Data
News
Housing stats: New build sales and completions in February 2012
This month’s data shows the gap between private and public sector registrations continuing to grow
Planning stats: Residential projects and approvals
One project worth £400m was enough to make Schroder and Stanhope February’s top client
Housing stats: New build sales, starts and completions in December
The end of the year saw registrations down 31% on 2010 across all sectors
Recession looms despite upward revision of output
ONS revises construction output upwards from -0.6% to -0.2% for third quarter
Housing stats: New build sales and completions in January 2012
This month’s data reveals the private sector is rallying while public sector figures are falling away
October contracts drop by 5%
Balfour Beatty tops contractor league as index reveals decline in overall sector workload
Falling demand and rising costs hit manufacturers' confidence
Construction Trade Survey shows 44% of heavy side firms expect sales to fall next year
Cost model
Cost model: Libraries
What is in store for the library? Daniel Pomfrett of Davis Langdon, an Aecom company, and Stuart Hill of Schmidt Hammer Lassen, look at design and cost challenges for the next generation of buildings
Cost model: Standardised schools
As the James Review made clear, the future of schoolbuilding lies with low-cost standard solutions, much as it did in the fifties. Darren Talbot and Stuart Francis of Davis Langdon, an Aecom company, offer an overview of this burgeoning market and consider the costs
Tracker
The tracker: Staying put
Construction activity stayed static last month, with increases in the non-residential and civil engineering sector indices failing to lift them from negative territory, according to Experian Economics
Lead times
Lead times: January-March 2012
Lead times remain extremely low across all trades, with any bottlenecks being absorbed by the pre-construction programmes of contractors eager to win work. Brian Moone of Mace reports
Spotlight: Impact of archaelogical work
The prospect of finding historic artefacts beneath a site is more likely to strike a developer with fear than excitement. But the real danger arises when it isn’t planned for, says Brian Moone
Building intelligence
Building intelligence Q4 2011
The private sector is showing tentative improvements and infrastructure is going strong, but with little public money available the outlook for the sector still looks downbeat. Experian Economics reports
Market forecast
Market forecast: Spring hasn’t sprung
Fears over the eurozone crisis may be subsiding, but construction is still in for a miserable year, with £5.4bn less work than 2011
Market forecast: That sinking feeling
Construction output looks set to fall by 5% in 2012 as new work dries up and the UK, like the rest of Europe, slips back into recession. Peter Fordham of Davis Langdon, an AECOM company, reports
Cost update
Economics: Infrastructure biomass energy
?The biomass sector is gaining momentum and should prove easier for construction firms to break into than either off-shore wind or nuclear energy. Simon Rawlinson of EC Harris and John Busby of Arcadis examine this emerging market
Cost update: Q4 2011
The downward trend in last month’s consumer inflation figures is reflected in falling material prices and a slowdown in construction costs. Peter Fordham of David Langdon, an Aecom company, reports
Whole life costs
Calculating housing lifecycle costs
Q: How do you work out the total cost of a house over a 100-year lifetime without spending hours poring over every single element? Stephen Kennett finds out the answer
Business barometer
New year cheer continues
February orders down on January but improved confidence in the market remains
Special reports
Sustainability costs
It is commonly assumed that going green will rack up the costs of a building project, but a unique study contradicts that view. In this cost model, Cyril Sweett details sustainable solutions for four building types indicating how improvements can be made at little or no extra cost
Lifetime costs
What it costs: Flooring
Level access showers can improve quality of life for disabled users. Peter Mayer of BLP Insurance looks at the design options and lifecycle costs for retrofitting them into existing floors
What it costs: Tiled cladding
Tiles, shingles and slate can provide traditional and thermally efficient covering for external walls. Peter Mayer of BLP Insurance considers the options
Sustainable reports
Energy ratings: Rented property
From April 2018, landlords will no longer be able to let buildings with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of below E without demonstrating that all cost-effective measures to improve energy efficiency have been implemented. Adam Mactavish and Richard Quartermaine of Sweett Group and Charles Woollam of SIAM examine the implications of this policy
Procurement costs
Procurement update
With pressure on the construction industry to drive down costs for clients, how can strategic procurement be used to deliver required savings? Simon Rawlinson of EC Harris looks at the options
Procurement refurbishment
When budgets are tight, refurb can seem the ideal solution. But how do clients and contractors allocate risk and manage outcomes? Simon Rawlinson of Davis Langdon looks at the options
