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Tender prices set to rise
Tender prices are likely to improve towards the back end of 2011, but not without falling even further before then, according to the latest Market View Report from EC Harris. According to the report, tender prices will stop falling in 2011 and are expected to rise by just 0.2 per cent by the fourth quarter of the year.
London tender prices are believed to have already fallen as far as they will go and are forecast to grow by 1.7 per cent to the end of 2011 as a result of a rise in orders, particularly in the commercial offi ce sector. Paul Moore, head of cost research at EC Harris, said: ‘Where contractors have pressurised their subcontractors and cut their profi t margins to the bone to secure workload, rapid increases in costs could mean that contractors fi nd themselves caught out with limited options to recoup their losses. Previous recessions indicate that the most dangerous time for insolvencies is when workload picks up. That brings with it the pressure of increased costs, which can be enough to drive contractors on fi xed-price contracts into failure.’
Renewables sector must attract younger workforce
More young people need to be encouraged to follow careers in the renewables industry if the sector is to avoid a skills shortage, it has been claimed.
Nick Medic, head of communications at RenewableUK, said the environmental sector is expected to see a growing demand for workers in the coming years and stressed the importance of people developing the right skills to fi ll these vacancies.
He pointed out that several areas of the country, most notably those that have a strong local renewables economy, have already developed education and employment schemes to ensure young people have the necessary skills.
Medic commented: ‘Clearly, in the long run, we will need more of such
ACI campaign goes international
The Approved Cables Initiative (ACI) is generating international support for its campaign to stamp out faulty and substandard cables.
As the UK campaign
continues to educate the supply chain in the dangers of trading in faulty and substandard cables, the ACI is working to proactively encourage cable manufacturers outside of the UK to adopt better manufacturing practices.
Michael Simms, chairman
of the ACI, has visited India and Turkey to speak to their representative electrical associations about the work of the ACI and its initiative to stamp out faulty cables. In both countries, steps are being taken to set up similar initiatives, based upon the ACI model, to stop counterfeiting and unsafe cable being produced and exported. The ACI took the opportunity to make a presentation about its work, its successes and the progress of the campaign to date. In both instances the
presentations were extremely well received, with high attendance. Simms said: ‘It is encouraging to see the level of commitment in India and Turkey to deal with the issue of substandard cables. Cable manufacturers need to better manage their relationships with UK distributors, and be fi rmer in their technical and commercial negotiations to ensure they manufacture cables that meet our British safety standards.’ If you have information or concerns about a suspected faulty or counterfeit cable, the ACI can provide further guidance. Please contact 0208 946 6978/07973 636688 or email
info@aci.org.uk.
Fall in construction output in fi nal quarter
The final quarter of 2010 saw the total volume of construction output in the UK fall, according to government figures. Research published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that construction output dropped by 2.5 per cent in the last three months of 2010, when
compared to the third quarter of the year. In addition, the report showed that new work being taken on in the sector fell by two per cent over the three- month period, while repair and maintenance jobs declined by 3.7 per cent. ‘The negative growth in quarter four can be partly
attributed to the impact of the poor weather in December. However, the exact extent of this impact cannot be determined,’ the ONS report stated.
However, the report also noted that total volume of construction output rose by eight per cent in the
final quarter of 2010, when compared to the same three- month period in 2009. In February, the Markit/ Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply Construction Purchasing Managers’ Index showed that the UK’s construction industry experienced growth during January.
initiatives as some projections are that the sector could grow within the next 10 years to 60,000 or 70,000-plus people.’
In brief
■ London’s construction industry will continue to face challenging conditions for the next two years, according to the latest fi gures from the Construction Skills Network (CSN), despite the industry performing better than expected in 2010. However, the longer- term outlook is more positive in the capital with a slow but sustained period of recovery, with output by 2015 predicted to be 9.2 per cent higher than the forecast level for 2011.
■ The EEIBA has a new general manager at the helm. Val Austin, previously appointed as the interim general manager, has accepted the permanent position to take the charity forward in order to develop services for benefi ciaries in line with the electrical industry and Council expectations.
■ HellermannTyton has announced the launch of a new connector box, the HTCB+, which it describes as being one of the best of its type on the UK market, having been developed following consultation with contractors.
■ EIC has completed the mechanical and electrical fi t- out for a new lifeboat station in Shoreham, West Sussex. The striking new-build facility has been designed by Royal Haskoning and built by Dean and Dyball.
■ Michael Moore MP recently opened SSE’s new fl agship offi ces in central Glasgow. The new building will accommodate much of the development work undertaken by SSE’s renewables business, which includes supporting the multi-billion-pound investment programme for onshore and offshore wind, hydro-electricity, and wave and tidal energy.
March 2011 ECA Today 7
SHUTTERSTOCK
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