Month in numbers


The minimum value, in pounds, of contracts that major contractor ISG is prepared to tender for, according to chief executive David Lawther.


NEW PRIMARY UP IN WEEKS


Contractor Neilcott has just delivered Cannington Road primary school for the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. The contractor


The percentage drop in a typical site agent’s salary, according to the annual salary survey from Hays Construction. Assistant QSs suffered a decrease of 8% and general foremen 6%.


was already part of the borough’s framework and was appointed to deliver the three- form entry school in October 2009. After going on site


in January this year, a 27-week base-build programme saw the


new primary handed over in time for the start of the new term. The client opted


for a PPC 2000 partnering contract. The school was built in KLH laminated timber panels at a cost, excluding furniture, of £1,541 per m2


. The design was


completed in just fi ve weeks with each 70m2


classroom


exceeding Building Bulletin suggested sizes.


Group seeks standardised products


The value, in pounds, of a “secret” music venue being built beneath Chelsea FC’s Stamford Bridge stadium by Roman Abramovich. The 500 capacity club is being built by interiors specialist Cumberland.


A new industry task force has been set up to investigate whether improvements in the design, manufacture and supply of construction products could lead to better, cheaper buildings, writes Stephen Cousins. The initiative is being led by


engineering consultancy Buro Happold and the Associate Parliamentary Design and Innovation Group, with input from Constructing Excellence and support from Paul Morrell, the government’s chief construction adviser. After an initial meeting of construction


The amount, in pounds, the drywalling sector received in training grants and benefi ts from CITB- ConstructionSkills in 2009, despite paying in £14.5m of levy. The Federation of Plastering and Drywall Contractors is urging the government to disband the body.


leaders, parliamentarians and government offi cials in March, a steering group was formed to take the idea forward. The group is working towards a proposed parliamentary inquiry, where an infl uential Select Committee report could ultimately put pressure on government to change procurement practice and legislation. Rod Macdonald (pictured right),


chairman of Buro Happold, is leading the group. His main concern is that construction has fallen behind other industries in its use of new technology,


and should be delivering unique buildings using a range of highly developed parts. “Too many products are bespoke-made


for individual projects, which means a lengthy design process during each project to ensure compatibility,” said Macdonald. “It’s obvious a much larger range of products should be available which are pre-engineered to fi t together.” During its fi rst meeting in July, the


group highlighted a failure among many manufacturers to utilise skilled product designers, compounded by their lack of investment in product development. “It is partly because the industry is


notoriously cyclical, and manufacturers don’t always see how they can get a return on their investment,” adds Macdonald. “But despite this, products are getting more and more expensive, unlike every other industry sector in which products innovate and either stay the same price or get cheaper.” In future, public and


private sector clients could be required to ensure projects specify high- performance products. “The government should already be doing this, and several large clients and developers do, but we need consistency across the board,” he says. More standardisation could help drive


down costs, added steering group member Don Ward, chief executive of Constructing Excellence: “It’s partly the old Egan agenda — why do we have such different specifi cations for similar products? Aren’t there savings from standardisation? We’re pushing the integrated design model, and moving towards catalogues of standardised components.” The steering group is also looking at how product information could be made more accessible and user- friendly for building designers,


for example, by providing online data on specifi cation, dimensions, performance and pricing which can be fed directly into BIM design programs.


Agreement hands Building Control offi cers health and safety powers


The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Building Control Alliance have signed an agreement that formalises Building Control offi cers’ responsibility to report health and safety problems seen on sites to the site duty holder or to the HSE. Under the agreement, Building Control offi cers will also provide


sites with best practice advice on health and safety matters and help promote HSE campaigns. It’s hoped the initiative will


improve compliance on smaller building sites which the HSE does not have the staff to monitor, explains Diane Marshall, group head of Building Control at the National House Building Council.


“The HSE doesn’t have the


resources to target smaller sites, which Building Control professionals visit regularly, giving them the opportunity to educate and identify problems they may have been missed,” said Marshall. The agreement will not increase


the responsibilities of Building Control offi cers, who already have


a professional code of conduct which requires them to identify unsafe practice. However, it should make it simpler to identify sites that require urgent attention. “The HSE will give priority to


any calls received from Building Control and their expertise should improve identifi cation of problems,” said Marshall.


CONSTRUCTION MANAGER | OCTOBER 2010 | 5


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