_{Images of the project uncovered by BESA reveal ductwork with serious safety defects}

The Building Engineering Services Association (BESA) and the Thermal Insulation Contractors Association (TICA) have joined forces to warn that operatives often working for multi-trade firms are putting lives at risk by carrying out specialist work beyond their competence.

They cite one recent project where an unqualified multi-trade contractors installed ductwork with serious safety flaws, creating health risks and fire hazards. Both trade bodies fear that, rather than being an isolated example, it may be ‘the tip of the iceberg’.

Nathan Wood, BESA’s London & South East Regional Chair, said:

“We are still seeing specifications being value engineered to the max and many construction trades being squeezed on price. The result is that non-competent multi-trade outfits are undercutting professional ventilation installers and thermal insulation contractors.”

The faulty installation cited featured poorly insulated ducting, which created condensation and mould growth.

He added:

“Condensation can quickly allow mould to germinate, within 24 to 48 hours. This mould growth then produces spores which spread to other damp areas, multiplying the issues.”

This is exactly the kind of problem that the forthcoming Awaab’s Law is designed to prevent. Due to come into force in October 2025, it is named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who died following prolonged exposure to mould in his Rochdale home.

It will set strict deadlines for landlords to investigate and fix damp and mould – but its impact depends upon the competence of those carrying out the work. Without properly trained and accredited contractors, the law risks becoming a box-ticking exercise rather than a safeguard for residents’ health.

Wood said:

“This is a colossal change in legislation. Preparation starts with organisations verifying both the competence of their skilled trade workers and the organisational capabilities of the specialist sub-contractors they employ.”

However, the risks extend far beyond mould. Chris Ridge, TICA’s Technical Director, highlighted the incorrect use of flammable rigid insulation board on the project.

He said:

“The board in question is a Polyisocyanurate (PIR) board that is not certified for use with ductwork. In fact, the Euroclass reaction to fire for this product will be either Euroclass E or Euroclass F.”

Euroclass E indicates a high contribution to fire, while Euroclass F signifies a material with little or no resistance to fire.

TICA has repeatedly called for PIR boards to be banned from internal duct applications, first in 2022 and again in 2024.

Ridge added:

“It is frustrating to see such flammable products still being used on internally located ductwork. A competent thermal insulation specialist would know better, but a non-competent multi-trade contractor may not.

“If the client had verified the organisational capabilities of the contractor rather than reward on price and convenience, this would not have happened. In this case, the appointment of a non-competent multi-trade organisation has led to multiple dangers.”

BESA and TICA stress that clients must verify competence and organisational capability before appointing contractors for safety-critical building services work.

NHBC has added a new series of dry lining masterclasses to its range of free professional training courses for tradespeople. The Dry Lining Masterclasses, a Home Builders Federation (HBF) initiative delivered by NHBC in partnership with the Finishes & Interiors Sector, are designed to deliver practical skills and knowledge on the most common dry lining issues found by NHBC inspection teams. 

Funded by the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB), the masterclasses have been developed to enhance the skills of the home building workforce across England, Wales and Scotland. Led by experienced NHBC building inspectors, they focus on improving quality and standards, promoting good practice on site and offering practical suggestions and advice. The Dry Lining Masterclasses give attendees the knowledge to get it right first time and reduce on-site remediation.

The course content has been tailored to cover the following key areas:

• defect statistics
• when dry lining and plasterboard can start
• plasterboard fixings
• dry lining
• fire safety
• sound insulation
• consistent approach to finishes.

The 90-minute sessions can be booked to take place on site, providing training directly to teams while minimising disruption to the working day. Alternatively, individual tradespeople can book onto open sessions at NHBC training hubs in Cambridge, Hull, Lichfield and Newcastle.

Geoff Mann, Qualifications Manager at NHBC commented,

“These masterclasses are ideal for anyone working as a plasterer or dry liner looking to develop their knowledge. They are fully funded by CITB so are offered free of charge to attendees. At only 90-minutes long, the Dry Lining Masterclass series offers top quality training in a manageable format, helping developers upskill colleagues and subcontractors at no cost.”

Andy George, Director of Industry Talent Attraction and Skills said,

“Since launching the masterclass initiative with NHBC and CITB in 2019, more than 15,000 bricklayers and roofers across the UK have benefited from the training. We’re proud to be building on this success with the new dry lining offer, supporting more of our onsite workforce to upskill. This initiative is a fantastic example of the positive impact of collaborative working across industry, ensuring we continue to invest in our workforce and deliver accessible training where it’s needed.”

The new Dry Lining Masterclass is part of a wider programme of professional training offered by NHBC as part of the Home Building Sector Skills Plan, which sets out a blueprint for the home building industry to grow and develop a resilient workforce. NHBC also provides a range of health and safety training courses, technical training, on-site trade talks and apprenticeship programmes

Book a place on the new NHBC Dry Lining Masterclass at nhbc.co.uk/dry-lining 

Davy Clark, at SFG20, shares the top five FM challenges and risks involved with non-compliant maintenance of council estates

The UK government is set to reorganise a number of local government structures, replacing two-tier systems with single-tier unitary authorities. The plan aims to streamline operations and reduce duplication, but the merging may come with a new set of challenges, particularly for facilities management professionals, who are responsible for safe and compliant maintenance of estates.

Councils are grappling with ageing infrastructure, limited budgets, rising legislative demands, staffing shortages, and the complexities of devolution. These pressures risk a strain on resources, making it increasingly difficult to maintain safe, compliant, and efficient estates while balancing immediate operational needs with long-term planning.

Davy Clark, Implementation Consultant at SFG20, the industry standard for building maintenance, has outlined the top five facilities management challenges arising from council devolution and the risks involved with non-compliant maintenance of council estates.

1. Varying standards and practices

Merging teams from different councils involves bringing together different

working cultures, historic practices, and management styles, risking potential friction and resistance to new ways of working. Councils may adopt different approaches to maintenance priorities, compliance, procurement, and risk tolerance, creating inconsistencies and complicating benchmarking. This may even lead to variable service quality and increased compliance risk, especially in multi-site or regional portfolios.

2. Skills shortages and capacity challenges

As responsibilities expand under devolution, many councils face skills gaps and capacity constraints, inheriting new duties without the relative boost in resources or FM expertise.

Smaller, under-resourced teams are particularly impacted, struggling with strategic decision-making, contractor management, and compliance, often with limited tools and support. A recent study from SFG20 revealed that 80% of FM professionals say their teams are understaffed, with 24% reporting significant understaffing*. The difficulty in recruiting and retaining skilled FM professionals at a local level may further complicate the challenge.

3. Managing complex asset portfolios

A significant challenge for devolved councils is managing complex, ageing asset portfolios, including schools, libraries, and social housing. These assets frequently require significant capital investment or remedial work, but budgets are typically constrained. FM teams must balance reactive maintenance, planned preventative regimes, and capital investment planning with limited funding.

4. Procurement and supply chain issues

The increased autonomy that comes with devolution risks complexities in procurement and supply chain management. While councils now have more freedom in procurement, this autonomy often comes without the benefit of centralised frameworks or economies of scale.

As a result, councils are likely to duplicate procurement efforts, risking higher costs, and inconsistencies with suppliers. This fragmentation of procurement practices complicates efforts to ensure service quality, regulatory compliance, and the delivery of social value.

5. Lack of asset-level visibility in data management

Finally, the shift towards centralising property data across increasingly complex estates has raised concerns about the loss of asset-level visibility. As councils aggregate data to manage large portfolios more efficiently, there may be a sacrifice in detail.

Outdated, incomplete, or lost asset data, such as maintenance history or regulatory status, causes operational friction during building handovers, service transitions, or ownership changes. This lack of visibility forces FM teams into reactive decisions, hindering strategic planning and leading to delays, duplication, and increased compliance risks.

Davy Clark, Implementation Consultant at SFG20, says:

“The devolution of councils is reshaping the facilities management landscape by presenting significant operational and strategic challenges, including fragmented standards, skills gaps, complex procurement, and the loss of asset-level data. FM teams must adapt and innovate to meet the growing demands of their estates.

“Building management requires strict compliance and safety. Neglecting maintenance can lead to severe consequences, including multimillion-pound fines, reputational damage, and even imprisonment for injury or fatalities. In 2023, Newham Council faced 9,000 overdue fire risk assessments, 5,400 open repairs, and 40% of homes lacking electrical tests for over 11 years. This led to a £25 million task force to address damp and mould, highlighting how neglecting maintenance can far exceed the cost of proactive care.

“Building safety issues often arise from lapses in judgment and poor asset management. To ensure safety, FM teams must ensure that asset registers across all estates are up to date and that all team members have a thorough understanding of the Golden Thread of Information, as well as the risks associated with non-compliance.

To learn about common building maintenance compliance risks and how to mitigate them, as well as the main FM challenges arising from council devolution, download SFG20’s e-book here.”

Image Credit: City Developments Ltd

Birmingham’s tallest building and the world’s first pure octagonal residential skyscraper has completed after a three-year construction programme.

The Octagon is situated within the Paradise masterplan in Birmingham, a mixed-use destination developed by MEPC, the specialist development arm of Federated Hermes.

The scheme was led by Midgard and designed by Howells, taking inspiration from Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) and lean production methods throughout the build.

The £110 million Built to Rent project has been recognised as one of the largest Foreign Direct Investments in the UK regions in recent years, backed by global real estate investor City Developments Ltd (CDL) of Singapore.

It’s also Birmingham’s first skyscraper at 155 metres tall.

The Octagon will now prepare to welcome its first residents into 370 new homes within its 49-storey tower. Apartments are available to rent for a minimum of twelve months with rents starting at £1,400 per month for a one bed, £1,995 per month for a two bed/two bathroom and £4,925 per month for a three bed/three bathroom penthouse.

Ross Fittall, Commercial Development Director at MEPC, said:

“After more than three years of hard work, led by main contractor Midgard with a long list of local sub-contractors as well as a specialist supply-chain and professional team, including project managers Quantem, we can all now see how impactful The Octagon is to the city.”

Source: TwinFM

Plans to build a demonstration project for carbon capture and storage (CCS) in Scotland have been abandoned after the UK government withdrew funding.

The ScottishPower Consortium, which has been working on plans for the Longanett plant for four years, has confirmed that construction would not be going ahead after DECC announced that it would not be supporting the project.

Energy secretary Chris Huhne said that DECC’s negotiations with the developers had failed to reach a “satisfactory” conclusion, with the department deciding to invest the £1 billion of government funding earmarked for CCS development in alternative projects.

“A billion pounds is enough to demonstrate this vital new technology in the UK, but it’s got to be spent in the most effective way,” he said. ‪‪“Despite everyone working extremely hard, we’ve not been able to reach a satisfactory deal for a project at Longannet at this time.”

Huhne’s comments came after David Cameron told the House of Commons the Longannet scheme wasn’t working as intended, when he was asked to intervene and help the negotiations by Scottish MP and shadow energy minister Tom Greatrex.

“It is a huge concern that the prime minister claims Longannet isn’t working and utterly perplexing that he could not come to agreement with the energy company to make this work,” said Greatrex.

“[The] move highlights the dead hand of the Treasury in scuppering moves towards a greener energy mix. It risks losing our competitive advantage in developing carbon capture – engineering expertise and valuable skills that we could export around the globe.”

The Longannet project was only entrant left in a competition for the government’s £1 billion of funding for CCS, after E.ON abandoned its plans for a plant in Kent, but rumours have been circulating in recent weeks that the government was unwilling to invest in an unproven technology.

In a statement on the decision to not fund Longannet, DECC described the need to balance the UK’s low-carbon ambition against ensuring the most effective use of taxpayer’s money and revealed that the funds will now be channelled into other CCS projects.

ScottishPower’s generation director, Hugh Finlay, said that the research undertaken for the scrapped project would be crucial in the development of CCS in the future.

“As a result of the study we now understand how the CCS process works from power station to storage site,” he said. “This gives us great insight into the physical infrastructure that we need to support it, the regulatory framework it fits within and the organisational model of a CCS business.

“All of this information will be made available through DECC’s knowledge transfer programme and will be of enormous benefit to other CCS developers and stakeholders.”

The scrapping of the scheme was described as a lost opportunity by Scottish first minister Alex Salmond, who had previously called on David Cameron to get behind the project.

“It is just as bad a decision as when the previous UK government abandoned the Peterhead pre-combustion gas carbon capture project four years ago – which the current coalition parties rightly criticised,” he said.

“At the end of the day, this technology requires the courage and the vision to make the investment happen, and that is what has been lacking in successive Westminster administrations.”

Salmond went on to say that the Scottish government had been led to believe that a gas carbon capture project in Peterhead is now a contender for support, but voiced concerns that history would repeat itself again.

“As we now know to our cost twice over, warm words are not enough,” he said.

Salmond’s comments were echoed by the CBI’s director for business environment Rhian Kelly.

“This is disappointing news, but we hope an alternative CSS scheme at Peterhead goes ahead as soon as possible,” she said.

“It is crucial that the government does all it can to provide the policy certainty that companies need to invest in energy infrastructure, and we must see a plan for action on CCS before the year is out.”

Source: ISEP