Scaffolding group announces big recruitment drive after £2M contract win

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Scaffolding group announces big recruitment drive after £2M contract win

The JMAC Group are set to create 40 full-time jobs in the North East following over £2m in contract wins and exports to Europe.

The Teesside based group, consisting of J Mac Scaffolding, J Mac Safety Systems & J Mac Industrial Services are proving there’s some positivity on the job front as the COVID pandemic restrictions ease.

Following on from the chancellor’s announcement 8th July, the group has started by launching a national recruitment drive with central office positions based in the Teesside region.

Whilst the impact of the coronavirus has forced many companies to lay off staff, JMAC Group are looking ahead and creating opportunities for a diverse range of skillsets.

The JMAC brand is well known in Teesside and many people will recognise the name from their original company, JMac Scaffolding, which has been part of the construction industry for almost four decades now.

Since then, the JMAC brand has expanded and grown to such an impressive extent they are now looking for more people than ever & showing no signs of being slowed down by recent events.

Within the past month, almost all of their staff have returned from the Government Furlough Scheme, and have now started as they mean to go on, with the appointment of the Group Head of Finance &, Head of Marketing, Hire/Sales Controller/Office Manager, along with a temporary Industrial Operations Manager. The current roles they are actively recruiting for are:

Speaking of the recruitment drive, JMAC Group MD Luis McCarthy said: “The JMAC brand began back in 1981 in Teesside, and that’s something we’re very proud of. Our heritage means we’ll always look to support our area and the people in it. Where possible, we use local suppliers, local people and local products to drive a variety of areas in our business and the coronavirus setback will not stop us from doing so.

The pandemic hit us hard, as it did for many people, but we are coming back harder and faster than ever with a spring in our step following commercial support from Santander & Clive Owen. We are now in a position to create almost 40 Full-time Jobs in the area following over £2m in contract wins and our first exports to Europe.”

Hire & Sales Manager, Aaron Foley, added: “We’ve spent the past few months pushing to ensure we can continue as normal as possible with JMAC after lockdown and it’s really paying off for us. We’ve recently sold a large number of our BrickGuard products to Total in Belgium. We’ve won new contracts with large clients such as Vistry Group, Tolent & Countryside Properties, Thirteen Group, not only this, our locally manufactured products have been dispatched to Persimmon Homes in Scotland showing the construction and housing market is well and truly back.

There are so many exciting things happening, it’s a great time for people to join our team.”

You can contact the JMAC office on 01642 563696 if you have any questions.

TRAD UK enters second phase of replacing 8,000 tonnes of rival Layher stock

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TRAD UK enters second phase of replacing 8,000 tonnes of rival Layher stock

The second package of TRAD UK’s 8,000 tonnes of rival Layher Allround system is now up for sale after the firm decided to replace its stock with its own PLETTAC METRIX system last year.

Following the successful completion of the first stage, TRAD UK is now set to commence with the second phase of the programme to replace TRAD Scaffolding’s stock of 8,000 tonnes of Layher Allround with ALTRAD’s system scaffold, PLETTAC METRIX. The system which its maker’s state can dramatically cut the cost of scaffold projects, whilst also improving both on-site productivity and safety.  Des Moore, TRAD UK CEO said: “As I stated when we initially embarked on this programme of replacement, the added efficiencies which this provides will not only further grow TRAD Scaffolding’s operational capabilities but will also ensure we can continue to provide cutting-edge scaffolding solutions to our clients. PLETTAC METRIX has proven itself to be one of the most advanced ring-based system scaffolds and is significantly faster than traditional Tube & Fitting Scaffolding, generally giving labour savings from 30% to 50%.” “Since becoming part of the Altrad Group, TRAD has benefitted from significant investment and subsequent growth and this trend continues with further development of the PLETTAC METRIX scaffold system – manufactured in Germany by ALTRAD PLETTAC – including newly implemented automation to increase manufacturing capacity to meet demand.” TRAD believes the PLETTAC METRIX system has many advantages over other ring-based system scaffolds. And being a true modular scaffolding system, PLETTAC METRIX is suitable for use in all construction, heavy-duty industrial and civil engineering applications and is easily palletised allowing for optimal transportation.   TRAD Scaffolding was one of the first companies to recognise the advantages and benefits which a systemised scaffold afforded some 25 years ago, and quickly introduced it into all sectors in which it worked. TRAD UK now believes that PLETTAC METRIX takes system scaffold to the next level.  If any TRAD UK customers are interested in purchasing TRAD Scaffolding’s Layher stock, please email [email protected] for further details.  

Scaffolding Training Resumes After Lockdown

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Scaffolding Training Resumes After Lockdown

UK Scaffolding training providers are adapting to a ‘new normal’ after cautiously reopening their doors post lockdown.

Scaffolding training is now underway at over 18 locations around the UK, with many more to follow suit in the coming weeks. Providers are showing real resilience after swiftly adapting to overcome government restrictions. The Construction Industry Scaffolders Record Scheme (CISRS) has been working tirelessly with training providers throughout the lockdown to get them back open and COVID ready. Before reopening, CISRS has said that all centres were required to submit detailed risk assessments and method statements with supporting documentation and photographic evidence showing restrictions and precautions put in place to prevent the spread of Covid-19, whilst delivering training. Providers had to cover each step of the training experience from arriving at the centre, moving around the site, getting to classrooms, practical training areas, welfare facilities and getting back home safely. Although, the reduced centre capacity restriction is causing a strain for a number of providers the industry demand for CISRS training is unfaltering. So much so, Scaffmag understands that several scaffolding training providers are laying on extra courses in particular short duration ones like COTS and CPD.
Image credit: SIMIAN
David Mosley, CISRS Managing Director said: “The Coronavirus pandemic has hit the whole industry hard; scaffolders, employers, clients as well as the training providers. There is still a lot of uncertainty ahead, but the sector has responded very positively and looked for ways to move forward in safe and productive manner.” Centres that are currently open are initially dealing with courses which were cancelled due to the lockdown, but are also slowly taking general bookings. Dave Mosley added: “We appreciate that we are not out of the woods yet and that the ongoing commercial uncertainty may prove fatal to some centres, which will be a real blow for the industry. “That said the response to date from providers has been excellent, the feedback from the delegates has been very positive and the demand for training continues, as such we will press on with training following all the relevant procedures and like everybody else aim to get through this safely.”

UK Startup Develops Innovative Floating Access System

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UK Startup Develops Innovative Floating Access System

An award-winning Cornish based start-up has developed and patented a new product that allows UK scaffold firms to offer floating access solutions.

The product called ScaffFloat is a set of tough plastic floats that have been specifically designed to integrate with standard scaffolding parts to make floating pontoons, rafts and versatile floating structures. The company has been testing the system in the field over the last few months and now their initial R&D work has been completed, they are starting to introduce the product to the market, take bookings and actively look for UK scaffolding companies that are keen to offer floating access solutions to their customers. Toby Budd, Founder and MD said ‘’We are already speaking to a number of scaffolding companies who are interested in becoming Approved Delivery Partners. After a signed agreement has been put in place, and we have provided the necessary training, they can hire floats from us and use them to start building pontoons for their customers. The interest has been much stronger than we expected.’’ He added, ‘’We appreciate that most scaffolders are not familiar with floating structures, so, as well as hiring them the floats, we provide an in house design service. All our pontoon designs come with full structural, buoyancy and stability calculations and we are happy to produce renders and drawings FOC to help our partners bid for and win tenders, we are also always on the end of the phone to offer advice. Category 3 checks can also be provided for larger projects.’’
ScaffFloat allows UK scaffolding firms to offer floating access solutions
ScaffFloat allows scaffolding firms to offer floating access solutions
The company says that safety is key, so to help make sure all ScaffFloat pontoons and structures are professionally built to an approved set of drawings, they are currently only hiring their floats. It’s understood that float hire prices start at £1.90 per day on long-term hire or £3.90 per day on short-term hire. The floats are designed to integrate with popular 450 & 750 lattice beams, and then use standard tube lengths, forged double couplers and scaffold boards. The smallest pontoons start at 4m x 4m and can scale to almost any size.
ScaffFloat being constructed
ScaffFloat has been specifically designed to integrate with standard scaffolding parts
Uses for ScaffFloat span several sectors including survey, drilling, geotechnical, renewables, oil & gas, civils, events, disaster relief and access. As well as standard flat top pontoons the company is currently testing a range of ‘bolt-on’ modules that include spud legs, propulsion, welfare huts, lifting A-frames, deck cranes and loading ramps. A spokesperson for ScaffFloat told Scaffmag that particular interest has also been shown for bridge projects, where pre-built structures can either be floated underneath and lifted into place, or a ScaffFloat pontoon can be lifted up under the bridge to provide access for repair works, or for scaffolders to install scaffolding. Roger Tice, Managing Director of Richter Associates, said ‘’We are a firm of consulting civil, structural and geotechnical engineers that specialise in temporary works and construction sequences. We are actively working with the ScaffFloat team and offer design solutions to our customers using this innovative system. We can see all sorts of exciting applications for this within the industry we serve, and in most cases, there are very significant cost savings to be had. 48.3 Scaffolding Design Limited – a Richter group company dedicated to the scaffolding market is proudly working with ScaffFloat, and bringing this system to its existing client base. We endorse this system created by ScaffFloat.’’

London tower crane collapse kills woman

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London tower crane collapse kills woman

A woman was pronounced dead and four people were injured after a tower crane suddenly collapsed onto a row of houses in east London yesterday.

The 20-meter tower crane was working on a construction site when it came crashing down onto nearby houses in Bow, east London. A woman was found dead on the first floor of one of the houses hit by the crane, London Fire Brigade confirmed. Firefighters attended the science and spent several hours freeing people trapped inside the demolished buildings. Assistant Commissioner for London Fire Brigade Graham Ellis said: “A 20-metre crane collapsed onto a block of flats under development and into two terraced houses on Compton Close. “Our Urban Search & Rescue crews undertook a complex rescue operation and used specialist equipment to search the properties.
tower crane collapse London
Image credit: Sky News
“Sadly one woman died at the scene. The London Ambulance Service have confirmed that two people were taken to hospital with head injuries and a further two were treated at the scene.” The crane was being used by Swan Housing Association/NU Living on the construction of social housing. Swan Housing Association said: “Swan/NU living are saddened by an incident at our Watts Grove site today. Our thoughts are with those affected at this difficult time. We thank the emergency services & everyone for their dedicated response. Our staff are supporting this emergency and the investigation.”

Unite calls for an urgent investigation

Jerry Swain, The national officer for construction at the Unite the union, said: “Yet again we have seen a crane collapse on a construction site. Our thoughts are with those injured in this accident and we hope that no one has been seriously injured and that there has been no loss of life. “Unite is in the process of contacting the company to discover more details about this accident. There must be an urgent, full and complete investigation into the circumstances that led to this accident. The preliminary findings of which must be released in weeks, rather months or years, in order to ensure that similar accidents are avoided in the future.”

NASC Backs Talent Retention Scheme

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NASC Backs Talent Retention Scheme

NASC has welcomed the launch of the Construction Talent Retention Scheme, which will help keep scaffolding workers in the industry.

The National Access and Scaffolding Confederation (NASC) have said it backs the new scheme which was in today’s announcement by Chancellor Rishi Sunak. The scheme aims to protect jobs in the construction sector and will match workers displaced as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic with employers seeking new staff.

David Mosley, NASC Training Director, said: “The NASC wholeheartedly welcomes the introduction of the Talent Retention Scheme.

“Considering the time and investment our sector puts into creating a fully-trained and competent workforce it would be disastrous to lose such skilled workers at this challenging time. We will be encouraging our members to make full use of all of the support available.”

The Scheme, which will formally launch later this month, will be an online portal that supports redeployment of staff at risk of redundancy across the sector, while also enabling temporary employee loans between businesses.

The not-for-profit programme now has funding secured until the end of the financial year, providing a free online platform for any organisation looking to hire, while ensuring that candidates’ skills and experience are given a prominent platform within the industry.

Businesses can register their interest in the scheme at: www.trs-system.co.uk/construction

£1,000 payout for each worker brought off furlough

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£1,000 payout for each worker brought off furlough

The Chancellor has today unveiled plans to retain UK construction jobs and help to get youngsters into the industry.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has promised UK firms a £1,000 payout for bringing each staff member back into work and off furlough. The money will be paid out to businesses who still have the furloughed staff in full-time work at the end of January 2021. Sunak also set out plans to encourage construction firms across the board to take on more young people. He pledged to subsidise six-month work placements for people on Universal Credit aged between 16 and 24. He told MP’s in the commons firms are set to receive a grant of £6,500 for each new placement. Furthermore, the Chancellor promised to provide employers with £2,000 for each new apprentice they hire aged under 25, over 25 employers will receive £1,500. Eligible employers must hire the apprentices between August this year and January 2021.

Demo trade body launches new safety guidance video for scaffolding

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Demo trade body launches new safety guidance video for scaffolding

National Federation of Demolition Contractors (NFDC) has produced a scaffolding safety guidance video for demolition contractors.

The video published today aims to predominately educate demolition contractors and comes in response to a spate of demolition related scaffolding incidents in 2019. The NFDC has worked with a team of experts including the NASC to create the seven-minute-long animated video. The film shows a walk-through and thought-provoking process to follow when determining risk control measures. Clarifying the purpose of scaffold in demolition, it also explores the hazards and alternatives to be considered to reduce or eliminate risks. NFDC has said it’s distributing the new video guidance to its membership of 145 UK demolition contractors and made available to anybody working in demolition via the Federation’s website. Spearheading the new Safety Guidance initiative is Nick Taylor, Demolition Director at McGee, an NFDC member company with over 60 years of demolition expertise and thousands of demolition projects successfully delivered. Following an incident on site in 2019, the team at McGee have played an instrumental role in the production of new best practice guidance. Nick Taylor commented, “Safety in our industry is paramount, which is why it’s critical that on the extremely rare occasion an incident occurs, we all learn from them. Not just demolition engineers but an industry as a whole. The comprehensive NFDC video guidance for Use of Scaffold in Demolition has been developed with a team of experts including the National Access and Scaffolding Confederation (NASC) and other NFDC accredited demolition contractors. It is our aim to circulate the new guidance as far and wide as possible, in order that future incidents may be prevented.” Howard Button, CEO at NFDC, summed up; “This video guidance is another excellent deliverable in NFDC’s Safety Guidance series and I would like to thank all those who have played a role in its development. The Federation is committed to increasing the sharing of knowledge and best practice with the wider demolition industry through the provision of quality safety guidance that helps contractors to assess and reduce risk when carrying out demolition works. A written guidance will follow in due course.”

What is going up, down under?

Simon Boyes
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What is going up, down under?

Since the beginning of time, scaffolding has been used around the world to provide safe access for multiple uses.  We venture ‘down under’ to understand the Australian market landscape to understand who and what is driving the market, Simon Boyes reports.

The Australian Scaffolding Industry is on the verge of a technology boom that is going to change the industry forever. Like most other service-based trades around the world, the scaffolding market has been left behind in the technology and manufacturing boom that we have seen over the last decade. Old fashioned materials and methodologies that have been used since the beginning of time are still being used across the world and the scaffolding industry in Australia is no different. But that is all about to change…..

The Australian market

Being hidden away (down under) from the rest of the world without direct connection to other countries, can be both positive and negative regarding industry growth and evolution.  The Australian market continues to grow and is projected to increase from $1.19 billion industry in 2018 to $1.56 billion in 2025. It is dominated by multi-national companies who hold a combined market share of approximately 48%.  The smaller scaffolding companies (0-15 employees) hold the second largest market share with 33%. The rest are made up of mid to large size companies that are multi-disciplined trades, and scaffolding is just one of the services they offer. Historically, the Australian market has been dominated by larger national or multi-national companies who have the resources and financial support to deliver larger projects. Often, smaller companies were overlooked or viewed as high risk to work on larger projects.  Over the last 5 years, smaller companies have found ways to evolve their businesses and offer alternate services (or solutions) by finding new ways to solve old problems. By harnessing technology and innovative methodologies, the smaller companies have been able to evolve faster and are more flexible than the larger companies who are traditionally very structured and systemised.

Systems of choice

The introduction of new scaffolding systems and new materials is changing the approach of not only the scaffolding companies but also the approach of their clients.  As a result of a combination of the GFC hangover and now the COVID-19 pandemic, the customers are now looking to the scaffolding contractor to tell the customer the best way to deliver the project and suggest ways to reduce costs and installation timelines.   The mindset of the industry is slowly evolving from the traditional Contractor VS Sub-Contractor mentality to a partnership approach where both businesses are mutually invested to achieve the best outcome for the project. Kwikstage type scaffolding is still the most used system in the country, accounting for over 80% of the total market usage.  The residential and small commercial markets are dominated by Kwikstage contractors. However, there is an increasing appetite on the larger (often more complex) commercial projects to use At-Pac or similar ring-type scaffolding systems.  The industrial sector (mining, oil & gas) is serviced by a combination of different scaffolding systems, however, Layher is the most used for complex projects. The Peri Up range of products is beginning to increase its market use, especially when combined with its formwork systems. There will also be a place in the market for Tube & Couplers, however, it is becoming less and less common. With 3D printing and other modern manufacturing techniques already being used across other industries, the coming years will begin to see the introduction of new lighter and stronger products made from different materials and properties.  

What the future holds

The best part about a career in scaffolding is you can’t replace the human element of the trade with machines or robots.  If you could, then you wouldn’t use scaffolding in the first place. In many instances, the use of boom lifts, scissor lifts and cranes are not the most practical way to access the work front and scaffolding is the best option.  What we will see though, is more and more mechanical aids to help with materials handling, such as hoists, lifts, and other robotic equipment to help deliver the scaffolding components to the work front. The biggest risk in the scaffolding industry always has been and always will be human error.  It is the biggest risk but also the biggest asset. You can never replace the human mind and the ability to think outside the square to come up with the best outcome in different situations.  Scaffolding projects often change and evolve over the course of the installation and robots can’t think outside of what they have been programmed to do. So, for now, our jobs are safe, but evolution is coming and if we don’t move with the times and harness the technological boom, we will be left behind wondering what happened to our industry and our jobs.

PERI UK bags scaffolder training accreditation

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PERI UK bags scaffolder training accreditation

PERI UK has received CISRS accreditation for its first-ever scaffolder training facility.

PERI’s Construction Training Academy, at its newly redeveloped office in Brentwood, has been awarded its CISRS accreditation. This will mean that the centre, which is the UK subsidiary’s first-ever training facility dedicated to scaffolding and formwork, will have the capacity to deliver all of PERI’s scaffolding training courses under one roof.

PERI says this is a big milestone for the company and believes its Construction Training Academy will enable it to address and support the demand for skilled workers in the industry, ensuring the UK remains a leader in scaffolding training.

The company’s commitment to the scaffolding sector has already involved collaborations with industry partners and customers to deliver some of the sector’s most sought-after courses, such as the BASE, and Inspection course.

The accreditation is timely, as scaffolding trainees will receive a comprehensive learning experience within the latest social distancing guidelines. With a 600 sq m footprint, the training facility provides a generous space for scaffolders to train safely, without compromising how on-site scaffolding scenarios are replicated.

The stand-out feature of the facility is its 15m-high exposed concrete wall built using PERI systems, reminding visitors of the seamless integration between PERI’s system scaffolding and its formwork components.

Although purpose-built to support increasing demand in the south region, the facility is equipped to meet a variety of training requirements for customers around the UK.

Training Academy Manager, Mark Holmes, said: “We are very excited to be able to offer the same high-quality course content we have delivered so far, now in our very own training facility. It’s a fantastic opportunity for PERI to be able to deliver its scaffolding expertise alongside its formwork offering, making trainees aware of just some of the benefits of our systems.

Receiving accreditation means we can now focus on customising our training services, with the support of our fully-equipped facility, to ensure we deliver an experience our customers will benefit from the most.”

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