Posted May 31, 2000
Tilbury
Douglas moves to support services sector 
Another company with a construction background has
made the move to the more highly rated Support Services stock market sector.
UK
lagging on knowledge management
Although UK companies realise the benefits of knowledge management
they are failing on implementation says Cranfield School of Management
in a new report.
Posted May 30, 2000
ISS gains control of RCO, at a price
Danish services company ISS has gained operational control over the UK's RCO but will have to pay over £3m more than its original bid for full ownership.
MSDW backs co-location centres
Morgan Stanley Dean Witter is backing two new companies to acquire, let and manage so called 'carrier hotels' - highly specified and protected buildings for the co-location of telecoms and internet equipment.
WSP fit-out project wins award
A recently completed WSP Group fit-out project for Prudential has received a Regional Commendation for 'The Most Effective Fit-Out' at the British Council for Offices (BCO) Award 2000, held earlier this month.
Posted May 26, 2000
Debate
on the impact of IT on higher education estates next week
The Higher Education Design Quality Forum is organising
a debate on the potential impact of information technology on higher education
estates for those involved and interested in buildings in the higher education
sector.
Research
investment for mobile phone technology
E-Commerce and Small Business Minister, Patricia Hewitt has announced
a £4 million research programme into the future development of mobile
phone technology.
New internet gateway for
construction information
The Knowledge Exchange is a new internet gateway which
eases the search for construction information.
Posted May 25, 2000
Just another
utility
Commentators have long predicted that voice and data
services will become as ubiquitous and commonplace as electricity supply.
Treasury
issues procurement guidance
From next month, all new works proposed by central Government
will have to be procured through either the Private Finance Initiative,
Design and Build or Prime Contracting.
Evolution not revolution
for wireless technology
Wired and wireless networking will co-exist for some time.
That's the conclusion of experts taking part in a recent industry debate.
Posted May 24, 2000
BIFM recruits
6,000th member
The British Institute of Facilities Management (BIFM)
has reached a major milestone in its short history by recruiting its 6,000th
member.
Skills
more important than flexibility, says CBI
Companies must raise skill levels to boost productivity but policy-makers
must not distract firms with further employment legislation.
Vivendi seeks energy connection
for Dalkia
According to recent reports in Le Figaro and the Financial
Times, Vivendi, the French utilities and telecoms giant, is in discussions
with power generators which may result in it selling part of the equity
in Dalkia, its energy services arm.
Posted May 23, 2000
Taylor
Woodrow FM wins contract with Lex
Taylor Woodrow Facilities Management (TWFM) has been
awarded a major contract by business and motoring group Lex Service, to
manage a significant portion of its UK properties.
More
acquisitions for ISS
ISS Group has acquired the activities of the ICS Group, a specialist
company providing food hygiene services to approximately 2000 hotels,
restaurants, pub chains and other food sale outlets in the United Kingdom.
RIBA appoints new Chief
Executive
RIBA appoints new Chief Executive Richard Hastilow CBE
will be the new Chief Executive of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Posted May 22, 2000
MITIE
supports Global Switch
MITIE Managed Services, part of MITIE Group, has been
selected to provide support services to the flagship co-location centre
of Global Switch, in London's Docklands.
Construction
consultancies merge
Two of the world’s leading construction consultancies, both
over a hundred years’ old, are to merge, creating a new international
group with 1500 staff and offices in almost 50 countries.
MITIE supports Global
Switch
MITIE Managed Services, part of MITIE Group, has been
selected to provide support services to the flagship co-location centre
of Global Switch, in London's Docklands.
Posted May 19, 2000
Risk of
fraud in MoD property management says Audit Office
Around £135 million of the MoD's expenditure
on property management, some 15%, is at risk from fraud, according to
a report by the National Audit Office published yesterday.
New
design tool for sustainable buildings
BRE has launched software for assessing life cycle environmental
impacts of buildings from the early design stage.
Government to promote
building design
The Ministerial Group, established earlier this year to
take forward the recommendations of two reports prepared for the Prime
Minister on Public Sector Buildings, has produced an action plan presenting
the targets for Government departments.
Posted May 18, 2000
Dome futures
- work or play?
The future of London's Millennium Dome has come down
to a duel between business and leisure.
First
Welsh hospital PFI
Kier Group plc has announced that Kier Ltd, part of a consortium
which includes Tilbury Douglas, has reached financial closure on the Neath
& Port Talbot Hospital in Baglan, South Wales.
"There is no virtue like
necessity"
Citex has completed work to transform a one hundred-year-old
semi-derelict former power station into a temporary theatre for a season
of Shakespeare.
Posted May 17, 2000
Granada
and Compass Group in merger
Granada has announced plans to merge with contract
caterer Compass Group and split off its media interests into a separate
company.
Big
FM names set to run school services
Today - Wednesday - is the day that the government is set to announce
a radical extension of the list of approved providers to the UK education
sector to include some of the biggest names in the FM industry.
CBI president warns PM
about employment laws
Speaking at the annual CBI dinner last night, CBI President
Sir Clive Thompson warned Tony Blair against the new employment legislation
that holds back people from participating in the changing world of work.
Posted May 16, 2000
AMEC renews
partnership with NEC
AMEC has retained and expanded its contract with the
NEC. In addition to the main exhibition complex, AMEC will now provide
services to the International Conference Centre and the National Indoor
Arena under a five-year contract with a two-year renewal option.
MoD PFI FM
worth £11m a year
Support services to the MoD’s Whitehall project will deliver
revenues of around £11m a year to Amey Business Services, part of
the winning Modus Services Consortium.
Battersea Power Station
awaits £500m makeover
Days after the opening of the new Tate Modern, a similar
south London site is being talked about as a future entertainment centre.
Posted May 15, 2000
ISS bids £26m for
RCO
Consolidation in the European support services market
continues with the announcement that Copenhagen-based ISS has made a recommended
cash offer for RCO Holdings plc.
Modus consortium
wins MoD HQ PFI deal
A consortium comprising AMEY, McQuarie Infrastructure, Hyder and
Innisfree has won the PFI project to modernise The Ministry of Defence
(MoD) headquarters in Whitehall.
Posted May 12, 2000
Citex wins court services contract
Citex has been awarded a £14 million contract
to provide project management and quantity surveying services for a new
Civil Trial Centre to be built in Bristol.
Environment a key issue say i-FM users
Visitors to the i-FM web site clearly think green issues will
be important in their work over the coming years.
Stress is damaging British executives' health
Workplace stress is damaging the health of executives in organisations
across Britain and companies could be doing more to help their employees
cope.
Posted May 11, 2000
News Extra Trigon
re-born in transatlantic joint venture
A new name enters the market for truly pan-European
facilities management, following yesterday's announcement of a strategic
alliance between FPDSavills and Dallas based Trammell Crow Company.
Innovative office solutions at Tate Modern
Tate Modern, which officially opens today, has offices as innovative
as the art in the gallery itself.
Absence costs business £10bn annually
Workplace absence cost British business £10.5 billion
in 1999, an average of £438 per worker, according to an annual survey
by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and PPP healthcare.
Xerox project spurs Irish infrastructure
solutions business for Sulzer
The new Xerox European Customer Support Centre at Ballycoolin
is officially opened this week...
Posted May 10, 2000
Sulzer Infra connects with AT&T
Infrastructure solutions company announces
new contract win with communications giant.
AMEC signs up with strategic supplier partners
AMEC has taken its partnering approach one step further by
signing partnering agreements with 21 key suppliers and subcontractors
across its main areas of activity.
ABB wins M&E contract on Merseyrail
station
ABB Building Technologies’ Rail Services Business has won
a contract for the mechanical and electrical refurbishment work on Hamilton
Square (pictured), one of six stations on the Merseyrail Loop.
Posted May 9, 2000
Eurica secures services contract with
IoD
Eurica are to deliver occupancy services by joining forces with
the Institute of Directors (IoD), MEPC and Stonemartin Corporate Centres
to roll out a series of IoD branded corporate business centres in major
cities across the UK.
Livingstone and Government must put differences
behind them urges GVA Grimley but fears planning delays
Ken Livingstone, must work hand-in-hand with the Government
or London’s economy will suffer, say GVA Grimley, international property
advisors with a strong London presence.
Barclays to outsource
document business
Edotech has bought Barclays' in-house documents business in a
buyout deal backed by Barclays Private Equity.
Posted May 8, 2000
Monitoring
in the workplace increases
Monitoring of workplace activities is growing. Phone calls, email
messages and log-ons to the internet are increasingly surveyed by employers,
according to a recent report in the New York Times.
Project Jaguar to unlock corporate PFI
Project Jaguar marks a ‘defining moment’ for the FM
industry, according to Gordon Bryden, MD of Carillion Services.
Balfour Beatty lands
£80m PFI deal
Balfour Beatty will be part of the consortium which will provide
sewage works in Scotland, under an £80 million PFI contract.
Posted May 5, 2000
Security
companies in £700m merger
Falck of Denmark is to acquire Group 4 Securitas creating the
world's second-largest security services group in a deal worth around
£715m.
BSA signs Key Principles agreement with MoD
An agreement affecting Ministry of Defence service contracting
was signed by Lewis Moonie, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for
Defence, and Norman Rose, Director-General of the Business Services Association...
New guide to building
services
An illustrated guide to help building owners, developers and operators,
as well as facilities managers and architects, to understand building
services engineering has been published by CIBSE and BSRIA
Warning
about computer virus!!!
A major computer virus that carries the message "Iloveyou"
has disabled computer networks across the UK.
Posted May 4, 2000
Sulzer
to sponsor Telework 2000
Sulzer
Infra CBX, the UK arm of Sulzer, the infrastructure solutions company
will be supporting the Telework 2000 event this September, alongside other
high profile sponsors including the DTI, EC and BT.
New technical division for National Integrated
Services
National Integrated Services has launched a new technical services
division, to be headed by Len Boyd who has over 20 years experience in
technical services and facilities management.
Smokers to work extra hours at Tower Hamlets 
The issue of workplace smoking took another twist after Tower Hamlets
Council announced that employees who smoke will have to make up the time
they waste on cigarette breaks.
Posted May 3, 2000
'Franchise
model' for Project Jaguar contract
Details of the huge BT facilities outsourcing contract, first reported
on i-FM last week, were released yesterday in a Stock Exchange announcement.
Training or draining resources?
New research launched yesterday by The Industrial Society reveals
2 out of 3 companies have increased their commitment to training evaluation
techniques in the past two years, in order to raise efficiency.
NACORE visits BMW
No, this is not another protest at BMW's handling of the Rover sale
but a safety test of the German company's new hybrid car-motorbike, the
C1.
Posted May 2, 2000
US
real estate companies form e-business alliance
Three of the leading US real estate companies have formed an alliance
to develop e-commerce initiatives.
TUC launches Partnership Institute and
calls for blitz on safety
For the FM industry, partnership usually defines a new kind of relationship
between client and contractor.
Surf the net at 3,000 metres
The internet is already circling the globe - soon it will be reaching
into the skies.