NEWS | DIGEST Durtnells collapse rings alarm bells The Specialist Engineering Contractors (SEC) Group says the collapse of Britains oldest building company is further confirmation of the financial crisis hitting the industry. Durtnell & Sons, owned by the same family for almost 430 years, went into insolvency in July, becoming just another statistic in a wave of insolvencies affecting the construction industry, according to the lobbying group. The extremely weak balance sheets of the largest UK contractors are creating a ticking time bomb. Trade credit insurers are withdrawing cover from many of these companies, leaving their supply chains exposed, it said. Construction is the industry with the most insolvencies, with payment retentions often to blame, SEC added. Durtnell was believed to have been owed 630,000 in retentions. SEC Group chief executive Rudi Klein said there was now concern for Durtnells subcontractors, mostly SMEs. He called on the government to adopt the Peter Aldous Bill to protect these monies from upstream insolvencies. Construction worker deaths at new low Construction deaths in the UK last year were at their lowest since records began in 1981, but it is still the second-most dangerous sector behind agriculture. The Health and Safety Executive, said 30 workers were killed in 2018, below the annual average of 36. But the fatal injury rate in construction is 1.31 per 100,000 workers four times higher than the average across all industries. Industry suffers sharpest output fall in a decade Projects delayed because of lack of clarity from policy-makers, survey found New construction work orders suffered their steepest fall for more than 10 years in June, while demand for products and materials slumped at the fastest pace since the start of 2010. Thats according to the IHS Markit/CIPS UK Construction Total Activity Index, which tracks buyers activity. Housebuilding experienced its slowest period for three years, while commercial work fell for the sixth consecutive month. Civil engineering recorded its fastest rate of contraction since October 2009. Clients delaying projects because of lack of clarity from policy-makers was the underlying cause, said the survey. The abrupt loss of momentum in 2019 has been the worst experienced across the sector for a decade, said associate director at IHS Markit Tim Moore. Greater risk aversion has now spread to the residential building subsector, as concerns about the near-term demand outlook contributed to a reduction in housing activity for the first time in 17 months. Moore added that the continued lack of new work to replace completed projects illustrates the degree of urgency required from policymakers to rebuild confidence. Duncan Brock, of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, said the figures showed a change in the sectors ability to ride the highs and lows of political uncertainty and that Brexit had finally taken its toll. Modular halves project time, says study Modular construction can reduce project costs by 20% and delivery time by up to 50%, according to a report from analysts McKinsey & Company. Having more work carried out in a factory allows for greater use of precision parts that improve energy efficiency and make the process safer, the report concluded. Construction had remained largely immune to changes, the authors said despite the widespread disruption experienced by other industries but offsite work was a disruptor that was starting to make progress. The research was based on the US market and established that around $135bn out of total construction expenditure of $1tn was spent on modular designs in 2017. McKinsey estimates additional savings of around $22bn could be achieved with greater uptake of modular. Use of 3D design might require greater upfront investment, it added, but would deliver longterm savings with the development of more customisation and repeatability. 10 August 2019 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Aug19 pp10 News.indd 10 19/07/2019 13:16