Readymix Plasters developed by Knauf Drywall delivered the finest wall finishes possible, ready for decoration, for the fast-track construction programme to develop two major new London hotels.
The 182-bedroom, four-star Novotel London Blackfriars and the 297-bedroom,
budget Ibis London Blackfriars, are sited next to each other on Blackfriars Road and were constructed by main contractor McAleer & Rushe. Approximately 90 tons of Knauf Airless, Deco and Deco Plus finished the two hotels’ walls, including bedrooms, business suites, all corridors, staircases and common areas.
“The big advantage with these products is the speed at which you can apply them – three or four times faster than manual application,” said Jason Smith, director of the specialist subcontractor P3 Projection Coatings appointed by McAleer & Rushe.
He pointed out that faster application also leads to better quality because it means the job requires fewer operatives on site and so it is far simpler to achieve a consistent finish throughout the project.
The Novotel was finished with Knauf Airless, which provides a smooth finish and is applied using an airless high pressure piston pump machine, while the Ibis has a textured finish and has been plastered using Knauf Deco and Knauf Deco Plus, which are applied with rotary screw worm pump machines.
Knauf Drywall’s range of Readymix Plasters enable up to 1,000m2 per week to be applied and can be finished by a three-man gang. Surfaces can be emulsioned within 24 to 48 hours.
For more information visit
www.knaufdrywall.co.uk
FPDC has joined with the Steel Construction Institute (SCI) to produce a guide to the design and installation of light gauge steel external wall systems. The new guide will be available next month.
The new guide is intended to highlight to clients and specifiers performance and product capability information that should be considered at the design and installation stage.
Products and construction systems are growing in complexity and are invariably pre-engineered for optimised performance across a range of criteria which relate to both structural and non-structural requirements. Customers need to know that the product they are buying is suitable for the intended purpose. This is particularly relevant when considering using new suppliers into a particular product area.
For further information or to order a copy visit www.fpdc.org or http://shop.steel-sci.com
The Association for Specialist Fire Protection, with CITB ConstructionSkills funding, has developed a nationally recognised industry training scheme for passive fire protection. The scheme aims to up-skill contractors involved in the installation of passive fire protection as well as improve the knowledge base of those involved with passive fire protection.
For further information visit either www.fpdc.org or www.asfp.org.uk
With branches now open in Crawley and Luton and more planned for 2013, Minster has moved into the roofing and roofline marketplace.
The new brand takes Minster Group firmly into the domestic roofing market. The Minster Group Marketing Director, Nick Ratcliffe, will be heading up the new business, where he will be supported by Paul Maidment, Minster Roofing & Roofline Commercial Director. The management team is made up of some of the best people within roofing distribution, representing many years of collective knowledge and expertise gathered within the roofing and wider construction sectors.
The company will serve specialist and roofing contractors, fabricators and builders merchants, offering specialist distribution of major brands supplying: pitch and flat roofing – including tiles, slates and metals; fascias and guttering; roofing insulation; decking and trusses.
The launch marks a major development of the Minster Group. Throughout its rapid growth in the past few years Minster has retained its focus on specialist distribution and continues to build on the strong foundation of its core markets of Insulation and Dry Lining. In the past year Minster has successfully added a Ceilings offer to its portfolio, and there will be more to come – particularly with the increased demand for products such as external wall insulation, driven by the Government’s Green Deal and ECO initiatives.
Chris Whitlock, Managing Director of the Minster Group said: “This expansion represents an exciting opportunity. Minster Roofing and Roofline will give roofers more choice. The mix of expertise, innovative product solutions and helpful, knowledgeable staff mean the business is well positioned to bring added value to its customers.”
For more information visit www.minsterroof.co.uk.
FPDC is teaming up with a specialist SME procurement consultancy to offer smaller contractors a way to benefit from bulk buying consumable items such as small tools, PPE and stationery.
All businesses are aware that there is increasing pressure on organisations to deliver cost reductions and lower operational overheads in order to promote efficiency in an increasingly hostile market.
For many businesses the primary driver given these requirements is often to lower margin aspirations in order to compete effectively. The principles of smart procurement focus on real savings that can be delivered to the bottom line by concentrating on some of the less obvious areas of spend.
These are common to all businesses and are often overlooked in favour of ‘core’ business related spend but nonetheless contribute significantly to the cost of operational overheads and therefore to the required level of margin requirement.
Setting aside for one moment the challenges of harnessing this margin aspiration,
the ‘low hanging fruit’ available to many businesses continues to be an area that is left to
office administrators or perhaps IT specialist who may not have acquired the necessary market knowledge and/or negotiation skills required to establish the most beneficial return into the business.
There are numerous general practitioning consultancies offering procurement services to organisations throughout the UK. FPDC is teaming up with Eclipse Procurement Solutions to develop a model which is unique to the construction industry. The approach allows for a review of an organisation’s existing processes whilst also developing smart procurement principles which allow participating businesses the opportunity to unlock additional bottom line returns into their business.
The FPDC/ Eclipse team is made up of seasoned construction professionals who have a demonstrable track record within some of the industry’s most prominent contractors. Consultations are available to your business on a no obligation basis and, if required, engagements are available to FPDC member companies at preferential rates.
To find out more, please contact FPDC on either 020 7634 9480 or membership@fpdc.org
FPDC and CITB-ConstructionSkills have teamed up to raise standards in drylining by making available a grant that will support training of currently unqualified, experienced, employed construction workers to NVQ Level 2, helping to increase productivity and meet the industry’s skills challenge.
The development and introduction of a specialist upskilling programme (SUP)is a joint initiative between FPDC and CITB-ConstructionSkills that will provide employers, committing to training their workforce, with access to a grant of up to £3,525 per operative, whether directly employed or a labour-only subcontractor.
Steve Halcrow, FPDC’s interim director,said: “It is vital that employers and their staff continue to train through these challenging economic times and this is particularly important for the construction sector. Around 80 per cent of the 2020 workforce are already in employment. If we are to be a competitive sector, we must enhance the skills of our people at all levels. The availability of SUP grants for drylining will help support the upskilling of those working in this sector, thereby ensuring we have a better skilled workforce able to drive this industry and oureconomy forward.”
Stuart Littlefair, CITB-ConstructionSkills, said: “It is essential that we identify and address the skills and training needs of the workforce necessary for the long term future of the sector. Approximately 10,000 people currently working in the sector are not qualified to the appropriate standard and this initiative will help address the skills levels required for the industry now and in the future.”
SUPs have already been developed in other sectors and delivered successfully. FPDC is now leading a move to provide a similar programme for its members.
The programmes will ensure competent contractors are best placed to meet best practice guidelines. The SUP will involve some off-site training, followed by on-site NVQ assessment. The courses will cover industry regulations and codes of practice, as well as bespoke practical training on installation methods, materials, equipment and the environment, all aligning to the National Occupational Standards.
A new online training portal is to be unveiled by FPDC this month as part of the Federation’s commitment to raise standards and improve skills. The new interactive programme is designed to give members an understanding of key issues effecting contractors and will cover technical aspects involved with the trade and improve awareness.
Kim Phillips, FPDC’s membership manager, said: “We have produced four training modules covering: contract awareness; Green Deal; the Code for Sustainable Homes; and essential skills for site managers.
“With pressure on time the introduction of e-learning will give members greater flexibility to chose when and where they provide learning opportunities for their employees. Each module will be available via the FPDC website and lasts between
45 and 75 minutes. The training facilitates learning and enhances the understanding
of plastering concepts as well as instilling good working practices.”
For more information visit www.fpdc.org
Research from FPDC has identified that clients lack knowledge about how plaster and drylining systems should be finished. As a result work that meets British and European standards is being rejected, exposing specialists to unnecessary additional work.
Steve Halcrow, interim director at FPDC, said: “We’ve received more than 40 technical support requests recently and over three quarters are concerned with finishing. “FPDC encounters many issues with people inspecting work using strong lights, standing close to the surface and viewing from shallow glancing angles. Under these conditions even
the tiniest little blemish can be seen. This is not a fair assessment of workmanship and should not to be used when snagging.
“We’re now reviewing the finishing standard guidelines and need contractors to step forward and help to set out clearer guidelines for the industry to design and install to.”
For more information visit www.fpdc.org
The latest Speedline Metal Guide has been designed as a solutions brochure to help the construction industry satisfy the latest building regulations. The guide features the complete range of Speedline Metal System products, all of which conform to the latest British and European standards.
The guide includes details about how Speedline systems can satisfy Scottish Section 5 requirements; details of Speedline Resilient Bar conformance to Robust Detail for separating floors; solution sections on residential, education and healthcare sectors; and a quick reference guide on how systems are constructed
The new guide also provides details of new Speedline systems including Speedline Fire systems; Speedline Acoustic systems; and also Speedline High Impact systems.
Find out more by visiting www.speedlinedrywall.co.uk
Innovation is a much used term in construction. James McLavy, innovation project manager at British Gypsum, outlines their commitment to develop ideas that can support both customers and the industry as a whole.
Along with product development, client expectations have also evolved in recent years. British Gypsum understands the need for innovation that provides great quality products for its customers, and has a dedicated innovation team and research and development facilities in order to facilitate this focus. Our employees are also encouraged to get involved with this process, and we have developed a number of ways to enable them to do this. Our ‘Innov8’ schemes reward employees for their contributions and help to develop ideas that can support both our customers and the industry as a whole.
The needs of installers, clients and occupiers are continually changing. In order for manufacturers to meet the future needs of the customer, and remain ahead of the curve when it comes to product development, it is crucial they invest in innovation. Innovation must encourage products and processes that both support the customer, and meet the expectations of the end user of the building.
The role of drylining in a build project is now more diverse than ever, and can provide solutions to a range of people’s living needs. Indoor air quality, for example, is one of the top three considerations for architects and building occupants when specifying products according to research conducted by the plaster and drylining manufacturer. British Gypsum developed ACTIVair technology which absorbs and converts volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into inert compounds and prevents their re-emission back into the atmosphere, after recognising the potential harmful effects of impurities and pollutants, such as VOCs, on health and wellbeing. This innovation has helped customers improve air quality for the end user, and has had a positive impact on not only the build itself, but the environment and people within it.
It is innovations such as VOC absorbing ACTIVair that are setting a new standard when it comes to innovation for building interiors, technological developments like these are securing the future of drylining as a necessity for building projects that have a number of specifications to meet.
At British Gypsum we focus on two streams of innovation, we deliver what our customers need in terms of time and cost efficiencies and seek to create new products and services which complement the modern, flexible needs of the end user.
James McLavy is innovation project manager at British Gypsum.
www.british-gypsum.com
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