Supply Chain

More contractors reported problems with material supplies in the last two weeks of July, data from the Office for National Statistics has revealed. The proportion of firms reporting problems crept up to 37 per cent in the fortnight ending 26 July, up from 34 per cent the previous fortnight. This…

Plaster and some other key building materials continue to be affected by supply shortages, with ready availability unlikely to be re-established until mid-to-late September, according to the head of the Builders Merchants Federation (BMF). BMF chief executive John Newcomb told Construction News that merchants and manufacturers were working flat-out to meet…

Revenue at Travis Perkins was down 20 per cent for the first six months of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. In a trading update this morning, the builders merchant reported a turnover of £2.78bn, compared with £3.48bn in the same period last year. Like-for-like sales in its…

While the majority of construction sites in the UK are now open and operating with various measures to minimise the risks posed by COVID-19, the availability of key building materials continues to present problems for many. In April, Construction News outlined shortages affecting 11 key products and services, caused by…

Travis Perkins has announced plans to cut 2,500 jobs – around 9 per cent of its workforce – as a result of the pandemic. The builders merchant said job losses would result from the closure of around 165 of its branches, reducing the number of outlets by about 8 per…

First-quarter tallies of builders merchant sales capture the initial dip in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Figures from the Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) show a 6.7 per cent year-on-year decline in the value of sales to builders and contractors in the first quarter of 2020, with a much steeper…

Construction materials firm Breedon has announced it will begin reopening its facilities. Its announcement comes as the number of builders' merchants open for business has risen. In a trading update this morning, the group said this would include the opening of two clinker cement production plants over the course of…

Builders’ merchant Travis Perkins has been reopening the branches that serve its larger customers, according to a trading update released by the group today. “Since 20 April, the group has been carefully opening more of its merchant branch network, with branches continuing to operate the service-light, non-contact operating model,” it…

Material and product manufacturers are grappling with the effects of COVID-19 just as much as the contractors undertaking construction work on site. The laws of supply and demand have not been tested to the current extent for generations, with other essential construction services such as providers of labour and IT…

Materials firm Marshalls is donating 100 tonnes of screed to the new coronavirus hospital project in central Manchester. The West Yorkshire-based company is a supplier to the project, which will see the Manchester Conference Centre transformed into a field hospital by the armed forces and firms including local infrastructure contractor…