INDUSTRY NEWS ECA WARNS LACK OF EV STRATEGY COULD LEAVE UK DIVIDED The ECA has welcomed the government’s announcement at CBI’s annual conference that all new homes in England will be installed with electric vehicle charge points (EVCPs). Speaking at the conference, Boris Johnson announced that all new homes and non-residential buildings will be required to have EVCPs installed, adding 145,000 new charging points a year between now and 2030 to the network of 250,000 already installed in homes and workplaces so far. ECA Director of CSR Paul Reeve says: “This is a welcome announcement, but the bigger challenge across the UK is public access charging. With most EVCP plans centred around London and the south east, there is still a real danger of charging blackspots in many parts of the country. “‘Levelling-up’ should also mean closing the urban-rural gap when it comes to EV charging infrastructure and installation skills.” ECA, eca.co.uk
LIGHTING INDUSTRY STARTS PROGRESS TOWARDS A CIRCULAR ECONOMY
AVERAGE UK TRADESPERSON LOSES OVER £1,300 A YEAR DUE TO BAD WEATHER UK tradespeople lose over £1,300 a year due to bad weather, new research has revealed, with the average person having to miss a week’s worth of work every 12 months. With winter approaching, the study, conducted by IronmongeryDirect, surveyed tradespeople about the impact of bad weather on their work and finances. It found that, on average, tradespeople lose 7.2 days a year because of factors like rain, snow and wind. With the typical UK day rate standing at £184, this means that workers are missing out on £1,325 every 12 months. However, with almost two in five (38%) people losing over a week and one in 10 (10%) missing over a fortnight, this figure will be far higher for some. Many tradespeople don’t get paid for days they don’t work, which explains why almost a third (29%) say they can’t afford to pause jobs for bad weather. Sadly, this means many people put their health and safety at risk. Almost one in 10 (9%) tradespeople say they have felt ill after working in bad weather; one in 12 (8%) have felt unsafe and one in 16 (6%) have been injured. The trades which lose the most money each year because of bad weather are:
The series of Recolight Circular Economy webinars has been attended by over 1,000 individuals over the last two years, with attendees from right across the industry. Participants have shown a great deal of enthusiasm and many practical issues and suggestions have been raised. Commenting on the outcome of the webinars, Nigel Harvey, CEO of Recolight says: “It has been really encouraging to see the discussions move beyond ‘what needs to be done’ and towards ‘what is actually happening’. There is clearly still a lot to do – but it is starting to happen. That gives me hope that we will increasingly play our part in tackling the climate crisis.” Simon Fisher of F Mark adds: “It’s clear that there are many challenges to overcome to achieve a truly circular lighting industry. However, there has never been a better time to embrace circularity in terms of client awareness of the environment and the need to make significant changes.”
With over 40 experts from across the lighting industry joining the webinar panels, many recurring themes were discussed: • R esource depletion will begin to drive up the cost of raw materials, leading to more use of recycled materials. • Recycling is not always the best solution! • Several companies, including Recolight, have introduced new services to facilitate the reuse and repair of fittings. Remanufacturers have indicated they will provide warranties and certification of reused product. • Maintenance and manufacturing companies have an emerging opportunity to offer to remanufacture or reconditioning services. • Specifiers have a crucial role to play in educating end users about the importance of using products which embody circular economy principles. Recolight, recolight.co.uk
1) Plumber – £1,723 (7 days) 2) Electrician – £1,570 (7 days) 3) Builder – £1,548 (7 days) 4) Painter decorator – £1,335 (9 days) 5) Landscaper – £1,213 (10 days) 6) Building surveyor – £1,120 (6 days) 7) Carpenter – £990 (7 days) 8) Bricklayer – £969 (6 days) 9) Plasterer – £765 (5 days) 10) Joiner – £680 (3 days) IronmongeryDirect, ironmongerydirect.co.uk
8 | December 2021
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