Autumn has always been a busy time of the year for most of us, and certainly there has been a marked increase in activity in many sectors of the industry, as is well documented in this bumper edition.
The plant hire market in particular has been very busy, with companies increasing and / or replacing their rental fleets, and that’s a positive indication that there’s plenty of work out there to be won.
Another beneficiary of plant hire companies offloading some of their older rental stock is the auction sector. A case in point is Euro Auctions who recently enjoyed their best ever event where records tumbled. Its auction at its Leeds site generated over £31m, making it the largest single used plant and equipment auction held anywhere in Europe in recent years.
General Manager Jonnie Keys tells us that while quality consignments of low hours well maintained equipment for the auction came from a broad cross section of sources, it was noticeably from plant hire companies as they make way for new additions to their inventories.
There’s positive news, too, from the Irish Republic where the Construction Industry Federation is welcoming the introduction of the Construction Contracts Act as a transformative event for the industry. The CCA features a 30 day payment timeframe for sub-contractors and a range of procedures aimed at preventing dispute if these deadlines are missed. This, says the CIF, will all have a positive impact on competitiveness within
the industry, job creation, and future planning of Ireland’s infrastructural needs.
Meanwhile, Brexit has come and gone – well, not quite – but so far the effects appear to have been manageable, although there is still no indication how leaving Europe will impact on the industry in Northern Ireland. Given the Irish Republic remains in Europe, will there be border controls? Will there be new tariffs? Those are just two of the questions on which we await answers.
Special features to look out for in this issue include a comprehensive preview of the National Ploughing Championships in County Offaly. We also report on what’s new in the diverse attachments market and put the spotlight on Working at Height and on the Waste and Recycling sector. In addition, we have been getting the ‘view from the cab’ of a number of new machines.
Meanwhile, preparations are almost complete for our forthcoming Plant, Construction and Quarry Awards 2016, and probably like you, we cannot wait to see who has won what. If you haven’t yet submitted an entry for any of the 17 categories, it is not too late, but the deadline is virtually upon us, so hurry! All you need to know is outlined elsewhere in this edition.
Please click the link below to
download the Sep-Oct 2016 issue of Plant & Civil Engineer Magazine.
Download “Plant & Civil Engineer Sept-Oct 2016”
PCE-Sept-Oct-2016-128-pages-web.pdf – Downloaded 1600 times – 26.58 MB
