The government is to favour the expansion of existing towns on main transport routes in order to cater for the 5m new homes required over the next 25 years, as opposed to the construction of new towns and villages. [31-Dec-1998]
Banner Homes, the housebuilder, is being sold to a management buyout for £23m. [24-Dec-1998]
The government has announced plans to spend £17m on the refurbishment of Scottish prisons, in order to reduce overcrowding and increase security. [23-Dec-1998]
Aggregate Industries is acquiring Bill Smith Sand & Gravel, the Michigan-based building materials company, for £32m. [23-Dec-1998]
Rugby Group is selling Pioneer Plastics, its US laminates business, to Panolam Industries for £105m. [22-Dec-1998]
CRH of Ireland has acquired a 50.7% stake in Ibstock, in a deal that values the UK brick maker at £326m. [22-Dec-1998]
National Britannia is forming an alliance with the environmental and ground engineering specialist Wimtec Environmental, enabling them to provide a complete range of environmental risk management services. [21-Dec-1998]
Environmental Property Services is to acquire RLH, the supplier of building maintenance services to local authorities in London, for £1.1m. [21-Dec-1998]
Hanson is planning to spend about £180m on acquisitions next year, and is particularly interested in aggregates and concrete pipes in the US and bricks and aggregate recycling in Europe and Asia. [18-Dec-1998]
Taylor Woodrow has won a £10m contract to build a glass factory at Selby for Saint Gobain UK. [17-Dec-1998]
Kingspan has launched a £37m bid for Hewetson, the Hull-based flooring products company. [17-Dec-1998]
Woodvale Estates is acquiring City Site Estates, the Glasgow property group, for £4.4m. [16-Dec-1998]
Tarmac and Aggregate Industries have unexpectedly called off their merger talks due to disagreement over the management structure of a combined group. [15-Dec-1998]
Peterhouse Group is to acquire Jackson Group, the civil engineering company, for £18m. [12-Dec-1998]
Nationwide Access is relocating three of its access equipment depots to larger sites in Southampton, Stoke and Plymouth. [11-Dec-1998]
The number of households installing air conditioning systems is forecast to rise from 25,000 to 350,000 by 2018, according to the Building Services Research & Information Association. [11-Dec-1998]
WS Atkins has called off merger talks with P&O's construction division Bovis, although the companies have identified a number of areas where they can work together. [11-Dec-1998]
Chap has opened a £1m sand and gravel quarry at Methlick in Scotland, creating 12 new jobs. [08-Dec-1998]
Mansell, the construction company, has called off a planned reverse takeover of YJ Lovell, due to a fall in its market valuation. [05-Dec-1998]
Cavity Trays of Yeovil has acquired Abutment Flashings and Dampcourses for undisclosed terms. [04-Dec-1998]
Bennett Homes, the East Anglian builder of retirement bungalows, is cutting 80 jobs following a reorganisation. [04-Dec-1998]
Marley, the building materials company, has accepted a £365m takeover offer from Etex of Belgium, having turned down an approach from the John Mansfield timber company. [03-Dec-1998]
Hanson has acquired Nelson & Sloan, the Californian cement and aggregates company, for £23m, as part of an ongoing acquisitions programme in the US. [03-Dec-1998]
AC Yule is to relocate its present plant in Livingston to larger premises nearby, and expects to create an additional 50 jobs as it expands its glass and architectural aluminium business in central Scotland. [02-Dec-1998]
The government is to spend £354m on the regeneration of depressed coalfield communities in England, including new housing, training and social projects. [02-Dec-1998]
Group 4 Tarmac has been selected as preferred bidder for a £40m prison in Onley, Warwickshire, while Premier Prison Services has been chosen for a £35m prison at Marchington, Staffordshire. [02-Dec-1998]
Natural Building Materials has launched a £13m hostile takeover bid for Blockleys, the brickmaker. [02-Dec-1998]
Rugby Group has announced a rationalisation programme that could result in the loss of about 400 joinery jobs in Doncaster and Gloucester. [01-Dec-1998]
Aberdeen City Council is considering plans from CALA Homes for the construction of a £50m village near the Bridge of Don. [30-Nov-1998]
Terex of the US is setting up a new distribution business in Watford to handle UK sales of mining equipment from its Motherwell plant. [27-Nov-1998]
BPB is being investigated by the European Commission over allegations of anti-competitive practice in the plasterboard industry. [27-Nov-1998]
English Heritage is to invest £35m in the regeneration of inner cities over the next three years, including unused industrial sites, fishing ports and seaside towns. [27-Nov-1998]
John Mansfield, the small timber company, has launched a £272m hostile takeover bid for Marley, and if successful will sell off Marley's plastics and concrete divisions. [27-Nov-1998]
White Young Green has acquired Building Services Design, the Cardiff-based mechanical and electrical consulting firm, for £0.7m. [26-Nov-1998]
GAP Group of Glasgow is planning to open a plant and tool hire depot in every area of large population, and has just opened a £2m outlet in Aston, Birmingham. [26-Nov-1998]
SGB is setting up a specialist rail division in order to win scaffolding contracts from Railtrack. [26-Nov-1998]
Mott MacDonald has acquired Bingham Cotterell, the structural and civil engineering consultant with 100 staff. [26-Nov-1998]
WS Atkins is discussing the acquisition of Bovis Construction from P&O for about £350m. [25-Nov-1998]
Thurston Building Systems, the Horbury-based manufacturer of portable buildings, is undergoing a management buyout which will help to safeguard the 120 jobs. [24-Nov-1998]
Allen is planning to open six more tool hire depots over the next six months. [24-Nov-1998]
Urban Splash and Speke Garston Development Company are planning a £30m project to convert the former Bryant & May match factory on Merseyside into a business village, creating up to 1,000 jobs. [23-Nov-1998]
Rugby Cement has confirmed that it will stop production at its Chinnor cement works near High Wycombe in January with the loss of 79 jobs. [20-Nov-1998]
JCB, the excavator company, is to cut 90 jobs and this is expected to include losses at its Rocester headquarters as well as at some factories. [19-Nov-1998]
Aggregate Industries has bought a concrete block factory at Woodville from Ensor of Manchester for £1m. [19-Nov-1998]
West Port Corporation has acquired North East Joinery of Blaydon which will enable it to expand the manufacture of PVC-u windows and doors. [19-Nov-1998]
WML Group is linking up with Rentokil Initial and Rotch Properties to form a property management business called Trident Management Solutions. [19-Nov-1998]
Meyer International is reviewing the future of its Dutch builders merchant subsidiary, which could lead to a sale. [19-Nov-1998]
Gregory Properties is planning to build a £20m call centre in Bradford that could create more than 1,500 jobs. [18-Nov-1998]
Churchill Homes and JW Muir have submitted plans for a new development on the outskirts of Aberdeen that could create up to 3,000 jobs, including retail outlets, 1,000 houses, a business park and an industrial estate. [17-Nov-1998]
Slough Estates, the property company, has succeeded with its £276m hostile takeover bid for Bilton. [14-Nov-1998]
Bardon Aggregates is linking up with English China Clays to increase aggregates production in Cornwall by processing material from ECC's Wheal Remfry site. [12-Nov-1998]
Dean Group is to spin off its Dean Homes and Speymill pub refurbishment divisions into a new company called Artisan, while its building services division will be renamed Environment Property Services. [12-Nov-1998]
Grafton has acquired Deben Builders Merchant of London for £6m. [12-Nov-1998]
Hammerson is selling its Canadian property portfolio to OMERS Realty, and will reinvest the £238m proceeds in the UK and continental Europe. [10-Nov-1998]
The former mining community of Allerton Bywater in Yorkshire has been chosen by the government for a multi-million-pound investment to create the perfect village. [09-Nov-1998]
Kvaerner is cutting 75 jobs at its Clydebank operation, and warned its 790 workers that more cuts could follow. [07-Nov-1998]
Tarmac and Aggregate Industries are making progress on talks about a £1.6bn merger, and a deal could be announced before the end of the year. [06-Nov-1998]
Amey is to merge its building, civil engineering and special projects operations into one division in order to save £1m and allow them to work together. [05-Nov-1998]
Baldwins is opening crane hire depots in Aberdeen and Rochester. [05-Nov-1998]
Butler Building Systems is to close its manufacturing facility in Kirkcaldy with the loss of 50 jobs, and production will be transferred to Hungary. [05-Nov-1998]
Shepherd Homes is acquiring George Longden, the builder of houses in the North West and West Midlands, for undisclosed terms. [05-Nov-1998]
Aukett Associates, the architects practice, is acquiring Collingwood of Prague for £0.3m. [05-Nov-1998]
Bickerton has sold its joinery business to a new firm called Valley Joinery in St Albans. [05-Nov-1998]
Hayward Group, the Bournemouth-based contractor, is cutting a number of jobs as it moves its main operations to Southampton and Taunton. [05-Nov-1998]
Tarmac Quarry Products has acquired Johnston Surfacing, the road surfacing contractor, from Johnston Group for £0.6m. [05-Nov-1998]
James Latham, the timber importer, has bought partitioning and suspended ceilings group Soarsett for £0.7m. [04-Nov-1998]
Haslam Homes is planning to expand its operations in the East Midlands by building 300 new homes a year and creating 80 jobs. [04-Nov-1998]
Havant Borough Partnership is considering plans for a £3.2m business park in Havant, which will act as the home of the regional business advice centre. [04-Nov-1998]
SIG, the insulation supplier valued at about £160m, is said to be open to a takeover bid following a failed attempt at a management buy-out. [04-Nov-1998]
Bovis Construction has won a contract worth about £100m to build a car plant in France for Toyota. [04-Nov-1998]
Rugby Joinery is to cut 100 jobs in Sheffield and Doncaster in order to concentrate the manufacturing of timber windows at its Melton Mowbray plant. [03-Nov-1998]
Connaught of Exeter is planning to raise £3m in a share placing in order to expand its facilities management and building services business. [02-Nov-1998]
Pilkington, the glass maker, is to cut a further 1,500 jobs worldwide in order to improve efficiency and save up to £50m a year. [30-Oct-1998]
ARC has acquired G Sweeney, the Stockton-based ready-mixed concrete company. [29-Oct-1998]
Maersk Contractors has won a contract from Shell to bring ashore 3,500 tonnes a year of rock cuttings from offshore drilling, for use in foundations for paths and roadways. [29-Oct-1998]
Carlisle Holdings, the recruitment, contract cleaning and security services concern, is being floated on Aim as it prepares to build up a major UK support services business. [29-Oct-1998]
Highbridge Properties and the Ashall Group have announced plans to build a major new business park next to the doomed Siemens plant on Tyneside, and up to 5,000 jobs could be created. [28-Oct-1998]
Blue Circle is to acquire Kedah Cement, the Malaysian cement company, for up to £356m. [28-Oct-1998]
Soltaire, the property services company, has launched a "buy-to-let" scheme in which it will select, let and manage properties on behalf of new landlords. [28-Oct-1998]
Vale Royal Borough Council has unveiled a £100m regeneration plan for Northwich, which could create more than 2,000 jobs. [27-Oct-1998]
Coventry City Council and Confederate Builders have announced plans for the £5.3m redevelopment of the former Courtaulds headquarters in Foleshill, in order to create a new office complex. [27-Oct-1998]
Lilleshall has sold its Ideal Williams doors and windows business to Templebray. [27-Oct-1998]
John Laing is to merge its building, management contracting and civil engineering divisions in order to save about £7m a year, and is making a £26m provision to cover losses on building the new national stadium in Wales. [27-Oct-1998]
Brighton & Hove Council is said to be considering plans for the construction of three waste incinerators in East Sussex, including one at Shoreham Harbour. [26-Oct-1998]
Miller Group, the Edinburgh-based construction company, is to create a new division to concentrate on PFI and public-private sector partnership contracts. [26-Oct-1998]
A large section of the former Waltham Airfield near Grimsby is being offered for sale for light industrial use, and the sale will be handled by Grimsby estate agents Bacons. [26-Oct-1998]
Hyder has won preferred bidder status to upgrade and operate the Kinnegar waste-water works in Northern Ireland. [23-Oct-1998]
Four regions - South Yorkshire, Merseyside, Cornwall and West Wales - are expected to qualify for up to £4bn in EU regional aid to help regenerate their communities between 2000 and 2006. [23-Oct-1998]
Scout Moor Quarry in Edenfield, Lancashire, has won approval to expand the site in order to increase production of grit, sandstone and shale for the production of concrete products. [22-Oct-1998]
Alfred McAlpine Slate is planning to expand its Oakeley quarry at Blaenau Ffestiniog and is in negotiations for a new planning application. [22-Oct-1998]
New environmental regulations are to be introduced at the end of next year that will require brick makers to fit limestone scrubbers to at least 40 kilns across the country. [22-Oct-1998]
RMC Concrete has opened a new plant near Newton Abbot to produce the Readyfloor flooring system for new homes. [22-Oct-1998]
British Gypsum is withdrawing from the floor screeds market due to falling prices. [22-Oct-1998]
Southern Water is planning a £25m waste-water treatment project at Bexhill, and it is expected to award the contract to German process engineer Wabag and contractor Miller. [22-Oct-1998]
Hewden Stuart has sold its contracting division to a management team for £1.3m, and has also acquired the tower crane division of Elmore Plant. [22-Oct-1998]
Dares Estates, the property company, is to raise £5m in a rights issue in order to reduce debt, and it is also planning to reduce its investment portfolio and change its name to Albemarle Property Investments. [22-Oct-1998]
Wienerberger of Austria has bought a 30% stake in Ibstock for £92m, prompting speculation that a bidding contest may begin for the UK brick maker. [21-Oct-1998]
Wolseley is considering plans to spend up to £300m on acquisitions to expand its building materials distribution business in continental Europe and the US. [21-Oct-1998]
Hanson is acquiring Condux, the US concrete products maker, for $77m. [20-Oct-1998]
Regalian Properties and NFC have won planning permission for the 1.7m sq ft Bishopsbridge development in Paddington, London, which will include office, residential and commercial space. [20-Oct-1998]
P&O and Chelsfield are selling their US joint venture property assets, including office and industrial buildings in Washington DC, Atlanta and Charlotte, to TrizecHahn of Canada for $287m. [20-Oct-1998]
Blue Circle is to auction off its bathrooms division, which includes Armitage Shanks, for up to £200m. [20-Oct-1998]
Marley has sold its Improdex business in Australia to Australian Vinyl Corporation for £3.6m. [20-Oct-1998]
British Ceramic Tile has been set up as a new company to build a £24m tile factory in Cornwall, but the project is said to be dependent on the award of £5m of state aid. [19-Oct-1998]
James R Knowles, the claims consultant, is planning to recruit more staff at offices throughout the country in order to cope with the increasing number of disputes in the construction industry. [15-Oct-1998]
Allen is moving its building division into larger premises in Trafford Park, Manchester, following an increase in orders. [15-Oct-1998]
Severn Trent Water is planning to build five sludge treatment plants in Long Eaton, Newthorpe, Stoke, Wolverhampton and Studley. [15-Oct-1998]
Kingspan Building Products has created 50 new jobs at its plant in Holywell, North Wales, and invested £8m in a high-speed production line for roof and wall panels. [15-Oct-1998]
Berkeley Group's plans to build a £17.5m millennium tower in Portsmouth have been rescued by the Millennium Commission's decision to redirect some of the funds from the £80m Renaissance of Portsmouth Harbour scheme. [15-Oct-1998]
Ofwat has ordered water companies to reduce leaks by an average 16% by March 2000. [15-Oct-1998]
Aram Resources is planning to build a £1m road surfacing material plant in Plymouth, creating up to 12 jobs. [15-Oct-1998]
JCB is to lay off 130 temporary production staff at its construction equipment sites in Rocester, Cheadle, and Wrexham, due to a seasonal downturn and the global economic climate. [15-Oct-1998]
Plans to create a 3.5 mile road tunnel under the Solent between Gosport and the Isle of Wight are being revived, and the idea will be presented to local councils on October 23. [15-Oct-1998]
Rugby Estates, the property company, is considering plans for a management buy-out early next year. [14-Oct-1998]
Scotia Water, a consortium of Saur and Bouygues, has been selected as the preferred bidder for a £50m project to build and operate a sewage treatment plant at Dalmuir near Glasgow. [13-Oct-1998]
Tarmac is in merger discussions with Aggregate Industries, which would create a combined group with a strong position in the market for heavy building materials such as sand, gravel, rock and concrete. [13-Oct-1998]
BPB is to acquire the remaining 75% of Gyproc, the Scandinavian plasterboard company, from its joint venture partner Scancem for £95m. [13-Oct-1998]
Greenline, the manufacturer of portable accommodation, has moved to purpose-built premises at Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland, in order to allow for the company's continued expansion. [13-Oct-1998]
Northern Ireland's Industrial Development Board has announced plans for a new 17,000 sq ft hi-tech service centre in Letterkenny, and is looking for a suitable tenant to create up to 250 jobs. [13-Oct-1998]
Yorkline, the Leeds-based shopfitter and building contractor, has undergone a management buyout, thereby securing 32 jobs. [13-Oct-1998]
Dean Corporation of Huntingdon has bought Bernard Ward and Sons, the Peterborough housebuilders and renovators. [12-Oct-1998]
John Laing Property has won approval from Plymouth City Council to redevelop 27 acres of land at Derriford, including retail units, a garden centre, restaurant, pub and fast-food unit. [12-Oct-1998]
Cambridge New Town Corporation has been set up to promote a new proposal to build a town for 50,000 people near Cambridge, which could become the UK's first new town since 1970. [10-Oct-1998]
British Aerospace has sold Arlington Securities, the developer of business parks, to Prudential Insurance Company of America for £270m. [10-Oct-1998]
The Treasury has re-opened negotiations with the Exchequer Partnership, made up of Bovis, Hambros and Stanhope, for the refurbishment of its listed Whitehall building. [09-Oct-1998]
Ennstone is forming a joint venture with J&A Gardner to acquire Gardner's quarry operations in the west of Scotland. [09-Oct-1998]
Taylor Woodrow is to cut 90 jobs in its Taymel, Taymech and Taywood divisions. [08-Oct-1998]
Hills Electrical, the building services concern, is to continue to expand its nationwide network of regional centres, having just opened an office in Cardiff. [08-Oct-1998]
Wates Construction has formed a specialist rail division in Crewe to expand its station refurbishment business. [08-Oct-1998]
Rockwool is planning to buy the Queensferry rock mineral wool plant in North Wales from Owens Corning for undisclosed terms. [08-Oct-1998]
Interior Services Group is looking to acquire a facilities management business and a number of potential targets have been identified. [08-Oct-1998]
Hi-Reach Access has opened a new £1m depot in South Wales in order to expand its powered access business. [08-Oct-1998]
Avery Berkel has set up a new subsidiary to specialise in the hiring out of weighbridges. [08-Oct-1998]
The Foreign Office has chosen GSL, a consortium of Tarmac, Group 4 and British Telecom, as the preferred bidder to rebuild the GCHQ government communications headquarters in or near Cheltenham. [08-Oct-1998]
Alfred McAlpine is selling its US aggregates and civil engineering operations to Hanson for £73m, in order to focus on UK construction and housebuilding. [08-Oct-1998]
British Land and Railtrack have won permission to build a 700,000 sq ft office block near Liverpool Street station in London. [06-Oct-1998]
Up to 300 jobs are said to be under threat at the Health and Safety Laboratory in Sheffield because one of the four buildings on the site is in urgent need of repair. [06-Oct-1998]
Newcastle City Council has unveiled plans to boost city centre shops and businesses over the next 20 years, funded by the sale of its share of Eldon Square - worth about £90m. [06-Oct-1998]
Sonae of Portugal is to build a £70m chipboard factory in Knowsley on Merseyside, which will create 220 jobs. [05-Oct-1998]
Construction work is expected to start early next year on a £45m industrial park at Newburn in Newcastle, which is expected to create up to 4,000 jobs. [05-Oct-1998]
Alfred McAlpine is said to be discussing the sale of its US minerals and construction businesses for about £50m, which will leave it free to focus on UK building. [02-Oct-1998]
Laird Group has bought the JW Window Components window balance business in the US from Walter Industries for £6m. [02-Oct-1998]
Solitaire Group has acquired Pembertons Residential, the manager of 1,300 luxury homes in London. [02-Oct-1998]
Hewden Stuart is planning to set up a nationwide network of tool hire branches by making acquisitions in southern England. [01-Oct-1998]
British Aerospace is discussing the sale of its Arlington Securities property business to a group of investors related to Prudential Insurance of the US, in a £250m deal. [01-Oct-1998]
Planners in Hull have approved a £50m scheme to redevelop the Ferensway area, including a new rail and bus interchange, foodstore, theatre and retail outlets. [01-Oct-1998]
McLoughlin Pipelines, the Derby-based pipeline contractor, has been sold to management for undisclosed terms. [30-Sep-1998]
Marshalls is acquiring Stonemarket, the concrete company, for £16m, in order to gain access to new customers such as independent merchants and garden centres. [29-Sep-1998]
CRH has acquired two French companies for £13m - Raboni, the Paris-based builders merchant, and Prefaest, the maker of drainage systems. [29-Sep-1998]
Blue Circle is said to be planning to auction off Armitage Shanks, the bathroom fittings company, for up to £250m. [28-Sep-1998]
Akeler is planning to invest £750m a year on the acquisition of properties in continental Europe in an attempt to become "the first pan-European office company which owns, develops and operates offices". [25-Sep-1998]
Shadsworth Industrial Estate in Blackburn is to be expanded with a £6m investment in new commercial buildings, and up to 700 jobs could be created. [25-Sep-1998]
Bethell Group has acquired F&FS White and White Building Services for undisclosed terms. [24-Sep-1998]
Tilbury Douglas is planning to expand its property maintenance business in the north of England into a nationwide service. [24-Sep-1998]
Calp, the cut-glass producer, is to build an £11m distribution and office facility in Newcastle-under-Lyme. [24-Sep-1998]
Gibson Acoustic Services, the Gloucester-based partitioning subcontractor, has been declared bankrupt with the loss of more than 50 jobs. [24-Sep-1998]
The National House Building Council is setting up a new office near Cannon Street station in London in order to oversee projects in the capital. [24-Sep-1998]
Huddersfield University is planning to build a £10m technology park at an unnamed location in Huddersfield, and up to 20 companies are expected to locate there. [24-Sep-1998]
Rotrax, the building services company, is creating 30 jobs in Leeds with the launch of its fourth regional office in the city. [24-Sep-1998]
Tarmac has announced plans to merge its UK and international civil engineering operations in order to reduce costs by up to £5m a year, following the government decision to cut back its road-building programme. [23-Sep-1998]
The CityVision partnership in Hull is inviting construction companies worldwide to submit their ideas for an eye-catching structure in the city's port to make a lasting impact on visitors. [23-Sep-1998]
William Davies Properties has won a contract to develop a new business park near the M1 outside Nottingham, which could create up to 4,000 jobs. [22-Sep-1998]
Blue Circle Industries has sold its South African cement business to Lafarge of France for $240m. [22-Sep-1998]
Masterskreen International, the Dungannon-based quarrying equipment company, is to create 36 jobs and expand its international marketing efforts through an alliance with Nordberg-Read. [21-Sep-1998]
Richmond council in London is planning to sell off all its 7,500 council homes in order to save money on repairs. [21-Sep-1998]
Ennstone is to acquire the stone and concrete division of Drings of Bath for about £1m, and it will become part of its Natural Building Materials subsidiary. [21-Sep-1998]
Palmer Capital Partners has been set up as a new venture capital company to invest in start-up property and other businesses. [18-Sep-1998]
Zincshield, the Sunderland-based windows and doors company, has gone into liquidation. [18-Sep-1998]
JCB is to lay off 49 contract workers at its factories in Rocester and Cheadle, due to a seasonal fall in demand for construction equipment. [18-Sep-1998]
Hull Prison has submitted expansion plans to the city council, which would create up to 120 jobs. [18-Sep-1998]
The government is planning to invest £800m in the regeneration of run-down housing estates, and will expect local communities to submit bids for the money. [17-Sep-1998]
Wilson Bowden Properties has set up an office in Glasgow to co-ordinate a number of new projects in Scotland. [17-Sep-1998]
Kinloch Engineering of Cumbria has set up a new company to provide tunnel lining services, using the Tunneline method of applying concrete. [17-Sep-1998]
Try Homes is acquiring Amey Homes, the south-east based housebuilder, for £4.8m. [17-Sep-1998]
BPB is to close its unlined chipboard mill in Radcliffe, Manchester, with the loss of 285 jobs. [17-Sep-1998]
Hertfordshire county council is planning to turn the scheme for 10,000 new homes near Stevenage into a testbed for environmentally friendly growth, under the name Garden City 21. [16-Sep-1998]
Healey & Baker, the property consultancy, is being acquired by Cushman & Wakefield of the US for £70m, to create a combined business with over 7,000 employees in 39 countries. [16-Sep-1998]
Persimmon Homes, the housebuilder, is to set up a new regional HQ at Holmes Chapel as part of an expansion into South Cheshire and Staffordshire. [16-Sep-1998]
P&O is said to be discussing the sale of its Bovis Construction business, thought to be worth about £350m, in order to focus on cruise holidays, investment and property. [15-Sep-1998]
Wainhomes, the housebuilder, is planning to sell home furnishings and financial services to house buyers. [15-Sep-1998]
Savills, the property consultancy, has bought the continental European operations of Weatherall, Green & Smith for £3m, and it now plans further acquisitions in Europe. [15-Sep-1998]
Alfas Group has acquired Seal Strip, the Leicestershire-based building sealants business, and plans to expand plant capacity and the size of the sales force. [14-Sep-1998]
Birse Construction is to cut 100 jobs as part of an ongoing programme to improve efficiency. [14-Sep-1998]
Slough Estates has launched a £246m hostile takeover bid for Bilton, the south-east industrial property company. [12-Sep-1998]
Pilkington's float glass plants in St Helens are facing strike action in protest over planned job cuts. [12-Sep-1998]
Hercules Property Services has acquired Dunlop Heywood of Manchester from N Brown for £5m, which will give it a better balance of commercial and residential property work. [11-Sep-1998]
Hanson is planning to spend up to £700m on acquisitions to expand its US building materials business. [11-Sep-1998]
Heywood Williams is considering plans to sell its Dutch-based glass operations in order to focus on plastic door and window components. [11-Sep-1998]
Nationwide Access, the powered access equipment supplier, has combined its Leeds and Wakefield depots at a new site in Leeds as part of an expansion programme. [10-Sep-1998]
Kvaerner is to combine its engineering and construction activities into a single division called Engineering & Construction, with sales of £2.3bn. [10-Sep-1998]
Baggeridge Brick has acquired Rudgwick Brick, the maker of traditional clay bricks, for £2.3m. [10-Sep-1998]
Galliford is setting up a maintenance division to enable it to offer building maintenance services to clients. [10-Sep-1998]
Castlewyse, the merged plant operations of Tarmac and Bovis, has been renamed Maxxiom and seven depots are being closed in the restructuring. [10-Sep-1998]
Rugby Group is considering plans to sell its US manufacturing and distribution businesses, and meanwhile it is looking to expand its cement and lime production operations in eastern Europe and Latin America. [10-Sep-1998]
Caradon is looking to sell its lossmaking US and UK doors and windows operations, including the Everest double-glazing business, and Rugby Cement has already expressed an interest. [10-Sep-1998]
Keller has acquired Denver Grouting Services of the US for £1.9m. [09-Sep-1998]
Blue Circle Industries is to close cement plants near Plymouth and Ipswich with the loss of 250 jobs. [09-Sep-1998]
Enterprise Properties is planning to build a two-storey technology management centre in the Ribble Valley, signalling the start of a £25m scheme to set up a business park which will create 1,000 jobs. [09-Sep-1998]
Ibstock is to auction a 76% stake in Caima Ceramica e Servico, the Portuguese manufacturer of sanitary ware and roof tiles, and hopes to raise about £25m. [08-Sep-1998]
FM Windows, the Northern Ireland double glazing firm, is seeking voluntary liquidation. [08-Sep-1998]
John Laing has formed a joint venture company with Hyder called Laing Hyder, which will bid for private finance initiative building and accommodation projects. [07-Sep-1998]
Hammerson is paying £60m for majority stakes in two French shopping centres and their management company, as part of a strategy to focus on the development of retail and office properties. [05-Sep-1998]
Cooper Clarke, the Lancashire-based builders merchant, is being acquired by Heiton Holdings of Ireland for £15.7m. [05-Sep-1998]
Meyer Group has sold a number of timber businesses to a management team trading as Palgrave Brown for £10m. [04-Sep-1998]
Greenfield Park has won outline planning approval from Pendle Council to build a business and retail complex that will create 490 jobs. [04-Sep-1998]
Marley, the building materials company, has decided against making large-scale acquisitions and will instead return £40m to investors in a share buy-back. [04-Sep-1998]
CSC Forest Products is planning a £40m expansion at its plant in Cowie, Scotland, to increase MDF production by 50%. [03-Sep-1998]
Lagan Group of Belfast is planning to build a £40m cement factory near Clonard in the Republic, creating 200 jobs. [02-Sep-1998]
The government is to consider plans for a £13.7m "university of life" in Speke, which would include school, training and college facilities on one campus, catering for both children and adults. [02-Sep-1998]
Bethell Group, the construction company, is to create 100 new jobs and double the size of its headquarters at the Europa Park in Stoneclough. [02-Sep-1998]
CRH of Ireland is planning to spend up to £420m an acquisitions to expand its UK and European building materials business. [02-Sep-1998]
The number of households in Scotland is forecast to increase by 10% from 2.136m in 1996 to 2.346m in 2010, with Aberdeenshire seeing a 20% growth, according to the Scottish Office's Household Projections for Scotland report. [01-Sep-1998]
Avocet Hardware, the Yorkshire-based manufacturer of security products for doors and windows, is planning a £70m flotation on the stock market. [01-Sep-1998]
Charterhouse, the investment bank, is paying £6m for a near-70% stake in the UK's biggest education project under the private finance initiative, which will involve the construction of five new schools around Falkirk and the provision of non-educational services. [01-Sep-1998]
Blue Circle Industries is acquiring the remaining 50% of two Malaysian cement companies - Associated Pan Malaysia Cement and Pan Malaysia Cement Works Singapore - for £177m. [29-Aug-1998]
Bucknall, the building management company, is to undergo a £15m management buyout. [29-Aug-1998]
Security Capital Global Realty of the US has acquired a majority stake in London & Henley, the UK company that specialises in rented residential property, for about £150m. [28-Aug-1998]
Kingspan, the Irish building panels manufacturer, is looking to make acquisitions in central and eastern Europe and is prepared to spend up to £44m. [28-Aug-1998]
Couves, the Newcastle-based firm of architects, has gone into liquidation with the loss of 26 jobs. [28-Aug-1998]
Bovis Construction is looking for a major international partner, and has already been in discussions with a number of companies with the aim of becoming a major player in the world market. [27-Aug-1998]
The City of Sunderland Partnership is bidding to bring the headquarters of the new University for Industry to Doxford International Business Park, which would result in 150 new jobs. [27-Aug-1998]
Brandon Hire, the tool hire company, has acquired Amptool Hire for £0.6m, which will provide it with additional depots in Surrey and Kent. [26-Aug-1998]
Halifax is proposing a £70m scheme to redevelop part of Leeds city centre, including a 149-bedroom hotel, a 15-screen cinema, 30 shops, three leisure units, and five restaurants and bars. [26-Aug-1998]
The Inland Revenue and Customs & Excise are planning to hand over 750 properties to the private sector in a 20-year contract that will require the successful bidder to provide them with serviced accommodation. [26-Aug-1998]
Wolseley is to acquire the Hall & Co building materials business from RMC for about £120m, and will merge it with its Builder Center division. [26-Aug-1998]
Jarrett Construction of Bristol has gone into liquidation and 140 workers have been laid off. [25-Aug-1998]
Galliford is setting up a rail division called Galliford Rail Projects, which will be based in Warrington and co-ordinate its station and bridge building work. [25-Aug-1998]
Morgan Sindall is looking for partners to help it build small hospitals in the £3-4m price range. [25-Aug-1998]
Hewden Stuart has acquired Michael Bowyer, the Wokingham-based plant and tool-hire company, for £2.5m. [25-Aug-1998]
Williams has acquired KS Conquest, the security services provider, from NatWest Equity Partners for £17m. [25-Aug-1998]
Nomura of Japan is set to buy Turner & Townsend's UK facilities management division for £4.5m, in order to build up a business called Servus Facilities Management that will manage and redevelop corporate properties. [24-Aug-1998]
BLP, the laminate manufacturer, is acquiring Stanley Cole, the joinery company, and a majority stake in Berman Holdings, the furniture maker, funded by a £8m share offer. [22-Aug-1998]
Ennstone has acquired two quarries in Fife from Hewden Stuart for £1m. [19-Aug-1998]
RMC is selling a number of cement facilities in Germany to Lafarge of France for £71m. [18-Aug-1998]
Blue Circle Industries has acquired a further 33% of Republic Cement of the Philippines for £32m, taking its stake to 54%. [18-Aug-1998]
Glasgow city council is considering plans to sell its entire housing stock to a housing association or non-profit-making company, in order to reduce debt and enable more money to be invested in improving the homes. [15-Aug-1998]
Jordec has sold Baris UK, the construction subcontractor, to management for about £1m. [14-Aug-1998]
Gander Holdings, the property investment concern, is to acquire Barrasford Holdings for £24m in order to expand its residential lettings business in London. [11-Aug-1998]
Killby & Gayford, the leading installer of automatic teller machines, is being sold to management for £12m. [10-Aug-1998]
Berkeley Group is acquiring Thirlstone Group, the builder of luxury homes in Surrey, in a £15m deal. [08-Aug-1998]
RMC has bought out British Dredging's 50% stake in their British Dredging Aggregates joint venture for £4m. [08-Aug-1998]
Wiggins is planning a £100m leisure development at Fairlop Waters, east London, that would include a racecourse and create 1,000 jobs. [07-Aug-1998]
Capital Shopping Centres is planning to build a £150m shopping centre and car park in Uxbridge, having acquired a 9.5 acre site from Royal & Sun Alliance. [07-Aug-1998]
Costain is said to be in discussions that could lead to Skanska of Sweden acquiring a controlling stake in the troubled UK contractor. [07-Aug-1998]
MEPC is to buy Heathrow Approach, the John Laing Property and Terrace Hill office development at Langley that will be completed by the end of 1999, for £28m. [05-Aug-1998]
Morrison Construction is planning to triple the size of its international operations over the next five years in order to balance its exposure across a wider range of economies. [03-Aug-1998]
Toprak of Turkey is to build a £45m factory at Deeside to make ceramic wall tiles and bathroom suites, creating 430 jobs. [30-Jul-1998]
Birkby is to resume its property acquisitions programme and is particularly interested in buying redundant manufacturing premises and arcades of small shops in town centres. [30-Jul-1998]
Allen is to acquire the building and civil engineering business of Eve Group for £1.25m. [29-Jul-1998]
Polypipe has bought Domus Ducting, the manufacturer of modular ventilation systems, for £4.7m. [29-Jul-1998]
Property Partnerships, the Norwich-based property investment concern, is to sell the bulk of its property portfolio to a joint venture of GE Capital Real Estate and Equity Estates, and then enter voluntary liquidation. [29-Jul-1998]
WS Atkins has won a £45m a year contract to provide maintenance services at 900 jobcentres. [25-Jul-1998]
JCB Group is to set up a £37m plant in Savannah, Georgia, to make construction equipment, which will be its first US plant. [24-Jul-1998]
The government has announced plans to invest a further £3.9bn on housing and £3bn on the regeneration of deprived areas in its attempt to tackle the problem of poor housing estates. [23-Jul-1998]
Powerscreen International has sold Geith International, the Irish construction equipment company, to management for £7m. [23-Jul-1998]
Mitsubishi Estates has won planning permission for the redevelopment of Paternoster Square in London, which will result in the construction of office, retail and leisure space at the site alongside St Paul's Cathedral. [22-Jul-1998]
Mitie Group is looking to expand its building services business by acquisition, and is particularly interested in the north-east of England in niche markets such as store refitting. [22-Jul-1998]
Jarvis is in discussions to raise £500m from potential backers to invest in student accommodation, and intends to run the properties it acquires. [21-Jul-1998]
General Industries, the business finance concern, is set to acquire HACAS, the housing consultancy, for £6m, and Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Assured Homes for £1.5m. [20-Jul-1998]
Kingspan, the Irish cladding and insulation supplier, has acquired Interlink for an initial £6m. [20-Jul-1998]
National Westminster Bank has agreed the sale of London's International Finance Centre, previously known as NatWest Tower, to a consortium of Greycoat, Mercury Asset Management and Hermes Pensions Management, for £226m. [18-Jul-1998]
The government-sponsored Construction Task Force has issued a series of recommendations for increasing the efficiency of the building sector, and is calling for a 10% yearly cut in construction time and costs and a 20% cut in accidents and defects on completion. [17-Jul-1998]
Tarmac has increased its stake in WKSM, the Polish aggregates company, from 30% to 56%, and its holding is now worth £4.7m. [16-Jul-1998]
Canary Wharf Ltd is planning to build another speculative office building in London's Docklands, having found a tenant for its latest project. [16-Jul-1998]
Ashtead Group is planning to open 100 new plant hire centres in the US over the next three years. [14-Jul-1998]
The government has announced a package of measures aimed at creating 50,000 jobs in depressed coalfield communities, and the plans include the creation of a new trust that will work with the regional development agencies. [14-Jul-1998]
Berisford is to acquire CP Hart, the bathroom distributor, for £14m, in order to move into the higher-margin end of the market and expand geographical coverage. [13-Jul-1998]
Jarvis is considering plans to sell off some of its building materials operations, as well as some properties, in order to increase its focus on the transport sector. [13-Jul-1998]
CB Richard Ellis, the US property consultancy, is acquiring Hillier Parker for up to £60m, and the London-based consultancy will be renamed CB Hillier Parker. [09-Jul-1998]
Heiton Holdings, the Irish construction group, is looking to spend up to £93m on acquisitions, and will target niche markets in the UK. [09-Jul-1998]
Baldwins Industrial Services is planning to spend £10m on a diversification programme, which will include a move into the facilities management business, training in the use of cranes, and a decommissioning service for old oil rigs. [08-Jul-1998]
The government has awarded private finance initiative contracts for the construction and operation of two new prisons, with UK Detention Services getting an 800-place prison near Salford, and Premier Prison Services a 400-place young offenders institution near Bristol. [08-Jul-1998]
Slough Estates is in exclusive negotiations to buy a 73 hectare site next to Farnborough airfield from the Ministry of Defence, and is planning to build a £250m business park. [07-Jul-1998]
Construction output is forecast to grow by just 1% in 1999, following a 3.3% growth rate in 1998, according to Construction Forecasting and Research. [07-Jul-1998]
The leisure industry was the fastest growing market for the construction industry in 1997, with orders for cinemas, leisure centres, sports complexes and pubs rising from £1.4bn in 1996 to £1.85bn, according to a report from Building magazine and Market Tracking International. [07-Jul-1998]
The government has announced a £40m school building programme, with 113 local education authorities being awarded up to £1.2m for additional classrooms. [04-Jul-1998]
CRH, the Irish building materials group, has announced 14 small acquisitions at a total cost of £70m, including a builders merchant in Stoke, a fencing company in Doncaster, and a number of deals in the US and Europe. [03-Jul-1998]
Norcros, the building materials company, is facing a possible hostile takeover bid from John Mansfield, the small timber company. [30-Jun-1998]
BPB, the building materials group, is planning to open plants in six countries over the next year and may include Asia in its international expansion programme. [26-Jun-1998]
Jarvis has been selected as preferred bidder for four private finance initiative contracts, including the construction of schools in London and Leeds. [24-Jun-1998]
The government is expected to give the go-ahead next month for a £85m project to widen the M25 motorway near Heathrow, but most of the other road schemes proposed by the previous government will be axed. [20-Jun-1998]
Wolseley is to merge its two heating and plumbing products businesses in the US in order to cut costs in response to cheap imports from Asia. [19-Jun-1998]
Jones Lang Wootton is in merger discussions with LaSalle Partners of the US, which could result in the creation of the largest property advisory group in the world. [18-Jun-1998]
The Ministry of Defence is looking to sell off 13,000 hectares of land as part of the strategic defence review, according to the National Audit Office. [17-Jun-1998]
Blue Circle is to acquire Needler, the Canadian aggregates and concrete blocks company, for £17m in order to strengthen its position in Ontario. [17-Jun-1998]
Ibstock, the building materials company, has sold its 56% stake in Companhia de Celulose do Caima of Portugal to three local banks for £17m. [17-Jun-1998]
The Covesea consortium of Morrison Construction, Robertson Group Scotland and Royal Bank of Scotland, has won a £34m private finance initiative contract from the Defence Housing Executive to provide 279 houses for RAF Lossiemouth. [16-Jun-1998]
Epwin has acquired Bendex Plastics, the maker of PVC-u cabling systems and other building products, for £4.5m. [16-Jun-1998]
National Westminster Bank is in discussions to sell London's International Finance Centre, formerly known as NatWest Tower, to a consortium that includes Greycoat, Hermes and Mercury Asset Management. [16-Jun-1998]
Hammerson's has won planning permission for the £300m redevelopment of the Bull Ring shopping centre in Birmingham, and is now looking to sign up retailers. [12-Jun-1998]
WS Atkins, the consulting engineer, is looking to spend £50m on acquisitions in order to offer complete business solutions to customers in its three core areas of transport, property services and industry. [12-Jun-1998]
Anglian Group, the double glazing company, is planning to expand into new product areas by spending up to £100m on acquisitions in home improvements, garden centres and security systems. [10-Jun-1998]
Blue Circle Industries is increasing its share of the Fillipino cement market to 18% with two share purchases at a cost of £42m, and it is now looking to expand in Malaysia and Thailand. [09-Jun-1998]
Hewden Stuart, the equipment hire company, has sold three subsidiaries - Scot JCB, Gunn JCB, and Stewart Plant - to management for £11m. [06-Jun-1998]
Bovis has warned that 870 of the buildings it has built since 1994 may be hit by the millennium bug, which could result in problems for ventilation and heating systems, intruder alarms, and electricity connections. [06-Jun-1998]
Construction output rose by 2.5% in the first quarter of this year compared to the previous quarter, and by 5% compared to the first quarter of last year, although there have since been signs of falling confidence, according to government figures. [06-Jun-1998]
Pilkington is stepping up its restructuring programme as it strives to boost efficiency amidst falling prices in the glass market, and staff numbers are to be cut by 1,500 more than the 6,000 originally planned during the two years to March 1999. [05-Jun-1998]
Healey & Baker, the property consultant, is in negotiations to merge with Cushman & Wakefield, its US associate. [04-Jun-1998]
Glasgow council is planning a £136m private finance initiative to upgrade the city's secondary schools, and aims to put the scheme out to tender later this year. [03-Jun-1998]
Wolseley is acquiring three US building materials companies for a total £68m, including the Stock Lumber timber business, the Forward Enterprises pipe distribution business, and the Tozour Energy heating and ventilating business. [03-Jun-1998]
Baldwins Industrial Services, the crane hire company, is planning to raise £10m in a flotation in July in order to finance growth and reduce gearing. [02-Jun-1998]
Kier is planning to acquire Bellwinch for about £13m in order to expand its housebuilding business in the south-east. [02-Jun-1998]
Wainhomes is looking to acquire another housebuilding business and is prepared to pay up to £70m. [02-Jun-1998]
Metsec, the building materials and engineering concern, is being acquired by Voest-Alpine Stahl of Austria for £42m. [30-May-1998]
CNC Properties is to acquire the £35m commercial property portfolio of Channel Hotels and Properties, which includes eight properties spread throughout the country. [29-May-1998]
RMC Group is said to be looking to sell its Hall & Co builders merchant, which has 97 branches and could be worth up to £100m. [26-May-1998]
Balfour Beatty has won contracts worth over £100m for the construction of a 9km section of the M60 Manchester Outer Ring Road and for the construction of a bridge in North Carolina. [23-May-1998]
RMC Group has acquired Wulfrather, the German cement company, for £156m, and there is speculation that it may sell off some of Wulfrather's assets such as a cement plant in Coswig. [22-May-1998]
Blue Circle Industries has acquired the cement business of Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile for £19m through its Empresas Melon subsidiary, and SQM will take a 14% stake in Melon. [21-May-1998]
The government is to set up a database of "brownfield" sites that are available for building homes, in order to try to reduce the pressure on greenfield sites. [20-May-1998]
Green Property of Dublin has launched a £146m hostile takeover bid for Trafford Park Estates, the industrial estate developer. [20-May-1998]
MEPC has failed in its attempt to acquire Chesterfield Properties as the two companies could not agree a price. [20-May-1998]
Construction output fell in the first quarter of this year, with only 19% of companies reporting an increase compared to 32% in the previous quarter, according to the Construction Confederation. [19-May-1998]
Jermyn Investment Properties is acquiring ELP Property Group for £31m in order to expand its property portfolio in the south of England. [16-May-1998]
JCB is planning to invest £30m in the creation of its first construction equipment manufacturing base in the US, and hopes to be producing up to 10,000 machines a year by early next decade. [15-May-1998]
Tilbury Douglas is acquiring How Group, the facilities management and engineering services concern, for £47m. [14-May-1998]
Keller Group has bought the Australian piling and ground treatment business of Franki Pacific Holdings for £3.5m. [13-May-1998]
Andrews Sykes is acquiring Cox Plant Hire from Transport Development Group for £50m, its first move into the general plant hire market. [12-May-1998]
Prowting is looking to make acquisitions in order to expand its housebuilding operations. [08-May-1998]
Amey has acquired N Jones, the asbestos management company, for £2.5m. [07-May-1998]
Grantchester Holdings has acquired Edge Properties, the retail warehouse investment company, for £126m, in order to benefit more from the growth in out-of-town retailing. [07-May-1998]
James R Knowles, the construction industry consultancy, is to raise about £4.5m from a flotation on Aim this summer, as it plans to expand its business in continental Europe. [05-May-1998]
CRH of Ireland is acquiring MA Segale, the US aggregates, paving and construction business, for £36m. [02-May-1998]
Pemberstone is buying the property portfolio of Homes for Tenants, which includes 358 rental properties, for £16m. [02-May-1998]
Hemingway, the property investment company, is to acquire Olives Property for £28.6m in order to gain access to a portfolio of industrial properties. [30-Apr-1998]
Chesterton International, the property consultancy, has dropped plans for a reverse takeover of Summit Group as the benefits would not have been as great as previously thought. [30-Apr-1998]
Frogmore Estates is to redevelop Manchester's Corn Exchange building as a 24-hour leisure and retail centre, and is looking for prospective tenants in preparation for next year's opening. [29-Apr-1998]
The government has rejected calls for a rethink on the plan to build 10,000 homes on green belt land near Stevenage, and has urged Hertfordshire county council to adopt its structure plans quickly. [25-Apr-1998]
Eskmuir, the property and investment company, is to raise over £30m in a flotation in May, and has indicated that it could spend up to £80m on acquisitions over the next two years. [25-Apr-1998]
MEPC has sold its remaining US office and industrial properties to three US investment trusts for $369m. [25-Apr-1998]
Grafton of Ireland is to acquire British Dredging, the builders merchant and dredging company, for £35m. [25-Apr-1998]
MEPC is said to have made a preliminary offer to acquire Chesterfield Properties, which is thought to worth about £160m. [25-Apr-1998]
Security Capital Group of the US is looking to invest up to $2bn in the acquisition of European property companies, having already bought two unlisted UK companies and with talks going on to buy two more. [23-Apr-1998]
Saint Gobain of France has acquired Oliver Ashworth, the pipeline products distributor, for £34m, and further UK acquisitions could follow. [23-Apr-1998]
MEPC is selling eight US shopping centres to General Growth Properties of Chicago for £522m, as part of a strategy to sell off its non-UK assets. [22-Apr-1998]
Hanson is selling its US road paving operation to Colas of France for £55m and will use the proceeds to invest in its core activities. [22-Apr-1998]
White Young Green has acquired the Scottish unit of Peter Fraenkel & Partners, the consulting civil and structural engineer, for £0.2m. [21-Apr-1998]
British Dredging, the building products company, is in discussions with an unnamed company that could lead to a takeover bid. [17-Apr-1998]
The government is to involve the private sector in a £200m rescue package to cope with the backlog of repairs in 4,000 schools. [16-Apr-1998]
City North, the London-based residential property group, is to raise £10m in a flotation next month in order to add to its property portfolio. [16-Apr-1998]
SGB is expanding its powered access division by opening a new branch in Coventry and by ordering 349 additional aerial work platforms to bring the fleet total to 939. [15-Apr-1998]
Bryant, the housebuilder, has raised £48m of long-term debt to pay off short-term borrowings and finance land purchases. [11-Apr-1998]
The Serplan planning conference has put its support behind plans to build 914,300 houses across the south-east of England, including 87,500 in Berkshire - more than double the figure currently planned. [09-Apr-1998]
Hanson has agreed to sell its US road building business to Colas of France for up to $95m, and is close to selling its heavy construction business to Skanska of Sweden for $55m. [09-Apr-1998]
Heywood Williams is to acquire two businesses for £62m - Kestrel and Spectus - in order to focus on its core windows and doors operation, while it is planning to sell its AutoWindscreens car windscreen division. [07-Apr-1998]
The government has announced a range of measures to combat "cowboy" builders, including an agreed set of standards and a directory of reputable builders. [07-Apr-1998]
Eskmuir, the property investment company, is planning a flotation later this year. [06-Apr-1998]
Hampton Trust has won outline planning consent for the construction of a £300m leisure development in Birmingham, including a skyscraper, houses, offices, a hotel, a skating rink, a casino and a theatre. [03-Apr-1998]
Hewden Stuart, the plant hire company, is planning to refocus its business away from low-margin activities towards the provision of outsourced services to large companies, and has already agreed the sale of its merchandising operations to management. [03-Apr-1998]
Meyer International is selling its Montague L Meyer wood wholesaling business to management for up to £40m, and it has also sold a Dutch DIY business for £34m and a UK supplier of timber frames for £0.6m. [02-Apr-1998]
Alfred McAlpine is prepared to sell its US civil engineering and construction operations, and it has already been approached by potential buyers. [02-Apr-1998]
Hepworth, the building materials company, has announced plans for a £20m restructuring programme, which will include redundancies, the removal of obsolete plant, and the modernisation of the product line in its heating division. [01-Apr-1998]
Blue Circle is looking to spend up to £500m on acquisitions and is particularly interested in expanding its presence in the building materials markets of Malaysia and the Philippines. [31-Mar-1998]
Streamline, the road maintenance and building products concern, is in discussions with an unnamed potential bidder that could lead to an offer being made for the company. [31-Mar-1998]
Blue Circle Industries is said to be negotiating the acquisition of a controlling stake in Herecles Cement of Greece as part of a plan to expand its cement business in continental Europe. [28-Mar-1998]
BTR has sold its MBCI metal building components business in the US to NCI Building Systems for £330m, thereby reaching over 90% of its target for disposals. [27-Mar-1998]
John Laing has paid £11m to acquire a 14.5% stake in Adelaide Airport, the consortium that has won a concession to operate two airports in South Australia. [27-Mar-1998]
Taylor Woodrow has identified a number of unnamed potential acquisition targets in the housebuilding sector. [25-Mar-1998]
Marley is looking to build up its building products business in central Europe, and has £100m to spend on acquisitions. [25-Mar-1998]
Caradon is looking to sell its windows and doors activities in the UK and the US, which could raise up to £240m. [24-Mar-1998]
Amey is in discussions to create a consortium to bid for concessions to operate sections of the London Underground infrastructure, and is also said to be looking to sell off its Amey Homes housebuilding business. [24-Mar-1998]
Blue Circle has sold its Blue Circle Incineration subsidiary to a management team for £3m. [20-Mar-1998]
John Laing is to merge its two US housebuilding operations into a joint venture with Watt Residential Partners of the US, and the combined business will be floated within three years. [19-Mar-1998]
MEPC is taking a stake in Prestbury, the new property company, in part payment for the sale of £103m of 30 properties that are mainly industrial warehouses. [18-Mar-1998]
WS Atkins has acquired Silk & Frazier, the quantity surveying practice, for £5.1m. [17-Mar-1998]
BTR is selling its Australian building materials and Formica laminates businesses to CVC Capital Partners for about £650m, as part of a strategy to focus on engineering. [17-Mar-1998]
Dunloe House of Ireland has claimed victory in its takeover battle for Ewart, the Northern Ireland property company, having gained acceptances for 52% of the target shares. [14-Mar-1998]
Westbury is to acquire John Maunders, the housebuilder, for £55m, in order to increase its presence in the north west of England and make cost savings. [13-Mar-1998]
Ennstone has sold its McQuiston Stone quarrying operation in Pennsylvania to Essroc Cement for £2.7m. [13-Mar-1998]
Hanson has sold Grove Worldwide, its US crane making business, to Keystone for £380m. [12-Mar-1998]
BSS Group, the heating and plumbing distributor, has announced a further 100 redundancies from its branch network, as part of a £1.5m reorganisation following a fall in market prices. [10-Mar-1998]
Tarmac has acquired a US concrete paving business from Marshalls for £18m, which will expand its presence in the southern states. [09-Mar-1998]
John Mowlem is launching a new operation called Skillbase to provide a nationwide 24-hour call-out home maintenance service, and it will initially be launched in the Midlands. [09-Mar-1998]
Barcom, the plant-hire company, has been acquired by GE Capital of the US for £41m, and GE is expected to follow this with similar acquisitions as it aims to become a leader in the UK plant-hire market. [07-Mar-1998]
Travis Perkins is acquiring Sherry & Haycock, the Wiltshire builders merchant, for £13m. [03-Mar-1998]
Lehman Brothers of the US is linking up with Thornfield Developments to work on combined retail and leisure developments in the UK, with the joint venture operating from offices in Leeds and London. [02-Mar-1998]
Wates City of London is planning a rights issue to raise £60m to help fund the £300m redevelopment of the City Point office building in London. [28-Feb-1998]
Taylor Woodrow is discussing the sale of its wind energy business to NEG Micon of Denmark, including two turbine manufacturing subsidiaries but not including its three wind farms. [25-Feb-1998]
George Wimpey is planning to sell businesses worth £40m this year, including non-core activities in property and energy, in order to focus on housebuilding. [25-Feb-1998]
Tarmac and Bovis are to merge their plant hire operations into a joint venture called Castlewyse, which will unite Bovis's Wyseplant branches with those of Tarmac's Castle Plant Services subsidiary. [25-Feb-1998]
Amec is restructuring its Fairclough Homes subsidiary to improve profitability, with the creation of a new south east regional division and the strengthening of its Midlands division. [25-Feb-1998]
Barlows, the property company, has sold Rowlinson Constructions to management for £1.1m. [21-Feb-1998]
Hanson is acquiring HG Fenton, the US aggregates company, for £50m, as part of a strategy to benefit from the consolidation currently taking place in the US aggregates market. [18-Feb-1998]
A government taskforce has begun to release details of how the construction industry can be improved through increased productivity and lower costs, with emphasis being placed on waste reduction, best practices, and an integrated supply chain. [17-Feb-1998]
Cala has acquired Victor Homes, the Yorkshire-based housebuilder, for an initial £2.8m, thereby expanding its coverage into the north of England. [13-Feb-1998]
RMC has sold its 50% stake in Chaufournieres de Hergenrath, the lime producer, to its Belgian joint venture partner for £54m, and the proceeds will help finance the recent acquisitions of four German concrete companies. [12-Feb-1998]
Milner Estates is to acquire the Five Oaks property company for £41m, and plans to make further acquisitions in future. [12-Feb-1998]
British Dredging, the building materials concern, is said to be facing an imminent takeover approach, possibly from Grafton which already holds a stake of about 30%. [12-Feb-1998]
MEPC has sold off the majority of its Australian property portfolio for £204m, as it aims to focus on the UK property market. [12-Feb-1998]
Chestertons, the property and estate agent group, has agreed a £70m deal to merge with Summit Group. [12-Feb-1998]
Taylor Woodrow Construction is to reorganise its worldwide business into five divisions - Europe Building, Europe Civil Engineering, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Worldwide Engineering. [11-Feb-1998]
Wiggins Group has submitted plans for a £1bn retail, leisure and conference centre in Liverpool, that would be the tallest tower in Europe. [10-Feb-1998]
Whinney Mackay-Lewis, the architecture and design group, has acquired Prime Estates and M&E Project Services, and is raising £1m in a share placing. [10-Feb-1998]
BICC is to merge its Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering and Balfour Beatty International divisions to provide greater focus in the international projects market for work over £40m. [06-Feb-1998]
BPB has acquired Gipsunion's gypsum quarry, block manufacturing and plasterboard distribution operations in Switzerland for £12.6m, but has also taken a £22m exceptional write-down following the sale of its Dutch cartonboard business. [05-Feb-1998]
Warings, the Portsmouth construction business, has been bought by a management team for £12m. [04-Feb-1998]
Whitecroft has bought NT Shapland & Petter, the Devon-based maker of timber fire doors, from Newman Tonks for £1.75m. [04-Feb-1998]
Hanson is in advanced talks to sell its Grove Crane manufacturing business to US buyers for £370m, and its UK commercial property interests to O&H for about £40m. [02-Feb-1998]
South East Regional Investment is being created as an inward investment agency for south-east England, and will be based in Fleet, Hampshire. [02-Feb-1998]
Brown & Root and Amec are in discussions with the government about the possibility of investing in London Underground, which could result in the two companies bidding for a concession to operate part of the infrastructure. [02-Feb-1998]
Pilkington is linking up with Glaverbel of Belgium to build a £60m float glass plant in Spain. [31-Jan-1998]
Richard Ellis, the property adviser, has accepted a £50m offer from Insignia Financial of the US for its core UK business, thereby rejecting a rival bid from CB Commercial. [30-Jan-1998]
Swiss Reinsurance has bought the site of London's former Baltic Exchange from Trafalgar House for about £81m, subject to gaining planning permission to develop the site. [27-Jan-1998]
J Saville Gordon is changing its name to Saville Gordon to complete its transformation from a metals company to a property company. [27-Jan-1998]
The government is considering plans to tax homes built on greenfield sites, with the proceeds being used to regenerate inner cities. [26-Jan-1998]
Capital & Income Group has bought the unfinished London Bridge City property in London for £70m, and plans a £500m office development there. [26-Jan-1998]
Derwent Valley Holdings is acquiring a portfolio of 14 properties, mainly in London, from MEPC for £96m, which will increase its size by a third. [24-Jan-1998]
Forvaltings Browallia of Sweden is increasing its stake in YJ Lovell from 14% to 29% in a reorganisation of the UK construction company's share structure that will extend its borrowing facilities. [24-Jan-1998]
Ultraframe, the conservatory roofing company, has reached agreement to allow Deceuninck of Belgium to use the Ultraframe brand for its roofing systems. [22-Jan-1998]
Town Centre Securities has expressed an interest in acquiring Ewart, the Belfast property company that is fighting an unwanted takeover offer from Dunloe House. [22-Jan-1998]
CRH of Ireland has spent a further £40m on the acquisition of a number of small North American and European building materials companies, including businesses involved in glass distribution, masonry, paving, concrete bricks and fencing. [21-Jan-1998]
Jarvis has reached agreement to undertake domestic property repairs for Royal & Sun Alliance policyholders, in a £26m three-year deal. [21-Jan-1998]
A joint venture of Amec and the Building and Property Group has won a £160m contract to supply and manage the Department of Social Security's accommodation requirements in Newcastle. [20-Jan-1998]
Ashtead, the plant hire company, has decided against listing in the US, but it has been opening new depots there at a faster rate than expected with 18 new offices in the last 10 months. [20-Jan-1998]
The government has decided not to prevent the construction of up to 2,500 homes on greenbelt land near Newcastle upon Tyne, but protesters still have six weeks to mount a legal challenge. [20-Jan-1998]
Mitie, the building services company, is to start up a landscape gardening business from scratch, rather than by acquisition. [20-Jan-1998]
Ewart, the Belfast-based property company, is fighting a £21m takeover bid from Dunloe House of Dublin, which is aiming to form an all-Ireland group. [19-Jan-1998]
BTR has appointed brokers for the potential £400m flotation in Australia of its building products business, which includes concrete pipes, railway sleepers, steel roofing and insulation. [15-Jan-1998]
Hanson is negotiating the sale of its Spectrum heavy construction and civil engineering businesses in the US to Skanska of Sweden, and also plans to sell the Spectrum roadbuilding business to Bouygues of France. [14-Jan-1998]
Limelight is selling its loss-making Portland Windows double glazing business to Broach for £0.5m. [13-Jan-1998]
Berisford has won planning permission to build 650 homes at Felsted near Stansted airport, following a long-running battle with objectors who claim it will damage the environment and strain local infrastructure. [10-Jan-1998]
Amey Facilities Management has had its headquarters raided by the Ministry of Defence police's fraud squad, who are investigating one of the company's maintenance contracts at a MoD site. [10-Jan-1998]
Street Crane, the manufacturer of overhead hoists, is planning to treble its £4.5m-a-year exports by setting up partnerships with companies in countries such as Brazil, Argentina and Chile. [05-Jan-1998]
Tarmac, Balfour Beatty and other construction companies, are said to be considering the idea of taking small equity stakes in London & Continental Railways in order to improve the chances of the high-speed rail link between London and the Channel tunnel being finished on time. [02-Jan-1998]
The government is looking to sell the New Covent Garden fruit and vegetable market in London, and the price could be well over £20m if advance planning consent is obtained for mixed-use development. [02-Jan-1998]