Construction news

• Mace confirmed on £100m London office retrofit

  22-05-2024 12:28 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Developer Helical has confirmed Mace as the main contractor on the redevelopment of a City of London office at 100 New Bridge Street, next to Ludgate Circus.
  Located adjacent to City Thameslink station, the 1990s office building will be renovated to create 200,000 sq ft of space in a project understood to be worth towards £100m.
  The project will retain 91% of the reinforced concrete lift cores and 85% of the reinforced concrete walls.Targeting BREEAM Outstanding and Well Platinum certifica
  
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• Taylor Wimpey chief honoured with CBE

  15-06-2024 14:27 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Taylor Wimpey chief executive Jennifer Daly has been made CBE in the King’s Birthday Honours.
  Daly who was honoured for for services to business and to the housing sector is the first woman to lead a FTSE 100 house building company in the UK, having taken the chief role in April 2022.
  She has built a successful career in house building, starting out in the public sector in local authority planning roles before moving into the private sector.Daly is an active member of the industry federati
  
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• SME contractors agree 4% pay rise for site workers

  14-06-2024 15:43 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Employers and unions have agreed a 4% pay rise for construction workers under the Building and Allied Trades Joint Industrial Council (BATJIC) agreement.
  The one year will come into effect from Monday 17 June 2024 and workers employed by small builders will also get an extra day of holiday.
  Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said:  “This year’s agreement represents a fair rise in the wage rates for the nation’s small builders, following another year of inflated price
  
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• Geoffrey Osborne supply chain hit for £26m

  14-06-2024 13:15 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Geoffrey Osborne went under owing subcontractors and suppliers £25.86m.
  More than 500 firms were left holding unpaid invoices when the famous industry name went into administration last month.
  The scale of the firm’s debts have been revealed in an update from administrator RSM filed at Companies House.Total debts at the time of Osborne’s collapse were £45m with cash also outstanding to HMRC, sister companies and Osborne employees.
  Geoffrey Osborne’s demise followed
  
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• Plan approved for 8,500-seat Edinburgh indoor arena

  14-06-2024 09:25 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Plans to build an 8,500-capacity indoor arena on the outskirts of Edinburgh have got the planning thumbs up.
  Entertainment giants AEG estimated the project to be built at Edinburgh Park will cost around £80m.
  Edinburgh Park Arena will be privately funded and AEG Europe said it was now finalising funding partners to bring their vision for a new home for life music in Edinburgh to life.
  Once an external contractor has been appointed and financed raised, construction is proposed to begin in 2
  
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• Labour to mothball £320m A27 job to fix potholes

  14-06-2024 08:41 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Labour has confirmed it would can the £320m Arundel Bypass scheme in West Sussex to help fund its plan to accelerate the pothole-fixing programme nationally.
  A consortium of Bam Nuttall, Aecom and Mace was awarded the project back in 2021, with the aim of starting construction last year, but the Government pushed the scheme back to RIS3 as part of a previous roads programme review.
  Now Labout has confirmed it would defer the scheme further after branding it ‘poor value for money&rsqu
  
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• Lendlease’s £1.9bn Smithfield Birmingham scheme approved

  14-06-2024 08:02 via constructionenquirer.com
  Ambitious plans to build more than 3,000 homes, offices and shops in the heart of Birmingham have been approved.
  The £1.9bn Birmingham Smithfield scheme, which is being developed by Lendlease in joint venture with Birmingham City Council, aims to regenerate a 17-hectare site around the historic Bullring Markets.
  According to the partners, work will now start on the site later this year.But a question remains around Lendlease’s degree of involvement going forward following its decisio
  
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• Crest Nicholson rejects £650m Bellway bid

  13-06-2024 23:29 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Crest Nicholson has rejected a £650m takeover offer from rival Bellway.
  Bellway confirmed on Thursday that it made a move last month.
  It said: “The Board of Bellway believes that there is compelling strategic and financial rationale for a combination of Bellway and Crest Nicholson which would bring together the strength of each business with complementary brands to reinforce Bellway’s position as a leading UK housebuilder, while enabling Crest Nicholson shareholders to benefit
  
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• Statom starts on £25m Bristol Airport precast car park

  13-06-2024 14:42 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Statom Group has started work on a new £25m multi-storey car park project at Bristol Airport for Griffiths Farrans JV.
  The main £60m contract to deliver a new transport hub at the airport was awarded to the Griffiths Farrans JV last November.
  Statom has been working with them for months on the car-park’s design and the first suspended slab was poured yesterday.It is the first of 45,000m2 of suspended slabs that will be built to eventually accommodate around 2,000 cars with a ne
  
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• Hill submits £800m East London estate rebuild plan

  13-06-2024 12:39 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Plans to redevelop one of the largest estates in East London with over 1,900 new homes are advancing with the submission of plans.
  A development partnership between house builder Hill and housing association Poplar HARCA is bringing forward the £800m Treviot Estate redevelopment scheme in the Borough of Tower Hamlets.
  As one of the largest estate regenerations in London, the redevelopment of Teviot in Poplar will transform the area as it is built out over five phases.The partnership has su
  
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• Build problems plunge Crest Nicholson to a £31m loss

  13-06-2024 09:22 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The discovery of more build problems across legacy sites has blown a hole in Crest Nicholson’s latest results.
  The house builder confirmed £15m of legacy contract problems in March at four jobs completed by its now closed Regeneration division.
  But a wider review of jobs across the whole company has unearthed further problems resulting in the provision being increased to £31.4m.That has sent the company into the red with results for the half year to April 2024 showing a pre-tax
  
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• Rebooted Amey lifts contract win rate to 1 in 3 bids

  13-06-2024 09:16 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Infrastructure contractor and consultant Amey has delivered ahead of expectation in its first year under private equity ownership following Ferrovial’s decision to offload the business for £400m.
  The firm has significantly boosted its order book and lifted its contract bidding win rate to one in three projects, compared with a success rate of just one in 14  under the ownership of Ferrovial when it suffered significant losses.
  Andy Milner, chief executive of Amey, said: “I
  
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• Galliford Try wins £69m Scottish school job

  13-06-2024 08:16 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Galliford Try has signed a £69m contract to build the new Paisley Grammar School Community Campus on behalf of Renfrewshire Council in Scotland.
  Designed by architect Ryder, the school is being funded by Renfrewshire Council and Scottish Futures Trust, as part of the Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Investment Programme.
  It will feature new all-weather sports pitches and a 300-seat theatre, alongside new educational facilities that will accommodate up to 1,380 pupils.
  Work will
  
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• BAM Nuttall fined £2.3million after worker drowned

  12-06-2024 20:39 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  BAM Nuttall has been fined £2.345m following the death of a worker on a flood alleviation scheme in Leeds.
  Experienced boatman Gary Webster lost his life two days after drowning in the River Aire on 30 October 2017.
  Webster and another worker had been on a boat removing debris at the bottom of the weir gates at Knostrop Weir when their boat capsized. The boat had been pulled into turbulent water, caused by the considerable flow of water flowing over the top of the weir.The 60-year-old was
  
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• BAM Nuttall fined £2.3m after worker drowned

  12-06-2024 20:39 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  BAM Nuttall has been fined £2.345m following the death of a worker on a flood alleviation scheme in Leeds.
  Experienced boatman Gary Webster lost his life two days after drowning in the River Aire on 30 October 2017.
  Webster and another worker had been on a boat removing debris at the bottom of the weir gates at Knostrop Weir when their boat capsized. The boat had been pulled into turbulent water, caused by the considerable flow of water flowing over the top of the weir.The 60-year-old was
  
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• £220m plan to restore secret wartime tunnels approved

  12-06-2024 12:45 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Deep-level underground wartime shelter tunnels in London’s High Holborn area are set to become the Capital’s latest tourist attraction.
  City of London Corporation planners have given the thumbs up to a £220m scheme to convert the warren of tunnels into a visitor and cultural attraction.
  In developing the underground site, buildings at 38-41 Furnival Street would be combined into a single structure, with the ground floor used as the main entrance the tunnels.The Kingsway Exchang
  
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• OCU buys Scottish civils contractor RJ McLeod

  12-06-2024 11:44 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Multi-utility infrastructure specialist OCU Group has bought Scottish civil engineering contractor RJ McLeod.
  Based out of Glasgow and Dingwall, RJ McLeod has over a seven-decade history of delivering complex engineering projects.
  The acquisition increases OCU Group revenues to over £800m and grows the capability and capacity for work in supporting the critical UK energy transition.
  The deal will also enhance OCU’s market positions in areas such as battery energy storage systems, win
  
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• Balfour wins design for £690m Skye transmission job

  12-06-2024 09:14 via constructionenquirer.com
  Balfour Beatty has clinched the first phase of the £690m Skye 132kV reinforcement project for Scottish and Southern Electricity Network Transmission.On completion the project will ensure the supply of secure, clean electricity to thousands of homes and businesses across the Hebrides and West Highlands.
  The detailed design and development phase, valued at £32m, will see Balfour provide technical solutions for a new 137km, 132kV double circuit overhead line between the existing Fort Au
  
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• Construction output falls for third month running

  12-06-2024 08:57 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Construction output fell sharply in April marking the third consecutive monthly fall since a small uplift was recorded in January.
  The 1.4% contraction in activity was caused by decreases in both new work (- 1.9%), and repair and maintenance (-0.8%).
  According to fresh data published this morning by the Office of National Statistics, survey returns suggested heavy rainfall and strong winds dampened activity during April.The latest figures will be a blow to the Government, which yesterday set out
  
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• Plan in for Leeds 27-storey block of flats

  12-06-2024 08:27 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Scottish developer Drum Property Group has lodged plans for its first major scheme in Leeds to build 390 flats.
  The developer plans to demolish Morgan Sindall’s old offices at Evolution House, off Springwell Road in Holbeck, to make way for the residential scheme.
  The project will consist of two brick buildings configured in L-shape.
  One warehouse-style building will rise to 12 storeys and boast a rooftop terrace, while the abutting tower will rise to 27 storeys
  The development site is loc
  
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• Amey switches kit supplier

  12-06-2024 08:22 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Amey has decided to end its plant and equipment hire deal with HSS after nine years.
  HSS confirmed the switch in a stock exchange update this morning on its largest customer.
  It said:”HSS Hire Group Plc announces that, following a retender process it has been notified by Amey Plc of its decision to move to another supplier for the provision of its equipment rental managed service contract.
  “The supplier agreement will end early December 2024 subject to any transitional services that
  
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• Student and resi developer Fortis goes under

  12-06-2024 07:58 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Student and residential specialist Fortis Developments Limited has gone into liquidation.
  The Cheshire based developer has been in business since 2012 with 15 successful schemes under its belt containing 3,800 apartments.
  Fortis had a construction division called Beaumount Morgan Developments which went into administration two years ago owing subcontractors and suppliers £7m.Begbies Traynor is the liquidator at Fortis and a statement of affairs shows debts of more than £19m.
  These in
  
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• Track workers scatter to avoid runaway rail trolley

  12-06-2024 07:55 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has launched a probe after a runaway track trolley hurtled towards a team of workers.
  In the early morning on Sunday 26 May a track trolley ran away on a descending gradient towards a site of work and a team of track workers.
  The trolley came to a stop after it collided with equipment being used for moving rails within the site of work. The track workers had seen the runaway trolley approaching and moved clear of its path before the collision occurred.No on
  
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• Firms readied for £1.5bn Parliament estate upkeep deal

  11-06-2024 21:23 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Firms have been put on alert for the tender race for places on a new £1.5bn framework to deliver the programme of on-going repairs and improvements to the Houses of Parliament and wider estate in London.
  The new Parliamentary Construction Partnership Framework will replace the existing MEPFS (Mechanical, Electrical, Public health, and Fabric Safety) Framework, which expires on 15 March 2025.
  Works under the new framework will cover the medium term investment into the early 2030s, rather th
  
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• Planning for new homes plunges to record low

  11-06-2024 09:24 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The latest Housing Pipeline Report from the Home Builders Federation shows that in the 12 months to March 2024, the number of new homes and sites given planning permission has fallen to the lowest level since the data collection started in 2006.
  The HBF warned that the housing pipeline is significantly smaller now than it was even during the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis.
  It added: “The figures also illustrate the stark challenge a new Government faces to increase housing supply
  
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• £100m Digbeth 33-storey flats job out to bid

  11-06-2024 09:23 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  The development arm of Clarion Housing is inviting tenders for a £100m high-rise homes scheme in Digbeth, Birmingham.
  Latimer plans to deliver 483 flats in a part 33 and part 9 floor scheme bounded by Clyde Street and the High Street and is now looking for a contractor to deliver the scheme which is presently in planning.
  The site is home to a former Safestore industrial facility and surrounding hard-standing car parking.Regeneration of this former brownfield land will provide much-ne
  
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• Ex-Galliard boss to lead Battersea next building phase

  11-06-2024 09:08 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Former Galliard Homes boss Don O’Sullivan has become chief executive of the developer behind the iconic Battersea Power Station redevelopment.
  As CEO, he will lead the continued development of the former industrial brownfield site following the restoration and public opening of the Grade II* listed Power Station.
  He joins as the Mayalsia-owned developer submits plans for phase 3c of the vast scheme.This brings forward the last two remaining  buildings of architect Gehry Partners desig
  
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• Renew buys utilities contractor Excalon

  11-06-2024 08:33 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Infrastructure maintenance giant Renew has acquired utilities contractor Excalon in a deal worth up to £26m
  Renew said the move will allow it to expand into the electricity transmission and distribution market.
  Salford based Excalon specialises in the provision of high voltage infrastructure to the UK electricity sector and has a number of long-term frameworks with electricity Distribution Network Operators (DNO) across the UK.The initial consideration of £22m has been funded from th
  
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• Van Elle fined £233,000 after piling rig kills driver

  11-06-2024 08:19 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Van Elle has been fined £233,000 after a 52-year old HGV driver was struck and killed by the mast of a piling rig at a housing site in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway.
  On 21 January 2021, Gary Dobinson, who was employed by another company, visited the Hallmeadow development with his lorry to collect and transfer the piling rig owned by Van Elle.
  As the mast of the rig was being lowered in preparation for its transportation, it suddenly collapsed and struck Dobinson. Site workers and the emerg
  
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• Direct delivery model pays off as Murphy profit soars to £67m

  11-06-2024 08:08 via constructionenquirer.com
  
  Murphy’s direct delivery model yielded strong returns last year with pre-tax profit soaring 50% to a record £67m.
  As the wider industry battled with supply chain challenges, Murphy’s marked improvement in performance saw operating margins jump from 3% to 5%.
  Group revenue marginally declined 5% to £1.42bn in 2023, primarily due to the timing and completion of projects in Canada, although this was offset by continued revenue growth in both Ireland and the UK.Staff headcoun
  
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