More Focus – Page 126
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FeaturesThe pressure of payment reform
The launch last week of a new payment charter adds to the legitmate pressure on contractors to pay their subbies promptly. But this pressure could also starve contractors of the cash they need to invest, push up prices, and even push some firms over the edge
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FeaturesGarden cities: Back to the future
Garden cities offered a utopian vision of town planning at the dawn of the last century. But could they be the answer to the current housing crisis? The coalition seems to think so
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FeaturesThe eco-supermarket pioneers
As Sainsbury’s Greenwich, the pioneer of retail sustainability, prepares for possible demolition just 15 years after its opening, we look at how eco-stores have evolved since, with supermarkets attempting to save energy and boost their green credentials
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FeaturesTracker: March 2014
Construction activity showed a slight fall in the third month of the year but remained in positive territory, pointing towards a period of sustained expansion. Experian Economics reports
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FeaturesInterview: Alan Brown
With two investors behind it and the recent purchase of upmarket housebuilder Banner, Cala Group has come a long way from its precarious refinancing in 2009. Alan Brown talks about delivering volume at the top end of the market, and plans to treble turnover to £800m a year
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FeaturesSpring in our step
Business indicators point to plenty of momentum in the economy as household consumption expands and employment rises. Michael Dall presents highlights of Barbour ABI’s latest monthly Economic Construction Market Review, with a special focus on the education sector
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FeaturesMarket forecast: Rebound on track
Although Q1 2014 saw output and price levels taper off, the overall direction of the industry remains encouraging, especially considering its supply and skills constraints
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FeaturesWhat to specify: Doors & windows
You can see clearly now with the latest doors and windows products. Innovations include automatic door operators, top swing reversible windows and electronic roof windows
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FeaturesHow to be cool: Tackling overheating in UK homes
Overheating in homes is set to become an increasingly urgent issue, especially in the capital, as global temperatures rise. With energy legislation demanding that buildings become ever more airtight, what is the best way for designers to respond?
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FeaturesWorkers of the World unite
Bosses of employee-owned companies claim greater engagement and increased profitability. So why isn’t everyone doing it?
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FeaturesNBS survey: The BIM that will bring us together
NBS’ annual BIM survey suggests that uptake of the collaborative technology has risen sharply over the past year. But is it really becoming the industry norm?
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FeaturesBIM: The inside story three years on
Manchester council’s FM team were initially reluctant to use BIM in the operation of the city’s newly refurbished Central Library. But then they were shown how much time it could save, even on changing a lamp… Thomas Lane catches up with the team in part three of a series that ...
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FeaturesCost model: Tall buildings
With nearly 250 towers set to be built in London alone - the vast majority of them residential - Brian Smith, Mital Dholakia and Richard Heseltine of Aecom highlight the main design and cost considerations in reaching for the skies
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FeaturesBuilding Award Winners: Sustainable project of the year
There were several trailblazing projects in this category, but Skanska and Hopkins Architects’ Brent Civic Centre stands out for redefining the humble council office as a beacon of low-energy design
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FeaturesTrouble at the top
Bad managers can have a big impact on staff morale and productivity levels, and they could even pose a serious threat to the industry’s upturn. So why are there so many of them?
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FeaturesSustainability: Facilities efficiency
As construction becomes ever more energy efficient, attention is turning to facilities management to deliver greater carbon and cost savings. Phil Birch of Sweett Group examines how the purchasing and management of cleaning and catering operations can reduce a building’s environmental impact
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FeaturesWhat to specify: Housing
This week, we go through the keyhole at some of the UK’s most genteel new residences, including a Buckinghamshire country house with timber leaded windows and a rapidly rendered home in Poundbury
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FeaturesFair payment charter: Cheque’s in the post
Few issues are more contentious in construction than payment practices. So will a new fair payment charter that asks contractors to commit to shorter payment times actually work - or merely add to the pile of previous failed attempts to reform the industry?
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FeaturesRebuilding after Japan's tsunami
Three years on from its devastating earthquake and tsunami, Japan is, for the first time, signalling that it needs help rebuilding homes and communities. For UK construction firms willing to dig in, this could mean new opportunities
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FeaturesBuilding Awards Small Project of the Year: Maggie's cancer centre, Aberdeen
With its streamlined, organic form enhancing its welcoming ethos, the latest Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre in Aberdeen, designed by Snøhetta, is a worthy winner of this year’s Small Project of the Year Building Award