Reopen Which sectors will reopen from lockdown first? Construction, manufacturing, logistics, essential retail, waste handling & outdoor work – by staying 2m apart. A population basis to reopen is ‘youth first’ – schools & young workers who don’t live with older folks. Another brick out of the wall Guessed the Word? …
Tag: construction
Kit homes Modular homes out of a kit go back over 100 yrs. Sears, Roebuck & Co sold >70,000 home kits from 1908 to 1940. Construction has changed far less by technology in the UK & US than other major industries. Europe is ahead. Where we want to build housing quickly near jobs, change is…
Insolvent Die hard. From a decade low in 2015, UK insolvencies have shot up 20%. Out of 2018’s 17,439 corporate failures, construction was hit hardest with 3,940 insolvencies, despite the demand for new homes. Then admin/support firms (3,346), retail (2,608) & manufacturing (2,092). Causes include Brexit uncertainty, business rates, pension enrolment & unsecured debt Guessed the…
Gentrify Better to gentrify an area, or not gentrify? Affluent professionals moving into poor areas are blamed for rising house prices, forcing others to re-locate & changing the city’s character. But their money brings more jobs, better schools & less crime. Ruth Glass’s 1960’s term ‘gentrification’ outlined the gentry’s move into London as it evolved…
Retention £1 billion! deducted by UK top 12 main contractors, from payments due to their supply chain, as security for performance. Not held in ring-fenced account, so small firms lose when retention-taker goes bust. And tied-up sums don’t help construction sector productivity & improvement Guessed the Word? Series 6 (2/5) [photo: Meditations]…