Morgan Sindall gets £7.3m job at Heathrow

Morgan Sindall has been appointed by Heathrow Airport to carry out £7.3 million of refurbishments and improvements to its infrastructure, runways and stands.

Pre-contract enabling works have been carried out to ensure there is no damage to underground services and the project team has already completed the first phase of the scheme, which involved resurfacing the T5 end of the southern runway.

The runway was re-surfaced with a new polymer modified bitumen (PMB) asphalt, designed specifically for use in airports due to its high strength and resistance to cracking.

The next stage of the project involves working directly in front of the BAE line maintenance base to replace underground stone water-drainage pipes.

The site team is working during the night and has constructed a purpose-built route so that aircraft are able to access the base, ensuring there is minimal disruption to one of the airport’s busiest areas.

The work was awarded to Morgan Sindall due to its place on the Q6 Framework. It is one of four contractors appointed to deliver a £1.5 billion programme of upgrades and improvements at Heathrow Airport by 2019.

Keith Cannin, managing director of aviation at Morgan Sindall, said: “The work is expected to be complete by the end of 2017 and follows the successful refurbishment and resurfacing of the airport’s Sierra Taxiway as part of a £16 million contract completed last year.”

Wates starts work on Hoxton towers

Wates Construction has signed a £70.9 million contract to build Anthology’s new Hoxton Press residential development.

The Hackney project will see Wates create two towers of 20 and 16 storeys, comprising 198 one and two-bedroom apartments and three-bedroom penthouses for private sale.

Designed by Karakusevic Carson Architects and David Chipperfield Architects, the new development will include a single storey basement car park, ancillary services and a ground-floor café in one of the towers.

The new development, which will overlook Shoreditch Park and Regents Canal, forms part of the ongoing regeneration of Hackney Council’s Colville Estate in Hoxton, which will also help fund investment in new council homes for social rent and shared ownership.

Building work has now commenced at Anthology Hoxton Press and completion of the two towers, Mono and Duo, is expected by summer 2018.

David Newey, Project Director for Anthology Hoxton Press said: “We are thrilled to be working in collaboration with Wates on the exciting regeneration of the Colville Estate. At Anthology, we put community into the heart of everything we do and with Wates’ support at Hoxton Press, we will be providing a community café for all local residents to enjoy.

“Hoxton is cemented as a key London destination for buyers, renters and tourists alike. By working with Wates, we are able to bring our vision to life with a development that sits in the heart of Hackney and has good travel connections, markets, shops and design studios just a stone’s throw away. Anthology will continue to work closely with Wates to deliver homes that provide the community with a location for creativity to flourish.”

Housing boost for the Islands

Up to 100 affordable homes will be built in island communities through a new £5 million fund.

Speaking during a Scottish Parliament debate Housing Minister Kevin Stewart announced the Scottish Government will establish a new Islands Housing Fund – backed by up to £5 million funding over three years – to increase the availability of affordable housing in the islands.

This investment is in addition to the £25 million Rural Housing Fund which is supporting the building of new homes and refurbishment of existing properties in rural areas.

Mr Stewart said:“Scotland’s islands have rich and vibrant cultures and make a huge contribution to Scottish life but we know people living there can face challenges when it comes to accessing the home they want.

“Our new £5 million Islands Housing Fund will increase the supply of good quality affordable housing which is an essential part of attracting and retaining people in our islands.

“Investment in this support for the islands and through the Rural Housing Fund will help us deliver at least 50,000 affordable homes over the lifetime of this Parliament and ensure we are reaching across all of Scotland in our ambitions.

“Our Islands Housing Fund demonstrates our strong and continued support for our islands, with the forthcoming Islands Bill set to provide lasting benefits for these communities for generations to come.”

Construction set to begin on The Mill

The Mill – an 800 home urban village complete with a neighbourhood centre, community hall, and parks – is being developed by Tirion Homes on the site of the former Arjo Wiggins Paper Mill site in Canton.

The construction programme is expected to create over 1,000 jobs, many for people living locally.

The site remediation has been carried out by Alun Griffiths. The construction of the new homes will be undertaken by Lovell.

The Group is currently working on two other sites in the region; the 500-home Whiteheads development in Newport, and the planned 225-home Parc Eirin site in Tonyrefail.

Peter Mathias, chairman of Tirion Group, says: “The Mill is a ground-breaking development that will not only transform the local community around it, but hopefully become a blueprint for high-quality housing communities across South Wales.

“As we prepare for the start of construction it is an honour to host AMs, MPs and councillors, and to be able to outline our vision for the site and our future vision for housing developments across Wales.”

At The Mill, Tirion has unlocked the potential of the long-disused paper mill site by acquiring and cleaning up the brownfield land with financial backing from the Welsh Government and Principality, securing planning permission and then developing the site in partnership with Lovell.

Lovell regional director Kate Rees says: “We are delighted to be working with the Tirion Group, Cadwyn Housing Association, the Welsh Government and Principality to deliver this landmark housing scheme for Cardiff and look forward to starting construction of these new high-quality homes for sale and for rent.

“The Mill will create a brand-new community in an extremely desirable riverside location close to the city centre.”

Peter Hughes, managing director at Principality Commercial, said: “Supporting this development goes to the heart of our purpose in helping people access quality affordable housing in an attractive environment, with excellent links to the city centre.

“In recent years we have invested heavily in local communities through a variety of both commercial and residential projects. The Mill project will hopefully pave the way for similar schemes across Wales.”

 

Apache in joint venture with Moda Living

Apache Capital Partners has announced a joint venture with Moda Living to plan and build projects of approximately 5,000 homes and a gross development value of £1 billion.

This strategic joint venture makes Apache Capital the long term funding partner of Moda Living. The partnership is expected to create the largest owner of regional purpose-built PRS and one of the largest owners of PRS overall in the UK.

The portfolio concentrates on regional centres where population growth and an undersupply of residential accommodation looks set to trigger rental and capital growth over the next few years.

A focus on prime locations attracting the ideal tenant profile for PRS developments; 20-44 year olds with disposable income who demand locations and buildings that come with high quality services and amenities.

Richard Jackson, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Apache Capital Partners, said: “We at Apache Capital have seen a strong demand from our Middle Eastern investors in the UK’s Private Rented Sector.

“This is partly because PRS is already an established sector in the region, the sector’s continuing supply/demand imbalance in the UK, but also coupled with the prevailing lifestyle shift toward flexible living that delivers high quality amenities and services.

“The 5,000 unit secured portfolio provides us immediate scale and Apache Capital and Moda Living will currently be the largest owner of regional purpose-built PRS and the second largest owner overall in the UK.

“This strategy builds on the success of Apache Capital’s Social Infrastructure investment platform, where we have aggregated an institutional grade portfolio of assets in the student accommodation and healthcare sectors.”

More affordable housing approved

The number of affordable homes in Scotland has increased by 26% on the previous year, bringing the total number of approvals over the year to 8,067.

Official statistics published this week show that during 2015-16, the number of new house builds started, across the public and private sector, rose to 16,910, a 4% increase on the previous year and the highest number of starts since 2008-9.

Housing Minister Kevin Stewart said the figures showed good early progress towards delivering the Scottish Government’s ambitious target of delivering 50,000 affordable homes over the next five years.

Speaking ahead of a visit to a new housing development in Edinburgh which will provide 236 affordable homes in the city, Mr Stewart said: “We have an excellent track record on housing. The number of affordable home completions from April 2007 to end March 2016 was 60,704 – on average 24% more per year than the 38,015 delivered between April 2000 and March 2007.

“In the previous session of Parliament, we exceeded our target of delivering 30,000 affordable homes, and our bold and ambitious More Homes Scotland approach will build on that achievement.

“We have committed to investing over £3 billion to deliver at least 50,000 affordable homes over the next five years. This is accompanied by increased housing subsidy levels and a new Rural Housing Fund to boost the supply of affordable rural housing.

“We’ve also helped stimulate growing confidence in the private housing market and supported people into home ownership, in particular through our £500 million Help to Buy (Scotland) scheme.”

SES Engineering Services gets two London projects

SES Engineering Services is building on its major success at the heart of the redevelopment of King’s Cross after winning a duo of central London new build projects.

The company was appointed to deliver mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) services on the 12-storey S2 Grade A office building as part of the King’s Cross regeneration scheme.

The company has been awarded an £18.6 million MEP contract to deliver Barts Square Phase One, a new £110 million high-end residential development in the St Bart’s Hospital area in Farringdon.

SES will continue work with Carillion on the commercial King’s Cross project – and will be working with client Helical Plc for the first time to deliver 144 luxury apartments with a selection of one, two and three-bedroom apartments and penthouses located in seven property blocks.

The dual wins represent a major milestone for SES’ London and South East operation and are testament to SES’ reputation for delivering innovative, cost and time saving off-site manufacturing solutions on logistically challenging city-centre projects.

SES’s engineering expertise was fundamental to its appointment on the King’s Cross S2 project, in response to the client’s requirement to deliver the very latest Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology.

Tim Cunningham, SES Regional Director, London and South East also said: “This is a truly exciting time for our London and South East operation and the growth of our business is down to our teams’ exemplary work and innovative off-site approach.

“We’re tremendously proud of our work on The Plimsoll Building and the Gasholder residential schemes at King’s Cross so we’re thrilled to continue that relationship for the S2 office project.

“Likewise, our ability to deliver these critical city-centre residential schemes on time and on budget has been essential to winning the innovative and prestigious Barts Square project.”

Birmingham unveils £1bn investment plans for growth and jobs

Almost £1 billion of investment is being committed to redevelop a part of Birmingham that will pave the way for thousands of new jobs and homes.

The Curzon Investment Plan is an ambitious 30-year strategy to unlock and regenerate the 141 hectares of land around the planned HS2 Curzon Street Station, led by the Greater Birmingham & Solihull LEP (GBSLEP) and Birmingham City Council.

Creating 36,000 jobs, 4,000 new homes, unlocking 600,000 sqm of commercial floor space and connecting the eastside of Birmingham to the rest of the city and beyond; the investment is the first major financial commitment by any local area in the country to use HS2’s arrival as a catalyst for regeneration. It also has the potential to add £1.4 billion to the local economy.

Plans include the development of Curzon Street Station itself, several new neighbourhoods, offices and retail spaces. The creation of stunning public places such as the Curzon Promenade and Curzon Square – which will incorporate the original Curzon Station, a Grade I listed building.

In total £907 million is being allocated to a variety of projects, and is made up of £586.8 million from the GBSLEP, which draws funds from business rates within the Enterprise Zone and £137.2 million from the newly formed devolved government, West Midlands Combined Authority.

A further £183.3 million towards the cost of delivering Metro extension projects, connecting the eastside of the city to central Birmingham and out to Birmingham International Airport and Solihull, where another HS2 station, an interchange, is planned.

Prime Minister Theresa May said: “I’m delighted that Greater Birmingham is making this investment in the future, working to maximise the potential of HS2 by investing in jobs and housing – and encouraging more business investment.

“It was in Birmingham where I outlined my plan to build an economy that works for all, with a proper industrial strategy that delivers prosperity, job creation and higher wages across the country, not just in London.”

Steve Hollis, Deputy Chair of the Greater Birmingham & Solihull LEP (GBSLEP), said: “The Curzon Investment Plan is the first major commitment by a local area to maximise the impact of HS2.

“It outlines how we will use HS2 as a trigger to transform an area of untapped potential in Birmingham’s city core and create thousands of new jobs, homes and places for businesses to thrive.

“This demonstrates clearly what we can achieve in this region by being given the right tools by central government, to unlock our own future economic success.

“Our commitment to invest is a bold statement of intent for how we will utilise HS2 as a catalyst for growth at every step. By setting out our plans and investing now, we will begin to realise the economic benefits of HS2 far sooner.”

Councillor John Clancy, Leader of Birmingham City Council, said: “It is an unprecedented time for Birmingham and the wider region. By working with partners from across the region, we have fuelled an economic renaissance with significant inward investment and the implementation of major infrastructure schemes.”

Lovell project director appointed for 800-home urban village

Lovell has appointed Lee Woodfine as project director for The Mill: an £100 million urban village set to bring 800 new homes and boost the building trades.

Construction work will start later this year on the development at Canton which is being created by a partnership of the Tirion Group, Cadwyn and Lovell.

Lee’s appointment sees him return to Lovell after previously working with the company in South Wales for nearly a decade, leaving in 2010.

His 20-year construction career has also included senior management roles with residential developer Kier Living, developer Sennybridge and construction services company ISG.

Lee, who lives in Blackwood, Caerphilly, said: “I’m delighted to be working on this fantastic development which will significantly extend the available choice of new-build homes for sale and for rent in Cardiff, through the creation of a brand-new riverside community. The Mill will be a superb place to live.”

Later this year, Lovell will start construction work of the new homes at The Mill which is set to transform the 53-acre former Arjo Wiggins Paper Mill site.

One of Wales’ biggest urban regeneration projects, the construction programme is expected to create over 1,000 jobs, many for people living locally, as well as significant training opportunities.

Birmingham signs £2bn scheme with Chinese developer

Birmingham City Council has signed a deal with the fifth-largest property developer in China that could be worth up to £2bn to the local economy.

As part of the agreement, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed company Country Garden will explore large-scale investment opportunities in Birmingham, with particular focus around HS2.

It also agreed to work with the council to deliver large numbers of new homes.

Council leader John Clancy signed the joint statement of investment commitment with Country Garden on a week-long trade mission to China.

Cllr Clancy said: “The landscape has inevitably changed post-Brexit and Birmingham is already out of the starting blocks. That’s why I’m here selling our city to many of China’s leading investors.

“This agreement is about bringing good jobs and quality homes to Birmingham.

“Country Garden has a proven track record of building homes at pace and scale. They have played a major role over the last 20 years, as housebuilders have met the massive demands of China’s rapidly expanding economy.”

Founded in 1992, Country Garden has developed 300 high-end township developments, 54 five-star hotels and more than 2.5 million properties.

Country Garden founder and chairman Yang Guoqiang added: “I have been impressed with Birmingham’s ambition and huge potential.

“We have a proven track record in delivering quality housing at a scale to match Birmingham’s ambitions and with major projects coming to the city, including the forthcoming High Speed two project, these are exciting times for Country Garden and Birmingham.”