Wait over for £340m Belgravia council estate rebuild

Westminster City Council is finally pressing ahead with plans to rebuild the Ebury Bridge Estate in Pimlico located next to the £1bn Chelsea Barracks scheme.

The council plans to invite tenders for the £350m project to redevelop the 1930s Belgravia estate next month after first earmarking it for regeneration eight years ago.

Ebury Bridge Estate is the biggest of 10 planned estate redevelopment plans within the London borough.

The project involves demolition of around eight buildings to make way for 750 homes, half of which would be affordable.

Last month the council committed to self-deliver an initial phase, comprising over 200 new, mixed tenure homes and the first of the new open public squares, setting the design quality and delivery intentions for the new Ebury.

This will be run and funded by Westminster’s newly-formed wholly-owned development company set up to deliver and own new intermediate rent, market rent and sale housing across the borough.

This initial phase will enable the council to fulfil its re-housing commitments locally and achieve vacant possession of later phases.

The successful design and build partner would start phase 1 construction before the end of 2020, with the spend estimated at £100m-£340m depending on phasing.

Firms seeking to express an interest in the project should email Samantha Rogers on for additional information.

from Construction Enquirer http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2019/04/24/wait-over-for-340m-belgravia-council-estate-rebuild/

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Opinion: Lack of talent at the top is hurting construction

We keep a keen-eye at the Enquirer on appointments at major contractors and projects.

And they reveal a not-so-merry-go-round of talent at the industry’s biggest players.

Of course most managers on the carousel do a decent job.

But it’s pretty hard to fall-off even if your performance leaves a lot to be desired.

The same old faces and CV entries crop-up regularly when new directors are unveiled.

It means construction bosses are now like football managers.

A lack of new entrants means a closed shop of candidates for vacant roles.

Positions are often filled from a band of construction directors whose main selling point is that they’ve done the job for a while – rather than how good they are at it.

We hear a lot about site skills shortages.

But the talent drought at the top of major companies is just as alarming.

And those recruitment chickens have been coming home to roost recently.

Some of construction’s biggest companies have suffered lately and the people in charge are surely a massive part of that.

“Over-optimism” is the new blame buzz-phrase when it comes to contractors explaining mistakes on bidding and project delivery.

But growing boardroom bonuses based on performance – real or just spreadsheet based – has seen the “over-optimism” culture spread from the top down.

The industry needs a new generation of leaders with different ideas fit for different times.

We still talk about changing the industry based on reports like Latham and Egan which were written before smart phones were invented.

Construction needs to trust younger people in more senior roles to bring a fresh perspective on some deep-rooted problems.

The old-guard isn’t working too well so it’s time for a change.

from Construction Enquirer http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2019/04/24/opinion-lack-of-talent-at-the-top-is-hurting-construction/

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Guinness plans largest ever homes scheme in Leeds

The Guinness Partnership has bought a 900-plus home development site with full planning permission at Leeds South Bank.

The development will be The Guinness Partnership’s biggest single consented residential scheme in its 129-year existence.

North West developer X1 Developments sold the Hunslet Road near Leeds Docks and the Royal Armouries Museum to the housing association.

The affordable housing element will now be upped from 5% to 35%, providing at least 9 times as many affordable homes than under the original plans.

In total, the site will now offer 600,000 sq ft of homes and commercial space.

The deal was supported with cash from a £224m Homes England grant to a strategic partnership of Guinness and Stonewater housing associations to start building an extra 4,500 affordable homes across England by 2022.

Catriona Simons, chief executive of The Guinness Partnership, said: “This site, within the Leeds South Bank Regeneration and Innovation District, is a fantastic opportunity for us to create over 900 homes in a vibrant new neighbourhood in Leeds. We intend at least 35% of the homes to be affordable.

“We plan to build over 9,000 new homes by 2023, with our vision to create great homes where people are proud to live. Funding from Homes England means we have been able to extend our development programme in Leeds to fulfil that vision.’’

Councillor Richard Lewis, Leeds City Council’s executive member for regeneration, transport and planning, said:“The Guinness Partnership’s proposals are fantastic news for Leeds.

“That it is committing to its biggest ever scheme here and intending to deliver so many new affordable homes is a real mark of confidence in our vision for the South Bank, where we want to ensure regeneration and growth benefits all the city’s residents.”

from Construction Enquirer http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2019/04/24/guinness-plans-largest-ever-homes-scheme-in-leeds/

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Winners unveiled for £400m Dounreay decommissioning

Winners of a decommissioning services framework worth up yo £400m at Dounreay have been revealed.

Work at the Scottish nuclear site will include construction of a size reduction facility, shaft and silo decommissioning and demolition of historic active laboratories.

Six framework contracts have been awarded, bringing together the capabilities of at least 28 companies and their supply chains, initially for up to four years with the possibility of extensions of up to an additional three years.

WInners will now compete in ‘mini competitions’ for distinct packages of work that move the site towards its ultimate closure.

Stephen Adamson, Head of Commercial Services at the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority said: “This agreement will deliver real and visible signs of progress towards achieving our mission.

“It is about forming long-term partnerships so that the successful companies can work alongside our own Dounreay staff, ensuring a first-class team combining the best site skills and experience with the wider industry knowledge and innovation that the supply chain can offer.”

The winning bidders are:

AECOM E&C UK; MW Hargreaves; Kier Infrastructure and Overseas; Morson Projects; NIS; NSG Environmental; Squibb Group; Westinghouse Electrical Company UK

Dounreay Decommissioning Framework (DDF) Alliance; Cavendish Nuclear; BAM Nuttall; KDC Contractors; JGC Engineering and Technical Services

Dounreay Wood Alliance (DWA); Wood; Aquila Nuclear Engineering; GD Energy Services; Orano Projects

Jacobs UK; Atkins

Nuclear Decommissioning Ltd (NDL); James Fisher Nuclear; REACT Engineering; Shepley Engineers; WYG Engineering; JBV Demolition; RPS Consulting Services

Nuvia; Graham Construction; Oxford Technologies; Thompson of Prudhoe

from Construction Enquirer http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2019/04/24/winners-unveiled-for-400m-dounreay-decommissioning/

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Call-up for £110m Southsea seafront defence job

Portsmouth City Council is on the hunt for a contractor to deliver a £110m phased programme of works to strengthen the seafront at Southsea.

A planning application is due to be submitted next month following public consultation and outline designs being drawn up.

The scheme covers 4.5km of coastline from the Long Curtain Moat in the west to the Eastney Battery in the east.

The seafront, along with Southsea Common, is a focal point for recreation and tourism and is hugely important for the city.  But at present the principal design has highlighted a funding gap of around £20m from the £95m initially budgeted.

Funding for construction will now depend on the full business case being submitted and approved by the Environment Agency and Treasury.

Present plans will split the works into half a dozen phases to be delivered over eight years.

The city council is now inviting firms to prequalify with the hope of signing up a contractor in early September with the target of starting works by Spring 2020, subject to funding approval.

Ahead of shortlisting a bidders day will be held on 1 May with a presentation at the Portsmouth City Council Civic Offices followed by a guided site visit of the frontage

After this procurement chiefs plan to shortlist three firms to bid a two-stage open book early contractor involvement.

Click here to express an interest.

from Construction Enquirer http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2019/04/24/call-up-for-110m-southsea-seafront-defence-job/

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Working out makes hydrogels perform more like muscle

Human skeletal muscles have a unique combination of properties that materials researchers seek for their own creations. They’re strong, soft, full of water, and resistant to fatigue. A new study has found one way to give synthetic hydrogels this total package of characteristics: putting them through a vigorous workout.

from Engineering and Construction News – ScienceDaily https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190422155004.htm

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Eight placed on £200m London Universities framework

The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine has named its preferred panel of firms to deliver a £70m upgrade programme over the next seven years.

The winning firms could also see the work programme swell to over £200m if The Royal Veterinary College, The School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and Birkbeck College use the panel to call off firms for works as planned.

Projects procured through the new set-up will range in value from £250,000 to £10m and will cover a mixed bag of fit-out, building refurbishment and infrastructure replacements.

Project £1m-plus (total forecast spend: £139m)

Graham Construction; Speller Metcalfe Malvern; 8build; Walter Lilly and Co; T & B (Contractors)

Up to £2m (total forecast spend: £79m)

Walter Lilly and Co; Russell Cawberry; T & B (Contractors); Styles and Wood; Logan Construction

Kier bagged the biggest single project investment for the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in a separate tender race to deliver new £27m biomedical labs in Bloomsbury.

Work on the 4-storey Bloomsbury Research Institute at 15 – 17 Tavistock Place is due to commence next month.

The new framework partners will support a phased programme of works for the main Keppel Street building, designed by Ian Ritchie Architects.

Phase 1 involves building new laboratories and improved infrastructure inside the relatively modern North Courtyard building.

Later phases will see investment in the original 1929 building to reconfigure and refurbish offices and other space for long term sustainability.

from Construction Enquirer http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2019/04/23/eight-placed-on-200m-london-universities-framework/

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