1. Egg shaped device to boost boiler efficiency wins CIOB innovation award
A simple gadget that takes air out of domestic and commercial water-based heating systems – thereby reducing energy consumption by perhaps 15-30% – was one of three main prize winners in this year’s International Innovation and Research Awards from the CIOB. Read more…
2. Culture change and cuts on the cards at Balfour Beatty
Balfour Beatty’s new “Build to Last” programme promises a shake-up of back-office functions and removal of duplication across a complex group structure that seems likely to result in a wave of redundancies. Read more…
3. CDM 2015 spells safety first – for designers and their PI insurers
Solicitor May Looi of law firm Kennedys looks at the additional risks for designers – and their insurers – under CDM 2015 regulations, which come into force in April. Read more…
4. France and Germany move forward on BIM adoption
The governments of France and Germany both took steps to standardise and promote BIM – with France funding its new digital transition plan with €20m and German ministers setting up an industry-led “Digital Building Platform”. Read more…
5. BIM the backyard – Beard’s £700k BIM project
When a tenant at Beard Construction’s Oxford office wanted a 40m extension built with a curved, glazed facade, Mark Beard FCIOB, the company’s managing director, decided this was an ideal opportunity to get some practical experience of working with BIM. Read more…
6. New generation of construction vehicles launched
A new generation of safer tippers, cement mixers and trucks from six leading vehicle manufacturers was unveiled to industry decision makers at an event on 26 February marking the progress of the Construction Logistics and Cycle Safety campaign. Read more…
7. Economic turmoil kills off £10bn Russian BIM revolution at Gutenborg
The UK companies working on a BIM and Design for Manufacture strategy for St Petersburg’s £10bn housing project parted company with the client after it U-turned on the innovative approach, amid dramatic falls in the rouble’s value and economic sanctions. Read more…
8. Nine architectural visions that could solve the housing crisis
The Royal Academy has invited architects Mæ, Dallas Pierce Quintero, 5th Studio and Sarah Wigglesworth to come up with intriguing ideas to solve the housing crisis. CM has also identified five innovations happening right now that may be key to tackling the housing shortage. Read more…
9. Government warning on Chinese plywood confirm’s industry fears
An official government study concluded that nine out of 13 samples of Chinese plywood imported to the UK contained unauthorised species of timber – including African hardwoods – and only one supplier out of 16 was compliant with the EU Timber Regulations (EUTR). Read more…
10. Surveyor skills shortage approaching critical level, warns RICS
More than 85% of surveyors questioned in an RICS survey said that a lack of qualified candidates meant they had problems recruiting. And already, the lack of qualified and capable surveying staff has meant that funded projects are being turned down by many companies. Read more…
Top in Management
Opening our eyes to supply Chain Ethics
Loughborough University’s Jacqueline Glass reports on the progress of the Action Programme for Responsible Sourcing – and the distance the construction industry still has to travel. Read more…
Top in Comment
Straw is low-cost, low-carbon, and we need to use it more
As straw bale houses went on sale in Bristol, Peter Walker, who runs a BRE research centre at Bath University, calls for wider use of straw as a building material. Read more…
Top in International
Russia launches inquiry into World Cup costs
The costs of building stadia for Russia’s 2018 World Cup are rising and the government has launched a ministerial inquiry into why. The move comes as the government has cut overall World Cup spending by 10. Read more…
