Skill Builder Guides & reviews for building and construction

Ian Anfield, Managing Director for construction audit and contract provider, Hudson Contract, provides his predictions for the industry in 2017. “There’s no escaping the fact that Brexit will dominate the news and political agenda in 2017 and will have a massive impact on UK construction. This is primarily because we rely so heavily on EU labour to man our construction …

Anyone who tuned into the Band of Builders facebook live auction last Saturday evening, 17th December, which was broadcast via the Band of Builders and Builders Talk group facebook pages, could be forgiven for thinking the event’s organiser Addam Smith was going to take the rest of the year off. (If you haven’t heard Addam and the Band of Builders …

Two Essex-based companies have been fined after exposing workers to potentially deadly asbestos over a period of years, despite knowing of its presence, in units that they occupied in Manor Road Trading Estate, Benfleet. Basildon Magistrates heard that asbestos had been found in poor condition when Connect Packaging Ltd moved into the Benfleet premises in 2007, but that it failed …

Insulation and interior building products distributor CCF, is on the lookout for trade superheroes to win a trip to go to New York City in May 2017. The competition, which invites trade professionals to share what makes them a superhero, runs until 28 February 2017. The competition has been launched as part of a campaign with top insulation suppliers Celotex, …

Snap-happy installers could be in for a Christmas bonus of £150 thanks to a promotion from Baxi to celebrate the launch of its new 200 and 400 combi boilers. Installers can get their hands on one of 50 prizes of £150 by visiting selected merchants, posing with the superhero Baxi Man cut-out and tweeting the picture to @baxiboilers. Exclusively available …

People with more money than sense can now take home the Christmas gadget to end all gadgets, in the form of the new, limited edition Ultimate Christmas Drone. The drone, which can be purchased from the UK drone e-tailer, DronesDirect.co.uk for a mere £1199.00, makes the perfect little Christmas elf and is even equipped to dress the Christmas tree. Deck …

3 companies have been sentenced in Lincoln Crown Court after a worker’s leg was broken in six places when a trench collapsed on him.

A building company and its director have been fined for breaching Gas Safety law after putting a childminder and children in her care at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. Plastic and Wood Specialists Ltd built a structure, that the childminder used to shelter sleeping babies and young children, around the flue outlet for the boiler. A carbon monoxide alarm sounded …

  The trades community will come together tonight via a live facebook auction to raise money for a fellow tradesperson in need. The event, organised by Addam Smith of Band of Builders in conjunction with the Builders Talk facebook group, will be live streamed at around 6pm on their respective facebook pages with viewers invited to bid for tools, workwear …

Roger Bisby tries out the Muck Truck, a pedestrian operated motorised power barrow which is designed to carry three times that of a normal wheelbarrow and will shift loads of up to one quarter of a ton. It is a while now since I tested a Muck-Truck. Last time it was a battery powered machine that surprised me by taking …

A builder from Surrey has been prosecuted for the fall of a worker. Redhill Magistrates heard how the worker fell 3.2 m through an opening in a roof onto a concrete floor. He survived the fall but was left with broken ribs, swelling to his brain and nerve damage. An investigation found that he was part of the team building …

UK boiler manufacturer Baxi has launched a charity calendar for 2017 featuring children’s drawings that send a serious message to grown-ups. The calendar features 12 different pictures, drawn by children of Baxi colleagues. Each one offers a safety tip designed to make sure their parents come home safely. The children’s top tips include not using a mobile phone while driving, …

Travis Perkins, the UK building materials distributor, has been awarded second place in the Building Suppliers category of ‘Britain’s Most Admired Companies’ (BMAC) 2016 awards. Travis Perkins accepted the title, which is awarded based on the largest piece of peer review research of its kind in the UK, at a ceremony attended by some of the county’s top businesses. Commenting …

A specialist roofing company and its two directors have been sentenced after admitting working unsafely at height on a hotel development in central Manchester during a major refurbishment and extension works. On the 17 March 2015, a member of public witnessed and photographed unsafe work at a construction site and contacted the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Manchester Magistrates Court …

A pre-Christmas zero-tolerance nationwide crackdown on fly-tippers is underway  – as councils up and down the country use new powers to seize and crush vehicles used by the dumpers. Councils are also calling for a legal loophole – which means enforcement officers have to give some fly-tippers seven days written warning before inspecting them and seizing evidence – to be …

Two London based construction companies were prosecuted after a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspection identified serious safety breaches on a double basement construction project. Westminster Magistrates Court heard that emergency services had been called to a property at Bathurst Mews, London, where excavation work to form a double basement was being carried out.  They rescued a labourer with a …

Baxi has welcomed and strongly supports the Government’s proposals on changes to Part L1b of the Building Regulations (Conservation of Fuel and Power in Existing Dwellings), outlined in a consultation document launched today (8 December 2016). Incremental changes to boiler installations are being proposed to improve the energy efficiency of existing homes, which will result in lower household energy bills …