More news – Page 2381
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Comment
Prepare for a double dip in construction growth – the implication of today’s GDP figures
The UK is coming out faster from recession than we thought. But the hole was deeper.That seems to be the message from the statisticians’ latest stab at the nation’s output.The increase in fourth quarter GPD was revised upward from 0.1% to 0.3%, which will cheer many not least the Chancellor.But ...
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NewsStairway to heaven
John Mayne of T&B discovered this mysterious escape route propped on the top a three-storey flight of stairs. “Not by us!” he adds quickly.
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Comment
Construction contracts: Unintended consequences
Here’s a curious story in which the drafters of a contract tried to save a little time and paper, and ended up fundamentally changing the nature of the agreement
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CommentAdjudication: Instant justice
As we all know, an adjudicator’s decision is binding until a final decision is made by a court or arbitrator, no matter how wrong it is. But that ‘final decision’ can be made very quickly
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Corporate manslaughter: When they read you your rights
The Corporate Manslaughter Act makes it likely that anyone involved in an investigation will find themselves being grilled in a police interview room. Here’s what they can expect
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Comment
Mangled by the machinery: notice provisions
Generally speaking, the courts are understanding if a party makes a smallish mistake with its notice provisions. But don’t rely on it
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CommentThe Wrekin ruby, episode 25: What’s it worth?
The astonishing tale of the Shropshire contractor and the stone worth somewhere between £11m and £100 has just taken another twist … Emily Wright talks to the man who has just bought it for £8,100
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Comment
Burning issue
That Viridor could be classed as green or incineration portrayed as renewable energy is laughable (Green energy firm to appeal Oxfordshire planning decision, 4 January, building.co.uk)
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Comment
Offering the world
While I read with interest your interview with Mr Shapps, the shadow housing minister (5 February, page 28), your choice of headline was unfortunate for a professional journal
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Comment
Scotland the brave …
The Scottish government’s recent consolidation of 17 planning policies into one document is to be commended
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Scotland the brittle
Recent alarming reports that Scotland’s unemployment rates outstrip the rest of the UK should prompt government at all levels to look afresh at their strategy for bringing this country out of recession
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CommentRobert Adam: The deadly sin of incompetence
Architects love chasing fame but the tiresome stuff of knowing how a building is put together seems beneath them. The sixth of Robert Adam’s seven deadly sins of architecture is incompetence
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Comment
Wonders & Blunders
Dickie Bird hits us for four, squeezing in three favourites – including, wouldn’t you know it, Lord’s cricket ground – and a now defunct baseball park that was getting on a bit
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CommentHansom true colours
As Brookfield and Cleveland Bridge are shown the yellow card, others strut the red carpet of fashion week and make good use of neon dancewear. It’s just Davis Langdon that is left feeling a bit blue
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FeaturesThe two-year rush hour: London’s Park Plaza hotel
Park Plaza has built a 1,000-bedroom hotel and conference centre in the middle of one of London’s noisiest roundabouts. But it was delivering the project in just 24 months that kept the construction team suitably stressed
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FeaturesTaking the law into your own hands
With the number of construction disputes getting ever higher, now could be a good time to hit the books and get some legal qualifications
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FeaturesWinging it: Eddie the Eagle on sport and building
Eddie the Eagle, aka Michael Edwards, soared to international stardom when he flopped in the 1988 Winter Olympics ski jumping event. After the glow faded, he finally came back to earth as a Gloucestershire builder. Emily Wright asked him about a life of brilliant improvisation
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Comment
Greg Verhoef: Get workers to think for themselves
If you want workers to be safe on site, you have to get them to think for themselves. So, we need less bureaucracy and more reliance on our natural sense of danger, says Greg Verhoef
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NewsRenewed energy: Willmott Dixon's primary care centre
Willmott Dixon’s £17m project for Sunderland Teaching primary care trust aims to become the UK’s first BREEAM “outstanding” primary care centre next month