The The Construction Industry Joint Council (CIJC) has published the Holiday Entitlement 2023 with guidance on annual and public/bank holidays that apply under the CIJC Working Rule Agreement. There will be an additional bank holiday on Monday 8 May 2023 to mark the King’s coronation.
FIS has met with the New Hospital Programme to understand how its members can support this ambitious programme effectively. The commitment to build new hospitals forms part of the Government’s wider Health Infrastructure Plan, a long term, rolling programme of strategic investment in health and care buildings, estates, and equipment. The Government has committed to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 and together with eight previously announced schemes, this will mean 48 hospitals delivered by the end of the decade. The new hospitals will result in outdated infrastructure being replaced by facilities for both staff and patients that are on the cutting edge of modern technology, innovation and sustainability. Further details on the NHP can be found here.
Jonathan Hall from the Supply Markets Management Team stated:
“This is an ambitious programme and we are keen to work more closely with the supply chain and through organisations such as FIS to ensure that we are delivering value in all ways in a more collaborative and open way”.
As part of this new approach, the NHP inviting FIS members to respond to a Market Sounding Briefing and Questionnaire regarding the NHP’s ambition to deliver programmatic benefits through the standardisation of components that are common across hospitals.
We are seeking market feedback exploring potential opportunities, understanding existing challenges and ‘blockers’ to enable efficiencies and standardisation of components in a healthcare setting for second fix items including;
Further components are being considered as part of an iterative approach to standardisation and we anticipate seeking further market feedback in due course.
The information the NHP’s receives during this market sounding exercise will be used to inform NHP’s strategy and further development of our plans for delivery. Feedback will also be used to inform, validate, and refine our emerging approach to modern methods of construction across the programme.
The link to the market sounding briefing and questionnaire can be found here. To encourage further responses to this Market Sounding Questionnaire, the NHP has extended the deadline for responses until 5pm on 20 January 2023. The NHP thanks all those who have reviewed and responded to the Market Sounding to date.
Please do also feel free to contact the team directly at nhp.suppliers@nhs.net should you have further questions or queries in relation to the Programme.
FIS CEO Iain McIlwee has called out payment practices in the construction sector in a hard hitting article in Construction News this week.
In the article Iain raises the concern that payment conditions are worsening (reported by 21% of FIS Members), with particular issues occurring at the year end. He points out that, whilst average invoice payment times of main contractors with a Duty to Report are reportedly down to 31 days, this masks what is actually happening the ground and the myriad of issues associated with payment applications, pay less notices, certification and underpaying which are picked up in reporting.
A contributing FIS Member who wished to remain anonymous added:
“I am sick to death of begging for money. It isn’t just Christmas. It goes on all year, but definitely gets worse as we move to reporting periods. I attend meetings all the time where I am told businesses pride themselves in paying on time, but it is the spurious underpayments and unsubstantiated pay less notices that they don’t talk about. It feels like death by a thousand cuts.”.
The full article, which you can read here provides first hand accounts of the way in which contractors are being treated and reflects on the impact on relationships and mental health in the sector as well as wasted time and limiting ability to invest and transform. Further experiences have been shared in online discussions linked back to the article.
In reaction, To address the growing number of issues FIS have drafted in experienced adjudicator Len Bunton as a consultant adviser. He has also contributed to the article, reflecting on his recent experiences of working with FIS:
“I am very concerned about the level of issues we are encountering relating to payment. The industry needs to improve its management of the commercial side of contracts, and this should help greatly to reduce some of the current problems. Project bank accounts will help, as will utilising the Conflict Avoidance Process (CAP). I think the public sector needs to lead by example and take far greater interest in ensuring that payment is getting to the supply chain at the right time and in the right amounts. A shaking of the head and saying, ‘this is nothing to do with us’, does not help the industry.”
FIS, as part of our transformation agenda has committed to stepping up the work they are doing on fair payment in 2023 now that Business Secretary Grant Shapps has announced a formal review into payment practices of larger companies and the impact on the supply chain.
You can read more about how is FIS Campaigning for the sector here
Construction Product Availability: 21 December 2022
Statement from John Newcomb, CEO of the Builders Merchants Federation and Peter Caplehorn, CEO of the Construction Products Association, co-chairs of the Construction Leadership Council’s Product Availability working group.
Overall product availability is good and returning to pre-Covid levels, while some bricks, blocks, plasterboard and roofing products are occasionally still subject to disruption or allocation. Despite this, lead times for these products are now far lower than earlier in the year.
The availability of gas boilers and other products containing semi-conductors and electrical components remains the most problematic in terms of supply, as sub-component manufacturers operating in a highly competitive global market continue to experience restricted supply. In addition, the electro-technical sector has highlighted a new area of concern regarding the supply of solar and environmental products, with difficulty identifying those coming from Chinese manufacturers with the proper accreditation. This is a growing product area with increasing demand, so the UK construction industry is challenged to ensure such products are of the proper standard and quality.
Timber availability is good with further reductions in prices due to the large amount of stock already in the UK and reduced shipping costs. The one issue for timber centres on birch plywood which, due to sanctions, cannot be legally sourced from Russia. With limited supplies available from Latvia and Finland, we advise speaking to plywood suppliers regarding alternatives.
Shipping lead times from the Far East are improving, though China is now experiencing rising Covid rates following the relaxation of their lockdown regulations which may lead to more bottlenecks. However, with a surplus of containers in China and container rates generally down by 80% from their peak, this is a great improvement.
Price inflation for products has slightly moderated across the board this month, but looking ahead, rising energy and wage costs are expected to put significant upward pressure on prices in the New Year. In particular, manufacturers of energy-intensive products (such as bricks, cement, glass, insulation and plasterboard) warn that although many have been able to hedge energy costs through Q1 of 2023, energy prices in Q2 and Q3 are expected to be considerably above historical (pre-Ukraine war) levels without further Government support. Several plaster, plasterboard and insulation manufacturers have notified there will be double-digit inflationary increases in the New Year.
Against this, a gradual slowing of demand for construction products across most sub-sectors over the last three months of 2022 has helped ease the pressures on product supply. Most industry forecasts project further declines in demand in 2023 although some sub-sectors will fare better than others. With less strain on the supply chain, general product availability should have an opportunity to recover further.
National Construction College East in Bircham Newton has an Interior Systems Installer Apprenticeship training course starting on Monday 06 February 2023. The course content is outlined below:
| The course will cover practical principles in: | Apprentices will learn basic skills, knowledge and awareness in: | Plus, there is a focus on personal skills in: |
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For more information or to arrange a visit of the training centre, contact the centre directly via the methods below.
In updated Guidance Published on 9 December 2022, Government has advised that until 30 June 2025, products can continue to be supplied to the GB market without any need for reassessment or re-marking if EU requirements are met (including CE marking). To affix a CE mark, any third-party conformity assessment must continue to be carried out by an EU recognised notified body during this time. In addition, products that meet NI rules (including CE marking or CE UK(NI) marking) can be supplied to the GB market. Businesses should prepare for these provisions to end on 30 June 2025.
This mirrors delays in other product areas announced earlier in the year. In a call to the Constructio Products Association and other industry colleagues, the government explained its intention to use the next 2.5 years to engage widely and scope out meaningful, sensible reform and transition plans.
The FIS, through CPA will continue liaising closely with government to monitor and review the issues at hand, identify the problems for industry and government, and ensure that industry can work with the policies put forward.
You can see details of the full announcement here.
For more guidance on CE, UKCA and CE UK(NI) Marking from the FIS click here