News

Sales at building materials suppliers Marshalls have fallen by 10% in the last quarter, with demand falling fastest in the housing sector.

Saint-Gobain, the French parent company of builders merchants chain Jewson, has been fined €896m (£738m) for acting in a cartel to illegally fix the price of glass used in cars.

Unimer have added 46 new builders merchant members in the last year, building material suppliers attending the annual lunch were told.

The Modern Masonry Alliance believe that UK jobs in the building industry can be saved if builders switch from timber frame to masonry construction.

Frank Key, the north Nottingham's independent builders merchant, have bought Parker Severn Builders Merchants out of administration.

The building of energy efficient homes will be vital in delivering the government's climate change initiatives and the Construction Products Association want to see more investment to make it happen.

The Builders Merchants Federation has welcomed a report by Cranfield School of Management which finds that investment in training is more effective than shopping around for talent and saves employers money.

The worsening economic position of construction manufacturers and contractors is expected to persist throughout 2009 and into 2010, according to the Construction Products Association.

The Government has today given councils access to over £100m to help maintain building family and first-time buyer homes, housing minister Margaret Beckett has announced.

Building material sales through builders merchants are 9.6% lower for the third quarter of 2008 than the same period in 2007.