Round table: At the cutting edge of carbon

Posted on: 5 March 2014
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Report on a round-table debate which addressed the issue of how much progress the construction industry has made in reducing operational emissions and how much it still has to cut to achieve its long-term carbon goal.

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Construction Contract & Law LinkedIn Group

Posted on: 28 February 2014
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NBS is inviting practitioners to join the NBS Construction Contract & Law LinkedIn Group, which it has set up to facilitate a forum for discussion and debate, sharing opinions, asking questions and raising concerns in this specialist subject area. The group is expected to be of particular interest to small practices.

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Construction Newsletter: February 2014

Posted on: 28 February 2014
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This construction newsletter, published by the Cabinet Office, includes updates on the Infrastructure Carbon Review, Green Construction Board and the EU directive on Building Information Modelling.

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The Green Construction Board: Two years on report

Posted on: 28 February 2014
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The Green Construction Board (GCB) was established in October 2011 as a consultative forum for government and the UK design, construction, property and infrastructure industry. It was established to ensure a sustained high-level conversation and to develop and implement a long-term strategic framework for the promotion of innovation and sustainable growth in this sector. In the shorter term, its key priority is to provide improved focus, direction and clarity to the business and growth opportunities which are being created by the shift to a green economy. This second annual report sets out the progress the Board, through its working groups, has made over the last twelve months.

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No more lost generations: Creating construction jobs for young people

Posted on: 26 February 2014
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This report summarises the work, findings and recommendations of a parliamentary inquiry into how construction investment could be used to generate more training and jobs for young people. The inquiry has been supported by the Chartered Institute of Building, the Construction Industry Training Board and the main charities involved in getting young people into construction. The commission found that the drastic fall in apprenticeship training comes at a time when the construction industry is forecast to need 182,000 more workers in the next five years.

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CIC Tweet Weekly

Posted on: 21 February 2014
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The Construction Industry Council (CIC) is a representative forum for professional bodies, research organisations and specialist businesses in the construction industry. This page provides a roundup of CIC members’ news.

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Sound insulation: Part 1: An introduction (GG 83/1)

Posted on: 21 February 2014
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This Good Building Guide provides practical guidance for designers, construction managers and operatives, and property developers on understanding the requirements of national building regulations concerning the provision of sound insulation in dwellings. Part 1 explains the importance of providing good sound insulation between and within homes. It describes the problems associated with neighbour noise; how to satisfy the current regulatory requirements in England and Wales; and methods of measuring sound transmission in dwellings. Considering the requirements relating to sound insulation at an early stage of any development reduces the likelihood of costly remediation measures and delays at completion. Parts 2 and 3 give advice on providing the correct level of sound insulation when constructing new dwellings and converting a building into multiple dwellings.

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Brazil: Building the country of tomorrow

Posted on: 20 February 2014
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This special issue of the Institution of Civil Engineers’ journal on Civil Engineering features reports on a wide range of innovative construction and research programmes in Brazil. As well as sporting facilities, the papers look at some of the other infrastructure projects set to contribute to Brazil’s prosperous long-term future. Please note that free access is available until 28 February 2014.

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HCA Construction Forum. London, 4 February 2014

Posted on: 19 February 2014
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The Homes and Communities Agency organised this forum to highlight existing innovation within the construction sector and to explore the potential for wider adoption, in particular in the context of the launch of the Affordable Homes Programme for 2015-18 and the UK Government’s Construction Strategy. The forum aimed to identify practical and tangible ways of achieving efficiency and adding value throughout all levels of affordable housing construction, focusing on cultural and behavioural changes in procurement and contracting, utilising modern tools such as BIM (Building Information Modelling) for supply chain integration and adopting innovative construction methods such as modular and offsite construction. A presentation is available online.

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Work at height

Posted on: 12 February 2014
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As part of the Government’s Red Tape Challenge, the scheme by which outdated or over-complicated regulations are improved or abolished, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has overhauled its guidance for Working at Height to make it easier for employers and employees to understand what the law requires of them when working at height.

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