Building Briefs – May 28th

Glasgow City Council is starting the hunt for a contractor to deliver major civils work for the vast Sighthill regeneration area of the city.

Initial infrastructure work, including land remediation, bulk earthworks and engineering, is expected to last five years.

The scope of design and build works for contract 2, costed at £65-£72 million, includes roads, earthworks, district heating, services.

It follows contract 1 for remediation of contaminated soils, treatment of Galligu, grout curtains, groundwater pumping and bioremediation. Firms are due to be shortlisted and invited to submit tenders for remediation this month.

Prequalification documentation for contract 2 is available at the PCS-Tender portal, project Code GCC003726CPU.

Bid to revive Edinburgh Engine Shed as ‘community food hub’

A plan for a new community food business in the former Engine Shed building in Edinburgh has been revealed.

Local residents have teamed up with social enterprises from across the city on a bid to transform the former charity base, which helped young people with learning disabilities find employment, into a food hub named St Leonard’s Yard.

The proposal includes a cafe, bakery, event space and offices with social enterprises, The Yard, Breadshare and The Food Social all proposing to lease space in the building.

The new bid for the building comes after the council cut funding for the Engine Shed, forcing it to close in February.

The three levels of the building would be split between the social enterprises, with plans to run events throughout the year from workshops to markets.

Bids for the building closed on Friday, May 22 and a decision will be made by Edinburgh City Council in August.

Scottish rents rise at highest annual rate for five months

Average Scottish rents recorded in April increased by 1.6 per cent in a year, according to Your Move’s latest Scottish Rental Index.

This is the fastest year-on-year increase in rents since November 2014 when the annual change stood at 2.2 per cent, the data shows.

Coming back from a winter dip, the pace of rent growth has increased solidly from 1.1 per cent in February and a 1.3 per cent annual rise in March.

As of last month, the average residential rent across Scotland stands at a record £539 per month, matching the peak set just five months before in November 2014.

While rent growth is quickening on an annual basis, in the month to April, average Scottish rents rose just 0.1 per cent.

The greatest year-on-year increase was recorded in the Glasgow & Clyde region, where average rents have shot up by £27 (5 per cent) since April 2014.

The East saw the second biggest annual rise in rental prices at 1.7 per cent and in the South of Scotland rents climbed a more modest 0.7 per cent in the past twelve months.

Edinburgh & the Lothian’s has witnessed the biggest fall in rent prices year-on-year, down 0.8 per cent in the twelve months to April 2015. In the Highlands & Islands, rents are now 0.6 per cent lower than in April 2014.

Funding boost for home improvements in North Lanarkshire

Homeowners in North Lanarkshire are set for to benefit from warmer homes and cheaper bills after North Lanarkshire Council received £2.9 million to improve energy efficiency following a successful funding bid.

Hundreds of homes in Cumbernauld, Coatbridge and Wishaw will benefit from the funding awarded from the Scottish Government’s Home Energy Efficiency Programme for Scotland: Area Based Scheme (HEEPS: ABS).

Des Murray, head of housing property, said: “So far, almost 800 homes, both council and privately owned properties have benefited from our programme of improved heating and external wall insulation as part of the HEEPS programme.

“Securing this funding allows us to carry out further energy improvement work on another 373 properties over the next twelve months, which will help people reduce their annual energy bills.

“The money will be used to tackle fuel poverty and our local homes energy team have been working to identify properties need help to improve energy efficiency.”

Through the HEEPS: ABS scheme, local authorities bid for funding based on a number of factors including deprivation, child poverty, stock condition and heat mapping and identify projects to improve household energy efficiency.

Fife Council to install 30,000 Aico Fire/CO alarm interfaces

Fife Council is undergoing a programme to install 30,000 Aico Ei414 Fire/Carbon Monoxide (CO) Alarm Interfaces throughout its housing stock.

The Ei414 is a flexible device that provides a dedicated connection between Aico RadioLINK Smoke, Heat and CO alarms with most new and existing Telecare/Warden Call Systems, enabling an emergency signal to be transmitted directly to that system if fire or CO is detected.

Previously Fife Council had been using different components which did not ‘talk’ to each other, resulting in a potential safety issue. The new Ei414 overcomes this, directly interacting with the different systems fitted within the properties to ensure the safety of the council’s tenants.

Fife Council played an important role in the development of this innovative product, working with Aico and parent manufacturer Ei Electronics.

Taylor Wimpey West Scotland team takes to the hills for Peak District challenge

A team of colleagues from Taylor Wimpey West Scotland completed a challenge with a difference in the Peak District.

As well as trekking 28km up hill and down dale and solving puzzles along the way, the Taylor Wimpey Peak District Challenge involved each team of participants building their own shelter out of recycled or scrap material and sleeping in it the night before the hike.

Taylor Wimpey invited staff to take part in the expedition on Friday 15th and Saturday 16th May, with 51 teams from across the country rising to the challenge, set in the Hope Valley in the heart of the Peak District.

Shelter building took place on the Friday, and after sleeping in their constructions overnight, the teams were woken with a 5.30am alarm call on the Saturday before heading out on the trek and completing a series of mental and physical tasks along the route. Twelve members of the team from the West Scotland Business Unit made up two of the 51 Taylor Wimpey teams who took part in the event, raising in excess of £150,000 in sponsorship for the Youth Adventure Trust, which provides adventure camps and day activities for disadvantaged children.