The UK Construction Blog

What must be the cheapest Total Station on the market with Windows and Bluetooth is being promoted by Mobile CAD Surveying Ltd.

The NTS340R – Reflectorless Total Station is expected to come in a shade under £3,000 when prices are released soon. There will be two models available, the NTS342R a 2″ instrument and the NTS345R a 5″ instrument.

For more information or to express an interest, visit: Mobile CAD Surveying Ltd

Construction work is set to commence on the tallest building in Wales, contractor Ardmore has announced.

The firm has revealed it is to get to work on the structure, which will house a five-star hotel, in September, the South Wales Echo has reported.

With a budget of £62 million, developers of the Wyndham hotel scheme have stated they are confident they will have the funds in place to start on the 32-storey site.

Chris Odling-Smee, the businessman who is behind the scheme, told the newspaper that it is looking in good shape, despite the current market and economy.

Although the programme is six months behind its original schedule, he stated it is due to work being taken slowly.

“We have taken our time so that when we do fire the starter’s gun we can deliver on every aspect of it,” Mr Odling-Smee added.

The announcement follows the news from Wates that it is set to take on an additional 300 members of staff this year after seeing a rise in profits during 2010.

The construction industry is one of the UK’s largest and most important sectors. It provides a tenth of the country annual GDP, is worth an estimated £1,5 billion, and employs some 1.4 million people. But just 9% of this 1.4 million is women in construction, which makes one wonder why there aren’t more women in this thriving industry.

The Equal Opportunities Commission recently did a report on women workers in the UK and found that while they make up about 49% of the total workforce, just 9% of this is in the construction industry. This breaks down further into the following statistics about women in construction: trades people at 1%, design and management at 4%, secretarial at 84% and sole traders at 2% and micro-enterprises at 4%.

Are fewer women choosing to work in the construction industry because they see it as a traditionally male dominated industry and don’t like the safety shoes and construction wear? Or is it because male employers see women as the weaker sex and do not want to recruit them in construction jobs?

After doing a survey with some 3000 construction companies and professional women in construction, the following research was found:

• About 55% of companies had to adjust their hours in order to accommodate their female employees.
• 79% said that they did not specifically look for women when recruiting employees.
• The companies cited a male dominated environment, long hours, and not being child-friendly as reasons for recruiting fewer women in national construction.
• The women were asked why they were interested in working in construction and 85% said they had a fundamental interest in engineering and building, cited good career prospects or the desire to do something “different” in life.
• About 40% of the women surveyed had a history of six years or more in construction and 66% of these said that they were aware of sexism in the industry.

Up to 20% of new enrolments in the construction industry are women with some 4% of management positions being filled by women. It seems that recruiters are choosing new employees based on merit and not on gender, and that fewer women are applying for these positions. This explains why there are few women in construction at present.

In a recent Review of Education Capital by a team of businessmen led by Sebastian James, group operations director of Dixons Retail, says that costs can be cut by 30% and recommends procurement of construction to be centralised and standardised.

The review, commissioned by education secretary Michael Gove, makes numerous recommendations. Among them. it says that instead of designing all schools from scratch, new buildings should be based on a set of standardised drawings and specifications.

It also recommends that the Department for Education takes control of school building away from local authorities and other responsible bodies (e.g. academy trusts and dioceses that also run schools). The report says: “There must be a single, strong, expert, intelligent ‘client’ acting for the public sector in its relationships with the construction industry and responsible for both the design and the delivery of larger projects.” Local authorities and other responsible bodies would have responsibility for maintenance. “Currently there is no explicit obligation to maintain buildings and no agreed standard. Funds are wholly devolved to school level making it impossible for responsible bodies to prioritise their needs at a local level.”

In a covering letter to the education secretary, Mr James wrote: “It has taken slightly longer than I anticipated, as I was very keen to test the emerging recommendations with as wide a group of interested parties as possible before putting them to you.”

He said: “In summary, I have found that the system of capital allocation and spending which has developed over at least the last decade has frequently resulted in poor use of resources, a bureaucratic system for providers and Local Authorities and a mixed – and at times poor – outcome for both parents and children. The schools building programme, Building Schools for the Future, has been one of epic proportions, at least in terms of the money deployed. However, because procurement has not been sufficiently centralised, and because the Government has not ensured that contracts are always negotiated by those who have the appropriate expertise, the public sector has failed consistently to get the value it should have done, given the commercial leverage that this scale of programme should command.

“While the civil servants, local authorities and frontline professionals involved have done their best to administer the system they were asked to use, it is, in my view, the case that the system is not fit for purpose and has been working against them.

“I believe that there are some very significant opportunities to increase the amount of schools regeneration that we can undertake for any given sum of money. To give you a flavour of this, the consensus view from our workshops was that as much as 30% of the total money spent could be saved and this is borne out by our initial pilot project in Doncaster.

“By reforming the capital allocation system so that investment is focused on the condition of buildings and the provision of high quality school places, and by creating a robust and fair local process for prioritisation of projects, funding can get to where it is needed most. Through a more standardised approach to design and an expert, centralised approach to the procurement and delivery of major projects, greater quality and value for money can be achieved. Sharper accountabilities for maintaining buildings and better procurement routes for doing so will help ensure that the current estate is able to deliver for our children in the decades ahead.

“My vision is of a system which prioritises both quality and value, which makes the best use of professional expertise to ensure that, even at a time of significantly reduced budgets, we achieve your aim of providing fit-for-purpose facilities and securing additional places where they are needed and helping the disadvantaged.

“Putting my recommendations into practice will be a major challenge. I know that I am asking for a significant change in culture and practice. Getting the right structures in place to deliver at national and local level will be vital. I anticipate that, for some stakeholders in the process, there will be parts of my suggested approach that may be less palatable than others and that there will need to be some give-and-take. However, the team has been heartened by the high level of consensus that has been building among the many different parties that have been involved in this process, and I believe we all need to remain focused on the goal of delivering the educational infrastructure that we need at a cost that we can afford.”

Welcoming the report, Michael Gove said: “I thank Sebastian James and his review team for their incredibly hard work and Partnerships for Schools for their help with the Review. I welcome this independent report and we will respond soon. The system we inherited had profound problems. We must have a system for school building which is much simpler, less bureaucratic, and which targets priority projects.”

The latest figures from Markit and the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) show that the construction sector continued to grow in March.

However, the rate of growth slowed compared to the previous month, with the Markit/CIPS Construction Purchasing Managers Index standing at 56.4 last month, down marginally on the 56.5 registered in February.

David Noble, chief executive at the CIPS, urged caution, noting that the sector may face difficulties later in the year.

“Although March saw the third monthly growth in a row of residential construction activity and staff reduction was at its weakest in many months; other indicators showing continued volatility in house prices and poorer consumer confidence mean there is still a great deal of uncertainty,” he stated.

The Construction Index reported that the civil engineering sector experienced the strongest growth over the month, followed by residential and commercial construction.

According to building.co.uk, analysts had predicted that growth would slow further during March after the index reached an eight-month high in February.

A LEADING construction body has urged the Assembly to cut red tape for small building firms and introduce measures to increase housebuilding.

In its manifesto, launched ahead of next month’s Assembly elections, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) identifies three key challenges facing the industry – building a greener Wales, developing skills and training and creating a new business environment.

The industry employs almost 100,000 in Wales and the FMB claims that for every £1 spent on construction here, the economy benefits to the tune of £1.70.

The FMB has embraced the green agenda, and makes a number of policy recommendations for building a greener Wales

hese include introducing low-rate loans, and other incentives for improving the energy efficiency of Welsh homes, and the introduction of more incentives to recycle materials.

But the FMB is concerned at the introduction of new greener building standards.

It warns that new regulations must be “technically and financially deliverable within the overall context of regulatory burden”.

The FMB manifesto also calls on the next Assembly to continue funding for apprenticeship programmes, and to support more management and leadership training for Welsh construction SMEs.

As for “creating a new business environment”, the FMB calls for targeted support for the construction sector in Wales.

It calls for a limit to the bundling together of procurement contracts to ensure that small firms do not lose out.

The group calls on the next Assembly to make a commitment to make up the current shortfall of homes in Wales – which it estimates at 40,000 dwellings.

It also calls for greater permitted development rights for householders to extend their properties without having to obtain planning permission.

Furthermore, it suggests the Assembly should increase pressure on the UK Government to cut the rate of VAT on building repairs and maintenance to 5% in order to stimulate the construction industry and reduce the number of “cowboy builders”.

Speaking at the launch of the manifesto, Richard Jenkins, director of FMB Wales, stressed the importance of the construction industry to the Welsh economy.

“We need to get Wales building again because the construction industry has entered its fourth year of decline,” he said.

“Unfortunately the importance of the building industry to the Welsh economy is sometimes overlooked, which is a mistake because it continues to employ more than 100,000 people, representing 8% of the total Welsh workforce and accounts for some £4bn per annum, which is approximately 7% of the Welsh economy.”

He said that decisions taken by the incoming government in Cardiff Bay would have a major impact on the fortunes of the industry here.

“FMB Wales is keen to ensure that policy measures are debated now ahead of the May elections so that politicians can explain to voters how they will help the construction sector recover,” he said.

“Decisions taken over the next four years will have a profound and lasting impact on the economy, so it is vital that politicians from across the political spectrum recognise and support the important contribution that small building firms make to our competitiveness.”

4 in 1 Multi Environment Meter

4 in 1 Multi-function environment meter

This 4 in 1 Multi-function environment meter is a cost-effective introduction to aid conformance to health and safety in the work place.

It measures
Sound Levels
Light Levels
Humidity (%RH)
Temperature

The LCD display has large digits and function indicators.

More information:  4 in 1 Multi-function Environment Meter

Thinking small when it comes to home improvement projects could see the biggest increase to the asking price of a property.

Making large changes to the home and adding elaborate new features can seem like a way of increasing the value, but Fox News has advised householders instead to prioritise safety, with a strong front door and a secure garage both going to impress estate agents.

Creating a good first impression of the property can also go a long way, as it is the initial thing people will see about the house.

Doing something as simple as repainting the front door or adding some flowers in the garden can also work wonders.

“Before you run out to purchase a few gallons, heed a realtor’s advice: Keep it neutral. You may love lime green or pink, but that doesn’t mean your buyer will,” the article noted.

Other jobs that were recently recommended by KPVI News 6 include fixing things like loose doors and replacing broken lightbulbs.

Digital Wall Scanner

The future of detection technology – Precision of the highest order

User benefit

Ultra wideband radar sensor system for detection accurate to the millimetre of ferrous/non-ferrous metals, electrical cables, wooden beams and plastic pipes such as floor and wall heating pipes

Precise detection of rebar in concrete up to 15 cm deep

Digital display of material properties and maximum permitted drilling depth

Find out more – Digital Wall Scanner DTect150

Measured Surveys – We can provide Floor plans or as built plans Fast CAD Drawings with varying levels of detail – from simple walls, columns, doors and window surveys, to a fully detailed data set including all 3D information (sill & head heights, stair riser and going details, door heights, ceiling heights, beam details etc.).

As part of our measured surveys, the surveyors can also pick up and highlight other information such as any electrical and data points, sanitary fittings, incoming mains positions, plant, fire fighting and detection equipment, security equipment and signage.

Many times, plans exist but their accuracy is in doubt or change management has been poor, we can carry out a  check survey, this can be a very cost effective way to bring the existing plans up to date.

For more information: Measured Building Surveys or a fast turn

Fast Turnaround Floor Plans

around Quotation click on any of the links.

Floor Plans - Any type of building