Investment into Knutsford’s rail infrastructure would provide "tangible" results to residents in the Greater Manchester area, it has been claimed.
The Knutsford Guardian reports that up to £3 billion of improvements have been planned for the years leading up to 2013.
Should they go ahead, Lord Peter Smith - leader of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities - asserts that 50 years of investment would be delivered within the space of the next five years.
"The public will be able to see tangible results happening by 2012," he comments.
Among the proposals are the introduction of new carriages and trains between Knutsford and Manchester, which could increase the number of rail jobs in the region.
Station improvements are also suggested, with summer 2013 set as the deadline for the upgrades to be completed.
In other news that may be of interest to those with rail jobs, HR Zone has noted the need for train drivers’ uniforms to differ from those of platform staff.
The publication adds that different rail franchises are likely to operate uniform policies which conform to varying rules.
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Construction gloom anticipated
Posted on September 19th, 2008 by admin
Experts in the construction sector have predicted that the current economic climate may bring a gloomy spell for the industry as a whole.
According to news provider Building.co.uk, speakers at the recent Future Forecasting conference suggested that market turmoil of recent times could have an effect on the sector until at least 2010.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom. Stephen Stone, chief executive of Crest Nicholson, apparently said that the banks have been "very supportive" of the construction sector on the whole throughout the credit crunch.
"Past cycles have demonstrated that there is a way to trade through this," the news provider claims he said.
Indeed securing finance for new work could come from any number of institutions, even for bigger projects. Over a quarter of lenders on the market would give upwards of £50 million for new projects, the head of structured finance at Barclays, Nick Salisbury, reportedly suggested.
One new project that’s going to be getting started before the predicted 2010 end of the current downturn is a facelift at New Street station in Birmingham.
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Gas engineer shortage ‘results in 1,000 new jobs’
Posted on September 18th, 2008 by admin
British Gas is creating 1,000 new jobs over the next 18 months, investing £40 million in the project, the energy firm says.
There is a UK skills shortage of 20,000 domestic gas engineers, the company claims, but women apprentice recruits have trebled in the last two years.
For those of you considering a career in this area, the investment will fund two new academies in Scotland and Leicester, which are expected to open in 2009.
"Our people are our greatest strength and our engineers are the most visible aspect of our business on a daily basis," says managing director of British Gas Services Chris Weston.
Apprenticeships have not been consigned to history and the scheme has increased the success of the business, he adds.
The new apprentices will be trained to NVQ Level 3 standard and will join an existing workforce of 9,000 gas engineers, those of you involved in the utilities sector may be interested to hear.
In related news, the Confederation of British Industry director general Richard Lambert claims students’ time-management and communication skills can be improved with specific training at university.
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£10.8m contract won for ‘new generation’ Holiday Inn
Posted on September 18th, 2008 by admin
A £10.8 million contract to build a ‘new generation’ Holiday Inn in Winchester has been won by construction business Morgan Ashurst.
The contract, won from Bond Contracting, is to build 120 rooms at the hotel located off the M3 near junction ten, cnplus.co.uk reports.
What’s more, work is expected to begin later this month, with a deadline of October 2009, according to the website.
Morgan Ashurst will build a wildlife conservation area as part of the project, contractjournal.com claims.
In related news, the Premier Inn is set to open a green hotel in Staffordshire in December which is expected to use 80 per cent less energy than conventional hotels.
Those of you in the construction business with an interest in the environment may be impressed to find out that heat pumps from the earth will heat and cool rooms and low carbon technology and materials are used.
Earlier this year, Morgan Ashurst won a £44 million contract to build a college in Devon, which, according to its website, will be a model for sustainability both in construction and environmental management.
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Scottish firm wins award for eco-home
Posted on September 17th, 2008 by admin
A Scottish construction company has won a green award for its affordable energy-efficient homes.
Ballyconnelly Developments of Greenock won an award for its three-bedroomed family homes in Dunoon, which included features such as an efficient heat recovery system.
Those of you especially interested in the green side of the construction industry might be impressed that these homes can be built for £150,000, claims green website newbuilder.co.uk.
Also, 95 per cent of the materials used are from forests managed by the Forest Stewardship Council or based on recycled products.
"We are extremely proud that these new homes will enhance quality of life while hugely reducing energy costs for their new owners," managing director of Ballyconnelly Developments Pol Stewart tells the website.
There is the potential to build hundreds more eco-homes to address the housing shortage in Scotland, she adds, which those of you involved in the construction industry may want to know.
Automated smart electricity meters, thermal barriers and low maintenance roof tiles should see home heating bills stand at 80 per cent lower than conventional-built houses, the green building site claims.
When starting out in 1999, the Ballyconnelly Group focused on property development and renovations and now operates from the Greenock base.
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Runcorn power plant given green light
Posted on September 17th, 2008 by admin
A power station that is fuelled by waste has been approved by the government to be built at Runcorn.
One interesting fact you may wish to know is that waste that would have otherwise gone to landfill sites will fuel the power station instead.
Ineos Chlor will be allowed to construct the combined heat and power (CHP) station, with a capacity of 100 MW, after gaining permission from energy minister Malcolm Wicks.
"The key concern of impact on public health will be properly addressed through planning conditions at the construction stage and when the station is operational, through the environmental permitting regime regulated by the Environment Agency," says Mr Wicks.
Two new public sector energy-producing waste incinerators, along with mechanical treatment plants, could be built on any of the 11 sites on Merseyside which have been marked, the Liverpool Daily Post reports.
For those of you interested in the proposed projects, public consultation on these is expected to start in November.
According to its website, Greenpeace supports CHP plants as an alternative to nuclear ones.
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Rail project in north-west confirmed
Posted on September 16th, 2008 by admin
A new project worth some £5 million that aims to bring improvements to the railway line between Blackburn and Clitheroe has been announced.
Construction workers in the area may like to know that the work will see new track and sleepers be laid out so that the speed limit can be increased and the noise level can be cut down.
Currently, trains are limited to just 20 mph along some sections of the track, but once the work is completed, this will rise to 45 mph.
According to the Lancashire Telegraph, some 11,661 yards of track will be given a new lease of life, with concrete or steel sleepers being put down in place of the current ones.
Workers may like to know that a 24-hour continuous shift pattern will be used to ensure that work is completed within the given time.
"Ultimately we are aiming to develop our service and ensure that our performance in this area is improved," the newspaper claims route director at Network Rail Peter Strachan said.
In related news, Network Rail earlier this month announced that major infrastructure work on the west coast main line is closer to completion.
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Upgrade scale-down endorsed
Posted on September 16th, 2008 by admin
A scaling-down of a project to upgrade the north London line has been endorsed by Network Rail, it has been reported.
The plans, which originally come from Transport for London (TfL), call for less of the line to be turned into a four-track stretch, Transport Briefing notes.
However, it has been claimed that such a change should not lead to a drop in performance for services on the line.
According to Transport Briefing, TfL may consider delivering the full scheme in the future, should more funding become available.
Apparently, it now claims that the cost of bringing disused railway bridges back into service is too much for the scheme to be effective.
The changes to the plans are now open for consultation, the news provider notes. However, it also claims such changes indicate the increasing pressure on finances for new infrastructure and engineering projects in the capital.
TfL has recently noted that engineering work to develop a more efficient system on the London Overground network started at the beginning of the month.
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Third Heathrow runway backed by 100 businesses
Posted on September 15th, 2008 by admin
A third runway at Heathrow has been backed by a group of 100 businesses - as long as it stays within environmental regulations.
You may be interested to know that Ruth Kelly, transport minister, tells the Financial Times (FT) that "aviation contributes over £11 billion to the national economy and Heathrow directly or indirectly supports over 100,000 jobs".
The group of businesses include the Hilton Hotels and the British Chambers of Commerce, according to the BBC.
But environmental standards have to be adhered to when building the runway, which the companies say is essential for business.
As you may know, airports in Paris, Amsterdam and Frankfurt are expected to have four runways by 2012, the FT reports the union of businesses as claiming.
Campaign group Hacan ClearSkies say expansion is not necessary for improved access to countries such as India and China, the chairman John Stewart tells the BBC.
Limiting short-haul flights would provide space for long-haul ones, Mr Stewart adds.
Heathrow is owned by BAA, whose website informs you that it is the world’’s leading airport company, running seven airports in the UK.
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UK has a ’skills shortage in engineering’
Posted on September 15th, 2008 by admin
A Staffordshire engineering firm has announced that out of 400 UK applications for vacancies at the automotive company, only two or three are suitable, a report says.
The organisation, Zytek Automotive, might consider engineering recruits from Romania and Germany because of the skills shortage in our country, says newspaper the Birmingham Mail.
"There is a genuine shortage because everybody has been going into careers in finance or the media - engineering is not considered sexy enough," Zytek finance director Stephen Wallis tells the newspaper.
You may be interested to hear that the company, which is currently developing electric cars, has a £15 million turnover and 135 staff, the Mail says.
Zytek needs to take on more qualified staff because of the rise of inquiries from companies such as Peugeot and Ferrari, Mr Wallis adds.
As such taking the time to find those workers with the right skills set could become increasingly important.
There are 20 immediate vacancies for the firm, which is half-owned by German car group Continental, although more posts could be created, the finance director claims, which may interest some of you recruiters in the industry.
The engineering company has previously provided engines worldwide for Formula 3000 and the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport.
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Assembly calls for action with Cross River Tram network
Posted on September 12th, 2008 by admin
Those operating in the rail industry might be interested to hear of the call made by the London Assembly to build a new tram network in the capital.
Although financing for the research and design of the Cross River Tram network is in place, the Assembly is demanding that Boris Johnson, mayor of London and chair of Transport for London, explores options into the construction of the rail project.
Such a network would cross the River Thames and link Euston and Waterloo.
It would extend as far as King’’s Cross and Camden Town in the north and to Brixton and Peckham in the south.
Val Shawcross, London Assembly member, stated that there is a "real need to progress the Cross River Tram to combat the woeful inadequacies in public transport services, particularly in some parts of south-east London, and alleviate overcrowding on the Tube".
It was also claimed that the existing Croydon Tramlink network should be extended.
As you might already be aware Network Rail recently unveiled plans for a multimillion pound regeneration of Reading’’s rail services.
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Olympic workers ’staying safe’
Posted on September 12th, 2008 by admin
With the clock increasingly ticking down to the start of the 2012 Olympics in London, those operating in the construction sector might be interested to hear of a new report highlighting the working practices of such a major project.
In figures released by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), it was revealed that a total of more than one million working hours on the Olympic Park site have been recorded without a reportable accident taking place.
This is the fifth time since work began on the development that the one million hours milestone has been surpassed.
John Armitt, chairman of the ODA, said: "To complete a million hours without a reportable accident on a project of this size and complexity is challenging enough, so to do this five times is a real accomplishment."
As you might already know more than 2,600 workers are currently on site.
In other news, plans for the venues for cycling events at the 2012 Games were recently unveiled and include a 6,000 seater velodrome.
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Olympic workers ‘’staying safe”
Posted on September 12th, 2008 by admin
With the clock increasingly ticking down to the start of the 2012 Olympics in London, those operating in the construction sector might be interested to hear of a new report highlighting the working practices of such a major project.
In figures released by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), it was revealed that a total of more than one million working hours on the Olympic Park site have been recorded without a reportable accident taking place.
This is the fifth time since work began on the development that the one million hours milestone has been surpassed.
John Armitt, chairman of the ODA, said: "To complete a million hours without a reportable accident on a project of this size and complexity is challenging enough, so to do this five times is a real accomplishment."
As you might already know more than 2,600 workers are currently on site.
In other news, plans for the venues for cycling events at the 2012 Games were recently unveiled and include a 6,000 seater velodrome.
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Hundreds of utilities jobs to be created at Sheffield
Posted on September 11th, 2008 by admin
Sheffield could soon yield hundreds of new jobs in news that could interest those of you operating in the utilities sector.
However, in order for around 200 new jobs to be created in the Yorkshire city, Sheffield Forgemasters International must secure around £20 million of funding from the government, the Sheffield Telegraph reports.
The firm is attempting to build the largest forging press in Europe, which could then be used to create parts for next generation nuclear reactors.
Group board director of Forgemasters Peter Birtles said: "We have proposed a very major capital investment of £120 million to install a 15,000 tonne forging press and all the equipment going with it."
While these jobs have not yet been confirmed, it is possible that plans by Welsh Power and NPL estates to build a new power station in the north-west of England may well be successful, in which case some 600 positions would be created by the construction of the building.
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Plans put forward for Reading rail revival
Posted on September 11th, 2008 by admin
Reading might soon be at the heart of a railway revamp that you may interested to know could boost job prospects in the area.
Network Rail has outlined a £400 million scheme to revive the town’’s railway station that would be completed by 2015.
Councillor Tony Page described the benefits the move will have on the area.
"Different communities in Reading will gain in different ways, through easier travel, the re-routing of traffic, protected jobs and a better business and urban environment," he said.
Work has already started on the project, which includes the construction of an elevated railway.
You might already be aware that there have been calls for the South Wales Ebbw Vale rail service to be improved.
Rail News reported that some trains are overcrowded as many residents use the service, but improvements to the lines might be good news for jobseekers.
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Denham unveils plans to improve construction skills
Posted on September 10th, 2008 by admin
Worried about attracting skilled builders? Well you may have to fear no longer!
Those in the construction sector might be interested to hear of recent comments by John Denham, secretary for skills, where in a speech to the Trades Union Congress numerous initiatives were unveiled to support demand for skilled workers in the industry.
You could prick your ears to his plans to set up a construction task force - made up of trade unions and large employers - which will help to advise the government on long-term issues in regards to boosting skills levels and expanding apprenticeships.
Meanwhile, those firms which win government contracts will receive encouragement to ensure they train more members of their staff.
Mr Denham said: "The [construction] industry today is experiencing great difficulties in house building.
"But look just a few years into the future; we know that we will need many more skilled people working in construction than we have today."
And as you already are likely to know, he claimed the need for more skilled workers is due to major projects such as Crossrail and the 2012 Olympics, in addition to plans for new homes, schools and hospitals.
Earlier this year ConstructionSkills Apprenticeships director Max Hamps claimed that despite the bitter economic climate it is important that plans are in place to improve the number of skilled workers in the construction sector.
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Contractors to face new training levy rules
Posted on September 10th, 2008 by admin
Recruiters operating within the construction industry might be advised to make themselves aware of forthcoming training regulations.
You may be interested to read a recent Contract Journal article which reports that CITB-ConstructionSkills has given the green light to charge those contractors who either delay - or duck out from paying altogether - the training levy.
Firms which do not pay such a fee are to be charged interest of eight per cent on any cash which is overdue.
The publication claims that about 2,500 employers could be affected by these changes - the equivalent of £375,000 in interest to be payable.
It was also pointed out that such a levy charging plan is currently prevalent in Northern Ireland, with the latest scheme set to begin from the 2008 levy assessment which is to be issued next year.
As you might already know that offshore contractors blocked plans to double the statutory training levy for the engineering sector earlier this year due concerns about cash.
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Cycling facilities unveiled for 2012 Olympics
Posted on September 9th, 2008 by admin
You might wish to get on your bike as plans for the venues which will host the various cycling events for the 2012 Olympic Games in London have been unveiled.
Revealed by London mayor Boris Johnson and Chris Hoy, three-time gold medal winner at the recent Beijing Games, the latest designs for the VeloPark have been made public and include proposals for the velodrome.
Containing some 6,000 seats, the velodrome will host not only indoor track events for the Olympic games but also for the Paralympic events.
Once the London games are over, the development will be converted for legacy purposes and will not only retain top-class cycling facilities for elite athletes and members of the public, but will also include a cafe and a 360-degree concourse level providing views of the London skyline.
Other proposals for VeloPark include a BMX circuit, a 6 km mountain bike trail and a road cycle circuit, with planning permission to be submitted later this month.
As you are already likely to know the contract for the facility has been awarded to ISG who relaid the track at Manchester’’s Velodrome.
Towards the end of last month, it was reported that the majority of the permanent foundations for the Olympic Park for the 2012 games had been fitted.
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