Articles by Date : August 14 2006 - August 20 2006

Deutz operating profit doubles
Cologne-based engine manufacturer Deutz has increased its operating profit by more than 50% in the first half of 2006 to £23m. more
(18 August 2006 15:00)

T Clarke's interim results show £100m turnover
T Clarke, the electrical contractor, has unveiled an interim turnover of £100m. The figure is 9% higher than in the first half of 2005. more
(18 August 2006 10:00)

Ashtead's yo-yoing stock bounces back
Ashtead’s shares price was on the road to recovery again yesterday, after the company’s stock lost around half its value in just three months. more
(17 August 2006 17:00)

Thames Water apologises for black-out caused by contractors' digger
Contractors working for Thames Water deprived 800 Gloucestershire homes of power and set fire to a nearby field after they smashed through overhead.... more
(17 August 2006 15:00)

Construction fatality statistics show record low number of deaths
The construction industry in Great Britain suffered 59 fatalities in the year to 31 March 2006, the lowest number on record, according to provisional.... more
(17 August 2006 11:07)

JCB releases Dieselmax film
JCB has released an exclusive video interview with Dieselmax project director Dr Tim Leverton, which includes footage of the car on practice runs.... more
(17 August 2006 10:00)

Multiplex withdraws from White City
Multiplex has withdrawn from the £1.5bn White City development in London. From today Westfield, the developer of the project, will take charge of all.... more
(17 August 2006 09:00)

Legal: The law of assignment
Can a party who is assigned rights under a contract recover more from the contract-breaker that the assignor could have done had there been no.... more
(16 August 2006 20:00)

Where do you read yours?
The North Pole? The top of the Eiffel Tower? Sutton High Street? Show us the most unusual place you have read Contact Journal and become a winner! more
(16 August 2006 16:18)

M74 trunk road extension in Scotland up for grabs
The massive M74 trunk road extension deal in Scotland has come up for grabs for the second time. more
(16 August 2006 16:16)

Barratt receives poison-package threat
Barratt employees in England and Scotland have received packages claiming to contain the deadly toxin ricin. more
(16 August 2006 15:05)

Fairview Homes has won Oakland College planning appeal
Fairview Homes has won its fight to build houses on the Oakland College campus in St Albans, Hertfordshire. more
(16 August 2006 12:40)

Cost of cleaning up nuclear to soar
The cost of cleaning up the UK’s nuclear industry is set to soar beyond the current £70bn estimate, warns a House of Commons select committee report.... more
(16 August 2006 11:42)

Carillion bidding suspended by Network Rail for poor safety record
Network Rail is suspending Carillion Rail from pitching for any new business until it improves its safety performance. more
(16 August 2006 11:09)

Balfour Beatty's future orderbook stands at £8.8bn
Balfour Beatty’s orderbook stands at £8.8bn. The figure represents a rise of 16% since the start of the year. more
(16 August 2006 10:00)

T5 workers not penalised for lateness caused by extra security
Angry Amec workers at Heathrow's Terminal Five (T5) site claim they are being penalised for the increased security checks introduced following last.... more
(16 August 2006 08:00)

GGR-Unic rolls out crane duo
Having been appointed as UK distributor for German plant manufacturer Paus, GGR-Unic is set to launch two cranes. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Four companies in running for Docklands Light Railway project
Four outfits will price a deal valued at between £150m and £180m on London's Docklands Light Railway. Nuttall, Costain, Taylor Woodrow and a Balfour.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

In brief
North Midland Construction has sealed two power station contracts worth £20m in total. The first is at Ferrybridge, between Leeds and Hull, and the.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Derbyshire in plea over BSF contract
Derbyshire County Council is at the centre of a parliamentary debate over its plans to deliver its £250m Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

12 firms to share £570m homes work
Twelve contractors are to share out £570m- worth of housing work for the London & Quadrant group in the capital and around the M25 corridor under a.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

OGC warns firms not to comply with swindlers
More than 100 firms were last week contacted by fraudsters posing as representatives of the Office of Government Commerce asking for confidential.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

News in brief: 16 August 2006 (p. 3)
Round up of news in brief from p. 3 of the Contract Journal issue dated 16 August 2006. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Amco directors launch £36m buy-out bid
A proposed management buy-out pitched at less than the current market price has been made for Amco Corporation. It values the £130m-a-year turnover.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

OGC to trial radical project-wide cover
Public sector projects to test innovative insurance scheme which could cut premiums by as much as 30%. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Government puts Thurrock port in the fast lane
Thousands of construction jobs are set to be created by the building of a £1.5bn port at Thurrock, Essex. The government has written to marine.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Final tenders submitted for troubled New Tyne Crossing
A major milestone has been reached in the £185m New Tyne Crossing, despite legal challenges and original shortlisted bidders pulling out of the deal. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

40 firms share £245m NW kitchen deal
A total of 40 firms have cooked up £245m- worth of work to install fitted kitchens for a consortium of social housing groups in the North West. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Three firms bag £65m refurbishment work
Three outfits are set to share in £65m worth of housing revamp work in an area bounded by the M25 around London. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

EDITOR'S COMMENT: A learning experience?
It may be the school holidays, but there seems to be plenty going on when it comes to building new schools. The only problem is that it currently.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Back bites and other bits: 16 August 2006
Back bites, number of the week, and quote of the week, from the Contract Journal issue dated 16 August 2006 more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Olympic supply chains at risk
CCS seeks assurances from ODA that main contractors will not amend subcontracts. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Contractors line up for £160m east London homes contracts
At least five contractors are in the hunt for aspects of housing new build and revamp deals mainly centred in east London and valued in total at.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Keda gives Shouksmiths NW presence
Keda Plumbing, based in Bolton, has been bought by Shouksmiths. Michael Draper, who already worked for Keda, will take over at the helm. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Kent Council man jailed for corruption
A corrupt Kent Council official who now lives in Bath has been jailed for a year by a court in Kent after admitting corruption and conspiracy to.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Wrekin's havoc ends as it returns to profit
New chief executive ends mis-matching thanks to restructuring into three divisions. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

HSE announces plan to axe 350 jobs
Up to 350 jobs are to be axed at the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in a costcutting exercise, staff were told last week. Most of the losses will.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Guide helps cut use of water
Research body CIRIA has launched new guidance to advise practitioners in the office and hotel sectors on benchmarks for achieving reductions in water.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Jewson makes plans for 2012
Builders merchant Jewson is investing £1.75m in one new branch - in Barking - and three of its existing depots, in a bid to meet anticipated demand.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

ECA sets green example
The Electrical Contractors' Association (ECA) has implemented a range of energy saving initiatives to reduce the carbon footprint of its London.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Three line up to build Olympic Village
Three groups have made the final shortlist of bidders to deliver major elements of the £4bn Olympic Village scheme in east London. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Burks Green and Berkeley find buyers
Two mergers in the construction sector have been completed by deal-maker Livingstone Guarantee. It found buyers for Burks Green, the industrial.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

National Park quarry ban fear
British Aggregates Association says Park Authority's move to limit mineral extraction in Peak District is environmentally short-sighted. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Holiday pay should include bonus rates
Tribunal decision follows dispute between May Gurney and operatives over bonus pay. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

One in six plant firms are running at a loss
One in six plant hire companies reported a loss last year and for 18% of them this was their second loss making year, according to Plimsoll.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Van manufacturer LDV bought by Russian firm
Van manufacturer LDV has confirmed it has been bought by the Russian group GAZ. The Birmingham-based company was owned by Sun European Partners,.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Vauxhall launches new Astravan
Vauxhall has unveiled its new generation of Astravan, as well as an updated Euro 4-compliant version of the Vivaro panel van. more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Plant news in brief: 16 August 2006 (p. 16)
The JCB Dieselmax that has reached 200mph in testing so far has arrived in the US in preparation for its attempt on the diesel world land-speed.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

Quarrying and aggregates: Cement cleans up its act (special report)
The cement industry is working hard to improve its environmental performance - and it needs to, because greener alternatives may be out there. Will.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)

French revolution
Lafarge's chief executive officer Bruno Lafont says the company's current and future success depends on innovative products, excellence in research.... more
(16 August 2006 00:00)