It’s estimated that the UK construction industry uses a whopping 400 million tonnes of material each year and produces 1000 million tonnes of waste, 25 million tonnes of which are destined for landfill.* This National Recycling Week, we thought we’d outline how Howard Civil Engineering are committed to doing our part in helping to curb the amount of waste sent to landfill from our offices and sites.

In our head offices, we practice the belief that reducing our usage of paper and single-use plastics is of greater benefit to the environment than recycling these items. The remaining waste that is produced from our offices is actively diverted from landfill, with non-recyclable waste incinerated and successfully converted into energy.

Our team members, subcontractors and visitors are encouraged to segregate their waste for recycling, and where possible we source reused materials and aggregates for construction from our preferred local supplier, Blue Phoenix. Blue Phoenix work alongside two Energy From Waste Plants in Ferrybridge, West Yorkshire, to repurpose the incinerator bottom ash aggregate ready for use on construction sites. This type of aggregate is 20% lighter than conventional aggregates, which helps Howard Civil Engineering reduce our vehicle fuel usage and machinery fuel usage by approximately 20%, and has been used on multiple sites including Greengates Junction Improvement Scheme, City Fields and Eden Boys School.  

Members of the Howard Civil Engineering team were also happy to build brand new playground equipment for Crossflatts Primary School in Bradford with used materials from our sites last month! In addition to custom-built water walls and balance beams, Howard Civil Engineering also built a wendy home, a wildlife hotel, and a mud pit for the children to enjoy upon their return to school.

Pre-construction coordinator and community liaison officer Sophie Henderson commented: ‘We were approached by a member of Crossflatts Primary School and asked if we would like to donate any used materials. After a brief discussion with our operations teams, we instead agreed to go one step further and collaborate with staff members at the school to build them the equipment they needed.’

Most importantly, Howard Civil Engineering have recently made the decision to recycle all wood used at our Greengates Junction site. Since we commenced operations on this site in July 2020, we have successfully diverted a whopping 2.94 tonnes of wood otherwise destined for landfill and instead sent this material to Leeds Wood Recycling. Leeds Wood Recycling is a fantastic local social enterprise that reuses, repurposes, and recycles 100% off the wood collected in addition to offering practical volunteer and training opportunities to marginalised people in West Yorkshire!

‘As a company, Howard Civil Engineering are very conscious that the construction industry produces a vast amount of waste,’ said Sophie. ‘Although we are a relatively small company, we recognise that even the smallest business is able to make a positive change. With this in mind we have created a comprehensive waste management policy and, where practical, have adopted the reduce, re-use and recycle initiative both in our offices and on site. We aim to divert as much waste as we can away from landfill and repurpose materials where possible. I am proud to confirm we have been successful in the regard that none of our office waste is sent to landfill, site waste is segregated properly, and we are actively recycling wood used on our sites.’

Say hello to the newest members of our plant fleet! We’ve recently invested in new machinery to enhance our existing fleet at Howard Plant Hire.

As a result of winning multiple new contracts across the region, Howard Civil Engineering have purchased a number of Komatsu PC80MR-5 midi and PC55MR-5 mini excavators.

These new machines are part of Komatsu’s MR-5 generation of mini and midi excavators. The range concentrates the quality and performance of the larger Komatsu construction range into a compact package. Each machine is packed full of high level standard specifications including a Stage V emissions compliant engine, auto idle shutdown, neutral position detection system and Komtrax monitoring system.

They also have a tight tail swing radius and a swing boom that hugs the machine, making them the perfect tool for city-centre sites such as Ironworks and Greengates Junction which have constrained site footprints.

As a result, Howard Plant Hire now boast an impressive fleet of 60 excavators ranging from 2 – 38 tonnes.

Read more about our investment into enhancing on-site safety with plant machinery here.

In July 2020, Howard Civil Engineering commenced improvement works to Harrogate Road/New Line junction, known locally as Greengates junction, for our client Bradford Metropolitan District Council. Despite only being present on site for a short period of time, we are pleased to say we have been very warmly welcomed by nearby residents and the surrounding local community!

Several local residents have come forward to express their appreciation for the scheme and the fortnightly newsletters including a member of the public named Richard who uses the junction frequently. ‘I’d like to commend Howard Civil Engineering on their newsletters,’ he commented. ‘It’s nice to know how progress is being made and what is happening. Keep up the great work!’ 

‘I live in the area and [Howard Civil Engineering] are doing a cracking job,’ posted David, another local resident. ‘All sites seem nice and tidy and there have been few delays so far. Keep it going!’

Multiple members of both our site and office teams have also gone above and beyond to involve themselves in the local community and make a positive difference to those living in close proximity to the scheme, receiving wonderful feedback in return.

Earlier this week site manager Tom Barrett, site supervisor Dean Gregory, community liaison officer Sophie Henderson, and marketing executive Abbie Harrop were warmly welcomed by Greengates Community Volunteers and joined them on their weekly litter pick around the junction. Three heaving bags of litter later, the streets certainly looked cleaner!

Greengates Community Volunteer, Julia Wassall, was quick to thank the team: ‘I’m pleased to say our group’s dealings with Howard [Civil Engineering] have been a pleasure. The team have been friendly, polite, and helpful. When Sue Burton [another volunteer] and I wanted to lift the very last flowers from the old Community Garden site, we had a wave of the workers willing to help us lift, bag and carry them to the Memorial Gardens (the plants were much bigger than we were expecting). Then we were given three home-made bird boxes by [site operative] Johnny for the Memorial Garden!’

Perhaps the most praised member of our team is site supervisor Dean Gregory, who is starting to make a name for himself as a local hero! Julia complimented Dean’s professionalism regarding the improvement works at Greengates junction: ‘I have had some conversations with Dean about the progress of the new entrance to Farmfoods,’ she said. ‘He’s never made me feel as if I shouldn’t be asking and seemed happy to answer my questions!’

Most recently, a local resident contacted us to thank Dean and a small gang of operatives who sensitively dug up and replanted a seven-year old apple tree from her garden which is currently being reconfigured as part of the scheme.

Dean also received another special mention from a happy resident who kindly gifted the site team a yummy box of donuts as a thank you for our hard work on the scheme and their sympathetic liaison with the local community.

Contracts manager Tony Kilbane is over the moon that his team have received such praise from the local community. ‘The construction process on a scheme like this can sometimes take its toll on local residents and businesses, and communities can often find traffic management measures quite challenging at times,’ he explained. ‘Howard Civil Engineering recognise that our position as main contractor on the scheme means we are responsible for ensuring we not only complete the contract to a high standard but that we also enhance and improve our local communities for the duration of the works.

‘I am thrilled to hear our site team at Greengates are receiving such positive feedback from residents and community groups alike for demonstrating a positive can-do attitude that is just second nature to them. I look forward to seeing the team continue to nurture these relationships and positively benefit the Greengates community whilst we are on site.’

If you’re a local resident and would like to get involved with Greengates Community Group or Friends of Greengates Cenotaph, head to the Greengates Matters Facebook group here.

Our Health and Safety team are thrilled to report that throughout August 2020, Howard Civil Engineering achieved our best ever health and safety report across all of our live sites!

Taking into consideration site documentation, on-site inspections and environmental standards throughout the month, all of our sites went above and beyond to achieve an overall landmark score of 96.51%! All sites obtained at least 95% and our Penny Pot Lane site for Persimmon Homes in Harrogate took the top spot with the highest score of 97.7% across the region.

Our last reportable incident on-site was in November 2018, meaning Howard Civil Engineering now have a total of over 710,000 hours without a reportable incident. We are also pleased to confirm a spectacular 0.15% AFR rate throughout the month of August. 

This landmark occasion is a result of investment in new staff, new innovative equipment (Howard Civil Engineering are the first company in Europe to have purchased a Komatsu PC850 with fitted GPS technology), and extensive consultations with site managers on how we can improve health and safety company-wide, particularly in light of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

SHEQ manager Andrew Rafton commented: ‘Although it is fantastic that each site achieved an individual health and safety score of 95% and above, it is worth emphasising that our new record of 96.51% is the result of a united collaborative effort by all of our site managers, supervisors, operatives, and everyone in between.

‘The hard work demonstrated by all our site teams to maintain excellent levels of compliance with health and safety guidelines does not go unnoticed and it is great to see this reflected scores achieved in August.’

In order to ensure health and safety remains a priority on-site, all of our live sites are assessed monthly and rated individually on their performance with a target of 90%. 

Howard Civil Engineering were delighted to help ensure nursery and reception pupils at Crossflatts Primary School had a fantastic return to school this September by building new playground equipment using repurposed materials from our sites! 

Community liaison officer Sophie Henderson commented: ‘We were approached by a member of Crossflatts Primary School and asked if we would like to donate any used materials which we would normally recycle. After a brief discussion with our operations teams, we instead agreed to go one step further and collaborate with staff members at the school to build them the equipment they needed.’

In addition to custom-built water walls and balance beams, Howard Civil Engineering also built a wendy home, a wildlife hotel, and a mud pit for the children to enjoy upon their return to school.

‘When coronavirus hit and the school had to close to pupils, it gave us much-needed time to reflect on the space and materials we have available and consider how we could improve the playground for the children,’ said reception teacher Adele Smith. ‘Budgets are non-existent at the minute so we typically use whatever we can get our hands on, whether this may be used tyres donated by members of staff or wood chippings which would otherwise be discarded. To have someone not only donate something of this scale but also assemble and install the apparatus is like Christmas to us.

‘Understanding the world around them us a huge part of the learning experience for nursery and reception classes so it is very important to ensure the children can play outside as much as possible. The wildlife hotel is a great addition to the playground as it will definitely further the children’s understanding of mini beasts. Most importantly the water walls, balance beams and mud pit will help them with their muscle development which is crucial for children who are learning to write.’

David Aspinall, project manager at Bradford Metropolitan District Council, praised Howard Civil Engineering’s commitment to improving our local communities: ‘Having worked with Howard Civil Engineering on the Hard Ings Road project at Keighley since last May, I know that this is not an isolated incident. There are several other examples that I could list, and it is to their credit that Howard Civil Engineering genuinely strive to go the extra mile in regard to helping local communities.’

Returning reception pupils were amazed when they saw the new apparatus in the playground last Wednesday. ‘The children are absoloutely loving the new playground equipment,’ said Adele. ‘What a great start to the year!’

After commencing our groundworks and six-storey reinforced concrete frame package for Esh Construction in November 2019, we are thrilled to have topped out at The Ironworks Leeds one month ahead of schedule.

Ironworks is a 0.35 hectare site located in Holbeck Urban Village and upon completion will comprise 51 luxury apartments, 2 penthouses and 15 townhouses.

A whopping 2500m³ concrete and 300 tonnes of reinforcement were required for this project, and at its highest point the development measures a sizeable 22 metres.

This scheme marks the first time Howard Civil Engineering have worked alongside our client, Esh Construction, and – despite challenges posed by COVID-19 – the results are truly magnificent.

Allan Irvine (top centre), senior project manager at Esh Construction, complimented the quality of work: ‘Although this is our first major project with Howards [Civil Engineering], I’m pleased to say that both teams have worked well together on site. The scheme so far has been a huge success and Howard Civil Engineering have shown that not only are they able to adhere to Esh’s values of enhancing local communities and supporting local charities, but they also share the same values. This has been a key factor in helping our companies work side by side at Ironworks.’

Undertaking our final slab pour on the sixth floor of Ironworks last week. Photo: Esh Construction.

‘I would most certainly be happy to work with Howard Civil Engineering again,’ he continued. ‘This proactive can-do attitude has not only created a positive work environment for everyone but has also enabled us to top-out one month ahead of schedule. It truly is a testament to everyone at Howards [Civil Engineering].’

Commenting on how the team approached the obstacles created by COVID-19, project manager Patrick Furlong (top left) gave high praise: ‘The whole site team has embraced the new health and safety measures really well. We [Howard Civil Engineering] did initially experience problems with our supply chain at the start of lockdown, however this has since vastly improved and we’re now firmly back on the road to the completion of our works at the end of the month.’

Allan echoed Patrick’s comments: ‘Everyone on site approached the situation with a positive attitude and worked together to keep one another safe. We have regular socially distanced toolbox talks and everyone plays their part in ensuring guidelines are adhered to.’

The Ironworks Leeds is estimated for completion late 2021. Read more about our work on this project here. 

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