ForgeFix turns fastening into an art – and raises £1000


for charity Leading distributor of fixings, fasteners, power tool accessories and hardware, ForgeFix has turned charity fundraising into an art form. The business recently donated a unique portrait created using 4000 of the company’s ForgeFast elite performance


woodscrews for sale at charity auction. The picture, a 1.2m by 1m portrait of music icon David Bowie, sold for £1000 at the silent auction which was held at the


NMBS Gala Dinner in April. All proceeds from the sale have been donated to CRASH - the construction industry charity which supports homeless and


hospice charities with free advice, practical assistance and financial aid. The Bowie picture comes from a series of similar images which ForgeFix has dubbed ScrewsArt™. Other portraits include an image of boxing legend Muhammad Ali. ForgeFix began creating the portraits as a unique and innovative way to demonstrate the capabilities of its ForgeFast woodscrews. People were asked to insert screws


into a template so they could experience first-hand some of the benefits of using the ForgeFast range. Commenting on the Bowie portrait and subsequent charity donation, Brian Trevaskiss, marketing manager at ForgeFix, said: “We first came up with the idea of


creating the ScrewsArt™ portraits as a fun way of enabling potential buyers of ForgeFast to get hands-on with the range and to help them appreciate just what makes these products elite-performance woodscrews. “We felt it was important to do something worthwhile with the resulting portraits, such as using them to benefit charities. We’re delighted the Bowie picture proved


so sought after in the silent auction at the NMBS Gala Dinner, and that it’s ultimately raised so much money for CRASH.” Francesca Roberts, chief executive at CRASH, added: “We’d like to thank ForgeFix, NMBS and the winning bidder, John Smith, managing director at Plumbco, for


their support of CRASH. Without the generosity of the industry, our work simply would not be possible. “The sale of the Bowie ScrewsArt™ portrait was certainly an innovative way of fundraising. These funds will now be used to make an important contribution towards


both our current and future projects to make a difference to people’s lives.” To see the David Bowie ScrewsArt™ portrait being created, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTZ8q2J1n2A


Immigration and skills key to success of next Government, says FMB The next Government must ensure the construction sector has enough skilled workers post-Brexit, or its housing and infrastructure manifesto pledges will be redundant, says the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). The FMB has called on all major political parties to recognise the importance of migrant labour to the construction sector as part of its ‘Programme for Government’,


that has been launched the day before Parliament is dissolved for the General Election. Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said: “The UK construction sector’s demand for skilled migrant workers from the EU and beyond cannot be overstated. In London alone, there are more than 157,000 non-UK construction workers, constituting almost half of the industry’s workforce in the capital. Pre-Brexit, 60% of small construction firms are already having trouble hiring bricklayers, and that’s before the UK abandons the free movement of people. If the next Government implements an inflexible immigration system that hinders the ability of talented foreign construction workers from making their way to the UK, any manifesto pledges relating to the delivery of housing and infrastructure will be rendered meaningless.” Berry continued: “In the longer term, the most sustainable solution to the chronic skills deficit is for employers to recruit and train


more home-grown talent. Undoubtedly, the best way of achieving this is to focus on increasing the quality, duration and thoroughness of construction apprenticeships. Giving technical and academic education ‘parity of esteem’, as the Chancellor stated in the last Budget, must be picked up and driven forward by the next Government, and it’s vital that the progress we’ve made on increasing the quality of apprenticeships does not go to waste.” Berry concluded: “Through a flexible immigration policy and more high quality apprenticeships, the next Government will allow


construction to act as a bulwark against any Brexit uncertainty. For every £1 invested in construction, 92p stays within the UK and £2.84 is generated in the wider economy. As the economy adapts to the reality of operating outside of the EU, it’s more important than ever that the Government works closely with strategic industries that offer high levels of productivity and a good return on investment. That means backing construction and supporting the sector will only become more important as the country looks to make a success of Brexit. We urge all of the main political parties to include positive policies on immigration, skills and apprenticeships in their forthcoming manifestos.”


Considerate Constructors Scheme launches in Ireland John Sisk & Son is the first contractor to register site The Considerate Constructors Scheme - the organisation established to improve the image of the construction industry - is


now international, having launched its first registered site in Ireland. The Scheme is delighted to welcome its first contractor to register projects in Ireland, family-owned John Sisk & Son - a member of the international construction company, SISK Group. The Scheme, which introduced site registration in the UK in 1997, has received


increasing interest from contractors with sites in Ireland asking to register construction activity. All are keen to improve the image and reputation of the construction industry, in line with the Scheme’s Code of Considerate Practice, which commits those registered to care about appearance, respect the community, protect the environment, secure everyone’s safety and value their workforce. Sisk led the pilot of site registration to help ensure that this model of registration within the Irish construction industry


was appropriate and fully tried and tested, before making it available to all construction activity in Ireland. Considerate Constructors Scheme Chief Executive Edward Hardy said: “We are delighted to now be able to provide


monitoring and support services to Irish-based construction sites to help raise their standards beyond statutory requirements – pushing the bar of considerate construction to a new level in Ireland.” Brian Handcock, Head of Sustainability at Sisk, commented: “We are proud to have worked with the Considerate


Constructors Scheme to deliver the first project registered in Ireland. Indeed, Sisk was one of the early supporters of the Scheme, and has attained the highest standards possible on its projects on numerous occasions. “As a business that is over 158 years old, and with over 1300 staff employed, it is important to all of us to be recognised


for the good work our industry does for the communities, workforce and environment that we live in, are a part of and care for. Being part of the Considerate Constructors Scheme gives us an objective viewpoint of our performance, helping us and the wider industry to improve our image and reputation. We look forward to seeing the Scheme being taken up by our peers across Ireland so that the whole industry benefits.”


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