Membership Archives - Page 6 of 8

FIS strengthens team with appointment of Skills and Training Co-ordinator

by Clair Mooney | 8 Mar, 2021 | Membership, Skills

FIS has recently appointed Catherine Bullough to project manage the BuildBack and Kickstart Programmes. Catherine has over 17 years’ experience of working with the construction industry, having previously worked with CITB in both an operational and strategic capacity. Catherine was the Partnerships Manager with the Industry Relations Team, working with construction employers and stakeholders to ensure that the construction industry had the supply of skills that it needed across the South and South West of England

Originally hailing from “the Lang Toun” of Kirkcaldy, Fife, and gaining a mining technology qualification, Catherine headed south to study at Manchester Poly originally embarking upon a career with the Police and Trading Standards before moving into the field of learning and development.

Catherine will be working as part of the Skills & Training team at FIS; with a keen focus upon helping the sector recruit and retain new talent; enabling on-site solutions to help finishes and interior employers recruit and train; creating new opportunities through extended partnership working and identifying funding opportunities to support the sector.

Catherine is an APM qualified Project Manager and remains a keen Raith Rovers supporter!

Skills and Training Lead George Swann said; “We welcome Catherine and value the wealth of knowledge and experience she brings to the FIS team. In the short time Catherine has been here she has played a leading role in the implementation of the FIS KickStart programme and we should be seeing individuals placed with employers in the next few weeks. Catherine is preparing for the first cohort of FIS BuildBack candidates and we look forward to reporting success in placing these candidates with employers”.

FIS partners with Workspace Show

by Clair Mooney | 4 Mar, 2021 | Membership

FIS is a key strategic partner for this brand new event taking place at the Business Design Centre in London on 4 & 5 November and its members can benefit from a 10% discount off the cost of exhibiting.

Bringing together the UK’s commercial interiors community to discuss the latest trends in workspace after the recent disruption, Workspace Show will feature around 80 exhibitors showcasing their furniture, lighting, surfaces, storage, tech and supplies, and will be attended by over 3,000 workspace professionals from the A&D community as well as facilities managers, specifiers and procurement from corporates.

The event also features a conference with industry leaders from Perkins & Will, Gensler, tp bennett, MF Interiors, BDG, BBC, Arup among others presenting their thought leadership on the future of workspace.

FIS is to offer its members a 10% discount to exhibit at the event (please email sales@workspaceshow.co.uk quoting FIS-WS), or you can register your interest to attend the event here.

Compliance and Competency

by Clair Mooney | 1 Mar, 2021 | Membership

FIS Technical Director Joe Cilia will deliver a seminar as part of UK Construction Week on 9 March to discuss Compliance and Comptetency.

Specifiers who choose to use companies that are ‘Code Compliant’ can be assured that the claims made about a product are clear, accurate, up-to-date, accessible and unambiguous, and that where manufacturers work to the recommendations in the recent report ‘Raising the Bar’ have something to measure the competency of everyone in the supply chain in setting the specification and importantly addressing the risk point in procurement when products can get substituted in isolation of the system or where they interface with other elements.

The seminar will take place on 9 March at midday. To register visit https://www.ukconstructionweek.com/net-zero-housebuilding-registartion-9-march

Reverse VAT Early Day Motion

by Clair Mooney | 11 Feb, 2021 | Membership

RThe #StopReverseVAT campaign is off to a great start reaching more than 1.2 million social media users in its first week.

Whilst the Treasury’s position is still to introduce Reverse VAT on 1 March, the campaign is gathering pace and traction with an Early Day Motion being tabled by Kirsten Oswald MP calling for the Government to reconsider the implementation of Reverse VAT. Early Day Motions are a great way of drawing attention to subjects and increasing support for this motion is an excellent way of raising the profile of Reverse VAT within parliament. Kirsten has also contacted Build UK offering her support for the campaign.

Build UK has issued a press release in response to the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs and Andy Steele, Vice Chairman of Build UK, spoke directly to the Construction Minister, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, urging her to raise the issue of Reverse VAT with her colleagues in the Treasury and make sure that they fully understand its impact on the industry and the supply chain.

Keep up the pressure

With the amount of interest already being shown, we want to keep up the pressure on the Government to withdraw the Reverse VAT legislation. You can really help by:

Writing to your Member of Parliament:
1. highlighting the damaging impact Reverse VAT will have on your business, sector and the construction industry
2. including the Reverse VAT Factsheet
3. asking them to support Early Day Motion (EDM) 1466
Sharing more postcards using your Trade Association branding to show the range of sectors supporting the campaign
Liking, retweeting and commenting on social media postings that have used #StopReverseVAT
Include @HMTreasury @Jesse_Norman @RishiSunak @Annietrev #PlanforJobs in your postings on social media.

FIS launches revised site guide for suspended ceilings

by Clair Mooney | 10 Feb, 2021 | Membership

FIS has launched a revised and updated Site Guide for Suspended Ceilings to help a project team fully understand the requirements of the suspended ceiling contractor.

The Site Guide for Suspended Ceilings was produced by the FIS Ceilings and Absorbers working group which comprises representation from manufacturers, suppliers and contractors involved in the design, supply and construction of ceiling systems. The site guide is intended to help main contractors, designers and project managers to understand the terminology, descriptors and different ceiling systems used, and the process of delivery, handling and planning the installation. It also provides an understanding of the site conditions, the plant and access equipment needed as well as highlighting the key health and safety points and requirements from the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM).

“In publishing this guide, FIS’s aim is to help the project team achieve a completed building that looks and functions to its full design potential. It is not intended as a definitive technical manual, but rather a framework that will support main contractors, site managers/supervisors, designers, engineers and others involved through the building process.”

Iain McIlwee, FIS Chief Executive

The early appointment of a specialist suspended ceiling contractor who has the necessary experience and resources to achieve satisfactory completion is of major importance whilst contractor membership of FIS will be a significant indicator of a contractor’s suitability.

The guide sits alongside other FIS best practice guides that relate to ceilings:

Installation of suspended ceilings

Selection and installation of top fixings for suspended ceilings

Maintenance and access into suspended ceilings

Recommendations for the Safe Ingress of Plasterboard

Health and safety handbook

In addition, the new specifiers guide to suspended ceilings will be available in Spring 2021.

These guides work well when they are included in proposals and project plans to demonstrate how to best approach a project. They are also good indicators if a contractor puts the guide forward as part of a submission of a contractor’s ability to deliver the ceiling installation to the required standard and are an excellent introduction to new members of the team and any trainees and apprentices.

You can download the Site Guide for Suspended Ceilings here.

VAT deferral

by Clair Mooney | 2 Feb, 2021 | Membership

Companies that deferred VAT between 20 March and 30 June 2020 can either make payment in full by 31 March 2021 or opt in to the VAT deferral payment scheme when it launches shortly. The new scheme will allow companies to repay their VAT in up to 11 interest‐free monthly instalments until March 2022, rather than in one lump sum.