The £300M deal covers a 10 year period and 20,000 homes in London and the Home Counties with work expected to start in October 2010. The contract includes maintenance for, gas maintenance,
responsive, property surveying, void, estates management services and a 24 hour call centre for tenants.

Bob Holt, chairman of Mears said: “We have been working on behalf of Family Mosaic since 2004. This award represents the biggest contract award in Mears’ history.

Source: Building.co.uk

According to the The sustainable building association, paying people for heat used - however inefficiently - rather than for energy saved or renewable energy generated is illogical and could reduce the incentive to be efficient.

Andrew Simmonds (the CEO of the AECB) stated: “Trying to cut emissions and increase energy security by rewarding heat consumption is like trying to lose weight by eating ever more low calorie biscuits. If you want to succeed the biscuits have to replace, not supplement, your over-rich diet, likewise the renewable heat has to replace, not simply add to, the fossil fuel the nation is using.”

Source: Building.co.uk

A close source to Tesco said: “We’ve been told they definitely want a 25% increase [above the 2 million ft2 annual average] in the floorspace delivered this year from previous years. And they’re talking about bringing in other contractors.”

The statement came as Tesco reported a 10% rise in pre-tax profit to £3.2bn.

Source: Building.co.uk

James Stewart, Chief executive of government body, stated today, estimates by the team working up plans for High Speed 2, were that the project could cost nearly double what equivalent high speed rail projects cost to build in Europe.

His comments follow the announcement in budget documents that the body was commissioning an “investigation into the cost of civil engineering works for major infrastructure projects in the UK.”

Stewart also said: “It has come to our attention it appears to cost double in the UK to put infrastructure down than in Europe. Since we’ve been given this evidence, we have tested this with industry, with the ICE, and no-one disagrees. Now we’ve got to do a proper piece of work to understand it.”

“The one thing we can say,” he continued, “is there absolutely isn’t one single reason behind this, there’s lots of things playing in to it.”

Source: Building.co.uk

The contract runs for an initial 7 years, with a further 7 year extension available.”

So far, House price rises appeared to slow, with just 17% more chartered surveyors reported a rise than a fall in house prices. This is down from 31% in January 2010.

A RICS spokesperson said: “Most market indicators are still positive and consistent with further house price increases. However the magnitude of the gains going forward is likely to continue to ease reflecting the fact that new supply coming onto the market is starting to outstrip fresh demand.”

Source: Building.co.uk.

It is understood that the client is in talks with the three remaining firms and that a decision is expected within the next few weeks.

The £100M office development which is known as Amex House, will be constructed on the car park site of the present Amercian Express building in Mighell Street.

Some demolition work is also involved in the job.

The project centres on a nine-storey call centre and a four-storey data centre.
Work on site is expected to kick off early in 2010.

Neil Jefferson, Chief executive of the Zero Carbon Hub, said “It is vital that we create a positive public perception of new high performing homes of the future.

“This is a huge challenge that requires industry leadership and resource to achieve. A bad marketing plan or one created in haste may turn-off home-buyers and delay the urgency of these initiatives”.
Source: Building.co.uk.

The explosion was caused when foam concrete was placed into a dry well and extended beneath an existing metal floor. Hydrogen was produced by the concrete leading to the explosion the following morning when it was thought, a spark from a grinder and ignited the build up of gas.

Andy Dodman, The health and safety manager at Barhale said “Our investigation has concluded that the presence of aluminium particles in the IBA product generate hydrogen gas after the concrete mixing process. The use of foam concrete containing IBA is therefore no longer permitted by Barhale, only foam concrete mixes containing inert ingredients.”

Source: ContractJournal.com.

University Hospitals Birmingham Trust said most of the building work had been completed and the Queens Elizabeth Hospital is expected to hit all its target dates.

The hospital will be the first in the city for 70 years when the initial phase opens in 2010, before it is completely finished in 2012. The project combines the existing Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak hospitals and will boast 30 operating theatres when it is fully up and running it.

The new facility is being funded by the Private Finance Initiative (PFI). Previous concerns about cost have not deterred the trust, who said the project was within budget and that costs had been carefully considered.

Professor Allyson Pollock, a PFI expert from the University of Edinburgh, said: “The real question is that now we are going into a major public expenditure downturn how are these payments going to be afforded and the same levels of care provided?”

A trust spokesman said: “We are very comfortable with the costs and the quality of care the hospital will provide for patients make this scheme absolutely worthwhile.”

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