Industry forecasters say there will be a fall in construction output this year and another drop in 2012.

Worrying predictions from the Construction Products Association forecast a drop in output of just less than 1% in 2011 and by a further 2% in 2012.

The falls will hit as private sector construction fails to match the sharp downturn in public sector spending.

Association chief executive Michael Ankers said: “It is especially worrying that the construction industry is going to face another two years of falls in output, particularly given it is an industry that has been identified in the government’s Growth Plan as having a key part to play in the economic recovery.”

“Significant cuts in public spending are inevitable whilst the private sector remains cautious about the pace of the wider economic recovery and consumer confidence remains at low levels.”

“We welcome the steps that the government is taking to stimulate private sector growth but we do not see these in the short term as being sufficient to outweigh the public sector cuts.”

“Availability of finance remains an issue for many companies and the housing market is still being held back by the lack of finance available, particularly for first time buyers.”

The association has produced a wish list for the government to stimulate the construction sector. It wants ministers to:

- Continue to put pressure on the leading institutions to make finance available for house purchase and ensure that the range of initiatives introduced in the recent Budget actually work

- Make sure that planning authorities around the country adhere to the requirement to make a presumption in favour of sustainable development

- Ensure that the localism agenda acts as a stimulus for growth in local communities and does not create a ‘nimby’s charter’

- Try to accelerate the programme for investment in energy supply so that companies have an increased confidence about investing in the UK

- Introduce incentives to encourage householders to invest in the energy efficiency of their homes in advance of the Green Deal policy being introduced at the end of next year.’

Key elements in the latest forecasts are:

- The construction sector is forecast to fall 0.8% in 2011 and 2% in 2012 before rising 0.5% in 2013, 2.3% in 2014 and 3.9% in 2015

- Construction output in 2012 is expected to be 3% lower than the pre-recession peak in 2007

- Public sector construction work to fall £11bn by 2015; key areas to suffer falls in work include education, where work is expected to fall 53%, and health, where work is expected to fall 27%

- Private sector construction work to rise £15 billion by 2015; key areas expected to grow include commercial offices and retail, expected to rise 14% by 2015 and both infrastructure rail and energy, where work is expected to double in the next five years

- Even after five years of consecutive growth, private housing starts in 2015 are still expected to be 16% lower than in 2007, the pre-recession peak

 BuilderScrap sourced this article from Construction Enquirer.

Construction firms are trying to get round paying workers a day’s extra holiday for the royal wedding, union Ucatt claims.

A spokesperson said the union had been inundated with calls from workers concerned their employers are trying to duck paying them wages on the extra bank holiday on Friday 29^th April.

According to the union the most common ruse is to introduce a shutdown in the week beginning Easter Monday (April 25), to avoid paying workers for an extra day’s holiday.

But Ucatt says workers are entitled to pay on the bank holiday under terms agreed under the Construction Industry Joint Council Working Rule Agreement earlier this year.

A Ucatt spokesperson said: “We are getting lots of calls. Companies are trying to get out of paying this any way they can.”

George Guy, Ucatt acting general secretary, said: “It is very disappointing that employers are still trying to wheedle their way out of paying for one additional day’s bank holiday.

“Dedicated construction workers have been through very difficult times in recent years as a result of the recession. The very least they deserve is for employers to honour this holiday.”

Scotland has had a very high proportion of contractors trying to revolt against giving workers a paid day’s holiday.

Harry Frew, regional secretary for UCATT Scotland, said: “Companies need to honour the decision to make the Royal Wedding a paid bank holiday.”

He threatened: “If employers try to prevent UCATT members receiving this extra day, we will take all means necessary to secure them their full leave.”

Here at BuilderScrap we would like to wish William and Kate all the best and hope all the contractors allow their employees to enjoy the day off!

The latest employment figures for the construction industry has increased the pressure on the Government to stimulate growth, especially through house building.

New Government figures for the final quarter of last year has shown 8,000 job losses from construction compared to the previous three months, taking the total workforce to just 2,128,000.

These figures mean since the peak in September 2008, there has been almost a quarter of a million jobs lost in construction. This equates to about 1 in 10 of the total workforce at that time.

House builders have seized on the latest job figures and have called for a stimulus package in next week’s Budget.

This includes the release of public sector land, help for first time buyers to get on the housing ladder and solutions to the mortgage famine.

Stewart Baseley, Executive Chairman of HBF said: “This is a critical budget for the Government if it is serious about its commitment to increase housing supply and boost the economy.”

“House building can be a crucial driver in creating jobs and investment. By tackling the record low levels of construction and our current housing crisis we could create 200,000 jobs a year.”

“For this to happen, we need to see action taken to increase mortgage lending – especially to First Time Buyers – more public land being made available and a real reduction in regulation.”

BuilderScrap have sourced this article using Construction Enquirer.

There were positive signs for the construction sector as there was an increase in activity across the entire sector; this is the first time this has happened since last August, this is according to the latest monthly Purchasing Managers’ Index from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing Supply (CIPS).

The index, compiled by research firm Markit, rose to 53.7, up from 49.1 in December, on a scale where any figure over 50 marks growth.

The weather conditions at the start of the year helped to boost construction work, while there were also gains in new business, CIPS said. Despite rises in both new orders and activity unfortunately employment nonetheless fell again.

Civil engineering was the biggest benefactor, having seen a slight reduction in activity during December. Commercial based construction activity meanwhile extended its sequence of growth to eleven months. There was a slight increase of house building in January to end a four-month period of contraction.

Optimism regarding companies’ activity levels in 12 months time rose to an eight-month high, and has improved substantially since hitting a low last September.

David Noble, chief executive at CIPS, said: “This is good news for the Government as the construction sector seems to have bounced back, suggesting it was the widespread chaos caused by the snow that had such an impact and hampered growth in December.”

But despite the growth of activity, an “air of caution” persists amongst construction companies as employment levels continue to fall, Noble warned.

“Some companies that are doing well are hiring but many more companies are continuing to adjust to lower workloads and deferral of projects,” he said. “Until growth becomes sustained it is unlikely we will see employment levels rise substantially and consistently.”

Source: Buiding.co.uk 2/2/2011

Construction industry economists are challenging the latest Government output figures for construction, the figures showed a remarkable 13.5% growth in the last two quarters.

Their concerns come as the 13.5 growth doesn’t seem to support what is actually happening on the ground.

The growth spurt in construction has had a big effect into the UK’s overall GDP figures and helped to deliver higher than expected growth, now being used by the Government as evidence of a strengthening recovery.

According to this weeks new preliminary Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures construction output rose 4% in the last three months to September.

The high growth figure was down from the 9.5% growth spurt in the previous quarter, but it has caused concerns about the accuracy of Government statistics.

Noble Francis, economist at the Construction Products Association, said: “These figures are really surprising and do not reflect what is really going on.”

“We are almost getting back what was lost during the recession in the second quarter growth figure alone and this is patently not the case.”

He added: “The ONS figures are clearly out of step with the industry’s own trade surveys.”

Even the lower growth figure for July-September sees construction stand out as the fastest growing industry sector by a long way, contributing 0.2% to a 0.8% rise in overall GDP.

This is much higher than many forecasters expected for the UK and is being held up by Chancellor George Osborne as a clear sign of the economy strengthening.

The spectacular two quarters of growth have seen construction; at least officially, enjoy record-breaking 11% growth on a 12-month rolling basis since September 2009.

Brian Green, construction economic commentator at Brickonomics, said: “There is a huge amount of scepticism among construction economists about Government growth figures.

“There are many question marks about the series of numbers introduced this year and how well they marry with previous figures.”

He added: “To put the latest numbers for construction output into context, we should be enjoying the same level of activity the industry experienced in 2007 when there were question marks over whether there was enough industry capacity to handle demand.

“This is clearly not where we are today.”

On the wider UK figures, Alan Clarke, at BNP Paribas, said: “Overall, a much stronger than expected reading. As ever probably likely to look very different after revisions.

BuilderScrap sourced this article  from the Construction Enquirer.

Bugs and Insects at the Tam O’ Shanter Urban Farm on Bidston Hill, Wirral are currently enjoying a new bug and insect hotel. The hotel, made by volunteers incorporates some materials which have been sourced and acquired through the BuilderScrap website and demonstrates a more unusual method of reusing materials.

The hotel has been specially designed to create additional habitat for a number of bugs and insects including both solitary bees and bumblebees which are both declining in numbers. Loss of habitat and pesticide damage have placed a number of bee species under threat in many developed countries, in fact three species of Bumblebee have already become extinct with another 8 considered to be in serious decline.

We hope the new hotel will provide a fantastic new habitat to benefit the local bug and insect populations.

At BuilderScrap we are constantly looking for new solutions such as this to utilise surplus materials from the construction industry, instead of seeing these added to the increasing amounts been sent to landfill each year. We would love to hear from anyone who has found new and interesting ways to benefit from reusing materials (particularly if you have used BuilderScrap).

If you are interested in using BuilderScrap on your own project or have any case studies for reuse please contact us either by email info@builderscrap.com or call 0844 225 3000.

According to the latest survey from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) the construction industry still faces some major economic challenges in the coming year. Cuts in local authority spending seem to be hitting the industry hard and shows that the sector is still in a period of recession.

The survey has highlighted that the nearly one in three (30%) of building companies fully expect that their workload will fall this year. Further to this over half (51%) have noted that there has been a reduction in the amount of public sector work available, whilst 56% have seen a reduction of private sector housing work in the first quarter of this year.

Richard Diment, Director General of the FMB, added that employment prospects within the industry also look bleak with 55% of companies not expecting to take on any new staff over the next six months. This is particularly bad news for school leavers seeking a career in the industry this summer, sparking concerns that when the sector exits the recession it may suffer a skill shortage as happened after the last period of recession in the 1990’s.

The industry will be looking towards politicians in the run up to the general election to see what support is available for the industry, whether this is through showing a commitment for skills and training or changes to regulations to help the industry recover.