Firm Fined After Exposing Workers to Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome

Construction boss jailed

An engineering firm has been fined for failing to control the risk to employees using handheld power tools from Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS). Manchester and Salford Magistrates heard how Newfield Fabrications Co Ltd (NFCL) failed to ensure the risks to its employees from exposure was adequately controlled. The company also failed to ensure its employees were given sufficient information, …

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LGA calls for ‘urgent and immediate’ building regulation review

building regulation review

The Local Government Association has called on government to launch an “urgent and immediate” review of building regulations in the wake of the Grenfell Tower catastrophe. Lord Porter, LGA Chairman, said: “Following on from the Grenfell Tower tragedy, we want the Government to begin an urgent and immediate review of building regulations. We cannot wait for the result of the …

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Keylite Polar PVC Roof Window Review

Keylite Polar

Keylite Polar is a brand new white PVC roof window which is said to establish a new standard in maintenance free, energy efficient roof windows. Roger Bisby takes a closer look. It surprised me to learn that the number of white roof windows now being sold in the UK is almost half of the total and if the trend continues …

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Mercedes-Benz pick-up truck revealed

Mercedes-Benz pick-up truck

Mercedes-Benz has revealed its first pick-up truck – the hotly anticipated Mercedes-Benz X-Class which will be available in Europe from November at a price of 37,294 Euro.  The Mercedes-Benz X-Class is said to push the boundaries of the modern pick-up – designed to be used as a rugged, all-terrain pickup but also as a vehicle for urban lifestyles and families. The …

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Workplace fatality figures reveal need for modern training methods

Workplace fatality figures

The construction industry must do more to ensure health and safety compliance and avoid incidents, according to specialist training provider Develop Training Limited (DTL). The company’s comments follow publications of the Health & Safety Executive’s annual workplace fatality figures, which revealed that across the UK, more than 135 workers were fatally injured between April 2016 and March 2017 with the …

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Contractor fined £10,000 after electrician is paralysed falling off own ladder

Construction boss jailed

London contractor Meadows WR LLP (MWR) has been fined after a 60 year-old man fell off a ladder, through an opening and down to the lower floor of a house in St Albans. St Albans Crown Court heard how the 60-year-old man, Mr Kundi, died three years after the incident. MWR contracted him to part demolish and refurbish a property …

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PassivSystems Partners with ENGIE

smart heating controls

Following ENGIE’s recent move into the UK home energy market ­ the energy and services company has announced it will provide smart heating controls from PassivSystems to customers choosing its new three-year fixed ENGIE Control tariff. The controls, which are part of the PassivLiving HEAT service, will provide homeowners with the ability to regulate their living space and water heating …

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Lighting ideas to help sell a property

Lighting ideas

Whether you are building a house or renovating a property for sale, it’s important to consider your lighting scheme from the outset, says Luke Czerpak. The power of good lighting is often underestimated when planning a new build or renovation, but it is one of the simplest and most cost effective ways of showcasing a property. The right lighting can …

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Construction lagging on gender diversity, says Pipeline report

quality of construction work

Women Count 2017, the second annual report by the Pipeline, has tracked and analysed the number of women on Executive Committees of FTSE 350 companies and has found that progress on gender diversity in senior roles has regressed. With only 16% of members on Executive Committees being women, the same percentage as 2016, there has been no progress. Also, more …

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Redland Apprentice Roofing’s Top 10

Redland Apprentice

Somerset’s Joe Stradling has won the prestigious title of Redland Apprentice of the Year against stiff competition as one of ten of the country’s best roofing apprentices. In a West Country double, Cornishman Tom Knight was awarded Highly Commended, a category created to acknowledge how close he was to the top award. Joe, who works West Country Tiling in Frome, …

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Triton Geared Eccentric Orbital Sander review

Triton Geared Eccentric Orbital Sander review

Roger Bisby revs up with the Triton Geared Eccentric Orbital Sander. Ah! life can get very confusing. No sooner do we all get used to a random orbit and then Triton comes out with ‘eccentric’ orbit. When does an orbit cease being random and become eccentric or is it the other way round? Is there a difference? No sooner do …

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Safeguard Roxil Range Review

Safeguard Roxil Range Review

Roxil? If you have never heard of it join the club, this is my first brush with the product, says Roger Bisby in his review of the Roxil Outdoor Protection Range from Safeguard Europe.

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Four month wait for good builders, new research reveals

Carillion's SME

Home owners should book in their builder at least four months before their project begins or risk working with a cowboy, new research from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has revealed. The research also shows that many consumers don’t ask their builders for essentials such as a contract or references when embarking upon a major piece of building work. …

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App to help builders resolve disputes with ‘cowboy customers’

cowboy customers

You worked overtime for the new customer who was keen to have it finished on time, and sent your invoice promptly. Now you’re working on your next job, and need payment for the last one. The weeks tick by and no payment arrives. You call, text and email – nothing. Then you send a strongly worded letter, and the response …

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Balfour predicts human free construction sites by 2050

human free construction sites

Balfour Beatty believes the construction site of 2050 will be in stark contrast to what we see today – predicting it will be human-free with work moved off-site, remote control of machinery and new materials and techniques exploited to improve cost, safety and efficiency. The international infrastructure group has laid out its vision in its paper “Innovation 2050: A Digital …

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Fischer fixings review

Fischer fixings review

Roger Bisby tries out a dynamic duo from fischer fixings. I am always interested in looking at new fixings. It seems to be one of those Dragon’s Den type products that every Tom Dick and Harry thinks they can improve and in the end most of these bright ideas seem to be variations on the same theme rather than radical …

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