CNinsight - industry and company dataConstruction News
17 May 2012
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Aberdeenshire set for new homes
Construction activity in north-east Scotland is set to increase after Aberdeenshire Council’s adoption of its local plan. -
ACE calls for five replacements for PFI model
The under-fire PFI model should be scrapped and replaced with five alternatives, the Association for Consultancy and Engineering has said. -
Airedale Electrical in administration
Airedale Electrical has been placed into administration. -
Amec eyes Serco nuclear section in latest acquisition move
Amec has revealed that it is in talks to buy Serco’s nuclear Technical Consulting Services (TCS) business. -
Balfour Beatty wins infra works on £250m Center Parcs scheme
Balfour Beatty subsidiary Birse has won a £26 million contract to build infrastructure - including lakes, road and cycle parks and an energy centre - at the £250m Center Parcs development. -
Banks refuse lending to speculative office projects
Not a single bank or lender that took part in the UK’s largest commercial lending survey would be prepared to lend against speculative development, it was revealed today. -
Bids sought for £400m Scottish partnership
A consortium of public bodies has advertised work worth £400m million in west central Scotland. -
Bids sought for £660m Scottish healthcare framework
Contractors are being sought for a £660 million healthcare framework in Scotland. -
Breedon tipped to profit from Tarmac Lafarge disposals
Numis Securities has urged investors to buy Breedon Aggregates. -
British Land profits rise despite tough retail climate
British Land saw pre-tax profit increase by 5 per cent in 2011 despite a difficult year for retail. -
Business leaders to examine best route for Crossrail 2
Detailed planning for a second Crossrail scheme needs to start immediately, according to a new report by business leaders from London First. -
Cash flow brings down McGoff & Vickers
An 87-year-old Merseyside building services from has gone into administration. -
Circle names four on £1.2bn repair and maintenance framework
Affordable housing provider Circle has announced four preferred bidders for a repair and maintenance framework worth £1.2 billion. -
Civils firms facing fuel hike threat
Rising fuel costs are the biggest threat to the infrastructure sector’s recovery, according to civil engineering firms. -
Clegg reveals plans for 'massive' state investment in infrastructure and housing
The coalition government is preparing a “massive” increase in state-backed investment in housing and infrastructure, it has been reported. -
Costain/Skanska lands £40m Crossrail deal
A Costain/Skanska joint venture has been awarded Crossrail’s £40 million deal for ventilation and access shafts at Eleanor Street and Mile End Park. -
Demand for new properties fuels rent rises
Rental values are continuing to rise across the UK as rising demand outstrips the number of new properties coming to market, according to a Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors survey. -
Downing lands three student project
George Downing Construction has secured £100 million worth of work, including three student accommodation contracts from its parent company, developer Downing. -
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EDF seeks extension to existing nuclear power stations
EDF has held talks with the nuclear regulator about extending the lifetime of existing nuclear power stations. -
Engineers criticise cost of £118M Wear bridge
Bridge experts this week slammed designs for Sunderland’s £118M New Wear Bridge as a “staggeringly poor example of bridge engineering” and a “scandalous waste of public funds”. -
Eurozone cloud over London office revival
Construction volumes in the London office market have trebled since the slump of 2008, Drivers Jonas Deloitte’s latest Office Crane Survey has found. -
Exclusive: Bouygues buys Cardiff rail firm
Bouygues has agreed the takeover of a Cardiff rail firm in its latest UK acquisition. -
Exclusive: 'Waste to energy' firm to file for administration
A firm that struck a deal to build multiple renewable energy projects across the country has said it is to file for administration. -
Ex-Leighton chief joins Laing O'Rourke
Former Leighton Holdings chief executive David Stewart has joined Laing O’Rourke as a senior executive. -
Food retailers set to keep building
Spending on new shops by major food retailers is likely to hold up this year despite a market decline. -
Full list of 261 schools to benefit from £2bn Priority Schools revealed
A total of 261 schools, from 587 applicants, will be rebuilt, or have their ‘condition needs met’ under the £2bn Priority Schools Building Programme. -
Further Hinkley Point C delays feared
One of the four major contractors lining up for the £1.2 billion main civils package at Hinkley Point C has revealed it is not expecting a decision to be made on a preferred bidder until 2013. -
Giant pipeline put up for sale
A little-known 2,500 km government-owned pipe network is up for sale, with the buyer becoming responsible for its maintenance and development. -
Gove reveals 42 schools set for priority capital funding
A priority list of schools will be funded through capital grants due to their urgent need of repair. -
Government confirms delay to Feed-in Tariff changes
The Department for Energy and Climate Change has confirmed that its proposed changes to the Feed-in Tariff scheme for solar installations will be implemented a month later than planned. -
Government starts EDF talks to ensure Hinkley Point C investment
Energy secretary Ed Davey has confirmed talks have begun between the Department of Energy and Climate Change and EDF Energy/Centrica, to ensure an investment decision on Hinkley Point C is not delayed. -
Graham Construction wins £16.6m Sanctuary housing deal
Graham Construction has won a £16.6 million contract to build 200 homes for Sanctuary Scotland Housing Association. -
Great Portland Estates optimistic on London projects
London’s property development market is out-performing not only the rest of the UK but also most of Europe, it was claimed today. -
Harrow seeks sustainable roads contractor
A London council is seeking contractors to build and surface its road network. -
HCA to bridge industry's gap in social housing knowledge
Builders are ignoring lucrative opportunities in social housing because they cannot understand how the sector works, the Homes and Communities Agency has admitted. -
Homes and roads gain cash in Wales
The Welsh Government has unveiled a massive investment in building infrastructure and homes. -
Homeserve profits as problems fade
Profits rose by 8 per cent to £128.2 million over the year to March at repairs firm Homeserve, the company has reported. -
Interserve looks to new infrastructure and commercial markets
Interserve is monitoring the commercial market, as it considers boosting its construction presence in new sectors as part of its growth strategy. -
Interserve wins five year FM contract with Boots
Interserve has won a five-year total facilities management contract with Alliance Boots. -
Investors urged to buy Keller shares
Investec Bank has urged investors to buy shares in Keller, whose revenue and profit is ahead of last year. -
ISG in u-turn over subcontractor fee
ISG has scrapped a controversial £300 registration fee it was asking subcontractors to pay to prequalify for its national supply chain after it was approached by Construction News. -
Kier named winner for £9.8m Dorset academy
Kier has won a £9.8m refurbishment project at the the St Aldhelm’s Academy in Poole, Dorset. -
Lend Lease to build £9.5m Help for Heroes recovery centre
Lend Lease has been awarded a £9.5 million project to build a new recovery centre for Help for Heroes. -
Mace and EC Harris win £72m Qatar programme
Qatar’s public works authority Ashghal, has appointed a joint venture of Mace and EC Harris to deliver a £72 million programme of social infrastructure building projects. -
Minister hints at fresh incentives for Green Deal
Climate change minister Greg Barker has urged the industry to support the Green Deal, but stressed further incentives and penalties will be needed to support the scheme in future. -
Mitie reports £2bn turnover as loyalty pays dividends
Mitie saw turnover top £2 billion in 2011, with six major clients providing a potential £2.2bn of contracts. -
Morgan Sindall in second Longbridge win
Morgan Sindall has started work on the first phase of the £70 million Longbridge town centre regeneration scheme in Birmingham. -
Morrell: Integration and innovation are crucial to education’s future
The industry is paying particular attention to the schools programme at the moment. Due to its long-term scale and its geographical spread, it probably has the potential to affect more construction firms than any part of the public sector programme. -
Network Rail agrees £2.3bn infrastructure funding package with Crossrail
Network Rail has agreed a £2.3bn funding package with Crossrail for new infrastructure enhancements and surface works. -
New board to drive capital's housebuilding
London mayor Boris Johnson has set up a board to oversee his £3 billion housing programme. -
New Buy bookings hit 400
Reservations under the New Buy scheme have reached 400 in its first two months, the Home Builders Federation has said. -
New regulator to oversee nuclear build safety
A new regulator will oversee safety when nuclear power stations are under construction. -
O'Donnell workers left empty handed
Employees and subcontractors of failed O’Donnell Developments will lose nearly £850,000 in redundancy and holiday pay. -
One house sends North Midland into loss
North Midland Construction has fallen to a £780,000 loss because of problems with building a £20m mansion in the midlands. -
Parsons Brinckerhoff named on new defence framework
Parsons Brinckerhoff has won a place on a new Ministry of Defence’s framework agreement for technical support. -
Plan launched for massive London regeneration
Some £1.3 billion worth of development could be created under a masterplan for one of London’s largest regeneration sites. -
Pollard pushed by industry in hunt for Morrell successor
Former Bovis Lend Lease chief executive Nick Pollard has emerged as an early industry favourite to replace Paul Morrell as the government’s chief construction adviser. -
Prequalification fees do no one any good
Two weeks ago, a subcontractor wrote to Construction News complaining about the ‘liberty’ a main contractor was taking by asking subbies to pay £300 + VAT to go through the prequalification process to get on its national supply chain. -
Priority Schools programme increases to £2.4bn
Contractors say questions remain unanswered over £2bn of private finance as government injects £400 million to kick-start building. -
Roof firm saved from UBC collapse
Managers have bought the roofing company that survived this month’s collapse of UBC Group. -
Safety regs rewrite due for 2014
The Health and Safety Executive is to rewrite the construction, design and management regulations. -
Scrap procurement 'gold-plating', say architects
Architects have called for radical reforms to public sector procurement rules, which they said cost them some £40 million a year to make bids. -
Sellafield contractor Renew Holdings doubles profits
Sellafield contractor Renew Holdings has doubled its profits and seen revenue increase nearly 20 per cent in the six months to 31 March, it said today. -
'Shock' surge in construction waste disposal costs
The cost of disposing of certain grades of construction and demolition waste has surged by 2,460 per cent overnight. -
SIG beats rain to put on sales
Specialist building products distributor SIG saw sales rise despite wet weather in April. -
Sir John Armitt not pursuing chief construction adviser role
Olympic Delivery Authority chairman rules himself out of the running as Paul Morrell’s replacement. -
Skanska, Kier among new Green Deal Finance Company members
Skanska, Kier Energy Solutions and Keepmoat are among 21 new organisations to join the Green Deal Finance Company. -
Small firms suffer as housing starts slump
Housing starts crashed in England by 11 per cent in the first quarter of this year, with the housing association sector the worst affected. -
South west housing repairers sought
A group of south west housing associations and local authorities has invited tenders for up to £45 million of planned and reactive works to housing. -
Southern councils seek roofing framework
Surrey and Hampshire county councils have tendered for a framework contact worth up to £30 million for new roofing projects and maintenance of roofs on public buildings. -
Steel group sees 'distant' recovery
Construction market recovery in the UK “remains distant”, structural steel group Severfield-Rowen has said in its interim management statement. -
United House in £100m market renewal win
Housebuilder United House and property developer Allied London are set to deliver a £100m regeneration project. -
United tenders for less ammonia
United Utilities has issued a tender for a £35 million job to design, procurement, construct and commissioning a process treatment facility at Daveyhulme, Greater Manchester. -
Winter financial close expected for £237m Alder Hey hospital
The Acorn consortium, comprising John Laing, Laing O’Rourke and Interserve, will be formally announced as preferred bidder on the £237m Alder Hey hospital today.
