R&R 8958 48 July '16 cc

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News | NEWS Job flexibility ensures tradesmen are the nation’s happiest workers Over 90% of 1,000 tradespeople are happy in their jobs, with the majority putting it down to the flexibility of mobile working, new research has found. The study, which was conducted by IronmongeryDirect, found that 91% of mobile working tradesmen are happy in their jobs, with 50% of these claiming they are very happy. Tradesmen stated that flexible working (61%) and increased productivity (28%) were the biggest benefits of mobile working. In fact, a massive 98% of tradesmen said they were happy with the amount of flexibility their job provides. When asked what they enjoy most about mobile working, the majority (62%) said they liked having flexibility over the hours they work. 42% also took satisfaction in the fact they are trusted to do their job independently. Some tradesmen prefer mobile working over being confined to an office as 23% said it helps them to work better as there are fewer distractions than in an office environment, and a fifth said it ensures they don’t get caught up in office politics. In fact, 16% said mobile working helps them to work with their team more easily. The report also found that nearly four fifths of trade professionals (79%) believe that mobile working adds to productivity and improves their job performance. UK house prices soar 1751% since 1975 European Referendum The UK housing market has seen a more than eighteen-fold increase (1751%) in average prices since the last time voters were asked whether Britain should stay in or out of Europe, according to research by property crowdfunding platform, Property Partner. Compared to other investments, residential property has outperformed all other asset classes including stocks and shares (increased 9.5 times since 1975) and gold (up by more than 12 times). Residential property prices in London have risen the most, rocketing by 3200% - almost double the annual UK average house price growth - since the second quarter of 1975 when Prime Minister Harold Wilson put forward a referendum on what was then known as the European Economic Community (EEC) or Common Market. Today, a little more than four decades on, the average UK house price is now £198,564. Back in June 1975, house hunters were being asked to fork out on average £10,728 – today, in real terms, taking into account inflation that would have been just £99,949. NHBC reports 17% rise in new registrations in the year to April A total of 14,228 new homes were registered to be built in April – a 17 per cent rise on the same period a year ago, according to the latest figures from the NHBC. The figure consists of 11,258 from the private sector and 2,970 public sector homes, compared to 12,201 (8,988 private sector; 3,213 public sector) registrations 12 months ago. Completions were also up four per cent for the month compared to last April (10,378 in 2016; 10,005 in 2015). There were 40,399 new home registrations in the rolling quarter (February 2016 – April 2016), NHBC said; a slight decrease of one per cent on last year’s figures (40,877). During these three months several regions experienced a “notable growth” in registrations, compared to 2015, including the North-east (+47%), South-east (+23%) and Yorkshire & Humberside (+18%). “April’s new home figures show that the industry enjoyed a successful month, with registration numbers well ahead of this time last year,” said Mike Quinton, the NHBC’s chief executive. Councils spend millions on temporary accommodation London councils spent nearly £600m on temporary accommodation over the past 18 months. A 24housing Freedom of Information (FoI) request has uncovered five capital councils alone put out nearly £270m. Overall, the 31 responses reveal London Councils as spending £558,930,837 on temporary accommodation – an average of £31,051,713 per month, or an average of £1,001,668 each month per council. As rents rise and the housing crisis becomes more severe, the amount spent on temporary accommodation by councils is rising. Birmingham City Council comes closest to the London boroughs, with their spending hitting a handsome £11,096,508. Manchester City Council, which is facing an ever increasing homelessness crisis, spent £5,345,717 on temporary accommodation and Northern Ireland’s Housing Executive forked out just over £4m. Bristol City Council’s figure sits at £4.4m, with Reading Borough Council nearing the two million pounds mark. 04 refurb| RENEW July / August 2O16 issue 8958
News | April’s new home figures show that the industry enjoyed a successful month, with registration numbers well ahead of this time last year Mike Quinton, the NHBC’s chief executive. Tower Bridge to close for three-month repair job Tower Bridge is to undergo three months of structural repairs later this year, and will close for three months. Civils contractor BAM Nuttall will carry out the works, paid for by the Bridge House Estate, the charitable trust tasked with maintaining five bridges that cross the Thames. The City of London said that heavy use had taken its toll on the timber decking of Tower Bridge, which was last refurbished in the 1970s. More than 40,000 people cross over the bridge, including 21,000 vehicles, each day. The work to the 122-year-old structure will include: • Replacement of the decking on the bascules (the swinging middle section) • Corrosion prevention and repair operations • Replacement of worn expansion joints • Resurfacing of fixed roads and walkways • Waterproofing of approach viaducts • Overhaul and maintenance of key mechanical and lift components • General cleaning and repairs to the towers • Replacement of river navigation and traffic signal lights. The City of London said the bridge will be closed for vehicles, but will remain open to pedestrians for all but three weekends of the planned works. Noisy rooms costing hotels millions The property sector is short-changing itself in the development and construction of hotels. Owners, developers and investors should look beyond traditional procedures. If you want to build good hotels which will achieve high profitability, you have to provide comfort and quiet hotel rooms, according to the Quietroom Foundation. President Lucas Keizer of the Foundation: “In the coming years, more and more vacant office buildings will be converted into hotels. In Amsterdam alone there is room for more than 100 hotels. But please make sure they are good hotels and take insulation and sound proofing standards into account when you convert a building into a hotel. At present, this is often overlooked. “The Quietroom Foundation stimulates the world wide development of quieter hotel rooms and has created the Quietroom label. Experience tells us that hotel guests who book a room which is really quiet will give the hotel a higher rating. Which obviously is important for the hotel's reputation and performance in the long run. The recently opened Ramada Hotel in Amsterdam is a good example of this. It used to be an old office building which has been redeveloped into a hotel and 434 of its rooms have qualified for the Quietroom label. The owners have consciously chosen to invest in quality and expect to fully recover their investment.” British Steel name returns The British Steel brand has been revived following the completion of a deal in which Tata Steel sold its long products business to Greybull Capital. Greybull, an investment firm, paid a nominal £1 for the business, which makes products such as railway tracks and steel sections used in construction. The deal will see the safeguarding of over 4,000 jobs as well as the restoration of the British Steel name which was discarded in the nineties. The sale includes the steelworks in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, and sites in Teesside, Workington and York. The brand of the former state-owned industry disappeared in 1999 with the creation of Corus, which Tata then bought in 2007. Mersey Gateway contributes £129m to North West's economy Construction of the new Mersey Gateway crossing has boosted the North-west's economy by £129 million, according to new figures. Now in its third year, work has started on the main deck of the new six-lane toll bridge that will link the towns of Runcorn and Widnes. As part of the project, teams will begin to connect the steel support cables to the deck and upper pylons this summer. ‘Trinity’, the project’s movable scaffolding system (MSS), has cast the first 250m of the north approach viaduct, and a new MSS is on its way to Halton to build the south approach viaduct. The local road network is undergoing significant transformation with major junction upgrades taking place right across the borough, including the redesigned M56 Junction 12 roundabout, which is due for completion in June. Newly released figures for the first two years of work on the Mersey Gateway Project show a direct contribution to the North-west regional economy of some £129million. The figures account for contracts placed by the Merseylink Construction Joint Venture with 351 different suppliers and sub-contractors based within a 30-mile radius of the site in Halton since work began in May 2014. ® MAINTENANCE FREE COATINGS 25 YEARS EXPERIENCE plascoat.com sales@plascoat.com 01252 733777 for str reet furniture & str ructural meta alwork July / August 2O16 issue 8958 refurb| RENEW 05
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Page 6 and 7: Product | NEWS SPV Awarded Family B
Page 8: Product | NEWS Small but mighty Vec
Page 11 and 12: the fact is, simply, that we need f
Page 13 and 14: Vieo. The versatile long-strip solu
Page 15 and 16: : The Centre of Refurbishment Excel
Page 17 and 18: New residential air con range launc
Page 19 and 20: Changing the options for accessible
Page 21 and 22: SIKA SARNA AFIL PLUS EXPERTLY PIECI
Page 23 and 24: Follow the lead of the architects a
Page 26 and 27: Roofing, Cladding & Insulation | Wh
Page 28: 28 Roofing, Cladding & Insulation |
Page 32: Article | Aluminium decking becomes
Page 35 and 36: alustr ade balconies flooring g ril
Page 37 and 38: Durelis Const ructi on Board FLOOR
Page 39 and 40: CO2: Don’t be neutral, be negativ
Page 41 and 42: CMS is a building envelope contract
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Page 45 and 46: ADEY tackles ‘zombie’ boilers E
Page 48: take your pick Decora ative Panels

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