An institute representing thousands of tradespeople and independent retailers has called on the Government to support the home improvement industry to play a full part in the economic recovery that will be needed now that the route out of lockdown is clear.

Commenting on the day that the Prime Minister announces how the UK will emerge from lockdown over the coming months, the British Institute of Kitchen, Bedroom & Bathroom Installation (BiKBBI) has called for immediate action to help independent retailers open their doors and installers get to work, as well as longer-term interventions that stimulate consumer demand, open up supply chains and support skills development.

Damian Walters, Chief Executive of BiKBBI, said: “Tradespeople and independent businesses in the home improvement industry cannot afford to be ignored by the Government as we finally begin to open up the country.

“Our industry has felt the economic impact of the pandemic more than most. Installers in England and Wales invested time and money into Safe Operating Procedures that allowed them to continue serving customers through the most recent lockdown, but our members north of the border were forced to down tools as the Scottish Government took a much more restrictive approach.

As a result, far too many tradespeople have struggled to make ends meet due the additional expenditure needed to work safely or the loss of income from being unable to work at all.

“Meanwhile, the industry’s independent retailers were forced to close their doors while larger competitors carried on trading thanks to loopholes that allowed them to classify as trade suppliers. The loss of business could force many shops to close for good, doing further damage to high streets that are already struggling.

“Our industry is one of the cornerstones of the UK economy, providing products and services in demand across every part of the country and offering a route to skilled work for people from all walks of life.

It’s vital that every effort is made to help it quickly recover from the hit it has taken over the past year. This means immediately declassifying independent Kitchen, Bedroom and Bathroom retailers from being ‘non-essential’ so that they can compete on a level playing field with large trade suppliers.

It also means working with the Scottish Government to ensure that installers in Scotland can get back to work as quickly as possible.

“Beyond that, it must include efforts to stimulate the market through tax incentives that encourage people to invest in their homes; moves to quickly unlock supply chains that have slowed over recent months; and continued support for the education and training initiatives needed to maintain a skilled workforce.

“The Prime Minister has offered a glimmer of hope to tradespeople and independent retailers who have had to contend with such huge challenges over the past year, but more will be needed to help them play a part as the national recovery gets underway.”

The latest research from the international rental marketplace, Spotahome, has revealed which cities provide the best offering for loved up tenants looking to rent together.

Spotahome analysed available rental stock across 14 European cities and looked at which was home to the most abundant level of rental homes classified as ‘perfect for couples’ as a percentage of all rental stock listed in the city.

While romance may not immediately spring to mind when you think of Porto, the city is home to the highest level of rental accommodation that’s perfect for those looking to live with that special someone. 61.2% of all rental stock in the city is listed as being perfect for couples, making it the top rental spot for loved up renters looking to rent across Europe.

However, if you’re more of an old romantic, then Florence and Paris also boast a large proportion of rental stock suited for couples. At 44.9% and 42.3% respectively, both cities offer a great opportunity to find a Valentine’s Day rental property for you and your significant other.

Brussell’s, London and Rome also rank high with between 39.7% and 42.1% of all rental stock listed designated as being perfect for couples.

Bad news for those looking to rent together in Valencia though, with just 20.8% of rental stock listed as being perfect for couples, it offers the lowest chance of finding that perfect love nest.

Dublin (28%) and Vienna (30.2%) are also home to some of the lowest rental stock levels for couple perfect properties.

Spotahome Head of Data and Analytics, Jorge Alonso, commented:

“Life is generally better when you’re sharing it with someone you love and this is no different when it comes to the rental market. For many, moving in with their loved one is a big step and can test a relationship, but it also comes with a whole host of benefits.

Not only do you have someone to share the workload with in terms of cooking, cleaning and so on, but it can also help elevate the financial burden of renting. As a result, those moving to a city together have a far better chance of finding their ideal rental property, as they are able to stretch their budget which often means a bigger home in a better location.

Most importantly, moving to a new city with someone else means you immediately have someone to share your time with which helps combat loneliness. This is one aspect of living in the rental market that has grown in importance of late with the spread of Covid, and restrictions around mixing households and movement outside of them.”

Fitting a temporary fire alarm during construction activity can save lives, prevents costly delays, and protects your investment, facts supported by a growing number of industry bodies.

The call comes after a fire in January at one of the world’s largest vaccine producers killed five workers in Pune, western India.

The blaze started at a new factory building, adjoined to Covid-19 manufacturing facilities, that was still undergoing construction and indications are that it was caused after insulation material caught fire during welding works on site.

Aside from the tragic loss of life, it is estimated that the blaze caused delays of new product launches and a revenue loss of more than 10 billion rupees (£100 million) due to equipment damages. It is understood that the family of those who died were also offered compensation.

A spokesperson from the company confirmed that the production of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine would not be affected by the blaze, although it is a stark reminder of the dangers and disruption posed by fire. What would have happened if the fire spread into existing vaccines manufacturing facilities?

In the UK alone it is estimated that there are around 10,000 fires on construction sites each year, yet it is still common to rely on fire wardens seeing the fire and then manually sounding an alarm.

In reality, early stages of a blaze often go undetected because the flames and smoke are obscured by other site materials or begin in remote areas. This results in vital lost minutes, which can lead to more serious consequences like what happened in Pune, India.

Guidance does require construction sites to have a waking watch or fire warden during “hot work” (welding, burning, riveting, grinding, or the use of a tool that produces a fire or sparks).

However, this is prone to human error and the unpredictability of fire; How long does a spark smoulder before ignition, how long does the person remain ‘watching’ the area after the hot work is completed? Who is watching for ember ignition when the site is vacated at the end of the day?

Bear in mind, too, these waking watch guards usually raise the alarm if they spot a fire using an air horn – hardly an efficient way of alerting co-workers.

All this whilst the fire is spreading, creating the potential for human error – anyone can make mistakes, especially when under pressure, for example, if they themselves feel in harm’s way.

The only effective method of addressing all these issues is to use a temporary wireless evacuation and fire detection system.

Aside from ensuring workers evacuate site as soon as a fire is detected, these technology-based fire alarm systems protect client’s assets from devastating financial consequences, including shareholder and reputational damage, because the blaze can be tackled sooner.

John Harrison, Sales and Marketing Director from Ramtech Electronics, said: “The risk of fire on construction sites is ever-present, and this example at the vaccine factory illustrates the terrible consequences. Temporary evacuation systems – wireless is preferred by many because it is quick and easy to set up – could have avoided this tragedy.”

He added: “With more companies in the pharmaceutical industry ramping up production and extending their facilities, we encourage them all to look at the benefits of temporary wireless evacuation systems.

They are relatively inexpensive; they can even be hired for the duration of the construction project, yet have the potential to save lives and protect businesses from huge financial costs.”

Wireless evacuation and fire detection systems are available that incorporate dust resistant smoke detectors to avoid false alarms in the construction environment.

These automatic detectors are supported by manual call points that can be triggered by any person. Medical alerts add further functionality allowing rescue teams to be deployed immediately to a specific site location, again saving valuable minutes.

Systems are available that have a three-year battery life, so little or no maintenance is required, whilst automatic detection eliminates human error.

When specifying a wireless fire alarm system, it should be compliant to EN 54. Innovation in internet connectivity, apps and the ability to collect, analyse and interpret data in live stream have extended functionality.

Thousands of Ramtech WES wireless fire alarm systems are currently in use protecting key sites for over 75 per cent of the UK’s top 100 construction companies as well as across Europe.

The technology has protected projects as diverse as the Leadenhall Building and Crossrail in London, Heathrow Airport and Sellafield Power Station.

Pharmaceutical companies such as Bayer, Merck, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline are already protecting their investments and people during refurbishments, maintenance, and expansion of their production capabilities with WES.

For more information, please visit www.wesfire.com or request contact at info@ramtech.co.uk

Elastomers are the soft, elastic materials, like gels and rubbers, that are found in automobile and aeroplane parts, in sports equipment, and are used to protect precision machinery and buildings against vibrations.

Scientists now want to make them thinner and tougher, without losing elasticity. Nagoya University materials engineer Yukikazu Takeoka and colleagues reviewed the most recent efforts towards improving elastomers for the journal Science and Technology of Advanced Materials.

“Our review gives hints about the kind of molecular thinking that needs to go into making elastomers tougher,” says Takeoka.

Elastomers are made of many, long molecular chains of repeating subunits. They can undergo large deformations when stretched, returning to their original shape when the tension is released. They can do this because their molecular chains have enough mobility to stretch and crunch up.

Elasticity and overall toughness depend on the interactions between the molecular chains inside the material. Scientists have been working on controlling how chains link together and interact in order to change elastomers’ mechanical properties.

Takeoka and his team from Nagoya University’s department of molecular and macromolecular chemistry explain that elastomers can be made tougher by introducing strong hydrogen or ionic bonds that can reversibly link elastomer chains together.

These reversible bonds attach and detach from the elastomer chains as the material deforms. Scientists have used hydrogen bonds to fabricate strong hydrogels that can deform up to 600% and return to their original state within three minutes at 37°C or a few seconds at 50°C.

Elastomer chains can also be linked through ring-like ‘cyclic’ molecules, giving linked chains a large degree of flexibility and improved toughness.

A team of scientists fabricated a very flexible elastomer by mixing solutions of polyethylene glycol and cyclic alpha-cyclodextrin in water.

Takeoka and his colleagues suggest that further combining elastomers linked by reversible bonds and moving cyclic molecules could lead to even tougher elastomers with better elongation.

“Our review emphasizes the importance of examining molecular behaviour in detail while designing polymer materials,” says Takeoka.

Paper: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14686996.2020.1849931

Following a competitive tender process, Barbour ABI have been awarded the contract to supply the Government Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy with the Renewable Energy Planning Database (REPD).

Over the next two years, Barbour ABI and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) will deliver regular data and interactive mapping tools, a brand new way to analyse the REPD, to support the industry’s businesses and associations with detailed information on renewable energy projects throughout the UK.

The Government announced in November 2020 the ‘Build Back Greener’ campaign – an investment of £134 million to keep the UK’s greenest, most innovative businesses thriving during the coronavirus pandemic.

Therefore, the new REPD will continue to provide an as accurate and comprehensive as possible snapshot of renewable electricity projects and progress across the technology sectors. Barbour ABI will provide additional information on:

• electricity storage projects and renewable energy projects with a capacity of 150KW and over
• heat network planning applications (from Q1 2021 onwards)

Simon Mahoney Group Director at Barbour ABI said, “Construction and infrastructure in the UK is shaped by social and economic developments, and over recent years we have seen greener initiatives and innovations change ours, and, almost every other industry.

We feel privileged to be working in partnership with the Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy Department to empower and inform the UK construction industry on such a prevalent topic together.”

Energy Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said, “Our new partnership with Barbour ABI and our Renewable Energy Planning Database are great assets to support UK businesses and ensure we build back greener.

A snapshot of renewable energy projects and technologies shows us what progress is being made to reach our ambitious goals to eliminate the UK’s contribution to carbon emissions while understanding how we can best support the construction industry.”