More Comment – Page 472
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CommentWhy is the OFT so unfair?: Coverpricing vs bid-rigging
Question: When is bid-rigging not bid-rigging? Answer: When it’s cover pricing. And it’s about time that our competition watchdog understood the difference
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CommentHansom War of the words
It’s summer and everyone’s getting hot, bothered and a bit worked up, from PRs bickering over press releases to complaints about Chinese cooking and some giggling about a silly name
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CommentPayments in Dubai: On the receiving end
Veterans of the Middle East will tell you that the region doesn’t play by the same rules as, say, Europe or North America
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CommentWhen is a duck an albatross?
Davis Langdon’s recent purchase of architect DEGW may mark another mutation in the DNA of cost managers. But there are reasons to think it will be a problematic one
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Devon’s deadline: Perils of e-tendering
If a contractor has to submit an electronic tender by a certain deadline, what excuses can it offer if it’s a few minutes late? Well, as this case makes clear, there aren’t many …
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CommentLook and learn: Vision vs Lancsville
Even though adjudication is well established, there are still some lessons that can be learned without trying too hard – as Vision Homes vs Lancsville makes clear
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Wonders & blunders - 28 August 2009
Geoff French considers two behemoths of the industrial age, and while he praises the masterful transformation of one, hopes only that the other will be put out of its misery
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CommentTrain drain: Impact of ConstructionSkills’ cutbacks
ConstructionSkills’ cutbacks could mean companies get 20% less in training grants than before, which is why it is important to be aware of all the changes
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How do I… obtain a summary judgment?
In the latest entry in our guide to cutting your legal bills to the bone, Claire McNamara explains why and when and how you should apply for a summary judgment
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On the receiving end
“I would think very hard about working in Dubai again. It has done us a lot of damage.” So says David Marks, the co-founder of architect Marks Barfield. Anyone reading about what happened to him after his client in the emirate quietly stopped paying its bills will find it easy ...
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GDP figures stick with estimate of 2.2% fall in Q2 construction output
No surprises in the GDP figures out today, after the savage revisions made to the previous quarter.Things aren't quite as bad as first thought. GDP was revised up gently from a drop of 0.8% in the second quarter to a drop of 0.7%. This was down to a more favourable ...
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What consultation?
Are other readers, like me, disgusted and frustrated at the so-called consultation on Parts L and F of the Building Regulations
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Fighting the good fight
The worrying figures in your article “Small Steps” on women in industry (31 July, page 3) are no surprise to me
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As a matter of fact
John Stewart (14 August, page 32) points out a couple of alleged errors in my column of 7 August.
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CommentOld panels for new
Your feature on the Grosvenor Waterside buildings by Make (Building 7 August) showed that the patterned aluminium walling has quality when seen up close
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What's new in schools
The £45bn Building Schools for the Future programme proved it’s weathering the recession this week pretty well this week, with two major schemes reaching financial close.The deals - on the first phase of the £2.4bn Birmingham BSF and a £500m scheme in Durham – prove that, despite continuing issues over ...
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Caution rules in house price debate
The latest Nationwide house price survey for August recorded the fourth rise on the trot and puts the average price of a house £12,500 higher than in February. Surely this means the slump is over and the price of houses is back on the way up?Well no, or should I ...
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£9 billion owed in trade debt to UK's building specialists
It's a risky time to be owed money. Contractors and clients in the property world are falling like flies.So it was quite disturbing to calculate that £9 billion is outstanding in trade debt to the UK's building specialist contractors. And that doesn't include all the specialists involved in civils and ...
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Signs of life for housing?
This week has seen the release of data from CLG, covering the second quarter’s housing starts, and CML, providing the latest data on mortgage lending. Both have seen sharp increases. Housing starts in England during the second quarter of 2009 were 63% higher than in 2009 Q1 following the high ...