Articles by Date : April 14 2008 - April 20 2008

Chavs abuse Bullock builders
Construction workers employed by Bullock were been forced retreat from a North Lincolnshire estate after a number of "serious incidents". more
(18 April 2008 17:48)

Bid-rigging: just 9 firms alleged to have benefited financially
Only nine of the 112 contractors named as suspects in the OFT's investigation into bid-rigging are alleged to have benefited financially from dodgy.... more
(18 April 2008 16:27)

Birse Civils scoop 11 Considerate Constructors awards
Birse Civils came out on top at today’s Considerate Constructors awards, scooping 11 nods for projects, including the Most Considerate Site. more
(18 April 2008 16:27)

Cemex given OK to use green fuel at cement plant
Cemex has been granted permission by cement industry regulator, the Environment Agency (EA), to use a waste-derived fuel, Climafuel, to part-replace.... more
(18 April 2008 15:47)

Bid-rigging: Councils may sue, says APSE
A not-for-profit local government body has warned that councils may sue contractors for losses if they are found guilty of bid-rigging. more
(18 April 2008 12:00)

Three former Amey Mouchel workers jailed for racist campaign
Three former Amey Mouchel workers have been jailed for three years each following a campaign of racist intimidation against a fellow employee. more
(18 April 2008 10:43)

Weston Group pays trade creditors in just eight days
Weston Group puts most of the construction industry to shame with the speed in which it pays its trade creditors - just eight days. more
(18 April 2008 10:00)

Thomas Armstrong (Construction) makes 4.8% margin
Thomas Armstrong (Construction) has turned in another sparkling profit margin, the latest figure of 4.8% following hard on the heels of last year’s.... more
(18 April 2008 09:00)

The 16 point Lifetime Homes standard
In February this year, communities minister Hazel Blears announced that from 2011, all social housing must be designed and built to meet the '16.... more
(18 April 2008 00:00)

The Government's 12 social housing commitments
The lowdown on the social housing commitments made by the government in last year's housing green paper. more
(18 April 2008 00:00)

CV 08: Ford unveils new Transit - VIDEO
Ford showed a low roof version of its medium wheelbase Transit at CV 2008. more
(18 April 2008 00:00)

Bid-rigging: Willmott Dixon 'disappointed' to be named in investigation
Willmott Dixon is "disappointed" to be named as one of 112 contractors under suspicion in an OFT investigation into cover pricing, it said today in a.... more
(17 April 2008 18:00)

Two builders rescued after well shaft plunge
Emergency services have rescued two men who fell 12m down a well shaft at a derelict school in Sheffield. more
(17 April 2008 17:42)

British developers should stop complaining, says sultan
British developers need to stop complaining about climate change and start doing something about it. more
(17 April 2008 16:13)

Bid-rigging: Carillion, Kier, ISG respond to OFT accusations
Some of the biggest names implicated in the OFT bid-rigging investigation into construction have issued their responses. more
(17 April 2008 14:29)

Bid-rigging: maximum penalties 'unlikely'
It is unlikely that the OFT will impose the maximum fine of 10% of contractors' relevant turnover, even if they were found guilty of bid rigging, the.... more
(17 April 2008 14:20)

Bid-rigging: ODA plays down accusations of cover pricing
The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has played down today’s announcement by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) that Balfour Beatty, its contractor for.... more
(17 April 2008 14:00)

Bid-rigging: cowboy practices 'widespread' says POD
The Office of Fair Trading’s (OFT) list of 112 firms allegedly engaged in bid-rigging and ‘cover pricing’ “shows how widespread cowboy practices are.... more
(17 April 2008 12:46)

Bid-rigging: FMB slams big companies
The Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has reacted to the OFT's investigation into bid rigging in construction by slamming big contractors, accusing.... more
(17 April 2008 12:43)

Bid-rigging: how accused companies shares fared this morning
How shares in the companies accused of bid-rigging fared this morning more
(17 April 2008 12:00)

Bid-rigging: UCATT calls for “maximum possible penalties ” to guilty firms
UCATT has called on any companies found guilty of bid-rigging by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to receive the “maximum possible penalties ”. more
(17 April 2008 11:24)

Bid-rigging: Construction Confederation calls for 'sensible' response
The Construction Confederation (CC) has appealed for the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to come up with a "sensible and proportionate" response to its.... more
(17 April 2008 10:58)

The 112 firms accused by the OFT bid-rigging investigation
A list of the 112 construction companies named by the Office of Fair Trading in a Statement of Objection (SO) , alleging they have engaged in.... more
(17 April 2008 10:20)

Construction bid-rigging timeline
This page provides a timeline of the five-year OFT (Office of Fair Trading) investigation into construction bid-rigging, including links to all key.... more
(17 April 2008 09:16)

Construction bid-rigging Q&A
An overview of theOFT (Office of Fair Trading) investigation into construction bid-rigging, including: background to the investigation; a list of all.... more
(17 April 2008 09:16)

Bid-rigging: Balfour Beatty granted leniency by OFT
Balfour Beatty has been granted leniency by the Office of Fair Trading in its bid-rigging investigation, thereby reducing any fines which may be.... more
(17 April 2008 09:05)

PFI: MPs criticse Government decision to delay accounting standards
MPs have criticised the Government's decision to delay the introduction of international accounting standards, warning that it opened the way for.... more
(17 April 2008 07:40)

Callcutt's housing report: still no response from ministers
Almost five months after he produced his report on how to improve delivery to meet ambitious government housing targets, John Callcutt has still not.... more
(17 April 2008 07:21)

Morgan Ashurst: Amec contribution lifts margin
Morgan Ashurst’s ability to generate a decent profit margin last year was a tale of two distinct parts... more
(17 April 2008 05:00)

Bid-rigging: OFT accuses 112 construction companies
The OFT has named 112 construction companies yesterday in a Statement of Objections this morning, alleging they have been involved in bid-rigging.... more
(17 April 2008 00:01)

Styles & Wood: management make £81m bid to go private
The top two who head up fit-out specialist Styles & Wood want to buy the company that they floated on the Stock Exchange two years ago and take it.... more
(17 April 2008 00:00)

Costain M25 death: police investigate reversing lorry
Kent Police and the Health and Safety Executive are understood to have identified a reversing lorry as key to the death of a 38-year-old Costain.... more
(16 April 2008 17:32)

Edmund Nuttall company profile
An overview of civil engineering contractor Edmund Nuttall, including: information about Edmund Nuttall’s operations; latest news about Edmund.... more
(16 April 2008 14:06)

Water workers attacked with machete
Two Scottish Water workers were attacked with machetes after responding to an out-of-hours water supply problem in Port Glasgow. more
(16 April 2008 12:52)

Mears company profile
An overview of social housing repairs and maintenance contractor Mears, including: information about Mears' operations; latest news about Mears'; and.... more
(16 April 2008 12:50)

Metronet rejects union pleas on Tube electrical work
Unite warns that using non-JIB registered firms on Tube work could cause unrest. more
(16 April 2008 12:09)

Major housebuilders told to share commercial secrets
EST says an 'open-book' approach will help smaller firms meet green targets. more
(16 April 2008 12:08)

Modular firm fined £100k after "pointless" death
A Liverpool modular building specialist has been fined £100,000 after a construction worker was killed and another seriously injured when a half-ton.... more
(16 April 2008 11:37)

£60bn in PFI contracts comes under fire
Private Finance Initiatives (PFI) in the National Health Service (NHS) have come under fire, after it was revealed the NHS is locked into PFI.... more
(16 April 2008 10:42)

Builders are "lazy and incompetent", says Eddie Shah
Newspaper boss turned housebuilder Eddie Shah has branded construction workers as “lazy and incompetent”. more
(16 April 2008 10:34)

£13m makeover for Fife hotel
More than £13m will be spent to refurbish a Fife hotel which was the venue for historic Northern Ireland peace talks. more
(16 April 2008 10:31)

House prices slump 1.6%
A major fall in house prices looks likely after official figures released yesterday showed a 1.6% fall in prices in February. more
(16 April 2008 10:25)

Hochtief (UK) ends loss-making spell
Hochtief (UK) Construction has got itself out of the red with a pre-tax profit of £2.5m on turnover of £47m. more
(16 April 2008 10:00)

Dean & Dyball wins £19m Southampton cruise terminal job
Dean & Dyball has won a £19 million job to build a new cruise terminal for Associated British Ports’ at Southampton. more
(16 April 2008 10:00)

JCB HiViz Loadall - VIDEO
The JCB HiViz Loadall is a low-boom telehandler design offering superior visibility and productivity. more
(16 April 2008 08:50)

Laing O'Rourke reshuffle sees power passed to project leaders
Chief about to sign off far-reaching restructure of UK and European operations. more
(16 April 2008 08:45)

Self-employment fears over new pensions regime
More site workers could be pushed into self-employment by the new mandatory pensions regime that the government is introducing in 2012. more
(16 April 2008 00:00)

Hosplant satisfied with Takeuchi settlement
Machinery dealer Hosplant has settled a case it brought against Takeuchi (Mfg) UK on terms it described as "hugely beneficial". more
(16 April 2008 00:00)

HSS sets the ball rolling with 'super depots' initiative
New Manchester facility aims to improve service levels. more
(16 April 2008 00:00)

2007 showed the big getting bigger in construction
As the top 10 biggest earners doubled pre-tax profit, 2007 proved to be a bumper year for construction. And with acquisition the order of the day,.... more
(16 April 2008 00:00)