March/April 2024

Find more industry news at: www.total-fabricator.co.uk
FMB HAILS BUDGET A
‘MISSED OPPORTUNITY’
The Federation of Master Builders (FMB)
says the recent Budget was a missed
opportunity to build new homes, and
improve the ones we have to make them
more energy efficient and stimulate
economic growth.
Brian Berry Chief Executive of the FMB, said:
“The Budget could have been an opportunity
to kickstart the housing market with house
building rates stagnant, but the Chancellor has
done nothing. It was also disappointing there
were no new measures to help homeowners
improve the energy efficiency of their homes.
This was an opportunity to reform the planning
system, boost local authority planning teams’
capacities, and review the financial burdens
the planning system places on smaller house
builders, but again these much-needed
reforms have been overlooked.
Berry continued: “The Chancellor could have
helped to close the construction skills gap
ensuring the UK has the workers with the
green skills needed to retrofit the UK’s homes,
and provided support to help small builders
deal with the administrative burden of training
apprentices. All these areas could have grown
the economy, instead builders got left behind –
this Budget was a missed opportunity.”
Berry concluded: “The Chancellor’s
announcement to increase the VAT threshold
for small businesses from £85,000 to £90,000
is welcome, but the rate has been frozen for
seven years so in real terms it makes little
difference.” www.fmb.org.uk
FMB’s Brian Berry
8 HOUSEBUILDERS UNDER CMA SCRUTINY
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)
has launched an investigation into suspected
breaches of competition law by eight
housebuilders.
The announcement comes on the back of the
publication of the CMA’s final report on the
housebuilding market in Great Britain, which
found that the ‘complex and unpredictable’
planning system, together with ‘the limitations of
speculative private development’, is responsible
for the persistent under delivery of new homes.
Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive of the CMA, said:
“The CMA has opened a new investigation into
the suspected sharing of commercially sensitive
information by housebuilders which could be
The eight housebuilders whose activities are being
influencing the build-out of sites and the prices of
investigated are Barratt Developments, Bellway,
new homes.
The Berkeley Group, Bloor Homes, Persimmon,
While this issue is not one of the main drivers of Redrow, Taylor Wimpey and Vistry Group.
the problems we’ve highlighted in our report, it is
At the time of Total Fabricator going to press,
important we tackle anti-competitive behaviour if
the CMA had not reached any conclusions as to
we find it.”
whether or not competition law has been infringed.
FABRICATOR INVESTS £4OOK IN SOLAR PANELS
Sternfenster has invested £400K in
photovoltaic panels that will provide more
than a fifth of the energy that the Lincolnbased
trade fabricator consumes.
The new PV array is estimated to produce
490,000kWh per year, offsetting 115,000kg of
carbon in the process.
Managing Director, Mike Parczuk, said: “This is
a major investment for us and it demonstrates
our ongoing commitment to reducing our impact
Before the new solar panels were installed,
on the environment. These new panels will join
Sternfenster measured its current impact on
the PV array we already have in operation, and
the environment. It found that: 100% of its
together they will produce around one third of all
manufacturing waste is recycled; 100% of
our electricity needs.
post-consumer waste is recycled; 24% of its
“To put our new investment into context, it is aluminium used is from recycled aluminium; 20%
the equivalent of planting 11.5K trees, or driving of its current fleet is electric; and it had made a
852,000 fewer miles per year in your average 7% overall reduction in carbon emissions in 2022.
family saloon.”
www.sternfenster.com
Richard
CONNECTING THE WINDOW, DOOR & ROOF FABRICATION SUPPLY CHAIN
MARCH / APRIL 2024 TF 7