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Henry Brothers Awarded Platinum Status for Sustainability
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UK Construction equipment sales showed growth in August
Retail sales of construction and earthmoving equipment in August were 6% above sales in the same month last year. This was the strongest performance since February when sales were ahead of last year’s levels by a similar amount.
Following this, sales in the first eight months of the year are catching up with last year’s levels, and are only 2.5% behind 2021 after reaching 24,700 units. Members are still highlighting that a range of supply chain issues are impacting sales of equipment and this suggests that without these problems, sales this year would probably be ahead of the “record” levels seen in 2021. The pattern of sales for the major equipment types in the first eight months of the year to August is shown in the chart below compared with the same period last year. This shows percentage changes in sales year on year, ranked from the highest to the lowest, and continues to show a mixed pattern for the different machine types. Telehandlers (for the construction industry), continue to show the strongest growth by a significant margin this year, at 24% up on 2021 levels. Sales of Road Rollers remain the weakest, at 9.5% down on last year’s levels. Sales of Mini/ Midi excavators and Crawler excavators, which are the most popular equipment types, are between 7% and 8% below last year’s levels in the first eight months of the year. A significant contribution to this is believed to be supply chain constraints associated with the supply of machines from some Asian countries, particularly Japan. The pattern of sales on a regional basis in the UK and N Ireland is shown in the map below for sales from January to August, compared with the same period in 2021. This also shows a mixed pattern. The strongest sales so far this year continue to be in Yorkshire, at nearly 11% up on last year’s levels. In contrast, London and the South East of England region have seen the weakest sales at close to 12% down on last year’s levels. Equipment sales in the Republic of Ireland are also reported in the statistics exchange. Sales in August fell back again, and were 14% below last year’s levels, after showing a recovery in the last few months. This leaves sales in the first eight months of the year at just under 12% below last year’s levels.
Leading construction company, Henry Brothers, has been awarded Platinum Status, the highest accolade possible, in Business in the Community Northern Ireland’s (BITC NI) CORE Standard for Business.
The survey recognises excellence in supporting People, Planet, and Place, celebrating those that go above and beyond to reduce the impact of their operations on the environment and carry out business responsibly. Ian Henry, CSR Director at Henry Brothers, said: “As one of only five companies to have ever achieved this in Northern Ireland, we are thrilled that Henry Brothers has once again been recognised for its commitment to acting in a responsible manner. “Sustainability has been at the heart of our operations for a number of years now but in 2022 we made our biggest commitment to sustainability yet with the launch of our Journey to Net Zero strategy. “This ambitious plan outlines plans to cut carbon emissions in half by 2030 through reducing fuel, electricity,
Deborah Madden, Environmental and Quality Manager at Henry Brothers, and Jennifer Cruickshank, HR & CR Manager at Henry Brothers, collect Henry Brothers’ Platinum Status Award from Kieran Harding, Managing Director at Business in the Community, at the recent Responsible Business Awards.
waste, transport usage, air mileage, and delivery mileage carbon.” Henry Brothers’ Platinum Status follows on the company from being named the Responsible Business of the Year at BiTC’s Responsible Business Awards in 2021 and achieving Belfast Telegraph’s Outstanding Commitment to Climate Action Award in 2022. Ian continued: “This accolade is a testament to our staff, further cementing their hard work and dedication to having a positive influence on the communities in which we operate.”
news Construction firms offered free Water Conservation Clinics by Irish Water
Irish Water has launched its guide for the construction industry outlining how businesses can better conserve and reuse water.
Irish Water’s new guide, developed in partnership with the Construction Industry Federation (CIF), Sisk, Cairn Homes and the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC), details how builders and developers can implement sustainable and circular processes to achieve massive savings in water conservation. For example: • Installing rainwater harvesting systems for dust suppression, vehicle cleaning, ponds, or underground tanks; • Reusing water from groundwater or surface water drainage to dampen roads in hot weather; • Using innovative technology, e.g. percussion taps, twin flush/low water toilets; • Introducing recirculating systems for cleaning tools and greywater, and use for flushing toilets or irrigating plants; • Designing ground surfaces to slope away from structures and towards garden areas and recharge zones; • Retaining as much vegetation as possible during construction to reduce water evaporation.
Conservation Clinics
To launch its new guide, Irish Water is now calling on sustainability representatives in industry to enrol in its upcoming Water Conservation Clinics, developed in partnership with CIF, which will run this autumn. The free, in-person clinics will offer training and guidance in terms of how businesses can implement sustainable and circular processes at their sites to conserve water. Yvonne Harris, Irish Water’s Housing Programme Director, said: “We’re launching our new guide to emphasise the benefits of a circular approach to conserving water in the construction industry. Through our free Water Conservation Clinics, we will be educating those in industry about simple and innovative ways to conserve water on site. Companies right across Ireland are already making fantastic strides in water conservation and we’re calling on industry to get involved and keep the momentum going.” As water conservation is a key focus area for the construction industry, many developers and businesses are already embracing these circular ways of working. Irish Water’s Water Stewardship Programme aims to help businesses lower their water use and operating costs while simultaneously helping protect the environment, and companies such as Sisk Group, BAM Contractors and CBRE have already made huge strides through completing the programme. For example, through working with Irish Water, Sisk Group has been able to save 10% more water through implementing Irish Water’s Water Stewardship Programme and various water reduction measures across its sites. Alan Cawley, Senior Sustainability Manager at Sisk, said: “Conserving water at our sites is key for Sisk and, through working with Irish Water, we’ve been able to conserve 10% more water. Through rainwater harvesting, over the past year we’ve also been able to reuse more than approximately 1,000,000 litres of water, for everything from dust suppression and cleaning tools to developing thriving garden areas on our sites. We’re aiming to reduce our water intensity by 50% by 2025 over our 2019 baseline and, with the support of Irish Water, we’re confident we will achieve this.” Those interested in participating in Irish Water’s upcoming Water Conservation Clinics this autumn can sign up on Irish Water’s dedicated webpage: https://www.leanskillnet. com/training/water-conservation-clinic/ Irish Water’s new guide, Water Stewardship and Sustainability in Construction Sector, is available to view online here: www.water.ie/construction
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Sligo sustainability champion is changing the construction industry for the better
A Sligo man is making sustainability a priority for one of the country’s leading construction firms.
Alan Cawley is the Senior Sustainability Manager with John Sisk and Son (Holdings) Ltd and among his goals is a 50% reduction in water use intensity within the next three years compared to the 2019 baseline. John Sisk and Son (Holdings) Ltd has an environmental champion on every one of its sites across the country and, with the help of Irish Water’s Water Stewardship Programme, it aims to put a stop to the wastage of clean drinking water. Leaks have been fixed, low flush toilets have been installed and recycled water is used for wheel washes and dampening down sites. Graduating with a degree in Construction and Project Management in the middle of a recession left the Castleconnor native scratching his head but a career sidestep and a Masters in Environmental Systems has seen him leading the way when it comes to sustainability in the construction industry. Since joining the construction company in 2016, Alan has introduced a plethora of sustainability initiatives, including a total revamp of mains water use on the company’s high-profile sites across the country like Bonham Quay and Project Kells. “Irish Water’s Water Stewardship Programme has been instrumental in helping us meet our targets. We identified areas where we could make water savings and actions were taken but then we were struggling to get to the next level of conservation and the Water Stewardship Programme is a great way of getting there.
Pictured (L to R): Pat Barry, CEO, Irish Green Building Council; Alan Cawley, Senior Sustainability Manager, Sisk; Yvonne Harris, Housing Programme Director, Irish Water; and Jack Brennan, Environmental Officer, Cairn Homes.
Champions
“In 2021 we reviewed our systems and processes with 17 people completing a day course aimed at senior and junior engineers who are environmental champions on our sites,” explained Alan. “Water mapping opened our eyes up to areas of high water usage. You can see where the water is coming in on site and exactly where it is going. Small changes like low flush toilets or waterless urinals, fixing leaks instead of walking by them, and having a trigger hose on site rather than a turn cap tap can make a big difference. “Some demolition projects use water to reduce dust rising but there’s no reason to use mains water. Rainwater harvesting is important and has been implemented across many of our projects. These are all easy wins and should be implemented. It’s not just a matter of saving water there are money savings too.” When Alan began his third level education the country was on the crest of the Celtic Tiger wave. Jobs in construction were ten a penny but sustainability was only a whisper. However, the tide soon turned, the jobs pool dried up and sustainability chat became louder. “The environmental side of construction began to grow and today everyone is happy to support sustainability initiatives. My role ten years ago when I was working as an Environmental Advisor is completely different to what I’m doing now; there’s much more of a focus on holistic sustainability now.”
Targets
Alan supported the development of Sisk’s 2030 Sustainability Roadmap, which was launched in December 2020 and includes 21 targets. “We always had environmental KPIs around water, energy, waste and even sustainable timber but over the last number of years, and maybe Covid was a driver for it, we’re going much deeper. This has led to us becoming a carbon neutral business with offsetting last year and by 2030 we want to be carbon neutral without the use of offsets. “We want to have 1.7m trees planted by 2029, to coincide with Sisk’s 170-year anniversary. We look at the lifecycle of buildings and even have targets on social value. We study the work we are doing in locations, how we are dealing with the community, how are we making sure this is good for the people around, what can we do for the local environment that will improve things? Small changes can make a big difference to the world we live in.” All businesses can reduce their water consumption and save money on their bills by taking part in Irish Water’s free online water stewardship training. You can start your training today. Check out https:// www.water.ie/conservation/ business/water-stewardship/
McHale Plant Sales Builds Line Management Team
Following recent appointments to its Board of Directors, McHale Plant Sales has continued to strengthen its managerial ranks with appointments that its chairman, Michael McHale says “will position the company to better manage growth and service customer needs in line with market expectation.” To that end, two senior appointments are announced.
Darragh O Driscoll, formerly a member of the company’s financial management team, has been appointed to a newly-created position of Head of Business Development in which role his task will be to pinpoint new growth opportunities within the company’s existing portfolio of products and to identify additional lines that would complement their current offering whilst opening new avenues to growth ‘consistent with the changing pattern of regulations and the evolving priorities within society.’ Born and resident in the Mid-Clare village of Barefield, Darragh is a former hurler on the Clare Minor and Senior county teams. A second appointment within the McHale team is Mel Hourigan to the post of Parts Manager with particular responsibility for Metso Outotec range of crushers.
