https://www.xperience-group.com/news-item/may-construction-round-up/
Drones, Housing and Inflation were among the main headlines this May. Read on for the latest highlights and news from the UK construction industry.
Accountancy firm PwC have stated that the use of drones will significantly improve the productivity of UK construction. Their recent report stated that adoption of drone tech within the construction and manufacturing sectors could generate an £8.6bn boost to UK GDP by 2030. For example, the report suggests that survey times could be made around 400 times faster than traditional methods and reduce costs by up to 40% What’s more, the data collected would be shared via the cloud with stakeholders anywhere in the world – enabling faster decision making and freeing up people to focus on higher-value work.
More here via The Construction Index.
According to a study by quantity surveying firm Turner & Townsend, Construction costs in London are set to rise by 2.8% in 2018. Turner & Townsend have said that one of the key drivers behind ongoing inflation across the UK is lack of capacity which is linked to a shortage of skills and higher rates of pay. The survey finds that across the UK, labour costs have increased by 3.1% to an average of £27.90 per hour. In London it is £34 per hour.
More here via Construction Index.
The new secretary of state for housing, James Brokenshire has outlined his priorities for 2018. Brokenshire has said that responding to lessons learnt from the Grenfell Tower will be at the top of his list. His words were ““One of my top priorities is going to be ensuring everyone affected by the Grenfell Tower fire gets the support they need, and we learn lessons from the tragedy so something like this can never happen again.”
More here via The Construction Index.
Figures highlighted the highest fall in turnover since Q1 of 2016 within the engineering services sector. According to research, one in three engineering firms saw turnover decrease in the first quarter of 2018. However, the overall outlook for the current quarter is much more positive as 86% of businesses said they expect turnover to increase or remain the same, compared to Q1 2018.