NEWSROUND
Sector relaunches Get Britain Building push
The Building Alliance, Builders Merchant Federation and the Federation of Master Builders, re-launched the Get Britain Building campaign to coincide with Party Conference season. The message to politicians is that investing in UK construction will help drive economic recovery.
The campaign sets out 10 primary recommendations for the government, which include: 1. Recognise the added value the construction industry offers to economic prosperity. 2. Build at least 200,000 new homes every year, using British made building products where possible. 3. Get behind construction SMEs to drive growth in every community. 4. Invest at scale in infrastructure and energy security to meet the needs of industry, transport and home heating. 5. Urgently address the UK Construction ‘Skills Emergency’ 6. Address Climate Change now with a measured progressive programme that avoids unintended consequences.
7. Help the building products industry to decarbonise. 8. Ensure our built environment is safe and resilient to fire and severe weather events reducing deforestation, cleansing our oceans, and protecting our natural habitat. 9. Make evidence-based decisions on future Building Regulations. 10. Embark on a major programme of retrofitting our existing buildings based on long term funding, incentives, training, and an independent advice model for owner occupiers.
4 Lords boosts half-year sales and profits
Builders merchant group Lords has posted record first-half Group revenues of £222.6 m, a 3.9% increase overall compared with the same period in 2022, although like-for-like sales showed a slight decrease of 4.4%.
Operating profit was £8.1m, a 11.6% increase, and the Board has stated it remains confident of achieving its strategic targets of £500 million revenue by 2024, and improving EBITDA margins to 7.5% in the medium term. The merchanting division delivered a robust performance with revenues of £109.4 m, compared with 2022’s £105.9 m representing growth of 3.3%, although still a decrease of 5.1% on a LFL basis.
Despite a tricky trading environment, the Plumbing and
Heating division saw a solid first half with revenues of £113.2 m. Mr Central Heating branch expansion plans continue with the eleventh branch opened in Edinburgh ahead of a planned acceleration of 40 new store openings over the next five years. The Group acquired Chiltern Timber Supplies Limited on 3 April 2023, and Alloway Timber on 1 September 2023, adding five branches to the Lords Merchanting division in the South East. Shanker Patel, chief executive
Covers buys NYEs Building Supplies
Independent family-run builders merchant Covers Timber and Builders Merchants has acquired West Sussex-based independent NYEs Building Supplies.
NYEs is a building, landscaping, timber and plumbing merchant, which operates from sites in Kingsfold and Billingshurst. Covers operates from 15 locations across Hampshire, Kent, Surrey and Sussex, with its mill and timber operation based at its Chichester depot.
Rupert Green, Chairman of
Covers, said: “We are delighted to bring such a well-run local merchant with a strong brand and team into Covers. NYEs is a business that complements our different trading activities and geographical coverage in Sussex and Surrey. It has a strong, loyal and well-established customer base, and will continue to trade as NYEs Building Supplies, part of the Covers Group.”
Former NYE’s owner David Nye added: “Having built the business over many years, the time has
JDP opens new Yorkshire branch
Specialist civils and drainage merchant JDP is opening a £3million flagship branch in Bradford, West Yorkshire, taking the company’s total to the companies 26th branch. At 2.75 acres, the new branch on the Euroway Trading Estate is the largest site outside of JDP’s Carlisle head office, and is ideally located with easy access to motorway networks.
Laura Thomson, national operations manager said: “Our new flagship branch is a huge investment by JDP, and has been located in Bradford due to the growing demand for our vast range of drainage products. “Its remarkable stockholding capacity, which is the largest to date within the JDP network, will allow us to offer quality water management and drainage
come to pass it on to a successful company that has similar family values.”
officer of Lords, said: “Lords performed well in the period recording another record half year, despite tougher market conditions. These results are testament to our outstanding colleagues and continued execution of our strategy, which when combined, offer our customers a continually improving proposition. “We have a substantial opportunity to grow the Group’s current < 1% market share through attracting new customers, a greater share of existing customer wallet, product range extension, new geographies, digital capability and value added acquisitions. Our focus on the essential and resilient ‘Repair’ sector of RMI positions us more defensively during this volaite period we are in.”
products to the whole of West Yorkshire and Humberside, including Leeds and Bradford.”
www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net October 2023
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