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Tag: commercial building

Joy deferred as CIPS shows construction activity grows for first time in two years

Joy deferred as CIPS shows construction activity grows for first time in two years

So the construction activity indicator produced by the buyers’ body CIPS finally points to growth after two years of measuring falling workloads. But this seemingly uplifting moment appears to have brought little joy. The March figure popped its head above the 50 no-change mark on the back of rising activity in the housing and commercial sectors. But the survey also found more and deeper job cuts within the industry and there was a drop in the confidence within firms over…

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Annual orders figures reveal extent of construction freefall – a £17 billion drop in two years

Annual orders figures reveal extent of construction freefall – a £17 billion drop in two years

The recession has ripped away from construction roughly £17 billion in annual new orders, despite £ billions more public sector sponsored work. That’s the clear message to me from the annual tot up of the new orders won by contractors released today. Forget the niceties of which sector is doing how well and you are faced with the grim picture of an industry in near freefall. In 2007 new orders in cash terms came to £50.6 billion. The figure for…

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Brighter outlook from forecasters, but severe risks remain

Brighter outlook from forecasters, but severe risks remain

The forecasts from Hewes & Associates and Leading Edge sit interestingly against the other winter forecasts for construction output released over the past couple of weeks. They seem to back up the mood among other forecasters that construction workload might not fall as much was feared in the middle of last year. But what is most notable about the various forecasts when we put them together (see graph) is the spread of central projections for the path of construction output….

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It’s a long wait yet for commercial construction upswing

It’s a long wait yet for commercial construction upswing

Each time a commercial property developer hints at making a move in the market I am confronted with the same question by those with an interest in construction work: Is this the start of the upswing? This question is usually followed by the suggestion that developers must be keen to build into the recession to place themselves ready for the recovery. Those desperate to see an upturn around the corner will be pointing excitedly to the Land Securities announcement this…

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Number snacks: 2

Number snacks: 2

Contractors won 61% less in commercial sector construction orders in cash terms in the 12 months to November last year than they did in 12 months to the end of 2007. Here is a graph of orders won for all types of new work on a 12-month rolling basis. The graph shows the volume of work at 2005 constant prices and the value in cash terms. Roughly speaking, as the graph shows, construction firms are winning about a third less work now…

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Development slowdown hits small civils firms

Development slowdown hits small civils firms

The latest survey from the civils trade body CECA into the performance and prospects of its members very much reflects the pressures on the building sector, where housing and commercial building work is being squeezed by the effects of the credit crunch. While the outlook for civils is broadly positive, there is little chance that the civils sector will remain immune to the travails in the building sector, as a huge slice of work comes from preliminary works for development.

Construction boom forecast to slump

Construction boom forecast to slump

The latest forecast from Hewes & Associates is not one that will fill the faint hearted with comfort as they return to work from their Easter break. Hewes’s rather bleak take on the prospects for UK construction suggests that the industry is heading for a fairly prolonged recession taking output in 2010 back to the levels seen in 2003.