EWS | DIGEST IN BRIEF Harmony for lift standards The first international standard for lifts has been published, bringing together multiple existing standards to try to harmonise international working practices. Part One of ISO 8100 covers the safe transportation of people and goods, while Part Two sets rules for design and component testing. Dr Gero Gschwendtner, chair of the ISO technical committee that developed the standard, believes it should remove barriers to international trade for manufacturers and coordinate safety levels. This will not only reduce administration for many businesses, but will also provide a platform for safety, innovation and new technologies to grow, he said. Shaylor employees laid off by email Staff at large Midlands contractor Shaylor were told about the companys collapse into administration by email. Attempts to refinance the business failed last month with many subcontractors left unpaid. The email told employees that the group had recently suffered from a number of project delays, payment disputes with clients and failure of several key subcontractors. Despite returning a profit of 7.6m on turnover of 142m last year, subcontractors had been complaining about late payments since early this year. The staff were told not to turn up for work. Call for papers The 10th CIBSE/ASHRAE Technical Symposium will be held in Glasgow, Scotland, in April 2020 and its theme is mitigating and adapting for a changing climate. A call has gone out for papers, posters, technical reviews, case studies and opinion presentations based on recent or current research or application, as well as those that examine actual or potential impact on the built environment. The symposium encourages industry practitioners, researchers and building users to share knowledge and develop networks. Submit your 250-word abstract online by 16 September 2019 at www.cibse.org/symposium Skills shortages could push up tender prices from 2022 Labour-market pressures could also boost offsite fabrication, says forecaster Tender prices could rise by as much as 4% from 2022, because of skills shortages linked to Brexit, according to forecaster Arcadis. It said the cost could increase after a period of treading water caused by political stagnation during negotiations with the EU. As a result, short-term rises will be restricted to between 2-3% until 2021, as clients adopt a wait and see approach, but could then take off as the market speeds up. Average pay for construction employees rose by 4.2% in the past 12 months, up from 2.1% in 2017. As projects come back on stream from 2021 and pressure grows on labour markets Arcadis expects these cost pressures to increase. This could drive an uptake in offsite fabrication, as employers look to improve productivity and reduce dependence on sitebased labour. Currently, it accounts for only 8% of industry output, but with the introduction of a government mandate, this could increase significantly, the forecasters said. UK construction has a long-established skills and training problem, said Simon Rawlinson, head of Arcadis strategic research and insight. With skilled EU labour making up 8-10% of the workforce, specialist contractors and employers have been shielded from developing and maintaining the skills of their workforce. With the prospect of post-Brexit restrictions on migration, however, were facing a crisis in terms of labour capacity. The supply chain will need other options for increasing productivity. Confidence returns to M&E firms Building services contractors have reported a cautious return to business confidence, despite rising costs and persistent payment issues, according to the latest survey by trade bodies. The Building Engineering Business Survey, by Besa, the ECA, Select and Snipef, found that the turnovers of 75% of businesses had increased or remained steady during the first quarter of this year, compared with the last three months of 2018. Outlook for the period to the end of June was largely positive, with almost 29% of businesses estimating that their turnover would rise. Costs are also on the up, however, with 58% of businesses reporting higher labour costs and 73% saying materials costs are higher compared with last year. Payment terms and retentions remain problematic, with 81% of survey respondents saying they wait 31 days or more to be paid for work completed on commercial projects; 63% said that was the typical waiting period on public sector projects. During the first quarter of this year, 58% of businesses had between 1-10% of their turnover tied up in retentions. but Kier cuts workforce by 1,200 Major construction and project management firm Kier is to cut its workforce by 1,200 over the next 12 months. It is also selling its housing division, and plans to leave the facilities management and environmental services markets. High levels of debt have hit Kiers performance, and chief executive Andrew Davies said the changes would reduce costs by 55m from 2021. The company will re-focus on regional building projects, infrastructure, utilities and highways. A strategic review concluded that the groups portfolio was too diverse and contains a number ofbusinesses that are incompatible with the groups new strategy and working capital objectives, saidDavies. Kiers share price plunged by 12% after the announcement. 8 July 2019 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE July19 pp08-09 News.indd 8 21/06/2019 15:28