Sustainability

Kier has announced that it will help develop small modular reactors (SMR) with US firm X-Energy. The contractor has signed a memorandum of understanding with X-Energy and Babcock subsidiary Cavendish Nuclear to collaborate on the new technology. The firms will have access to £3.34m from the UK Government Future Nuclear…

Kier and Morgan Sindall have been named on three lots in a new framework focusing on decarbonisation in the healthcare sector. The tier one firms were both named on lots two, three and four of the £1.6bn work package, which will include the replacement of inefficient glazing and the installation…

The UK’s rollout of heat pump installations is running behind schedule, the National Audit Office (NAO) has said. In a report published on Monday (18 March), the NAO said that the number of heat pump installations up until December 2023 was less than half of what was planned. The NAO…

A lack of construction-sector capacity means a proposed legal deadline to remove gas boilers in buildings north of the border is unachievable, Scottish ministers have been warned by advisers. The Regulatory Review Group (RRG), which advises Scottish ministers on new legislation, has voiced “significant concerns” about the 2045 target in…

By David Strahan EDITOR'S NOTE: This article has been corrected to remove two statements about building testing company BSRIA. The original version stated that insulation firm Saint-Gobain had launched its QUB heat-loss measurement product “through BSRIA”. The article also said that BSRIA was “Saint-Gobain’s delivery agency for QUB in the…

A coalition of built environment groups have said the government’s net-zero housing plans do not go far enough. Low Energy Transformation Initiative (LETI), a network of 1,000 professionals in the sector, says the Future Homes Standard could see housing built to lower environmental standards than today. The Department for Levelling…

A coalition of 11 industry bodies have called for political parties to commit to regulating embodied carbon ahead of the general election. The Chartered Institution of Building (CIOB) and Construction Industry Council (CIC) are among those who signed a policy paper asking party leaders to contain in their manifestos an…

The government wants to increase the amount of construction training on traditional building methods and materials to help retrofit old homes. In a review of the barriers to improving energy efficiency in listed and conservation-area homes, three departments jointly highlight workforce shortages as a major issue for carrying out retrospective…

A proposed new method for assessing the energy performance of buildings is set to be more transparent and adaptable than the current one. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) opened a consultation on a new Home Energy Model this week, alongside its consultation on the new Future…

The British Standards Institution (BSI) has changed its concrete specification standard to reduce the carbon content – but a leading industry figure said the UK still lags behind on concrete sustainability. The UK’s national standards body published the new edition of the key UK standard for concrete, BS 8500, in…