Our pick of the biggest news stories in construction this year, and how they made an impact on the national news agenda
1. Cameron to host 2012 construction summit
Prime minister to champion industry’s work to global VIPs during Games … click here to read more
Building says:
The London 2012 Olympics provided the backdrop to Building’s first splash of the year. This story exclusively revealed construction’s key role in the forthcoming British Business Embassy and highlighted the first appeals to relax onerous 2012 marketing rules, something which became a major theme of Building’s 2012 campaign.
2. Home insulation work to collapse under Green Deal
Government predicts 93% fall in loft insulation work, putting carbon targets at risk … click here to read more
Building says:
This story on the government’s flagship green policy had a huge impact, prompting questions to minister Greg Barker on Channel 4 News and a follow up story in The Guardian.
3. Exclusive: Balfour Beatty puts 12,000 jobs at risk
Contractor puts all staff in its construction services division on notice in major restructure … click here to read more
Building says:
Building was the first to break the news of Balfour Beatty’s major UK restructure and the risk to 12,000 jobs in the firm’s construction services division. The story was picked up by Reuters and then made all the major national daily papers.
4. Secret government report: BSF schools improved learning
Exclusive: £55bn school building programme was improving pupil performance until it was scrapped by Gove … click here to read more
Building says:
This story - the result of a Freedom of Information request - revealed an previously unpublished report showing that schools built under the previous Labour government improved learning and attendance. It was picked up by The Guardian.
5. Olympic delivery partner CLM nets £162m profit
Exclusive: Building’s analysis of accounts reveals CLM achieved 33% margin on turnover of £495m … click here to read more
Building says:
We carried out exclusive analysis of the accounts of Olympic delivery partner CLM which showed it had achieved an extraordinary 33% margin and made a £162 pre-tax profit, raising questions of public value-for-money. The story, along with an earlier exclusive on CLM payments, became a splash in the Sunday Times’ business section.
6. Brookfield sues the Pinnacle for £16m
Exclusive: Contractor launches High Court claim to recover unpaid fees for work on stalled £1bn Pinnacle tower … click here to read more
Building says:
This exclusive revealed that contractor Brookfield was suing the owners of the stalled £1bn Pinnacle tower in the High Court for breach of contract, claiming £16m in unpaid fees. The story was picked up by the Financial Times, City AM and the Sunday Times.
7. Clutch of directors go in fresh Davis Langdon cull
Exclusive: Consultant makes new round of redundancies, with a host of directors leaving … click here to read more
Building says:
This story exposed a new round of redundancies among directors and staff at consultant Davis Langdon, a year after the firm made almost a fifth of its directors redundant.
8. Exclusive: Shard architect primed for flagship Selfridges scheme
Renzo Piano set to embark on third high profile London project with major Oxford Street store extension … click here to read more
Building says:
Our scoop on how The Shard architect Renzo Piano was set to be appointed to design a major extension to Selfridges’ historic Oxford Street store was picked up by The Times and the Evening Standard. The luxury retailer later confirmed the appointment and told the media the project would set its agenda for the “next century”.
9. Olympic village £2m pay row threatens specialist’s survival
Exclusive: Subcontractor MPG says dispute with Galliford Try has forced it to seek a company voluntary arrangement … click here to read more
Building says:
This exclusive revealed that a £2m payment dispute between the main contractor on the 2012 Athletes’ Village, Galliford Try, and subcontractor MPG had forced the specialist to the brink of insolvency.
10. Blacklist boss Ian Kerr reported dead
Former chief officer of the Consulting Association was to be key witness in civil claim against Sir Robert McAlpine … click here to read more
Building says:
The shock news in December that former blacklisting boss Ian Kerr had died quickly became one of Building’s top read stories of the year. The exclusive, which was picked up by the Evening Standard, also revealed that Kerr had been due to act as a key witness in the civil claim made by blacklist victims against contractor Sir Robert McAlpine.
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