More than 80 per cent of construction workers believe Brexit will damage the UK’s industry and prevent high-profile government infrastructure projects from being delivered, a new study suggests. Researchers at Birmingham City University have been examining the views of people working in the sector to see how they believe jobs, projects and industry will be impacted by Britain’s withdrawal from …

Should basement waterproofing design use a barrier method or a cavity drainage system or both? A series of continuing professional development (CPD) seminars from Safeguard Europe – the specialist in damp-proofing and waterproofing technology – has been designed to help answer that question and more. The seminars are grounded on the latest documents and standards, drawing on BS 8102: 2009 …

Michael Holmes, property expert and spokesperson for The Northern Homebuilding & Renovating Show (3-5 November 2017, HCC, Harrogate), offers some thoughts on the state of the UK housing market. “The cause of the housing crisis in the UK is simple enough for any GCSE economics student to understand: there are too many people chasing too few homes to either buy …

The CITB has one last chance to fundamentally reform and start facilitating quality training en masse among the construction industry’s smaller firms, according to the Federation of Master Builders (FMB). The FMB has announced its qualified support for the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) as part of the consensus process, submitting its official letter to the CITB’s Chief Executive Sarah …

A survey of over 200 trainee roofers has suggested that fear of injury or death is the biggest concern for 43% of them. Of the 212 surveyed by Redland, 63 said that they were most worried about falling from height, 12 cited health and safety issues, 11 said injuries and five said they feared death. The budding roofers are all …

Insulation manufacturer Celotex, who supplied insulation to Grenfell Tower, has recalled five polyisocyanurate rigid foam board based product lines after one of the lines failed fire rating tests. In a statement the company, which is part of the Saint-Gobain group, said: “After careful consideration, we have taken the decision to temporarily suspend supply of some of our 5000 product range …

The UK construction sector’s efforts to improve the health and mental wellbeing of its workforce have been stepped up with the full roll out of the Mates in Mind initiative. Mates in Mind has led in the creation of a flexible and joined up approach that is tailored to the needs of individual construction companies as they seek to tackle …

The ideal ‘forever home’ for the average British homeowner is a four-bedroom, detached house in the country, worth £458,000 – and just down the road from Mum, it has emerged. A detailed study of 2,000 UK homeowners, carried out by Origin, the British manufacturer of bespoke aluminium bi-folding doors, residential doors and windows, also found that homeowners hanker after a …

A leading Midlands construction firm has unveiled record turnover, bucking the national trend which reported a 9% drop nationwide. Besblock, which has two factories in Telford producing award-winning concrete blocks, said turnover was up 65% year-on-year. It flies in the face of a national slump which was blamed for dragging down Q2 growth. Sales director Martin Fulwell said efficiencies in …

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, …

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 …

V12 Puma IGS work boots review. Roger tries out a pair of V12 Honey Nubuck Safety Boots.

Two South West based companies have been fined after a 44-year old woman was struck by scaffolding. Weymouth Magistrates’ Court heard how employees of Carter Training Ltd were using a mobile crane on the building project in Queen Mothers Square, Poundbury, Dorchester when the attachment holding 500 scaffolding fittings weighing 2kg each was turned on its side emptying all contents …

Roger Bisby visits Marley Eternit HQ in Burton on Trent to try the Marley Eternit Universal Dry Verge Fixing System.

Skill Builder’s ‘Day in the life’ feature takes a look at a typical day in the life of different tradespeople. Here we talk to Tim Bryant of T Byrant Builders Ltd, who was the winner of insulation and interior building products distributor CCF’s Trade Superhero competition winning a trip to New York City in May 2017. Tim was crowned victorious …

Roger Bisby tries out British Gypsum’s Thistle Bonding 60 that is designed to dry in one hour and accept any type of finish you care to use. You have to hand it to British Gypsum they keep going after new markets for their bagged plasters. The latest target in their sights is the making good and small repair market. This …

Roger Bisby tries out a few Knipex grips and laments a life of losing tools. Having spent a great deal of my working life as a plumber/builder Knipex is a brand I know very well and it seems I’m not alone. When I recently used a pair of inferior slip joint grips in a plumbing demonstration and struggled, the calls …

Skill Builder’s ‘Day in the life’ feature takes a look at a typical day in the life of different tradespeople. In this installment, we talk to Richie Maxwell, the winner of Screwfix’s Top Tradesperson 2016, who shares his winning attitude to work and life and tells us that bricklaying is in his blood. Name: Richie Maxwell Trade: Bricklayer/Stonemason/Builder Company: RDM …

The Labour Party’s proposal to link up housing and skills policy would be the right approach for a post-Brexit UK, the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has said in response to the publication of the Labour Party’s manifesto. Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the FMB, said: “Labour’s pledge to integrate housing and skills policy is the right approach to tackling …