Articles by Date : April 10 1995 - April 16 1995

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The entire construction industry is leaner and more competitive but nowhere more so than the concrete sector. Although traditional markets have.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

PREFABRICATION VERSUS IN-SITU SITE COSTS
Prefabrication got a bad name for itself in the 1960s, when elements such as prefabricated concrete sometimes failed to meet the grade. But the.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

PROBABLE MEMBERS OF THE MAJORS GROUP
nAmec nJohn Laing nTarmac nBalfour Beatty nAlfred McAlpine nTaylor Woodrow nBovis nRobert McAlpine .... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

OVER-SPECIFIED AND UNDER-USED
Over-specification has dogged UK buildings for years, especially in the high quality office market. Over-specification tends to rise when there is.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

STANDARDISATION MEANS LESS WASTE
Standardisation can be divided into two areas: the standardisation of components within a one-off building, and standard designs, products and.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

PART FIVE - cutting COSTS BY 30% - MADE TO MEASURE OR OFF-THE-PEG?
US and European buildings are more likely to be prefabricated with lower specifications and more standard components than in the UK - they are.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

BIGGEST EVER BAUMA
Bauma '95 was the biggest ever, but with a waiting list of over 200 companies still trying to squeeze in, it is still not big enough and that is.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

jubilee DELAYS
n Contract 102 (Balfour Beatty/ Amec) - delays in tunnelling caused by NATM ban. Plus 16 week delay at Westminster station due to design changes.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

THE WAY FORWARD
Combating over-specification has to be largely client and architecturally led. However, if contractors can get on-board early enough they have the.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Jarvis tipped to buy Shanks division
Romford-based contractor Jarvis is expected to announce the acquisition of Shanks McEwan's construction services arm soon. Industry sources.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Home Office set to award dbfo prisons
The Home Office is due to select its preferred contractors for the long awaited first two DBFO prisons this week - the 800-cell prison at Bridgend,.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Haynes angers road planners
Councils could play a greater role in transport planning, according to Transport secretary Brian Mawhinney. In his sixth and last speech to.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Firms face Jubilee time battle
Jubilee Line contractors on seven of the project's 10 major civils packages are being forced to reprogramme work in a battle to make up for delays.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Standard's dropping
Spare a thought for Murphy Construction which is carrying out repair work on Westminster Bridge where regular traffic jams build up right outside.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Firms in clear on subbie plant
Main contractors are under no obligation to safeguard sub-contractor's equipment on their sites, Law Lords ruled at the Appeal Court this week. .... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Govt goes cool on Latham law
Construction Minister Lord Ullswater has dropped a heavy hint that the Government may be backing off from introducing legislation to outlaw unfair.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Jumpy hotel guests
The beautiful Coombe Abbey near Coventry has just been converted from a run-down monastery into a luxury - if somewhat quirky - hotel under a.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

in brief
Declan Kelly dies Declan Kelly, best known as the developer behind the troubled Carlton Gate Housing project, has died suddenly at the age of.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Tarmac hits back at Govt payments
Tarmac has accused the Government of double standards in calling for subcontractors to be paid on time while its own record of paying main.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Small firms seek reduction in VAT
Small builders are renewing their demands for a reduction in VAT on renovation and alteration work for all housing in the wake of the latest state.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Construction orders improve
New orders for construction work continued to improve between December and February with the private industrial sector making the most headway with.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

WHEEL OF FORTUNE TAKES A RIGHT TURN
On the face of it, after the telephone-number losses of the past four years, this season's results are a return to modest respectability. Profits.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Amey spots silver lining
A leading civil engineering contractor this week predicted a œ1.6 billion a year boom for the industry, more than compensating for planned.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

The Party's over for Gummer
Once again CJ's picture caption competition prompted a flood of faxes to our office. We asked what karaoke song Environment Secretary John Gummer.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

HOT LINE
The pick of new contracts won by Clugston are a new superstore for Wm. Morrison Supermarkets in Wigan, a œ3.6m contract near Harwich for.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Gammon to build San Miguel factory in HK
Gammon Construction has won a œ25 million contract to build a new brewery for beer manufacturer San Miguel in Hong Kong. The work covers.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

œ100m Manchester plan ends in a deal
The long running stand-off which has stymied the œ100 million redevelopment of the Great Northern Warehouse in central Manchester has finally.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

I-R buys Clark for $86 per share
US construction equipment manufacturer, Ingersoll-Rand, is to buy Clark Equipment for $86 per share - $9 per share more than expected (see CJ, 6.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Pacific Quay gets backing
Glasgow Development Agency's œ80 million Pacific Quay plan for the former Garden Festival site in Glasgow has been given the backing of.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Seabank seeks bids for pipeline
Seabank Power is inviting contractors to prequalify for a 42-in, 75-bar(g) 25km long natural gas transmission pipeline in North Avon with.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Morrison to build œ8m aqua centre
Morrison Construction is to build a new œ8m aquatic centre at Bught Park, Inverness for the district council. The centre will house a 25m x.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Tarmac awarded œ10m TV glass factory work
Tarmac has won a œ10 million contract to build the first phase of a TV glass factory in Cardiff, as tipped by CJ, 2 March 1995. The.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Tsing Ma bridge strung
Cable spinning on the giant œ550 million Tsing Ma suspension bridge in Hong Kong was completed last week by Cleveland Structural Engineering,.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Productivity gets a boost
UK contractors are set to improve their efficiency by sharing 'best practice' information through a new Construction Productivity Network. The.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

in brief
714s beware: It's a double whammy Changes to the 714 tax certificate scheme pose a double hazard for subcontractors, according to.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

BMP boss makes 'one voice' plea
A call for the construction industry's three major umbrella bodies to come together as a single unified voice has been made by Peter Jansen,.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

North Haven starts on new Sunderland homes
North Haven Developments, a consortium of Leech Homes and Bowey Homes, has started work on phase one of a œ22 million scheme to build 300.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Countryside takes on œ10.4m homes
Countryside in Partnership has taken on a further œ10.8 million worth of contracts for South Thames Housing Partnership to design and build.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Housing hopes for Easter buyers
Housebuilders are looking anxiously towards this Easter weekend which they hope will herald the start of the house buying season. The long weekend.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Asbestos drive 'failing'
The HSE's asbestos campaign - set up at the beginning of the year - is inadequate and fails to take into account new safety regulations, according.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Mowlem bags N-S phase 2
Mowlem Civil Engineering has picked up its second contract on the Coventry North-South route, winning phase 2 with a bid of œ13.6 million. The.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Speaking plainly
Sir Roland Smith, chairman of Hepworth, is in great demand as a public speaker.Last week, Sir Roland's Wednesday lunchtime engagement was the.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

The four Bens
The first of 1,500 Lego buildings has arrived at Legoland, the theme park being built under an œ80 million contract project managed by Bovis.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

TH wins œ23m pumphouse
Trafalgar House Construction has been confirmed as the contractor for the œ23 million design and construct contract for the upgrade of Abbey.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Hochtief/Kier jv secures œ64.7m A299 scheme
The Hochtief/Kier joint venture has secured a œ64.7 million contract for the A299 Thanet Way scheme in Kent, beating off bids from Costain and.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

CRA survey shows drop in concrete jobs
High expectations among concrete repair specialists that workload was set to increase have been dashed by the latest state of trade survey carried.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

... as HSE loses inspectors
Contractors and politicians have condemned the HSE's restructuring plans which have seen 31 senior inspectors and 21 HSE managers taking early.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

Center Parcs saga over, says McAlpine
Alfred McAlpine claims that all but a handful of subcontractor claims on its strife-torn Center Parcs site at Longleat, Wiltshire, have been.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

COLOURFUL CONCRETE
Tarmac's subsidiary, Topmix are about to launch a colourful new range of concrete onto the market. The new range is a series of coloured ready mix.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)

PRE-CAST PERFECTION
The role of pre-casting in construction is changing as the industry realises fast-track programmes and keeping site time to a minimum can only.... more
(13 April 1995 00:00)