May 18 2018

Weekly News Bulletin – 18th May 2018

This week, we shared an interesting piece on how intergenerational understanding of apprenticeships is vital to increase the number of young adults wanting to become an apprentice. According to Anne Milton, Minister for Skills and Apprenticeships, parents need to understand the opportunities that an apprenticeship can offer over a university course, especially when there is a large number of degree apprenticeships available. What are your opinions? Do you feel that parents have the wrong perception of apprenticeships, and this is directly affecting the number of applicants?

The Construction Index released the full text of the Carillion report following the firm’s collapse earlier this year. Conducted by the House of Commons Select Committee for Work & Pensions in conjunction with the Select Committee for Business, Enterprise & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), this report analyses the business model for Carillion and how it led to its collapse. We would strongly recommend reading the enquiry findings for an understanding of Carillion, its impact and important lessons that can be learnt. Were you affected by the fall of Carillion?

In related news, The Construction Index reported that construction activity has faltered since the beginning of the year. Thought to be related to the fall of Carillion, fewer firms were reporting a rise in activity for the first quarter of the year when compared to the last quarter of 2017. Whilst the construction industry is predicted to continue to feel the aftershocks of Carillion, there is an overall positive outlook that the sector will continue to grow overall in the coming months.

Management Today shared a piece on automation in the workplace. According to the Royal Society for Arts, robots could replace four million private sector jobs within the next 10 years in the UK, which could be alarming to the current human workforce. This article investigates what the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) could look like, and why automation is the not the enemy but instead a time-saving initiative to allow the human worker to spend more time on the more enjoyable elements of their job. What are your opinions? Do you feel that your job may be at risk due to the rise of the robots?

On a similar topic, we also saw news from Business Cloud that Industry 4.0 has arrived in the UK for the manufacturing industry through new technology. Considered a vital evolution, this technology can help both large and small businesses excel through collecting vast amounts of data and linking different aspects of a business together. We would recommend reading this article to see how a digital transformation can help your business.

Finally, Construction Enquirer announced that Kuwaiti developer, Salhia, has plans to build Birmingham’s tallest office tower next to the Bullring shopping centre. With construction expected to start later this year, and an estimated cost of more than £140m, we’ll keep you updated as we know more.

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It’s up to colleges and providers to sell apprenticeships to parents

Parents are still sceptical about high-quality technical education. The entire FE sector has a duty to change their minds, writes Anne Milton

https://feweek.co.uk/2018/05/14/its-up-to-colleges-and-providers-to-sell-apprenticeships-to-parents/

Carillion report: Conclusions and recommendations

Here is the full text of the conclusions and recommendations of the report into the collapse of the Carillion by a joint inquiry of the House of Commons select committees for work & pensions and for business, enterprise & industrial strategy (BEIS).

https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/carillion-report-conclusions-and-recommendations

Carillion and snow combine to check construction’s growth

There are no surprises in the Construction Products Association’s construction trade survey for the first quarter of 2018: the fall of Carillion and some beastly weather saw construction activity falter.

https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/carillion-and-snow-combine-to-check-constructions-growth