As the week draws to a close, CM rounds up the construction stories you may have missed over the past seven days:
Midas in administration
Exeter-based construction firm Midas has entered administration with the loss of more than 300 jobs. Construction operations have ceased with immediate effect, although Bell Group has already purchased the group’s housing division, according to Devon Live.
Taylor Wimpey appoints first women to lead a housebuilder
Taylor Wimpey has appointed Jennie Daly as its new chief executive, following the departure of Pete Redfern. Daly is the first women to lead a major housebuilder, according to The Times. She joined Taylor Wimpey in 2014 as planning director, from Redrow.
20th housing minister since 1997 appointed
Stuart Andrew has been appointed as the new housing minister, as embattled prime minister Boris Johnson undertook a minor reshuffle of his cabinet earlier this week. Andrew replaces Christopher Pincher and is the 20th person to hold the role since 1997, according to Inside Housing.
KPMG being sued for £1.3bn over Carillion audit
The UK official receiver is suing accountancy firm KPMG for £1.3bn over its audit of collapsed contractor Carillion, The Guardian reports. Carillion collapsed in January 2018 with £7bn in debt, resulting in 3,000 job losses. The official receiver is liquidating the Carillion business.
Record-breaking escalators installed in Sydney metro station
The longest escalators in the southern hemisphere have been fitted at Sydney’s Central Station. Altogether, nine 45m-long escalators and another 11 shorter ones have been completed. When all 42 escalators have been installed at the station, they will have a combined length of just short of a kilometre, according to Global Construction Review.
Wates names winners of green tech competition
Wates has revealed the four green tech businesses to win the chance to be piloted across the branches and offices of Lloyds Banking Group. The four winners are:
- Advanced Bacterial Sciences: a drain unblocking system that uses friendly bacteria to remove wastewater issues such as blocked urinals.
- Quattro Seal: a liquid sealing system that increases air tightness in buildings, generating energy savings of up to 27%.
- Coolnomix: a high impact intelligent thermostat that maximises air conditioning efficiency and reduces energy consumption with a return on investment in under 24 months.
- HSG (Ureco): an eco-friendly urinal sleeve system that helps prevent costly blockages, reduces water usage and removes odours, without the need for strong chemicals and cleaning agents.
A budget of £100,000 will be made available to test the technologies in a live environment and explore whether they can ultimately be rolled out at scale.
