Technology

Consultants Atkins and Faithful+Gould, both part of the SNC-Lavalin group, have been commissioned by Homes England to assess the effectiveness of modern methods of construction (MMC) in housebuilding. The multi-year study aims to gather “long-term, in-depth and verifiable data” to inform future decisions about the use of MMC, focusing on…

Laing O’Rourke has been named as preferred bidder on a £160m 55-storey residential tower at Greengate in Salford, Greater Manchester. Developer One Heritage has signed a pre-construction services agreement with the firm on the project which will include 545 flats, ground floor commercial units and a new riverside walkway. Much…

Engineering firm Mott MacDonald has launched a visualisation toolkit aimed at tier one contractors and their supply chains. The software, called Rehearsive, allows users to interact with 3D design and engineering models in a multi-user virtual environment. The company said it expected the new product to assist contractors in process…

A new modular housebuilder has launched today with £100m in private equity backing and plans for an initial residential development in Essex. The company, Impact Capital Group, said its first project was the redevelopment of a £16m town-centre site in Romford that it expects will yield a gross value above…

Firms have been warned to increase their guard against cyber criminals exploiting the COVID-19 crisis. Experts from the National Cyber Security Centre said there has been an increase in business-targeting through measures including bogus emails with links claiming to contain important updates that, once clicked, lead to devices being infected.…

Offsite housing specialist F1 Modular has ceased trading after being hit with threats by creditors looking to take action over non-payment. A trading update by its parent company, developer Ashley House, said a notice of intention to appoint an administrator had been filed after it had “carefully considered its financial…

Legal & General (L&G) intends to use traditional construction methods to deliver new affordable homes after it revealed £275m of fresh funding. The company will invest £100m with other parties contributing a further £175m to build new affordable homes. The fresh capital will help the company deliver its current pipeline…

Urban Splash and Japanese firm Sekisui House have won planning approval for a village consisting of 406 modular homes. The settlement called Inholm in Northstowe, a new town being built north of Cambridge, is being developed by a joint venture consisting of regeneration specialist Urban Splash, Homes England and Japan’s…

The fate of two nuclear power stations worth a combined £30bn could be settled at the same time, a director of the firm behind the Wylfa Newydd project has claimed. Speaking to CN, Leon Flexman, director of Hitachi subsidiary Horizon Nuclear Power, said the £16bn Wylfa project (CGI pictured) and £14bn…

Arcadis has launched a new business dedicated to its digital offering, including digital management of clients’ assets and developing new technology. Arcadis Gen follows the Dutch-owned consultant’s acquisition of tech companies SEAMS and EAMS Group. It is a separate legal entity with 200 employees spread across the globe, but no…