INDUSTRY NEWS 5


Ministry of Housing gives details on cladding ban


The Ministry of Housing has announced further details of its ban of combustible cladding on tower blocks following the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire. The ban “on the use of combustible


materials” applies to buildings that are more than 18 metres in height, but will not apply to refurbishments. It will however “also apply where building work is carried out, in line with the definition of building work in the Building Regulations, including changes of use and material alterations.” The Secretary of State for Housing James


Brokenshire also announced a change to health and safety regulations that would enable local authorities to remove ACM (Aluminium Composite Material) from private landlords’ buildings, potentially with financial support from Government. He said: “I have repeatedly made clear


that building owners and developers must replace dangerous ACM cladding, and the costs must not be passed onto leaseholders.” He added: “Private building owners must pay for this work now or they should expect


to pay more later.” The ban, which comes into force this


month, will limit materials to products achieving a European Classification of Class A1 or A2-s1,d0. It includes “all elements of the wall construction from the outer to the inner faces. Commentators have raised concerns that CLT timber will be outlawed in walls over 18 metres as a result.


Persimmon’s CEO Jeff Fairburn to step down over bonus row


CEO of Persimmon Jeff Fairburn is to leave his role following criticisms of his £75m bonus payment. According to the housebuilder’s statement,


the “distraction” around Fairburn’s pay award earlier this year was having a negative impact on the company's reputation, and so the decision was made “by mutual agree- ment and at the request of the company” for the CEO to step down. David Jenkinson, currently group manag-


ing director, is to be appointed as interim group chief executive, assuming his new role on 31 December 2018. Jeff Fairburn commented on his departure:


“It has been an honour to lead Persimmon through an exciting period of development. I had hoped that revealing my plans to create a charitable trust and to waive a proportion of the award would enable the company to put the issue of the 2012 LTIP [long-term incen- tive scheme] behind it. However, this has not been the case and so it is clearly now in the best interests of Persimmon that I should step down. I wish the company the very best for the future.”


Fairburn has been the CEO of Persimmon


since April 2013, with the company’s stock market value doubling over his five years in the role, as Roger Devlin, Persimmon’s chair- man, explained: “Under Jeff’s leadership Persimmon has sold more than 74,000 homes across the UK while more than doubling in size, increasing its market capitalisation from £3.4bn to £7.5bn, returning over £2.2bn to shareholders and producing industry leading margins and returns on capital. “However, given the continuing distrac-


tion around the scale of his remuneration resulting from the 2012 LTIP, the board believes that it is now necessary for there to be to be a change of leadership. On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Jeff for his significant contribution to the business over a 29 year period.” Devlin added, welcoming the interim


CEO: “David is an experienced operator in the housebuilding sector and has made a significant contribution to Persimmon in a number of senior roles, particularly in land purchasing. I am grateful that he has agreed to take on the role of interim CEO.”


Developers exploring the use of offsite modern methods of construction (MMC) have been highlighted in a new report from the NHBC Foundation. The new report, ‘Modern methods of construction: who’s doing what?’, found that developers at the forefront were investing significantly in MMC, and that a majority had plans to expand the number of homes they build using such methods. Among the housebuilders, housing associ-


ations and developer/manufacturers included, the report details high levels of adoption of different, advanced forms of MMC such as volumetric modules and panellised systems. According to the report, these developers cited accelerated delivery and increased productivity as key factors driving their uptake of the new methods. Contained in the report are case studies demonstrating a diversity of approaches to the adoption of MMC, as well as a wider survey which showed that 30 per cent of those studied were already investing in their own manufacturing facility, and a further 9 per cent had plans to do so. In addition, 62 per cent were committing funds to research and development to enhance technologies further. Commenting on the new report, Neil


Smith, NHBC head of standards, innovation and research, said: “Overall, the findings demonstrate a clear commitment by devel- opers to delivering high-quality new homes through the adoption of MMC. “As this confidence in MMC grows and more technologies become proven, we will begin to realise the full potential for MMC to build more, and higher-quality, homes.” The report was produced on behalf of the NHBC Foundation by Cast, which is led by Mark Farmer, who was the author of the influential Farmer Review.


WWW.HBDONLINE.CO.UK


Developers are embracing offsite builds, NHBC report concludes


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