 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  McLaren Construction Midlands & North has started work on two new logistics units at the £48m Mountpark Hinckley site in Leicestershire.
  Construction of the steel frames is set to start later this month on the two high-specification warehouse distribution units totaling 772,340 sq ft.
  McLaren’s contract also includes the delivery of hardstanding, service yards, car parking, landscaping, mains services and drainage across the site.Gary Cramp, Managing Director at McLaren Construct
  
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• Crest Nicholson issues profit warning as lender talks slip

  03-09-2026 09:00 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Crest Nicholson has issued a profit warning after weaker summer trading pushed the house builder from an expected profit into a forecast £10m operating loss.
  The group had previously guided to EBIT profit of between £5m and £10m for the year.
  It has also cut its completions forecast to 1,350-1,400 homes from 1,400-1,500 as affordability pressures and competitive pricing continue to hit sales.The warning came as Crest revealed talks with lenders over amendments to its banking co
  
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• Galliford Try wins £110m Leicestershire pipeline job

  03-09-2026 08:44 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Severn Trent has awarded Galliford Try a £110m contract to build a major cross-country pipeline taking treated foul water out of the protected River Mease catchment.
  Galliford Try’s Environment business will deliver the River Mease Improvement project, including a 23km pipeline carrying treated flows from Packington and Measham sewage treatment works towards the River Tame, near Elford, Staffordshire
  The scheme is being driven by Water Industry National Environment Programme requirem
  
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• Restructuring costs see Eurocell make a loss

  03-09-2026 08:38 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Restructuring costs saw UPVC materials supplier Eurocell slump to a pre-tax loss of £1.4m during the six months to June 30 2026 from a £3.8m profit last time as turnover increased to £205.2m from £193.2m.
  Exceptional costs of £9.6m hit the bottom line as adjusted pre-tax profits edged up to £8.2m from £7.8m.
  Restructuring moves to adjust to a subdued market included the closure of ten branches this summer and consolidating two recycling plants into one.R
  
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• New app sees AI and humans work together on construction quality

  02-09-2026 21:44 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  A new AI and human-led app has been launched to help end avoidable errors in construction.
  QualiT is designed to improve quality across the construction lifecycle — helping teams prevent defects, reduce rework and deliver projects to the highest standard every time, first time.
  The digital quality tool combines AI with HI (Human Intelligence) — turning frontline knowledge into consistent, high-quality delivery.
  Duane McCreadie, Founder and Director of QualiT, has over 20 years experi
  
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• Go-ahead for 200 council homes at Battersea Power Station

  02-09-2026 17:09 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Planning permission has been granted for 200 council homes on the next phase of the Battersea Power Station regeneration in London.
  The homes will be delivered by Battersea Power Station Development Company in partnership with Wandsworth Council on an undeveloped brownfield plot within Phase 5 of the 42-acre masterplan.
  All 200 homes will be operated by the council, with properties including family housing available at social rent levels under its Homes for Wandsworth programme.
  Construction is
  
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• Graham gets Gateway 2 OK for Manchester student scheme

  02-09-2026 16:45 via constructionenquirer.com
  GRAHAM has secured Gateway 2 approval to start main construction on the £286m redevelopment of Cambridge Halls for Unite Students and Manchester Metropolitan University.
  The Building Safety Regulator has cleared the first phase of the 2,302-bed student accommodation scheme, allowing structural groundworks to get underway following completion of demolition.
  The project will replace Manchester Met’s former 770-bed Cambridge Halls complex with a series of buildings rising to 30 storeys.
  
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• Graham gets Gateway 2 OK for £286m Manchester student scheme

  02-09-2026 16:45 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  GRAHAM has secured Gateway 2 approval to start main construction on the £286m redevelopment of Cambridge Halls for Unite Students and Manchester Metropolitan University.
  The Building Safety Regulator has cleared the first phase of the 2,302-bed student accommodation scheme, allowing structural groundworks to get underway following completion of demolition.
  The project will replace Manchester Met’s former 770-bed Cambridge Halls complex with a series of buildings rising to 30 storeys.
  
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• Blackburn picks firms for £50m highways framework

  02-09-2026 09:10 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Local Lancashire civils firms George Cox & Sons, Multipave and NMS Civil Engineering have secured places on the main civils lot of Blackburn with Darwen Council’s new £50m highways framework.
  The trio beat competition from 13 other firms for the £20m civils package covering highway and road construction work across the borough.
  Eric Wright Civil Engineering, PP O’Connor, Bethell Construction, Casey and JJ O’Grady were among the unsuccessful bidders for the civil
  
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• CField returns to profit after legacy jobs cleared

  02-09-2026 08:38 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Family-run CField Construction has returned to profit after completing a number of challenging legacy contracts that dragged the London-based contractor into the red last year.
  Turnover fell to £83m in the year to December 2025 from £119m previously, but improved project performance saw the business post a £3.3m pre-tax profit against a £1.2m loss in 2024.
  Operating profit recovered to £3.1m from a £1.2m loss, giving the contractor an operating margin of aroun
  
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• First section of latest HS2 viaduct installed

  02-09-2026 08:35 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Construction of the new Saltley Viaduct made major progress over the August Bank Holiday weekend with the successful installation of the first section of the new bridge over the Birmingham to Derby railway lines.
  The original Saltley Viaduct, which spanned a 183‑metre section of the B4114, closed to vehicles and pedestrians in May 2026.  It was then demolished so that a new, taller structure could be built in its place, allowing high speed trains to safely pass below.
  The replacement
  
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• Balfour appoints management consultant to lead strategy

  01-09-2026 15:19 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Balfour Beatty has appointed Emma Loxton to the new role of Chief Strategy Officer.
  Loxton joins from management consultant McKinsey & Company where she spent more than a decade advising major industrial and infrastructure businesses on strategy, transformation and growth.
  She was a partner at McKinsey, most recently leading the UK Advanced Industries and Transport & Infrastructure practices.
  Earlier in her career, Loxton was a Senior Policy Advisor in the UK Government’s Prim
  
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• Gilbert-Ash confirms £40m RIBA HQ revamp deal

  01-09-2026 14:50 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Gilbert-Ash has signed off the £40m job to overhaul the Royal Institute of British Architects’ landmark London headquarters.
  The contractor is carrying out the major refurbishment and restoration of the Grade II* listed 66 Portland Place building in Westminster, with completion due in September 2027.
  The Portland Place scheme will act as a pilot project for the Net Zero Carbon Building Standard and involves a major upgrade of the building fabric and services.Gilbert-Ash is stripping
  
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• Laing O’Rourke to start £400m Lancashire prison job

  01-09-2026 14:20 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Laing O’Rourke has secured the enabling works deal for a major new £400m-plus prison planned alongside HMP Garth and HMP Wymott in Lancashire.
  The Ministry of Justice has now signed off the package for the 1,700-place category C jail near Leyland, clearing the way for early works ahead of completion targeted in 2031.
  The scheme, presently known as HMP Garth 2, will provide around 74,500 sq m of accommodation across seven four-storey house blocks, each holding about 245 prisoners.Init
  
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• Barnwood warns of tougher market after profit fall

  01-09-2026 09:12 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Employee-owned regional building contractor Barnwood saw pre-tax profit fall by more than a third last year as tighter margins offset continued revenue growth.
  Turnover at the Gloucestershire-based group rose 15% to £118m in the year to December 2025 from £103m, while pre-tax profit fell to £3.3m from £5.1m.
  Operating profit dropped to £2.7m from £4.7m, cutting operating margin to 2.3% from 4.5%.Despite the squeeze, Barnwood doubled its annual contribution to
  
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• Data centre plan unveiled for former IBM site

  01-09-2026 09:03 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Plans have been submitted to transform part of Greenock’s former IBM site into a major data centre development.
  Slate Island Developments Ltd has applied to Inverclyde Council for the development at Spango Valley, off Inverkip Road.
  IBM opened its Spango Valley operation on the site in 1954 and the facility closed in 2017 with buildings being demolished in 2020.Slate Island Developments is now seeking to regenerate part of the former technology and industrial site for modern digital infras
  
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• Brick maker battles “long trough” in construction

  01-09-2026 08:42 via constructionenquirer.com
  Michelmersh saw brick dispatches drop another 9% in the first half of this year with volumes more than 25% below the recent 2022 peak.
  The sales slump has forced the manufacturer to juggle factory output to meet decreased demand including the complete closure of its Charnwood site in Leicestershire with the loss of 30 jobs.
  Things are unlikely to improve anytime soon following a “long trough” in construction activity.Chief Executive Officer Ryan Mahoney said: “The lack of posit
  
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• Government names line-up for £120bn FM framework

  01-09-2026 08:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Government procurement chiefs have named the major FM contractors that will compete for the biggest jobs under a new framework valued at up to £120bn.
  Amey, CBRE, Equans, Kier, Mitie, OCS, Serco, Skanska, Sodexo, Vinci Facilities and Wates are among 18 firms appointed to the top Total Facilities Management lot covering individual contracts worth more than £15m a year.
  The other winners on the highest value work lot are Compass, Dalkia, G4S Facilities Management, ISS, JLL, Robertson F
  
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• Bidding set to start for £800m south Wales civils framework

  01-09-2026 08:34 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Five councils are gearing up to invite contractors to bid for places for the next-generation South West Wales civil engineering framework worth up to £800m.
  Over 60 firms on the existing civils framework now face a fight to retain places on the four year deal with invitations to tender due out on 5 October.
  Carmarthenshire County Council is leading the procurement with Ceredigion, Neath Port Talbot, Pembrokeshire and Swansea councils.Natural Resources Wales, Powys County Council and compan
  
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• Graham to build Sky Livingston Campus

  01-09-2026 08:22 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  GRAHAM has been appointed main contractor for Sky’s new Livingston Campus after planning commission was granted for the 21,000 sq metre scheme in West Lothian.
  The project will bring  together Sky’s existing operations into a modern workplace for around 3,000 employees.
  It will replace four existing buildings at Kirkton Campus and leased space on the Alba Campus, creating a new site spanning 15 acres.Chris MacLeod, regional director at GRAHAM Building North, said:“Sky&rsqu
  
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• Mount Anvil profit rises 24% as JV schemes drive earnings

  28-08-2026 08:58 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  London developer/contractor Mount Anvil Group lifted underlying pre-tax profit by nearly a quarter last year, with earnings largely driven by strong returns from its joint venture developments.
  The London residential specialist reported pre-tax profit of £10.4m for the year to March 2026 on turnover of £346m.
  Its prior year accounts covered 15 months following a change in year end. Pro-rating those figures to 12 months gives comparable pre-tax profit of £8.5m and turnover of ar
  
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• John F Hunt starts basement build at Tenter House

  28-08-2026 08:56 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  John F Hunt has started piling work and basement construction at the 45 Moorfields development – formerly known as Tenter House – in the City of London.
  The start of Phase 1 of the scheme follows nine months of pre-construction works undertaken in close collaboration with developer Freshwater, which included the demolition of the existing 11-storey building and extensive enabling activities to prepare the site for the redevelopment.
  Hunt’s latest package includes the constructi
  
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• Thames Water to retender £500m Teddington river abstraction job

  28-08-2026 08:12 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Thames Water is preparing to retender its £500m Teddington Direct River Abstraction project after abandoning plans to procure the main tunnelling and treatment plant works separately.
  The utility has switched strategy to combine the major civils and tunnelling works with construction of the advanced water treatment facility at Mogden sewage treatment works under a single main contract.
  Thames Water said the switch to a single-contractor delivery model would simplify interfaces and strength
  
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• Willmott Dixon starts £40m Leeds rail office overhaul

  28-08-2026 08:11 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Willmott Dixon has just started work on a £40m overhaul of the Princes Exchange office building next to Leeds station.
  Network Rail is bringing the vacant eight-storey building back into use to create a new city centre hub for rail industry staff alongside five floors of commercial office space.
  The 108,576 sq ft building sits opposite the Aire Street entrance to Leeds City Station and was bought by Network Rail in 2024.The Department for Transport and Network Rail-funded scheme is being d
  
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• Durkan quits contracting

  27-08-2026 13:39 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Durkan is quitting the contracting market completely after 50 years in construction.
  The move was confirmed in latest results for parent company Durkan Holdings Ltd following a period of the contracting operation being scaled down.
  The company said: “Following more than 50 years operating in the contracting sector, Durkan has taken the strategic decision to withdraw from this activity.“This decision reflects the increasing legislative and regulatory burden in the sector which has dri
  
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• Morgan Sindall names new London construction chief

  27-08-2026 09:40 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Morgan Sindall Construction has promoted Richard Dobson to regional managing director for London as part of a wider management shake-up across the capital and Home Counties.
  Dobson, who has built his career with Morgan Sindall in London, will lead the capital business alongside newly appointed regional commercial director Adam Allen.
  The contractor has also expanded its Home Counties operation after a sustained period of growth, creating a new Northern Home Counties Ventures business headed by d
  
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• Hill lands £1.5bn Lewisham regeneration partnership

  27-08-2026 08:50 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  London’s Lewisham Council has picked Hill Group as its long-term development partner under a deal covering up to £1.5bn of construction work across the south London borough.
  The 10-year strategic partnership, which can be extended for a further five years, will be used to accelerate affordable housing and regeneration projects rather than procuring a separate development partner for each scheme.
  Hill was appointed following a year-long procurement process involving detailed dialogue
  
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• Wates to finish Ardmore’s £200m Britannia resi towers job

  27-08-2026 08:46 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Wates is set to take over completion of Hackney Council’s near-£200m Britannia housing scheme following the collapse of Ardmore Construction Group.
  The council is preparing to enter a pre construction services agreement with Wates in September, which has already taken over management and security of the site.
  Ardmore was appointed in 2023 to deliver the final £197m phase of the Britannia Masterplan in Shoreditch, comprising 371 homes across four tower blocks.The scheme includes
  
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