Inspired Power Floating

Preparation for the power floated concrete floors takes place at the Inspire site in Slade Green. Resulting in a hard wearing finished surface, suitable for high trafficked areas both foot and fork lift, the floor is levelled and laid by specialist sub contractors.

The concrete mix is designed for a power float finish, which is laid by either hand or pump being levelled by using a vibrating tamper and then left to the initial set has occurred. After this a test area is power floated to see if the set of the concrete will withhold the weight of a power float.

Contract Manger Steve Bell said “Power floating takes place over many hours to form a polished hard concrete floor, which is exactly what is required in the newly built warehouse” once it’s down, it’s down, so the levels and work needs to be spot on from the start”

Inspire Site Progressing Well

Construction at Knapman & Son’s Inspire Site is progressing well and on Schedule with addition works now required to the main building kitchens.

The new development is part of Inspirers objective of continuously improving community services for people with physical disabilities and older people in the borough. Inspire is an independent user-led social enterprise and a registered charity which provides a range of services.

The contract will be finished in July 2012.

Devon Crescent Handover Approaches

With the handover date fast approaching, the finishing touches are being put to what has been a very successful Design & Build project.

Funded by the Housing Cooperation, the Homes & Communities Agency along with our clients Mount Green Housing Association, Knapman & Sons (Builders) Ltd were awarded the contract for the Design & Build refurbishment back in April 2011.

Form an empty, dated and almost derelict building fifty weeks ago, Devon Crescent has been transformed into brand new state of the art building, comprising of self contained flats and shared accommodation for autistic children and their carers.

“The contract has run very successfully right until the end and we expect to hand over the project to the client within the contract period” said Steve Bell, Contract Manager for Knapman & Sons.

 

Know the Score to Win the Game

Set, track and monitor your targets and goals for your construction company. That was the advice set out by managing director Mr Terry Knapman Snr of Knapman & Sons (Builders) Ltd.

Imagine coaching a football or rugby team without keeping score. You would put in your best players, work on a strategy designed to outscore the opponent and hope to finish the game with more goals or tries. But without a scoreboard, you would not know if you should change your team set up, call in different ways of playing or put in different players. It would also be difficult to motivate your players.

Business is like sports in many ways. You cannot win in business if you do not track your progress. To win the game of business, you have to be under budget, ahead of the plan, make money and beat the competition. When your employees do not have goals to meet, they will not work as hard.

Have you established goals and specific targets for your construction business? For example, do you have written goals for your current annual sales and net profit? Less than half of all small business owners set and track annual sales and profit goals. This is like running a business without trying to make a profit.

Specific company targets might include: sales revenue, gross profit, overhead, net profit, profit growth, debt reduction, average project size, number of new customers, new market penetration, proposal-hit ratio, stockholder distributions and company value. 

Before you start a project, get the estimator, project manager, site agent and foreman together to set overall project goals. Hold a pre-contract team meeting to get everyone on the same page.

Plan the project, and develop goals, including estimated versus final profit, proposed versus final completion date, production site staff hours, equipment hours, general condition costs, Health and Safety costs, customer satisfaction etc. Afterward, follow up on these goals with weekly and monthly project team meetings. At the end of the project, hold a general review meeting to decide what areas need improvement, and refine your goals for the next project.

Mr Knapman went onto say.. “This is the way that Knapman & Sons Builders Ltd do things and it has proved to be very successful with us, trust me, keep an eye on the score and you’ll always be a winner”.

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Growth in UK Construction Brings Hope For The New Year

Growth in Britain's construction sector unexpectedly gained pace in December 2011, a survey of purchasing managers showed today, providing a glimmer of hope that the economy can recover this New Year.

The Markit / CIPS construction PMI rose to 53.2 from 52.3 in November, confounding economists' expectations for a fall to 51.7.

"The survey suggests that the sector should make a positive contribution to the economy in the final quarter of the year, helping avoid a possible slide back into contraction," said Markit economist Sarah Bingham.

House building, commercial construction and civil engineering all saw an improvement in activity, she said. "The data so far suggest that gross domestic product (GDP) probably stagnated in the final three months of the year".

The relatively small construction sector is faring better than its bigger peer manufacturing, which closed 2011 with its worst quarter in more than two years although in December factory output was broadly steady.

Ms Bingham said the services PMI data due tomorrow would allow for a more accurate estimate of GDP growth.

The Bank of England sees the economy stagnating until the middle of this year, and some policymakers have warned it may shrink in one or two quarters.

Ms Bingham said the outlook for construction remained uncertain as confidence was still subdued.

"Optimism continues to be hindered by concerns regarding low client confidence and worries over wider economic and market conditions," she said.

The survey showed new business increased at a slower rate in December but companies continued to hire staff.

Despite the uncertainty with the UK economy, Knapman & Sons start 2012 with a full order book and are looking forward to another successful and prosperous New Year.

Merry Christmas & a Prosperous New Year

Knapman & Sons (Builders) Ltd, would like to wish all our staff, associates, customers, clients and sub contractors, a very Merry Christmas and a Prosperous 2012.

Inspire Site Update Steel Frame is "Topped" with Last Beam

Construction of the new warehouse at the Inspire Community Trust design and build  site continues to move full steam ahead. We are pleased to tell you that the last beam was placed on top of the structural steel frame, more than two full weeks ahead of schedule! During November (as the weather begins to worsen), the concrete floors will be poured. Soon to follow will the construction of the exterior walls followed by the roof installation. The entire building will be weather tight by the end of January so the internal fit can commence.

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