Contract Journal articles from January 2002

Contract Journal archives from January 2002

Geoff Brewer of Brewer Consulting examines repudiatory breaches.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Arepudiation, or more accurately a repudiatory breach of a contract, can occur when a party intimates by words or conduct that it does not intend to honour its obligations under the contract. In the event of a repudiatory breach, the innocent...

Fermec's 15% export growth.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Production at Terex's Fermec backhoe loader factory in Manchester has increased by 15% this year. Most of the growth has been in the export market, especially the USA where there was previously little representation. The company has been...

NEWSBRIEF.(exhibitions, products, facilities)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Grove launch at conexpo Grove will launch a 400t, seven-axle, all-wheel-steer, all-terrain crane at the Conexpo exhibition in Las Vegas in March. Also on the stand will be its new 115t capacity two-axle RT9000E rough-terrain crane. ...

Amec gets drilling machines after piping prediction.(Amec Utilities)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Amec Utilities has bought two directional drilling machines on the strength of forecasts that up to 75% of pipe installations will be carried out by no-dig techniques over the next five years. The prognosis comes from utilities giant...

Volvo expands.(backhoe loader market)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Volvo extends range by acquiring rights from UpRight and Scat Trak by Paul Howard Volvo has purchased the exclusive design and manufacturing rights for UpRight's telehandlers and Scat Trak's skid steer loaders. The move follows...

Turkish quake repair work worth [pounds sterling]115m.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... by Keith Nuthall Construction firms will be able to bid for contracts totalling 185m ([pound]115m) because of loans being made by the European Investment Bank for building works in Turkey, notably to help repair damage caused by the 1999...

Baldwins' slump.(Baldwins Industrial Services )(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Interim results show a fall in pre-tax profit depsite an increase in turnover by Paul Howard In spite of an increase in turnover of 18% to [pound]41.3m, Baldwins Industrial Services saw pre-tax profit for the six months to 30...

Larrington eyes construction industry as prey for Predator.(Richard Larrington)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Tracked trailer manufacturer Richard Larrington has produced a 35t payload tracked dumper. It was initially designed for harvesting peat and is therefore 3.6m wide, but narrower versions down to 2.5m could be built for the construction market....

Speedy Hire to take on Jewson hire branches.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Speedy Hire is to buy Jewson's 37 stand-alone hire branches (14 in Greater London, three in the Home Counties and the rest in south-west England) for [pound]13.5m. The deal covers the entire trade, certain assets and staff of Jewson's...

Cat updates hydraulic shovel.(Caterpillar Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Caterpillar has replaced its 5230 hydraulic shovel and mass excavator with the 5230B. The machine is designed for mining operations and is offered as a front shovel with a 17m3 rock bucket or with a 16m3 bucket in mass excavator or backhoe...

Work winners this week.(list of construction contracts for UK companies)
January 9, 2002... Who's winning the work?Contracts Hotline is your at-a-glance digest of the latest contract awards around the UK. Data supplied by ABI Building Data. London & South East Poplar housing Work: Houses/flats Location: Poplar,...

Morgan Est buys pipeline group.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Pipeline Construction Group takes utilities sector turnover to [pound]200m high by John Leitch Morgan Est, the infrastructure services part of the rapidly growing Morgan Sindall group, has paid [pound]16m for Pipeline Constructors...

NEWSBRIEF.(civil engineering, defense contracts, street lighting, mixed-use project)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... costain to complete Rochdale canal work The final legal hurdle to the full restoration of the Rochdale Canal has been removed with the confirmation of a Compulsory Purchase Order for land adjacent to the M62 near Rochdale. Costain will...

It's not our job to check.
January 9, 2002... Firms say Inland Revenue should check CIS4 cards employment status itself Sir, I read the article by John d'Arcy in the 5 December edition of CJ where treasury minister Ruth Kelly states the government is undertaking a review of...

CABE gives thumbs up to faster bidding.
January 9, 2002... Sir, The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) warmly welcomes the moves to speed up the bidding process for major health schemes, reported in the 5 December edition of CJ. This comes quickly after a speech from...

Surveyors bite back at prices.
January 9, 2002... Sir, In Back bites (CJ 21 November), you wrote about the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors "functional unit prices" study. If law courts cost [pound]2,117 per lawyer, per judge or even per juror, they would be cheap. At...

Irish workers to carry safety card.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... 'No card, no work' message from industry to site workers in the Republic of Ireland by Anthony Garvey All workers on construction sites in the Republic of Ireland are to be required to carry safety training cards, in an initiative that...

Back bites.(Inland Revenue, Carillion PLC)(Bank of England )(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... A job well done? A scan of the New Year Honours reveals little in the way of recognition for members of the construction industry. One noticeable feature of the latest list, however, is the number of gongs handed out to employees of...

CITB satisfies customers.(Construction Industry Training Board )(Brief Article)(Polling Data)(Statistical Data Included)
January 9, 2002... Survey reveals construction firms rate CITB's performance higher than in 2000 by Tim Wood An independent survey of employers by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has revealed that it has made progress in every area of...

Construction shares up.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... The challenge for 2002 will be to spot the takeover candidates, says analyst by John Leitch The share prices of firms listed by the Stock Exchange in the construction sector rose on average by 20% during 2001. Leading the way was Rok...

Campaigner for specialists dies.(Brief Article)(Obituary)
January 9, 2002... John Huxtable, founder and chief executive of the Confederation of Construction Specialists (CCS), died shortly before Christmas following a stroke. He was aged 54. Huxtable was a pioneering lobbyist for the contractual rights of...

Industry trio honoured with knighthoods.(construction industry)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Three leading construction industry figures have been honoured with knighthoods in the New Years Honours List. Nigel Thompson, deputy chairman of global consulting engineer and designer Arup, was rewarded for his work in the reconstruction...

Raynesway bags [pounds sterling]160m roads work.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Raynesway has scooped a [pound]160m-plus highways term maintenance deal for North Yorkshire County Council. The contract, worth [pound]27m-a-year, initially runs for six years, but there is the possibility of an extension to 10. The...

Industry joins forces to plot reform of CIS.(Construction Industry Scheme)(United Kingdom tax policy)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Contractors, unions and job agencies battle against bogus self-employment by John d'Arcy Contractors and unions have joined forces with employment agencies to form a united front to fight the "long-running scandal" of bogus...

Latham joins ECI as new president.(Michael Latham, European Construction Industry)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Construction industry guru Sir Michael Latham is the new president of the European Construction Institute (ECI), a non-profit organisation whose members make up the voice and knowledge of the engineering construction industry in Europe. ...

Ballast wins [pounds sterling]45m PFI Lothian school project.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Innovate consortium wins six secondary school scheme for East Lothian Council by Brian Warner Ballast has emerged triumphant in a two-way battle for a [pound]45m-plus privately financed schools project north of the border. The...

Scotland set for [pounds sterling]2m skills boost.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Training initiative worth [pound]2m will benefit Scots engineering contractors this year by John d'Arcy Engineering construction contractors in Scotland are set to benefit from a special training initiative worth nearly [pound]2m this...

Conservatories under review.(British government to review its standards for building home additions)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... The Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions has launched a consultation document to ask the public and the industry whether conservatories, porches, covered ways, covered yards and carports should continue to remain exempt...

Laing's London [pounds sterling]24m health job.(Laing Construction)
January 9, 2002... Laing Construction is expected to get a clean bill of health to build a [pound]24m-plus medical facility for the University of London. Insiders say within the next few days the client will name the O'Rourke-owned company as its preferred...

Carillion sues for damages over M77 job.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Carillion Construction (Contracts) is suing nine major insurers for massive damages in a dispute over the M77 motorway in Scotland. A writ issued at London's High Court says that problems in drainage works on an 11km stretch of the...

Getting your message across.(the importance of public relations in the construction industry)(Brief Article)(Column)
January 9, 2002... viewpoint There has been coverage in the national media of journalists who have quit their jobs in TV and newspapers to go and work for the government or blue chip companies as high-powered (and high-paid) PR gunslingers. Britain's biggest...

Commons inquiry into 10-year transport plan.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... by Carol Millett The House of Commons' transport committee has launched an inquiry into the progress of the government's 10-year transport plan, prompted by mounting industry concern that the plan has stalled, just 18 months after its...

Noise heads list of complaints by public.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 9, 2002... Noise and inconsiderate behaviour led the list of complaints made to the Considerate Constructors Scheme last year. Noise problems accounted for 26% of the 122 complaints made last year, while inconsiderate behaviour accounted for a further...

Vox pop reveals new year's hope.(forecast for construction)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... A tough year ahead is predicted, but industry bosses are set for challenge by the CJ team 2002 will be a challenge, but one that the construction industry can meet. That's the industry's forecast for this year, according to leading...

Halcrow's bid leaves Torpy out in the cold.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... TME Torpy has been dropped from the list of pre-qualifiers for an [pound]8m courts project as a result of its change of ownership. A former subsidiary of the Enron power group, TME Torpy has been snapped up by Halcrow (see Business, p11)...

OFT asked to rule on skills card row.(Office of Fair Trading )(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... CMPE lodges complaint to OFT after MCG refuses to accept its competence cards by Colin Sowman The Contractors Mechanical Plant Engineers (CMPE) has lodged a complaint with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) about the Major Contractors...

Even the transport plan is delayed.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Unhappy new year! - especially if you're a commuter into one of the country's big cities. Industrial action on South West Trains has caused a large proportion of the problem and, while this is not really an infrastructure-related issue, it has...

[0] NEWSBRIEF.(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... balfour beatty on target for HA scheme Balfour Beatty is set to win the first major deal to be let by the Highways Agency this year. Insiders say that the firm is in pole position for the [pound]14m A5 Nesscliffe bypass in Shropshire,...

Site census for qualified workforce.(under the Construction Skills Certification Scheme )(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Project managers at thousands of construction sites across the country will be carrying out a census of their site workers this week to see if they are on target to have a fully qualified workforce within the next two years. At last...

QPA wants delay of Aggregates Tax.(Quarry Products Association)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Government slammed by QPA over breach of its guidelines on tax implementation by Tim Wood The Quarry Products Association (QPA) is this week calling for a six-month delay in the introduction of the Aggregates Tax after it discovered...

London Underground rumours 'unfounded'.(bidding for London Underground construction)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... by Carol Millett The troubled part-privatisation of London Underground's infrastructure entered the new year last week still dogged by rumours of its imminent demise. But preferred bidders Tubelines and Metronet this week dismissed the...

Tube property PPP to be axed.(London Underground management)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... by Carol Millett The [pound]2bn London Underground property PPP, which was postponed in November (CJ 21 November 2001) is to be ditched, Transport for London (TfL) says. A TfL spokesman told CJ that plans to hand over the property...

Norwest Holst acquires C&B.(Crispin & Borst )(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... by John Leitch Norwest Holst has acquired Crispin & Borst (C&B), the building contractor with an annual turnover of [pound]70m, for an undisclosed fee. No redundancies are envisaged among the 500-strong workforce. The company will...

Call for M4I testing.(Movement for Innovation measurements for construction performance improvement)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... The Movement for Innovation (M4I) must develop more robust methods to measure the performance of its demonstration projects, according to a recent Public Accounts Committee report into improving construction performance. It notes that, of...

Four bid for [pounds sterling]23m fire station deal.(Tyneside)(Brief Article)
January 9, 2002... Four firms will pick up tender documents towards the end of this month for a [pound]23m deal to build six fire stations on Tyneside. Babcock & Brown Projects, Jarvis, Scottish contractor Robertson and Japanese company Kajima will battle it...

Geoff Brewer considers whether adjudicators' decisions are independent of contract terms.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... What is the legal effect of an adjudicator's decision? It might be thought by now that such a question would be easily answered. Unfortunately, as lawyers are often keen to say, it is not as simple as that. One school of thought is that an...

Work winners this week.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Who's winning the work?Contracts Hotline is your at-a-glance digest of the latest contract awards around the UK. Data supplied by ABI Building Data. & south east West Malling housing Work: Houses/flats/bungalows...

There she blows.(energy policy, UK)(Statistical Data Included)
January 16, 2002... Under the terms of the Kyoto treaty, the government must provide 10% of Britain's energy from renewable sources by 2010 - and wind energy may contribute significantly towards that. Which would be good news for construction. Will Mann explains....

Back bites.
January 16, 2002... Brick flick As director of the London Film Festival, Adrian Wootton is more used to dealing with high-brow foreign movies than Towering Inferno-style disaster films. But the loft extension being carried out at his home in south London...

Supply chain concern.
January 16, 2002... Worries over effect of Aggregates Tax on day-to-day business Sir, The letter from the procurement manager of J Devine Civil Engineering (CJ 5 December) raises a concern that must affect all of us using aggregates in the supply chain....

IOSH behind safety diploma.
January 16, 2002... Sir, In the 19 December issue you rightly state on page 2 that the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH) will in 2002 be piloting what we hope will become a popular qualification, the National Diploma in...

HE reaches out.(HE Services' contract with JCB for Loadall machines)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 16, 2002... [pound]3.5m deal secured for JCB Loadalls and HEtakes the long-reach Komatsu JCB has secured one of its biggest single orders from HE Services. The [pound]3.5m deal for Loadall machines sees HE's return to buying JCB machines after three...

[pounds sterling]70m prime contract up for grabs.(Defence Estates to award building contract in North Yorkshire, England)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... by Glenda Thisdell Defence Estates has invited 11 firms to pre-qualify for a [pound]70m building contract at Catterick Garrison in North Yorkshire. The 11 prequalifiers are: Amec; Balfour Beatty; Ballast Construction North; a...

Pennine adds Stratamax.(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
January 16, 2002... Stratamax is the latest addition to Pennine Vibropiling's fleet. The firm says the tailor-made piling rig is unique in that it can drive both augers and take a vibroflot. Based on a Samsung excavator chassis, the 45t machine can install...

Systems and tools to go.(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
January 16, 2002... Hirex will see the launch of two computer systems for the hire industry and up to 40 new tools. Advantech will introduce two versions of its Hiremate computer system called eASY and eLAN. The 32-bit eASY system is aimed at the single...

SafeSide has edge.(Higher Safety)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
January 16, 2002... Higher Safety's SafeSide edge protection system is said to comply with the proposed European standard for temporary edge protection (pr EN13374). Its pre-formed braced components and lattice beam design can span large bays using less than one...

No favours for MCG.(Major Contractors Group)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... CTA-only stance will backfire, claims Readypower Rentals by Paul Howard The Major Contractors Group (MCG) "has shot itself in the foot" by only allowing general plant operators holding a Certificate of Training Achievement (CTA) card...

Manitou unveils loader.(MLA 628T 120LS pivot-steer telescopic loader)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)(Statistical Data Included)
January 16, 2002... Manitou has introduced a high-spec version of its MLA 628T pivot-steer telescopic loader designated the MLA 628T 120LS. The unit retains the 5.2m lift height, 3m forward reach and up to 2.8t load capacity, but it has a 90.5kW intercooled...

Social housing work worth [pounds sterling]100m.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Three privately financed social housing schemes will be advertised in the OJEC either at the end of this month or in early February. The schemes, worth over [pound]100m and including repair work and 30-year maintenance contracts, can go...

MJ Gleeson still in a housing flux.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 16, 2002... But the construction division predicts 30% rise in turnover MJ Gleeson's housebuilding division is still in turmoil. Margins in the first half will be "pretty poor" and in the full year they will fail to match last year's figure of 8.3%,...

Two remain in battle for [pounds sterling]250m PFI A1 road job.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Connect and Road Management Group fight for A1 road upgrade in Yorkshire by Brian Warner Only two groups are now left in the chase for the final scheme in the Highways Agency's (HA) current design, build, finance and operate (DBFO)...

UCATT faces huge bill over asbestosis battle.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Crippling legal costs could be on way in fight to secure adequate compensation by John d'Arcy UCATT is facing a potentially crippling legal bill in its fight to secure adequate compensation for the bereaved relatives of thousands of...

Pay deal to be 'sectionalised'.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... by John d'Arcy Pay and conditions in the engineering construction sector are set to be 'sectionalised' following a review of the industry's national agreement which will see separate provisions for four different categories of work. ...

NEWSBRIEF.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... D&S buys 200th item of plant D&S Kitching of Harrogate has taken delivery of its 200th item of plant from JCB: a Loadall telescopic handler. The company also has tracked excavators, 3CX backhoes and mini excavators. versalift supplies...

Social housing scheme set for London borough.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... The London Borough of Lewisham is gearing up for a [pound]110m-plus privately financed social housing scheme. Firms interested in the scheme have been invited to attend an open day on 28 January. The authority has yet to secure the PFI...

Culture or incompetence?(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Is it directors' incompetence or construction's adversarial culture that causes so many firms to collapse? Laura Hailstone investigates. The Department of Trade & Industry's revelation that 103 directors of construction firms were...

Cooper to lead Ballast.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Phillip Cooper has stepped forward to lead Ballast, the [pound]400m-a-year UK construction group. He takes over as managing director from Bob Heathfield in a move planned to restore the group's fortunes - regional offices are being closed and...

HA lines up five in third early D&B scheme.(Highways Agency, design and build schemes)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... The Highways Agency (HA) has lined up five contractors to pitch for the third of four early designa nd build schemes identified so far. On the starting grid for the [pound]40m to [pound]45m Bodmin to Indian Queens improvement scheme on the...

HA to cut super agencies to 14.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... by Ross Pearman The Highways Agency (HA) has announced its scheduled programme of reducing its super agencies from 20 to 14 as local authorities take over more responsibility for road maintenance. Steve Rowsell, the HA's director of...

WestLB was to save Railtrack.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... German bank WestLB, had made plans to take over and refinance Railtrack six months before Stephen Byers, the transport secretary, put it into administration. WestLB planned to put in new management as well as reshape the relationship...

Worker dies after 15m plunge down lift shaft.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... A construction worker has died from injuries sustained when he fell down a lift shaft on an Edinburgh construction site on 8 January. Electrician Gary Auld, 46, was carrying out electrical work in a lift on a Morrison Construction site in...

EC noise directive could cause chaos.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... CPA director says unprotected 87dB(A) noise limit is 'absolutely ludicrous' by Laura Hailstone The construction industry is under attack from Brussels once again, this time over noise levels. Plans to amend a draft European Directive...

A21 bypass to be re-advertised.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... The Highways Agency (HA) is to re-advertise the [pound]13.5m, A21 Lamberhurst bypass road scheme in Kent because it has not shortlisted firms five months after prequalification. Disputes over costs and contractual issues for the scheme,...

NFB calls for balance.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... The National Federation of Builders (NFB) has called for a 'balanced workforce' in the continuing debate surrounding the industry's self-employed. Chairman Bill Rabbetts said that the NFB is totally opposed to bogus self-employment and the...

Gleeson still top tip for CITB.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... With little more than two months to go before Hugh Try's term of office expires, Dermot Gleeson remains the top tip to succeed him as chairman of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). An appointment is expected shortly. Gleeson,...

NTL in financial crisis owing contractors [pounds sterling]25m.(NTL P.L.C.)(cable television broadcasting)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Exclusive by John Leitch Utility contractors are thought to be owed a total of around [pound]25m by NTL, Britain's biggest cable company which is in a financial crisis, with debts of more than [pound]14bn. Contractors are reported to...

Wobbly bridge opening delayed.(Millennium Bridge, England)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... The re-opening of London's Millennium Bridge has been further delayed due to the late arrival of dampers that are expected to rectify the infamous 'wobble'. The [pound]18.2m pedestrian bridge was due to re-open for Christmas, but due to...

SRA rhetoric aimed at seducing the city.(Strategic Rail Authority)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... Critics of the Strategic Rail Authority's (SRA) Strategic Plan claim that most of it is old news. They also say the extra [pound]4.4bn pledged by the government over the next 10 years is not new and not nearly enough. But there is...

Balfour Rail threatened with industrial action.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... by Will Mann Balfour Beatty's Rail Renewals division is facing industrial action from disgruntled workers over an imposed pay award. A spokeswoman for the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union said it had received "approaches from...

Gleeson selected for pilot PFI housing scheme.(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... by Carol Millett A preferred bidder has finally been chosen for Manchester City Council's groundbreaking privately funded social housing scheme. The [pound]86m contract will see Plymouth Grove housing estate redesigned, refurbished and...

NHS LIFT programme names second wave.(United Kingdom National Health Service Local Investment Finance Trust)(housing development)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... The 12 privately funded schemes will be worth between [pound]10m and [pound]30m by Carol Millett A second tranche of 12 privately funded schemes to build and refurbish GP premises under the NHS Local Investment Finance Trust (LIFT)...

NEWSBRIEF.(various articles on contract construction)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... balfour beatty picks up Us work Balfour Beatty has picked up more than $220m of infrastructure development work in the USA. Balfour, in joint venture with its US tunnelling partner ML Shank, will undertake the Narragansett Bay Tunnel...

Rail masterplan sets blueprint for renewal.(railroad remodeling planning)(Brief Article)
January 16, 2002... l SRA claims plan is deliverable and practical and provides stability and clarity by Tim Wood The government's rail strategy body announced this week its intention to pump an extra [pound]4.4bn into the nation's crumbling railway...

AM Special Projects faces writ for [pounds sterling]1.7m.
January 16, 2002... Alfred McAlpine subsidiary AM Special Projects Developments is being sued by two joint venture partners for more than [pound]1.7m in damages for an alleged breach of contract. In a writ issued at London's High Court, Samuel Beadie...