Cornwall-based sawmill Duchy Timber has recently purchased a state-of-the-art horizontal resaw at its Lostwithiel site in order to help facilitate a significant increase in production. The new multi-bonded saw is a big timesaver for the team and will allow them to dramatically improve their sawing capacity.
This month we feature Jonathan Rogerson, Senior Consultant for Field Service. We sat down with Jonathan to learn more about his experience within the field service industry.
The NBG has released its latest Partner survey, which shows that Partners are feeling ready to open their showrooms and branches, and conduct face to face meetings with Suppliers on site. The survey has been carried out quarterly since the first lockdown last year. Overall, 94% of respondents indicated that their branches are now fully open, with 3% remaining closed on Saturdays, mainly because of a conscious change in business operating hours. This is a significant change since the last survey in November, when only 86% were fully open and 12% were closed on Saturdays.
James Burrell has expanded its delivery fleet to 42 vehicles, with the six new additions being ‘Euro 6’ emission standard vehicles and two new flatbed wagons. These will enable the delivery of around 1,400 tonnes of materials per day across the North East and Yorkshire. The company’s entire wagon fleet is now the most environmentally friendly ‘Euro 6’. They have also recently introduced electric forklifts into several of their branches.
Saint-Gobain’s Graham Plumbers Merchant business has been sold to competitors Wolseley and UK Plumbing Supplies, with the latter taking the majority of the Graham branches, plus the Graham name and website. A smaller number of branches will go to Wolseley. These changes are expected to be completed over the coming weeks.
Murdock Builders Merchants, the timber suppliers and builders’ merchants based in Newry, Northern Ireland, has bought the oldest builders’ merchant in Ireland – the Brooks Group. The Brooks Group comprises Brooks Builders Merchants and Dublin Plywood and Veneer (DPV), from Wales-based Premier Forest Product Group. The acquisition will lead to the return of Irish ownership, after a 40-year interval, of Brooks – leading to the establishment of a strong force in the market with reach throughout Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
The Construction Leadership Council (CLC) has launched its new Construct Zero website, which will provide a single hub for all information relating to the construction industry’s change programme in the Race to net Zero. The CLC used the Builders Merchants Federation’s (BMF) inaugural Sustainability Forum to help launch the website.
EU nationals have until 30th June to apply for settled status or they face becoming illegal immigrants overnight. It is because of this that construction employers are urged to help their European staff with outstanding applications to ensure this doesn’t happen. EU nationals without settled or pre-settled status will be unable to work, open a bank account, access healthcare or rent a home.
Travis Perkins Chief Operating Officer, Frank Elkins, has warned that around 40% of the group’s branches are experiencing cement shortages. He recommends that businesses give the builders’ merchant as much notice as possible regarding the products and materials they require, in order to help Travis Perkins to plan and secure the materials.
Grant & Stone Group has acquired Devondale Electrical Distributors (Devondale), which provides an extensive range of electrical and ancillary products to electricians, electrical contractors and facilities managers. This acquisition has expanded Grant & Stone’s network of specialist electrical wholesalers and is the most recent of a number of acquisitions including builders’ and plumbers’ merchants in the South West of England.
BSW Timber, the UK’s largest integrated forestry and sawmilling group, has acquired Bayram Timber for an undisclosed sum. Bayram was established more than 20 years ago and is a market leading timber processor and manufacturer. Some of the sectors it supplies for are the UK caravan, leisure home and garden sectors. The acquisition will strengthen BSW’s value-added processing capabilities and will help to broaden BSW’s product offering and service to customers.
All 750 employees at The Independent Builders Merchants Group’s (IBMG) 39 branches will get the afternoon off on 25th June. This is to give employees a well-earned extended weekend break on the first weekend following lockdown easing. As a further show of appreciation, all employees will also receive vouchers so they can enjoy dinner compliments of the business that night.
Among the first 14 champions from across the UK’s construction supply chain to declare their commitment to support C02nstructZero were four member companies from the Builders Merchants Federation (BMF). The initial champions have been selected by the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) for having demonstrated their commitment towards the sector’s drive to reducing carbon emissions in the delivery and operation of the built environment.
The demerger between Wickes and Travis Perkins has now completed, with Wickes rejoining the London Stock Exchange as a standalone company. Alongside the demerger, Travis Perkins shareholders also approved the resolution to consolidate shares in Travis Perkins. Both Wickes and the remainder of the business have been enjoying strong sales, attributed to people doing more DIY and home repairs during Covid-19 lockdowns.
Construction equipment sales saw a 30 percent increase in first-quarter UK sales, suggesting significant momentum in the market. This is according to the construction equipment statistics exchange run by Systematics International Ltd, in partnership with the Construction Equipment Association (CEA). Incredibly, retail sales of construction and earthmoving equipment in the UK and Northern Ireland in March 2021 were almost double the levels seen in March last year when the pandemic first made an impact.
The Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) and The Institute of Builders Merchants (IoBM) has announced a merger – the IoBM will be separately managed and will operate as a brand within the BMF. The merger has been approved by IoBM members because it will give the Institute access to wider resources and personnel, but still give them autonomy with its own management body. The arrangement has been effective since 1st May 2021 – all Institute members will keep their current membership grade, subject to the payment of annual subscriptions.
The Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) has launched a new scheme to provide NHS workers with discounts at local builders’ merchants. The scheme, launched on 12th April 2021, involves 33 BMF merchants who between them operate 1,225 branches throughout the country. Each participating BMF member will be offering their own discounts, averaging at around a 10 per cent reduction on the standard price. This is for NHS workers presenting ID such as an NHS staff card.
The Builders Merchants Federation (BMF) Apprenticeships Plus is urging BMF members in England to take advantage of the Government’s temporary boost to apprenticeships funding. A £3,000 grant will be paid to any employer hiring a new apprentice between 1st April and 30th September 2021 – and this incentive is available for apprentices of any age.
Kingfisher, the company that owns DIY retailer B&Q, has said that their pre-tax profit jumped 44%, while sales increased to £12.3bn in the year to 31st January 2021. They put this down to the Covid-19 pandemic giving rise to an increase in 18-34-year-olds doing more home improvements than any other age group.
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has conducted research which shows that, with an industry-wide investment in skills and a considerable recruitment drive, reducing built environment emissions to net zero can be achieved. Net zero refers to a state in which the greenhouse gases going into the atmosphere are balanced by removal out of the atmosphere.
There are a number of ways in which builders’ merchants can utilise technology to help them free up time and save costs – one of these is through more streamlined inventory management. This is a key consideration for builders’ merchants because losing track of inventory can be very costly and can also drain time and resources to correct mistakes, and affect a business’s reputation when customers are disappointed by delays. Luckily, there have been some fantastic advances in inventory management, meaning businesses can automate their inventory tracking and manufacturing, thus streamlining the entire process.
With the government’s roadmap out of the COVID-19 pandemic underway, Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, has announced a series of measures that he hopes will “protect the jobs and livelihoods of the British people.” This includes an extension of the Furlough Scheme for a further five months, from May until the end of September 2021. In addition, much has been detailed regarding support to businesses including a new UK-wide scheme launching this autumn to help 100,000 SMEs save time and money by adopting productivity-enhancing software, enabling them to transform the way they do business.