by Nicky Smith | Jan 8, 2018 | Main News Feed
FIS members are invited to attend the Construction Products Association meeting with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to discuss the implications of Brexit on the future of the construction products regulation and standards. MHCLG is particularly interested to have face-to-face, roundtable discussions with SMEs.
Representatives from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and the Department for Exiting the EU (DExEU) will likely also be attending. The meeting, to include presentations and ‘workshop-style’ roundtable discussions, will take place on Wednesday 14 February, 9 am to 1 pm at The Building Centre, 26 Store Street, London WC1E 7BT. This represents an excellent opportunity for members to quiz government representatives on the future of the regulatory environment.
FIS members interested in attending should rsvp to mary.economidou@constructionproducts.org.uk copying in FIS technical director joecilia@thefis.org
by Nicky Smith | Jan 3, 2018 | Main News Feed
Survey respondents indicated that house building remained a key engine of growth, with residential work expanding for the sixteenth consecutive month in December. In contrast, latest data indicated a moderate fall in commercial construction, thereby continuing the downward trend seen since July. Civil engineering work stabilised during the latest survey period, which ended a three-month period of decline.
Duncan Brock, Director of Customer Relationships at the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, said: “The sector offered little in terms of comfort at the end of 2017, though the pace of new business picked up to its strongest level since May, and purchasing activity rose to its fastest rate in two years, supply chains were under increasing pressure from all sides. The housing sector was the strongest performer again and materials for residential building were in greater demand fuelling longer delivery times, shortages of key materials and sharper input cost rises.”
Download the full report here.
by Nicky Smith | Jan 2, 2018 | Main News Feed
In the January edition of SpecFinish, Technical Director Joe Cilia looks at Standards and specifications within the finishes and interiors sector. Standards will appear as a measure of compliance in a PQQ.
On page 16, we outline the ‘Fit-Out Futures’ initiative whereby FIS will be bringing the industry together to deliver a skills development programme.
Read more in the January edition of SpecFinish online via the Publications section of the website or the PDF version here.
by Nicky Smith | Dec 21, 2017 | Main News Feed
UPDATE – Deadline for submissions has been extended to Tuesday 6 February, 5pm.
FIS Skills has launched the new sector-wide digital Training Needs Analysis (TNA) for 2018.
We urge all FIS members to complete the TNA and submit by 6 February 2018. Submissions will provide evidence for the FIS Skills whitepaper on the overall skills need and workforce sustainability of our sector. All those completing the TNA will automatically receive a digital copy.
The skills team will be able to make year-on-year comparisons from the previous TNA results. This sector engagement process will continue up to 2020.
The result also allows the skills team to accurately forecast the demand needs for skills and technical qualifications required to meet your contractual obligations over the next financial year. To ensure we meet our membership’s reported demand and engage our supply chain of approved training providers and partners to fill demand, your response is critical.
The infographic below highlights some of the key analysis findings of the TNA 2017.
General Information
• Ideally, this survey should be completed by the dedicated person in your organisation responsible for training and development planning, such as a training officer or human resources officer
• All responses for future forecasts should be accurate based on the date of return
• Your TNA returns will be held in confidence and in line with the FIS privacy and data protection policy
• The TNA has an inbuilt save function. You will be asked for your email address and a unique link will be sent to your address returning you to the last question you worked on
Should you require any assistance in completing any section(s) please contact the Project Manager Amanda Scott by email: amandascott@thefis.org where individual appointments can be booked. Amanda will be in touch with all members from 2 January onwards.
by Nicky Smith | Dec 21, 2017 | Main News Feed
In line with the April 2018 change, The People’s Pension has confirmed that they will automatically increase the percentages for schemes that have been set up on the minimum contributions (1% employer, 1% employee and both based on ‘qualifying earnings’) and have just one worker group. This will ensure any communications sent to new members will comply with their increased minimum contributions.
If your scheme isn’t set up on the minimum contributions (eg different contribution rates, not based on qualifying earnings, with more than one worker group) then you will need to change the amounts manually in The People’s Pension Online Services. There will be more information available on how to make these changes in early 2018.
If your payroll software is assessing your workforce for you (and working out your contributions) you will need to speak to your payroll software provider to find out how they’ll make sure you remain compliant.
For more information, you can email your usual contact at The People’s Pension or the support team: support@bandce.co.uk
by Nicky Smith | Dec 20, 2017 | Main News Feed
During December, we welcomed three new companies to the FIS membership. All three are Supplier Members: Bryson Products Ltd, Protektor UK Ltd and Tekfloor Limited.
We look forward to a long and successful relationship with our new and existing members going forward in 2018.
