News update - December 2007

A brief synopsis of some of the key news items related to technical guidance, construction practice, and new regulations that you might have missed in the press.

Flood defences required for potential nuclear sites
British Energy Company says flood defences would be required if nuclear power stations were built on existing sites. It named Sizewell in Suffolk, Hinkley in Somerset, Bradwell in Essex and Dungeness in Kent as preferred sites for the new reactors, and said it had already reached agreement with the National Grid to create extra capacity for up to 10 gigawatts generated at the sites, starting in 2016.
Building Online, 28 November, 2007

CABE to oversee seaside renaissance
The commission will be responsible for allocating £15 million each year towards cultural, arts and public realm projects in a bid to 'stimulate wider improvements and economic benefits' in run-down coastal towns. The programme is being funded by the Departure of Culture Media and Sport; however, CABE will also look for further cash for the chosen schemes from both public and private sector investors. It will also work in partnership with The Big Lottery Fund. CABE will seek advice from the Regional Development Agencies to help identify 'areas in particular need of investment' and is to team up with English Heritage, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council and Arts Council England.
AJ Plus, 3 December 2007

Carillion secures £572m takeover of Alfred McAlpine
Carillion has agreed a £572m deal to take over Alfred McAlpine in a move which will create a £4.7bn turnover company – the UK’s largest contracting business. The companies announced they have reached agreement on a 558p a share deal, 27p per share lower than initial price of 585p provisionally agreed in October. The drop is understood to reflect continued uncertainty in the financial markets, which has wiped around £10bn off the share price of housebuilders and contractors in the UK.
Building Online, 10 December 2007

Construction activity slows
Output rates and new order growth slowed in November according to the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply. The report stated that the sharp rise in input price inflation was due to price increases in materials, including oil and glass.
Building Online, 4 December 2007

Construction Design and Management Regulations
Full regulatory impact assessment on the revised Construction Design and Management (CDM) Regulations has been published.
View impact assessment [PDF 436KB]

Construction Statistics
The latest Construction Statistics Annual is now available at http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file42061.pdf, and their index for all matters construction is at http://www.berr.gov.uk/sectors/construction/index.html.

Cubit3d to design extension to Fab Four museum
Edinburgh-based Cubit3d have been appointed to design the extension to a museum charting the history of The Beatles. Under the scheme, The Beatles Story museum on Liverpool's Albert Docks will more than double in size to provide new exhibition areas and vastly improved visitor facilities.
AJ Online, 27 November 2007

EPD to create flood of work
See NBS Shortcut 47.
Energy consultants need to gear up for a deluge of work early next year, as businesses begin wake up to the impact of the new Energy Performance of Buildings Directive. In a recent survey, 67% of firms were unaware of the directive; 90% didn’t know that non-compliance could result in fines of up to £5000; and, only one in ten knew when it comes into effect. From 6 April 2008, the directive will require property owners and landlords to provide energy performance certificates when they build, sell or lease commercial buildings. The directive will also require energy certificates to be displayed in buildings of over 1000 m² from October 2008 and regular inspections of air conditioning systems over 250 kW from January 2009. Owners are also recommended to formulate a strategy for buildings that will be sold, leased or modified and prioritise accordingly; and, budget for compliance costs and upgrades required as a result of energy grading.
BSJ Online, 4 December 2007

Government hands out £732m to councils for housebuilding
Housing and planning minister Yvette Cooper has allocated £732m to councils that support the building of homes. This investment will help fund the construction of up to 3 million homes by 2020. The funding, available over the next three years as part of the Growth Points and Growth Areas programme, will benefit 68 towns and cities that have volunteered for housing growth throughout the country.
Building Online, 5 December 2007

UK Green Building Council urges mandatory rating for Code
The Green Building Council has emphasised the need for a mandatory rating against the Code for Sustainable Homes for all new homes. The bill currently states that buyers of new homes not built to the code will be given a statement indicting that no sustainability certificate exists for the property.
Building Housing Newsletter, 27 November 2007

Housebuilders are formulating their own code of conduct
Imtiaz Farookhi, chief executive of the NHBC, said the Code of Conduct would set out rules for consumer protection and will be compulsory, allowing buyers who are in dispute with a housebuilder to appeal to an independent agency. It will also offer protection on issues not covered by warranties, such as delays. The NHBC, the Home Builders Federation (HBF) and the Council of Mortgage Lenders are taking a lead in drafting the code to be launched by Easter 2008.
Building, Issue 48, 2007

Insulation ruling foils government
The government will issue fresh guidance on insulation after a successful judicial review brought by a product supplier. Actis, which makes thermo-reflective insulation products, obtained the ruling from the High Court after it complained that the communities department had failed to consult properly over a testing method that discriminated against its “multifoil insulation” product. Mr. Justice Charles ruled that the use of BR 443 to test multifoils would be unenforceable until the proper procedures had been complied with. He also instructed the government to circulate guidance on multifoil insulation and an explanation of the judgment to building control officers.

Actis said its market share had been damaged after changes to rules on performance testing last year when the communities department wrote to building control bodies saying they should only accept results from a test called the “hotbox”. Actis said the test favoured conventional insulation products, and that conventional insulation manufacturers had been involved in the consultation It added that although the communities department had offered multifoil manufacturers a period of grace to develop their products to meet European standards, during which BR 443 would not apply, the communities department then withdrew this concession without explanation. The communities department will now write to building control bodies advising them on how insulation can comply with the Building Regulations.
Building, Issue 48, 2007

Isle of Wight set to become world’s first ‘eco-island’
Plans being developed by the Isle of Wight’s council could see it become self-sufficient in low-carbon power and could even become a net exporter of energy. Measures under consideration include tidal power and a combined heat and power plant that would be the first in the UK to run on ‘gasified’ waste. The council is already stipulating that new homes built as part of a local housing scheme are constructed to level four of the Code for Sustainable Homes and Cowes high school is also set to be rebuilt as a zero-carbon building.
Specifier Newsline, December 2007

Micro-wind turbines often increase CO₂, says study
Micro-wind turbines for home-use often create more carbon dioxide than they save. The findings come from the Building Research Establishment Trust, which said that in built-up towns and cities weak winds and turbulence means turbines often add to CO₂ emissions.
The Guardian, 30 November

New planning charges to foot the bill
Planning reform has moved up another gear with the publication of the Planning Bill. It deals with major strategic and infrastructure proposals, promising both to speed up the process and make the public inquiry and appeals system more effective. But at the local development control level there are a host of changes in the pipeline, with details due to appear over the coming weeks on:

• Extending permitted development rights for householders to extend their homes, with a new emphasis on impact on neighbours
• Extending permitted development rights for the installation of small-scale domestic renewable energy installations
• New schedules for planning fees in England, with a new emphasis on extracting a ‘greater contribution from users of planning services’
• More flexibility for planners developing local plans, with a reduction in bureaucracy promised
• New powers for local authority to levy planning charges - the tariff system that will go forward instead of Planning Gain Supplement
• New requirements on planners to take account of climate change when preparing local plans

Consultation papers will be flowing thick and fast. The DCLG has already produced two, dealing with streamlining local development frameworks (including a draft replacement for Planning Policy Statement 12) and new procedures for tree preservation orders. Respective papers are at
http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/streamliningldfs and http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/tposconsultation.
RIBA Practice Bulletin, 29 November 2007

ODA could scrap 2012 venues
The Times claims that the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has already scrapped a £100 million fencing arena, while rumours persist that the basketball arena, for which a design team has been appointed, could also be mothballed. The changes are part of a review being carried out by the London Organising Committee (Locog) and the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA). Builders’ cost estimates for the fencing arena – sited at the North end of the Olympic Park - reportedly came in at £100 million, double its original budget. The ODA has confirmed a review is under way but says a final decision has yet to be taken.
QS Week, 3rd December 2007

Planning minister Yvette Cooper has pledged a package of new measures designed to put the whip on housebuilders and landbanking and a new definition of what constitutes a start on site. Consultation will be launched shortly.

There will be an ‘industry standard’ for the disclosure of existing land holdings to discourage housebuilders from hiding undeveloped assets. There is also a firm proposal for new ‘fast track contracts’ that will be used to speed up housing delivery on disused and surplus public sector land, with delivery targets to be agreed with developers at the point of entering into development agreements. A new body will be set up to monitor and co-ordinate progress towards zero-carbon homes in 2016 and consideration of a new independent customer satisfaction survey of new homes, with the threat that poor performers could be frozen out of future allocations of public funding and bids for public sector land.

The Callcutt report’s emphasis on the need to raise design quality in housebuilding was warmly welcomed by the RIBA. Other notable proposals from Callcutt include partnership framework agreements between local authorities and developers, which would allow both sides to work together to maximise value and quality and avoid design waste through OJEU competition, and an integrated system of building control, monitoring planning conditions and warranty requirements. The Callcutt Review of housebuilding delivery can be downloaded at http://www.communities.gov.uk/publications/housing/thecallcuttreview.
RIBA Practice Bulletin, 29th November 2007

Precast concrete industry launches sustainability charter
The British Precast Concrete Federation has launched a sustainability charter which includes: using energy, water and primary materials more efficiently and reducing carbon footprint.
Building Online, 5 December 2007

Sites to issue 'Safe to Use' public statements on tower crane activities
See NBS Shortcut 50
Sites registered with the Considerate Constructors Scheme are to issue a ‘Safe to Use’ public statement covering tower crane activities under a short term action plan drawn up at the Strategic Forum meeting on tower crane safety. The move comes as the industry looks to counter the public’s perception that tower cranes are dangerous following a spate of accidents over the past year.
Contract Journal Online, 29 November 2007

Task force set up to address skills shortage
A task force has been launched to find apprenticeship places for 10,000 students on construction courses who cannot find a contractor to take them on. The Cross Industry Construction Apprenticeships Task Force, which is headed up by the Federation of Master Builders, has been set up in the wake of Britain's dismal showing at the World Skills Championship in Japan last month. The British team was unable to field an entrant in some of the construction categories because the youngsters were not skilled enough to compete on the world stage.
Contract Journal Online, 6 December 2007

CIC set to publish consultants' contract
The Construction Industry Council (CIC) is due to publish the CIC Consultants’ Contract and Scope of Services shortly. The appointment section of the contract, which is aimed at experienced clients and consultants on large construction projects, came under fire during the consultation period from some clients who felt it placed too much risk on them. In particular, clients were concerned about an aggregate cap on consultants' liabilities. The CIC Scope of Service sets out tasks for all members of the project undertaking the design and definition process (design, cost, programme, health and safety) not just the consultants.
Building Online, 5 December, 2007

Switzerland
Architects Fabio Gramazio and Matthias Kohler, both professors at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH), have devised what they call the world’s first flexible construction installation featuring an industrial robot. Mounted on a seven-meter-long linear track, and with a reach of three meters, the machine is designed to produce large building parts on a one-to-one scale. The robot, a German-made KUKA model used in the automotive industry, works on an eight-axis system (including a turning table) that enables it to go beyond subtractive processes (like milling) to additive procedures, such as building up porous concrete modules or foaming polyurethane. The robot has even mastered the art of brick-laying. In a seamless process controlled by design data, the machine will grab a brick, deposit glue, lay it in a custom pattern, and change tools to glue the bricks together.
http://www.archpaper.com/features/2007_20_i_robot.htm
The Architects’ Newspaper, 5 December 2007

United Arab Emirates - RIBA plans Dubai office to ‘raise standard of design’
The RIBA is to set up a branch in the United Arab Emirates in a move that architectural figures hope will raise the standard of design in the region. The UAE office will be the first chapter it has opened outside the UK and America. The RIBA estimates it has about 100 members in the country, and said the office was in the early stages of planning.
Building, Issue 42, 2007

Radon gas map shows which postcode areas are in greatest danger
See NBS Shortcut 36.
An interactive online map that tells residents and business people if their premises are at risk of exposure to the radioactive gas radon has been set up as part of the Government’s attempts to tackle environmental causes of disease. The atlas of England and Wales will provide a postcode-by-postcode assessment of which buildings need to be tested for radon. For a fee of £3.53, it will tell users instantly whether their home or office lies in a radon-affected zone — defined as an area in which at least one in a hundred buildings exceeds recommended limits for the gas. Properties that receive a positive assessment can then be tested to establish the extent of the risk and owners can take measures to reduce exposure. The tests cost about £40, and the counter-measures about £1,000.
Times Online, 24 November 2007