News

Baxi has opened its new 10,000 sqft Solution Academy at its Warwick HQ, increasing its annual installer training capacity on the site from 600 delegates in 2023 to 2,000 in 2025. For the first time, a Baxi training facility will have a dedicated solutions training room, allowing installers to get …

MKM Building Supplies (MKM will open its 129th branch in Workington, Cumbria on June 24; open to tradespeople and the public, its new branch will create 20 new jobs for the area. MKM Workington will be led by branch director Phil Bold, a born and bred Workington local who has …

Kate Tinsley, CEO of builders merchant group MKM, has been awarded an OBE in the HM The King’s Birthday 2024 Honours list, which was published by the Cabinet Office on Friday (June 14). The award cites her outstanding services to the construction sector and her commitment to promoting diversity within …

Builders merchant Travis Perkins is moving its Lee Green branch from Burnt Ash Works to Burnt Ash Hill, just 0.2 miles away. The new branch opens on July 2, and will provide a new, bigger and purpose-built destination, with a larger product range. The existing team will expand by four, …

Wolseley Group has bought R.E.S – Renewable Equipment Solutions to allow it to expand its renewables offering.  R.E.S is an MCS-accredited renewable equipment specialist, supplying a complete range of renewable and energy-efficient technologies for homes and businesses across the UK, offering a standalone or fully integrated renewables package.  Simon Gray, …

The Building Alliance, the BMF (Builders Merchants Federation), and the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) has called on the next government to “Get Britain Building” to help kick start the economy. The “Get Britain Building” campaign’s message to the next government is that investing in UK construction and in particular …

Hendy Van and Truck has pledged its support for national charity, Band of Builders; for the next 12 months, the charity will have use of two vans to help in its work to deliver life enhancing projects. Hendy head of business Performance, David Graham, said the Ford Transit Custom and …

Chandlers Building Supplies, in collaboration with sister brands Parker Building Supplies and Fairalls Builders Merchants, raised in excess of £1,200 for charity, at a football tournament earlier this month. The charity five-a-side football tournament, raising funds for Teenage Cancer Trust, kicked-off at Tonbridge Angels FC with over 60 participants. Teams …

The Office of National Statistics has reported that construction output fell sharply in April, the third month in a row it has done so. It’s likely that the heavy rain experienced in the last 16 weeks has been partly to blame, although new work also fell by 2.8%. Seven out …

The latest Plumbing & Heating Merchant Index (PHMI) report, published in June, shows Q1 2024 total value sales through specialist Plumbing & Heating merchants were down -3.6% compared to the same quarter in 2023; Volumes sales fell -6.4% and prices crept up +3.0%. With one less trading day this year, …