June 2018 – Piling & Ground Engineering
The past 12 months has not shown the construction industry in a particularly good light. The Grenfell Tower fire has been especially damaging to the industry’s image – exposing, as it has, shortcomings in the Building Regulations, the inadequacy of product testing and the complacency of designers, specifiers and contractors.
Then of course Carillion went bust, provoking widespread anger and contempt for the arrogance and incompetence of its directors (though the accountancy profession has also – quite rightly – come in for scathing criticism for allowing it all to happen).
And now we hear from the CIOB that tier 1 contractors are exhibiting the same complacent, short-sighted self-interest when it comes to worker exploitation. Rather than address the issue and do something proactive, most contractors are content to tick a few boxes, pump out bland clichés via over-paid PR consultants and look on smugly while their supply chain takes the rap. Read all about it on pages 27 – 33.
David Taylor
Editor
Features