Skill Builder Guides & reviews for building and construction
A landscaping services company has been sentenced after a worker was seriously injured when a retaining wall collapsed into a trench.
Read More »Landscaping Company Fined After Worker Injured by Wall Collapse
How to install a bathroom
A longer video from Roger this time talking through how to install a bathroom which contains useful information for plumbers, installers and householders alike. Roger is installing a bathroom from Abacus because he likes the way the British manufacturer designs its bathrooms with British plumbing systems in mind making them easy to install.
Read More »Hackitt Review Provides a Blueprint for Wider Change
The Dame Judith Hackitt Review into Building Regulations provides a blueprint for ensuring competence in construction should be extended across the industry.
Read More »Construction worker suffers multiple injuries after being crushed by dumper
A groundworks company has been fined after an employee suffered serious internal injuries while working in an excavation at Ghyllgrove Junior & Infants School in Basildon. Southend Magistrates’ Court heard how a site dumper was parked at a slight incline on a heap of excavated soil, adjacent to a partially backfilled trench. The dumper had been left unattended with the …
Read More »Makita DLS110Z Review – Cordless Slide Mitre Saw
Following his video review Roger looks at the Makita DLS110Z Twin 18v Cordless LXT BL Slide Compound Mitre Saw in more detail. I have always had my reservations about cordless mitre saws and that includes all makes and sizes. It isn’t that they don’t work, it is just that they don’t work as well as mains powered machines and, for …
Read More »Time for a General Builder Qualification, Says FMB
Almost 80% of builders are calling for more regulation in the construction industry to end the tyranny of cowboy builders, according to the FMB.
Read More »Home Improvements Company Fined After Worker Falls From Garage Roof
A home improvements company has been fined after a worker was significantly injured falling from a garage roof and the company failed to report the incident for nine months.
Read More »Graphene concrete set to revolutionise construction industry
A new greener, stronger and more durable concrete that is made using the wonder-material graphene could revolutionise the construction industry. Experts from the University of Exeter have developed a pioneering new technique that uses nanoengineering technology to incorporate graphene into traditional concrete production. The new composite material, which is more than twice as strong and four times more water resistant …
Read More »Canon EOS M50 – Is This a Good Vlogging Camera?
The Canon EOS M50 is a good option if you're thinking about starting vlogging because it's a decent camera that doesn't cost the earth.
Read More »Small builders waiting over a year for bricks as material prices rocket
More than half of small building firms say that rising material prices are squeezing their margins and the same percentage have had to pass these price increases onto consumers, according to the latest research by the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). Small and medium-sized (SME) building firms were asked which materials are in shortest supply and have the longest wait …
Read More »Light & Flexible One GTX Safety Shoe
The One GTX from Solid Gear is said to be a superbly constructed safety shoe with seven integrated layers to deliver excellent comfort and protection.
Read More »Professional Hoodie Range
Snickers has released a new range of knitted hoodies for professional craftsmen and women. The range includes ‘Full Zip’ and ‘Over-Head’ options and they’re the ideal combination with Snickers’ First and Second Layer Undergarments and can comfortably be worn under a jacket on chilly days. With a contemporary design, four colour options and a double-lined hood for extra warmth, these …
Read More »Snickers Solid Gear Lagoon safety shoe – first look
In this video Skill Builder Editor Georgina Bisby takes a first look at the Solid Gear Lagoon female safety footwear offering from Snickers. This is Snickers first safety shoe for women and prioritises comfort as well as safety. “I was really impressed with how light the shoe was as well as the flexible sole. I will provide an update once …
Read More »Kitchen sink drama – Plumbers with rescuer syndrome
I was working on a roof trying to get it done, I had no plumbing tools on board and suddenly I was plumbing. Uni had tried to sort out her plumbing problem, good luck to her but one look at it told me she was in too deep and… she had people coming to dinner. What are you going to …
Read More »Decking ideas – the surprising benefits of composite decking
Skill Builder Editor Georgina Bisby shares her findings about developments in composite decking products. Like many man-made products the look and feel of composite decking has come a long way in recent years. Until now I had always seen composite decking as a compromise; sacrifice the look of timber decking for the convenience of a composite product but this …
Read More »Construction slave-owner jailed for seven years
A Romanian man who enslaved up to 15 men, offering demolition work and then using violence to trap them, has been jailed for seven years. David Lupu, 29, promised the men £50 per day as well as accommodation, but instead paid them just a fraction of the wage, housed them in cramped conditions and confiscated their ID papers. Metropolitan Police …
Read More »Baxi IFOS In Flue Outdoor Sensor
Baxi has officially launched the pioneering Baxi IFOS In Flue Outdoor Sensor, which is designed to help make Boiler Plus compliance simple.
Read More »Surveyor fined after failing to detect asbestos
A specialist asbestos company has been fined after failing to detect asbestos at a demolition site. Greater Manchester Magistrates’ Court heard how EAS Asbestos Limited were commissioned to conduct refurbishment and demolition surveys by Mercer Brother Limited, a construction company who were contracted to demolish garages for Hyndburn Homes. EAS Asbestos stated in their surveys that asbestos was only present …
Read More »PROJECT SERIES: Extending 35A Part 4 – Roof timbers
Extending 35A is our third project series on Skill Builder and looks back at a single storey extension that Roger worked on many years ago. In Part 4 of our 35A Extension series, we see a young Robin Clevett go to work on the roof timbers in his first appearance with the Skill Builder team.
Read More »Building contractor jailed after house collapse in Brighton
A building contractor has been sentenced following an incident in February 2015 in which a house in Brighton partially collapsed. Hove Crown Court heard how builder Glen Peters (trading as Brow Builders) undermined the structural integrity of the house by digging out the basement. He then failed to act on the advice of a structural engineer on how to remedy …
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