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136-625: Kier Group plc is a British construction , services and property group active in building and civil engineering , support services, and the Private Finance Initiative . Founded in 1928 in Stoke-on-Trent it initially specialised in concrete engineering before expanding into general contracting and house-building. Kier was listed as a public company on the London Stock Exchange from 1963 until it
272-476: A designer , a contractor , a construction manager , or other advisors); such specialists are normally appointed for their expertise in project delivery and construction management and will help the owner define the project brief , agree on a budget and schedule , liaise with relevant public authorities, and procure materials and the services of other specialists (the supply chain , comprising subcontractors and materials suppliers). Contracts are agreed for
408-646: A heritage asset legally protected) is called 'designation'. Several different terms are used because the processes use separate legislation: buildings are 'listed'; ancient monuments are 'scheduled', wrecks are 'protected', and battlefields, gardens and parks are 'registered'. A heritage asset is a part of the historic environment that is valued because of its historic, archaeological, architectural or artistic interest. Only some of these are judged to be important enough to have extra legal protection through designation. Buildings that are not formally listed but still judged as being of heritage interest can still be regarded as
544-600: A management buyout in July 1992, with Hanson retaining a 10 per cent stake. In 1993 Kier decided to re-enter the housing market with the £30m acquisition of Twigden Homes. This was followed by acquisitions of the southern division of Miller Homes in 1996, Bellwinch in 1998, and Allison Homes in 2001. By 2004, Kier housing sales were over 1,000 units a year. Kier was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1996. In 2009, Mivan Kier, Kier's Romanian joint venture with
680-436: A material consideration in the planning process. As a very rough guide, listed buildings are structures considered of special architectural and historical importance. Ancient monuments are of 'national importance' containing evidential values, and can on many occasions also relate to below ground or unoccupied sites and buildings. Almost anything can be listed. Buildings and structures of special historic interest come in
816-659: A "PR stunt" by the GMB union , and described by the Scottish Affairs Select Committee as "an act of bad faith". In December 2017, Unite announced it had issued high court proceedings against four former chairmen of the Consulting Association, included Danny O'Sullivan of Kier, alleging breach of privacy, defamation and Data Protection Act offences. Unite also said it was taking action against 12 major contractors including Kier. Following
952-422: A "live" environment (where residents or businesses remain living in or operating on the site) requires particular care, planning and communication. When applicable, a proposed construction project must comply with local land-use planning policies including zoning and building code requirements. A project will normally be assessed (by the 'authority having jurisdiction', AHJ, typically the municipality where
1088-509: A 15-year low. Only 38% of the rights issue was taken up, with shares still trading below the rights issue price, at 385p, on 19 December. After the failed rights issue, shares fell by 13% to a 15-year low of 335p, but later recovered, trading at 529p on 11 January 2019, when some shareholders sought changes in Kier's leadership team. CEO Haydn Mursell subsequently resigned on 22 January (his successor, former Wates Group CEO Andrew Davies , took up
1224-464: A January 2024 trading update, Kier said it had cut average month-end net debt by around £100m to £140m, the lowest level in over five years. In March 2024, Kier shares were set to return to the FTSE 250 Index, and the company resumed dividend payments for the first time in five years. In September 2024, Kier reported group revenue for the year to 30 June 2024 was up 16% to £3,905m (from £3,381m in 2023), with
1360-445: A building or other asset that affect safety, including its use, expansion, structural integrity, and fire protection , usually require municipality approval. Depending on the type of project, mortgage bankers , accountants , and cost engineers may participate in creating an overall plan for the financial management of a construction project. The presence of the mortgage banker is highly likely, even in relatively small projects since
1496-661: A building. Listed building consent must be obtained from local authorities before any alteration to a listed structure. There are about 8,500 listed buildings in Northern Ireland, divided into four grades, defined as follows: In Scotland, listing was begun by a provision in the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947, and the current legislative basis for listing is the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 . As with other matters regarding planning, conservation
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#17327758102021632-640: A business to lead both design and construction ( design-build ); or they may directly appoint a designer, contractor and specialist subcontractors ( construction management ). Some forms of procurement emphasize collaborative relationships ( partnering , alliancing) between the client, the contractor, and other stakeholders within a construction project, seeking to ameliorate often highly competitive and adversarial industry practices. DfMA (design for manufacture and assembly) approaches also emphasize early collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers regarding products and components. Construction or refurbishment work in
1768-527: A business which included infrastructure services and business services divisions, for £265 million; Mouchel Infrastructure Services was rebranded as Mouchel Consulting, and sold to WSP Global in October 2016. In July 2017 Kier acquired McNicholas Construction, another UK infrastructure services provider. Based on its turnover in the year ending June 2017, Kier was ranked in 2018 as the second biggest UK construction contractor, behind Balfour Beatty . After
1904-463: A commitment to sharing the understanding of the historic environment and more openness in the process of designation. In 2008, a draft Heritage Protection Bill was subject to pre-legislative scrutiny before its passage through UK Parliament. The legislation was abandoned despite strong cross-party support, to make room in the parliamentary legislative programme for measures to deal with the credit crunch, though it may be revived in future. The proposal
2040-479: A conceptual cost estimate performed by a building estimator . As portions of a project are completed, they may be sold, supplanting one lender or owner for another, while the logistical requirements of having the right trades and materials available for each stage of the building construction project carry forward. Public–private partnerships (PPPs) or private finance initiatives (PFIs) may also be used to help deliver major projects. According to McKinsey in 2019,
2176-588: A devastating fire in the Glasgow School of Art 's Mackintosh Building on 15 June 2018, the school terminated its £25 million restoration contract with Kier on 29 June 2018. Kier was the main contractor in the failed DG One leisure centre in Dumfries . In October 2018, Kier was named as a 'poor payer' at a Parliamentary inquiry into small businesses, failing to pay 48% of invoices due within their agreed terms, leading some suppliers to refuse to work for
2312-404: A group that is—for example, all the buildings in a square. This is called 'group value'. Sometimes large areas comprising many buildings may not justify listing but receive the looser protection of designation as a conservation area . The specific criteria include: The state of repair of a building is not generally deemed to be a relevant consideration for listing. Additionally: Although
2448-664: A joint venture with Eiffage, due to complete in 2031. Kier was revealed as a subscriber to the UK's Consulting Association , exposed in 2009 for operating an illegal construction industry blacklist , and was among 14 issued with enforcement notices by the UK Information Commissioner's Office . Subsequently, Kier was among eight businesses involved in the 2014 launch of the Construction Workers Compensation Scheme, condemned as
2584-476: A level not seen since the company's 1996 flotation, and its shares were subject to renewed 'shorting' with one analyst saying "the consensus in the market is that Kier will go bust"; on 15 July 2019, Kier shares were the most 'shorted' on the London Stock Exchange, with shares falling 12.7% to 72.95p. Amid concerns about Kier's future, the company was dropped from two major development schemes, in Leeds and London. In
2720-451: A list of locally listed buildings as separate to the statutory list (and in addition to it). There is no statutory protection of a building or object on the local list but many receive a degree of protection from loss through being in a Conservation Area or through planning policy. Councils hope that owners will recognise the merits of their properties and keep them unaltered if at all possible. Listing began later in Northern Ireland than in
2856-403: A listed building is a criminal offence and owners can be prosecuted. A planning authority can also insist that all work undertaken without consent be reversed at the owner's expense. See also Category:Grade II* listed buildings for examples of such buildings across England and Wales. See also Category:Grade II listed buildings for examples of such buildings across England and Wales. It
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#17327758102022992-558: A listed building which involves any element of demolition. Exemption from secular listed building control is provided for some buildings in current use for worship, but only in cases where the relevant religious organisation operates its own equivalent permissions procedure. Owners of listed buildings are, in some circumstances, compelled to repair and maintain them and can face criminal prosecution if they fail to do so or if they perform unauthorised alterations. When alterations are permitted, or when listed buildings are repaired or maintained,
3128-687: A listed structure. Applications for consent are made on a form obtained from Historic Environment Scotland. After consulting the local planning authority, the owner, where possible, and an independent third party, Historic Environment Scotland makes a recommendation on behalf of the Scottish Ministers. The scheme for classifying buildings is: There are about 47,400 listed buildings in Scotland. Of these, around 8 percent (some 3,800) are Category A, 50 percent are Category B, and 42 percent are listed at Category C. Although
3264-464: A meeting of Kier shareholders in early May, with completion of the sale by mid-June 2021. Kier Living was bought by a new company owned by Terra Firma founder Guy Hands, and was rebranded as Tilia Homes . However, the sale would not significantly improve Kier's debt position, and analysts predicted an equity raise; on 21 April 2021, CEO Davies confirmed a planned equity raise to address its net debt position, unchanged at £436m. On 13 May 2021, Kier launched
3400-558: A non-statutory basis. Although a limited number of 'ancient monuments' were given protection under the Ancient Monuments Protection Act 1882 , there was reluctance to restrict the owners of occupied buildings in their actions related to their property. The extensive damage to buildings caused by German bombing during World War II prompted efforts to list and protect buildings that were deemed to be of particular architectural merit. Three hundred members of
3536-677: A pre-tax loss of £35.5m in the second half of 2018 with revenues flat at £2,064m. As well as the Broadmoor provision, Kier lost £26m on a disputed waste collection contract, while integrating the McNicholas business and Kier restructuring added a further £15.4m to costs. Kier also highlighted "volume pressures" in its highways, utilities and housing maintenance markets. In a 3 June 2019 profit warning, Kier said operating profits would be £25m lower than previously expected, causing its share price to fall over 40% – trading at about 150p, less than half
3672-427: A pre-tax profit of £68.1m (£51.9m in 2023). Average month-end net debt was halved (from £232m) to £116m. From August 2021, the UK company has had four regional divisions (London, South & Strategic Projects; Midlands & Eastern; Western & Wales; North & Scotland), plus Kier Places (housing maintenance and facilities management). Projects involving the company have included Highpoint I completed in 1935,
3808-507: A private company until 1963, when it obtained a listing on the London Stock Exchange and became a public company. Its offer for shares was many times oversubscribed. The Kier family retained a significant majority of the holding. In 1973 Kier merged with W. & C. French to form French Kier but within the French division there were heavy losses on fixed-price motorway contracts and land development. A long-serving Kier engineer, John Mott,
3944-532: A process of reform, including a review of the criteria used for listing buildings. A Review of Heritage Policy in 2006 was criticised, and the Government began a process of consultation on changes to Planning Policy Guidance 15 , relating to the principles of selection for listing buildings in England. The government's White Paper "Heritage Protection for the 21st Century", published on 8 March 2007, offered
4080-471: A provision in the Town and Country Planning Act 1947 covering England and Wales, and the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 covering Scotland. Listing was first introduced into Northern Ireland under the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1972. The listing process has since developed slightly differently in each part of the UK. The process of protecting the built historic environment (i.e. getting
4216-433: A rule is inapplicable (the bridge design will not cause a collapse), or that the custom is no longer needed (acceptance of live-work spaces has grown in the community). During the construction of a building, a municipal building inspector usually inspects the ongoing work periodically to ensure that construction adheres to the approved plans and the local building code. Once construction is complete, any later changes made to
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4352-557: A single document, the National Planning Policy Framework . A consultation draft of this was published on 25 July 2011 and the final version on 27 March 2012. This became a material consideration in planning matters on publication. It has since been revised in 2018, 2019 and 2021. The Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission in England and Cadw in Wales list buildings under three grades, with Grade I being
4488-452: A trading update on 1 August 2019, Kier said average month-end net debt for the 2019 financial year was £422m, with revenues £100m lower, and, after significant interest in its housing division, said it had started the sale process ( Guy Hands ' Terra Firma Capital Partners was later reported to be among the bidders to acquire Kier Living). It also announced the appointment of a new CFO, Simon Kesterton (adept at "the disposal of non-core assets,
4624-618: A wide variety of forms and types, ranging from telephone boxes and road signs, to castles. Historic England has created twenty broad categories of structures, and published selection guides for each one to aid with assessing buildings and structures. These include historical overviews and describe the special considerations for listing each category. However, in 2020, the Supreme Court ruled in Dill v Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and another that buildings in
4760-499: A £241m fund raise, with shares offered at 85p (a 17% discount to their then trading price). Following a successful £241m capital raise and Kier Living's sale, in September 2021, Kier announced it had scraped back into profitability, reporting a pre-tax profit of £5.6m in the year to 30 June 2021 on turnover of £3,329m. In a January 2022 trading update, Kier said it had more than halved its net debt from around £436m to below £200m, and
4896-613: A £264m rights issue , priced at 409p, to pay down net debts; Kier shares dropped almost 33%, cutting Kier's stock market value by £329m to £492m. The slide continued; on 5 December, Kier was demoted from the FTSE 250 Index , and its share price dropped below the rights issue price, making it cheaper for investors to buy shares in the open market than in the rights issue, and leaving underwriters ( Numis , Peel Hunt, Citigroup , HSBC and Santander ) facing losses. Shares were also subject to renewed 'shorting'. On 10 December, shares closed at 376.4p,
5032-410: Is a verb : the act of building, and the noun is construction: how something is built or the nature of its structure. In its most widely used context, construction covers the processes involved in delivering buildings , infrastructure , industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning , financing , and design that continues until
5168-802: Is a power devolved to the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government . The authority for listing rests with Historic Environment Scotland (formerly Historic Scotland ), an executive agency of the Scottish Government, which inherited this role from the Scottish Development Department in 1991. The listing system is administered by Historic Environment Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Ministers. Listed building consent must be obtained from local authorities before any alteration to
5304-441: Is not unusual for historic sites, particularly large sites, to contain buildings with multiple, sometimes varying, designations. For example, Derwent Valley Mills , a World Heritage Site contains 838 listed buildings, made up of 16 listed at Grade I, 42 at Grade II* and 780 at Grade II. A further nine structures are Scheduled monuments . Many councils, for example, Birmingham City Council and Crawley Borough Council , maintain
5440-552: Is possible but is rare. One example is Anmer Hall in Norfolk, which was listed in 1984 and de-listed in 1988. In an emergency, the local planning authority can serve a temporary " Building Preservation Notice " (BPN), if a building is in danger of demolition or alteration in such a way that might affect its historic character. This remains in force for six months until the Secretary of State decides whether or not to formally list
5576-405: Is the discipline of safely and efficiently tearing down buildings and other artificial structures . Demolition contrasts with deconstruction , which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for reuse purposes ( recycling – see also circular economy ). The output of the global construction industry was worth an estimated $ 10.8 trillion in 2017, and in 2018
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5712-937: Is the process of adding structures to areas of land, also known as real property sites. Typically, a project is instigated by or with the owner of the property (who may be an individual or an organisation); occasionally, land may be compulsorily purchased from the owner for public use. Residential construction may be undertaken by individual land-owners ( self-built ), by specialist housebuilders , by property developers , by general contractors , or by providers of public or social housing (e.g.: local authorities, housing associations ). Where local zoning or planning policies allow, mixed-use developments may comprise both residential and non-residential construction (e.g.: retail, leisure, offices, public buildings, etc.). Residential construction practices, technologies , and resources must conform to local building authority's regulations and codes of practice . Materials readily available in
5848-413: Is the second largest construction market with a 2018 output of $ 1.581 trillion. Construction is a major source of employment in most countries; high reliance on small businesses, and under-representation of women are common traits. For example: According to McKinsey research, productivity growth per worker in construction has lagged behind many other industries across different countries including in
5984-562: The Bronze Age , a class of professional craftsmen , like bricklayers and carpenters , appeared. Occasionally, slaves were used for construction work. In the Middle Ages , the artisan craftsmen were organized into guilds . In the 19th century, steam-powered machinery appeared, and later, diesel- and electric-powered vehicles such as cranes , excavators and bulldozers . Fast-track construction has been increasingly popular in
6120-540: The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to deliver the government policy on the protection to historic buildings and other heritage assets. The decision about whether or not to list a building is made by the Secretary of State, although the process is administered in England by Historic England . The listed building system in Wales formerly also operated under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, as in England, until this
6256-558: The Republic of Ireland , where buildings are protected under the Planning and Development Act 2000, although the statutory term in Ireland is " protected structure ". A listed building may not be demolished, extended, or altered without permission from the local planning authority, which typically consults the relevant central government agency. In England and Wales , a national amenity society must be notified of any work to be done on
6392-701: The Royal Institute of British Architects and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings were dispatched to prepare the list under the supervision of the Inspectorate of Ancient Monuments, with funding from the Treasury. The listings were used as a means to determine whether a particular building should be rebuilt if it was damaged by bombing, with varying degrees of success. In Scotland,
6528-932: The United Kingdom , a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England , Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland , Cadw in Wales , and the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland . The classification schemes differ between England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland (see sections below). The term has also been used in
6664-606: The United States and in European countries. In the United States, construction productivity per worker has declined by half since the 1960s. The twenty-five largest countries in the world by construction GVA (2018) Some workers may be engaged in manual labour as unskilled or semi-skilled workers; they may be skilled tradespeople; or they may be supervisory or managerial personnel. Under safety legislation in
6800-474: The architect , engineer or builder acts for the client as the project coordinator. They design the works, prepare specifications and design deliverables (models, drawings, etc.), administer the contract, tender the works, and manage the works from inception to completion. In parallel, there are direct contractual links between the client and the main contractor, who, in turn, has direct contractual relationships with subcontractors. The arrangement continues until
6936-414: The type of building , non-residential building construction can be procured by a wide range of private and public organisations, including local authorities, educational and religious bodies, transport undertakings, retailers, hoteliers, property developers, financial institutions and other private companies. Most construction in these sectors is undertaken by general contractors . Civil engineering covers
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#17327758102027072-581: The "vast majority of large construction projects go over budget and take 20% longer than expected". A construction project is a complex net of construction contracts and other legal obligations, each of which all parties must carefully consider. A contract is the exchange of a set of obligations between two or more parties, and provides structures to manage issues. For example, construction delays can be costly, so construction contracts set out clear expectations and clear paths to manage delays. Poorly drafted contracts can lead to confusion and costly disputes. At
7208-558: The 2008 draft legislation was abandoned, Historic England (then part of English Heritage) published a single list of all designated heritage assets within England in 2011. The National Heritage List for England is an online searchable database which includes 400,000 English Listings, this includes individual listed buildings, groups of multiple listed buildings which share the same listing, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, protected historic wrecks and registered battlefields and World Heritage Sites in one place. The 400,000 in
7344-461: The 21st century. Some estimates suggest that 40% of construction projects are now fast-track construction. Broadly, there are three sectors of construction: buildings, infrastructure and industrial: The industry can also be classified into sectors or markets. For example, Engineering News-Record ( ENR ), a US-based construction trade magazine, has compiled and reported data about the size of design and construction contractors. In 2014, it split
7480-447: The 21st-century introduction of building information modeling (BIM) processes has involved the use of computer-generated models that can be used in their own right or to generate drawings and other visualisations as well as capturing non-geometric data about building components and systems. On some projects, work on-site will not start until design work is largely complete; on others, some design work may be undertaken concurrently with
7616-763: The DCLG published Planning Policy Statement 5 , "Planning for the Historic Environment". This replaced PPG15 and set out the government's national policies on the conservation of the historic environment in England. PPS5 was supported by a Practice Guide, endorsed by the DCLG, the DCMS, and English Heritage, which explained how to apply the policies stated in PPS5. In December 2010, the Department for Communities and Local Government announced that in England all PPSs and Planning Policy Guidance Notes would be replaced by
7752-665: The Firestone demolition, the Secretary of State for the Environment , Michael Heseltine , also initiated a complete re-survey of buildings to ensure that everything that merited preservation was on the lists. In England, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) works with Historic England (an agency of the DCMS), and other government departments, e.g. Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and
7888-468: The Government's Heritage Protection Reform (HPR) report in July 2003 by the DCMS, entitled "Protecting our historic environment: Making the system work better", asked questions about how the current designation systems could be improved. The HPR decision report "Review of Heritage Protection: The Way Forward", a green paper published in June 2004 by the DCMS, committed the UK government and English Heritage to
8024-926: The North Terminal at Gatwick Airport completed in 1988, the Lesotho Highlands Water Project completed in 1998, Hairmyres Hospital completed in 2001, High Speed 1 completed in 2007, the Castlepoint shopping centre in Bournemouth in 2003, the UK Supreme Court in London completed in 2009 and Snowhill Phase 2 in Birmingham completed in 2009. Kier Group is also involved in HS2 lots C2 and C3, working as part of
8160-529: The Northern Irish group Mivan, which invested in real estate projects in Bucharest, requested bankruptcy protection due to debts of €20 million. In 2013, Kier acquired the services firm May Gurney for £221 million, becoming the then fourth largest contracting firm in the UK (behind Balfour Beatty , Carillion and Laing O'Rourke ). In June 2015 Kier completed the acquisition of Mouchel ,
8296-696: The UK's architectural heritage; England alone has 14,500 listed places of worship (4,000 Grade I, 4,500 Grade II* and 6,000 Grade II) and 45% of all Grade I listed buildings are places of worship. Some of the listed churches are no longer in use; between 1969 and 2010, some 1,795 churches were closed by the Church of England , equalling roughly 11% of the stock, with about a third listed as Grade I or Grade II. The criteria for listing include architectural interest, historic interest and close historical associations with significant people or events. Buildings not individually noteworthy may still be listed if they form part of
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#17327758102028432-599: The United Kingdom, for example, construction workers are defined as people "who work for or under the control of a contractor on a construction site"; in Canada, this can include people whose work includes ensuring conformance with building codes and regulations, and those who supervise other workers. Laborers comprise a large grouping in most national construction industries. In the United States, for example, in May 2021
8568-549: The architectural and historic interest. The Secretary of State, who may seek additional advice from others, then decides whether to list or delist the building. In England, the authority for listing is granted to the Secretary of State by the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 . Listed buildings in danger of decay are listed on the Historic England 'Heritage at Risk' Register . In 1980, there
8704-413: The area generally dictate the construction materials used (e.g.: brick versus stone versus timber ). Costs of construction on a per square meter (or per square foot) basis for houses can vary dramatically based on site conditions, access routes, local regulations, economies of scale (custom-designed homes are often more expensive to build) and the availability of skilled tradespeople. Depending upon
8840-554: The asset as an advanced technological system requiring close integration of many sub-systems and their individual components, including sustainability. For buildings, building engineering is an emerging discipline that attempts to meet this new challenge. Traditionally, design has involved the production of sketches , architectural and engineering drawings , and specifications . Until the late 20th century, drawings were largely hand- drafted ; adoption of computer-aided design (CAD) technologies then improved design productivity, while
8976-415: The asset is built and ready for use. Construction also covers repairs and maintenance work, any works to expand, extend and improve the asset, and its eventual demolition , dismantling or decommissioning . The construction industry contributes significantly to many countries' gross domestic products ( GDP ). Global expenditure on construction activities was about $ 4 trillion in 2012. In 2022, expenditure on
9112-419: The budget on the job, and a construction manager , design engineer , construction engineer or architect supervises it. Those involved with the design and execution must consider zoning requirements and legal issues, environmental impact of the project, scheduling , budgeting and bidding , construction site safety , availability and transportation of building materials , logistics, and inconvenience to
9248-557: The building. Until the passing of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 an application for a Certificate of Immunity from Listing (CoI) could only be made if planning permission was being sought or had been obtained in England. However, the changes brought about by the Act means that now anyone can ask the Secretary of State to issue a Certificate of Immunity in respect of a particular building at any time. In England and Wales,
9384-447: The client enters into separate contracts with the designer (architect or engineer), a construction manager , and individual trade contractors . The client takes on the contractual role, while the construction or project manager provides the active role of managing the separate trade contracts, and ensuring that they complete all work smoothly and effectively together. This approach is often used to speed up procurement processes, to allow
9520-410: The client greater flexibility in design variation throughout the contract, to enable the appointment of individual work contractors, to separate contractual responsibility on each individual throughout the contract, and to provide greater client control. In the industrialized world, construction usually involves the translation of designs into reality. Most commonly (i.e.: in a design-bid-build project),
9656-548: The closure of Tempsford Hall to 30 April (head office functions were transferred to Manchester in mid April), and paused the sale of its housebuilding business, Kier Living (though Terra Firma revived talks about buying Kier Living in December 2020). Kier also closed its Reading office with the loss of up to 40 jobs. On 1 July 2020, Kier announced it was considering a further rights issue to raise cash as average net debt had risen due to COVID-19 impacts; average month-end net debt
9792-433: The company scraped back into profit in 2021. It remains listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index . The company was founded by Jorgen Lotz and Olaf Kier , Danish engineers, under the name Lotz & Kier in 1928, and it was based in Stoke-on-Trent . A few years later Lotz withdrew from the company, but Olaf Kier retained a semblance of his identity by including Lotz's initials in
9928-627: The company. In November 2019, Kier and subsidiary McNicholas Construction Services were suspended from the Prompt Payment Code for "failing to honour a commitment to pay 95% of all supplier invoices within 60 days". Kier Construction was reinstated in December 2019; Kier Highways and Kier Infrastructure & Overseas were reinstated in June 2020; Kier Integrated Services was reinstated in August 2020, but McNicholas Construction Services remained suspended until December 2020. In May 2022, Kier
10064-533: The construction industry exceeded $ 11 trillion a year, equivalent to about 13 percent of global GDP . This spending was forecasted to rise to around $ 14.8 trillion in 2030. The construction industry promotes economic development and brings many non-monetary benefits to many countries, but it is one of the most hazardous industries. For example, about 20% (1,061) of US industry fatalities in 2019 happened in construction. The first huts and shelters were constructed by hand or with simple tools. As cities grew during
10200-675: The construction sector employed just over 7.5 million people, of whom just over 820,000 were laborers, while 573,000 were carpenters , 508,000 were electricians , 258,000 were equipment operators and 230,000 were construction managers. Like most business sectors, there is also substantial white-collar employment in construction – 681,000 US workers were recorded by the United States Department of Labor as in 'office and administrative support occupations' in May 2021. Large-scale construction requires collaboration across multiple disciplines. A project manager normally manages
10336-750: The data into nine market segments: transportation, petroleum , buildings, power, industrial, water, manufacturing, sewage/waste, telecom , hazardous waste , and a tenth category for other projects. ENR used data on transportation, sewage, hazardous waste and water to rank firms as heavy contractors. The Standard Industrial Classification and the newer North American Industry Classification System classify companies that perform or engage in construction into three subsectors: building construction, heavy and civil engineering construction, and specialty trade contractors. There are also categories for professional services firms (e.g., engineering , architecture , surveying , project management ). Building construction
10472-407: The decision to list a building may be made on the basis of the architectural or historic interest of one small part of the building, the listing protection nevertheless applies to the whole building. Listing applies not just to the exterior fabric of the building itself, but also to the interior, fixtures, fittings, and objects within the curtilage of the building even if they are not fixed. De-listing
10608-426: The delivery of services by all businesses, alongside other detailed plans aimed at ensuring legal, timely, on-budget and safe delivery of the specified works. Design, finance, and legal aspects overlap and interrelate. The design must be not only structurally sound and appropriate for the use and location, but must also be financially possible to build, and legal to use. The financial structure must be adequate to build
10744-440: The design provided and must pay amounts that are legally owed. Legal structures integrate design with other activities and enforce financial and other construction processes. These processes also affect procurement strategies. Clients may, for example, appoint a business to design the project, after which a competitive process is undertaken to appoint a lead contractor to construct the asset ( design–bid–build ); they may appoint
10880-451: The design team is employed by (i.e. in contract with) the property owner. Depending upon the type of project, a design team may include architects , civil engineers , mechanical engineers , electrical engineers , structural engineers , fire protection engineers , planning consultants , architectural consultants, and archaeological consultants. A 'lead designer' will normally be identified to help coordinate different disciplinary inputs to
11016-821: The design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment , including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, tunnels, airports, water and sewerage systems, pipelines, and railways. Some general contractors have expertise in civil engineering; civil engineering contractors are firms dedicated to work in this sector, and may specialise in particular types of infrastructure. Industrial construction includes offshore construction (mainly of energy installations: oil and gas platforms , wind power ), mining and quarrying , refineries , breweries , distilleries and other processing plants, power stations , steel mills , warehouses and factories . Some construction projects are small renovations or repair jobs, like repainting or fixing leaks, where
11152-443: The desire to prevent indisputably bad phenomena, e.g. explosions or bridge collapses. Other legal requirements come from malum prohibitum considerations, or factors that are a matter of custom or expectation, such as isolating businesses from a business district or residences from a residential district. An attorney may seek changes or exemptions in the law that governs the land where the building will be built, either by arguing that
11288-456: The directors' pay report after CEO Andrew Davies’ pay package jumped by around 70%. His total pay rose to £2.245m for 2022 from £1.323m in 2021. In September 2023, it was announced Kier had acquired the rail division of the UK construction company, Buckingham Group – which went into administration in August 2023. Buckingham's rail assets and its HS2 contract were purchased for £9.6 million. In
11424-535: The early stages of on-site activity (for example, work on a building's foundations may commence while designers are still working on the detailed designs of the building's internal spaces). Some projects may include elements that are designed for off-site construction (see also prefabrication and modular building ) and are then delivered to the site ready for erection, installation or assembly. Once contractors and other relevant professionals have been appointed and designs are sufficiently advanced, work may commence on
11560-412: The first feature of the permanent structure has been put in place, such as pile driving, or the pouring of slabs or footings. Commissioning is the process of verifying that all subsystems of a new building (or other assets) work as intended to achieve the owner's project requirements and as designed by the project's architects and engineers. A period after handover (or practical completion) during which
11696-624: The group's hedging activities, and £40.2m in relation to development assets held for resale. It also warned of £25m of additional costs on its Broadmoor Hospital redevelopment. Shares fell by 12% to 437p. (Kier's auditor PwC was later investigated by the Financial Reporting Council over a £40m accounting error, and in June 2022 was fined £1.96m for failing to adequately challenge revenue and costs recognised by Kier's management on large, complex long-term construction contracts.) On 20 March 2019, Kier's half-year results showed
11832-602: The highest grade, as follows: There was formerly a non-statutory Grade III , which was abolished in 1970. Additionally, Grades A, B and C were used mainly for Anglican churches in active use, loosely corresponding to Grades I, II and III. These grades were used mainly before 1977, although a few buildings are still listed using these grades. In 2010, listed buildings accounted for about 2% of English building stock. In March 2010, there were about 374,000 list entries, of which 92% were Grade II, 5.5% were Grade II* and 2.5% were Grade I. Places of worship are an important part of
11968-809: The liquidation of rival Carillion in January 2018, Kier took on some Carillion staff and contracts: 150 Carillion workers employed on smart motorway joint ventures became Kier employees; 51 Carillion employees working on seven HS2 civil engineering packages awarded to the CEK joint venture were allowed to join Kier/ Eiffage . However, because Kier shared characteristics that contributed to Carillion's collapse – problem contracts, rising debts, and use of reverse factoring supply chain finance – City hedge funds began to ' short ' Kier's shares; 10.9% were shorted by 30 August 2018, later rising to 18%, though Kier's position
12104-410: The listing should not be confused with the actual number of listed buildings, which will be much larger than the listing, because a listing can include more than one building that share the same listing number. The legislative frameworks for each type of historic asset remains unchanged. A photographic library of English listed buildings was started in 1999 as a snapshot of buildings listed at the turn of
12240-536: The management of listed buildings is the responsibility of local planning authorities and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (i.e., not DCMS, which originally listed the building). There is a general principle that listed buildings are put to 'appropriate and viable use' and recognition that this may involve the re-use and modification of the building. However, listed buildings cannot be modified without first obtaining Listed Building Consent through
12376-1182: The organisation's new name, J.L. Kier & Co Ltd , which remained the company's principal title for over four decades. By the late 1930s Kier had moved its head office to Belgravia in Westminster , and thereby became neighbours to many of Britain's leading construction engineering consultants and contractors, who had formed a substantial coterie in Westminster for professionals and businessmen engaged in civil engineering. Immediate neighbours included Marples Ridgeway (builders of Hammersmith Flyover ) and Edmund Nuttall (builders of both Mersey road tunnels ). During its first 35 years, Kier became identified with certain civil engineering specialisms, such as contiguous cylindrical reinforced concrete grain silos and cement silos, using continuously sliding formwork; commencing with those at Barking in 1929, followed by grain silos at Northampton, Peterborough, Melksham, Gloucester and Witham; and cement silos at Norwich, Cambridge, Trinidad, and in India. Such specialist work
12512-486: The overall budget is adequate, presenting a temporary issue. Cost overruns with government projects have occurred when the contractor identified change orders or project changes that increased costs, which are not subject to competition from other firms as they have already been eliminated from consideration after the initial bid. Fraud is also an issue of growing significance within construction. Large projects can involve highly complex financial plans and often start with
12648-441: The overall design. This may be aided by integration of previously separate disciplines (often undertaken by separate firms) into multi-disciplinary firms with experts from all related fields, or by firms establishing relationships to support design-build processes. The increasing complexity of construction projects creates the need for design professionals trained in all phases of a project's life-cycle and develop an appreciation of
12784-409: The owner may act as designer, paymaster and laborer for the entire project. However, more complex or ambitious projects usually require additional multi-disciplinary expertise and manpower, so the owner may commission one or more specialist businesses to undertake detailed planning, design, construction and handover of the work. Often the owner will appoint one business to oversee the project (this may be
12920-405: The owner may identify any shortcomings in relation to the building specification ('defects'), with a view to the contractor correcting the defect. Maintenance involves functional checks, servicing, repairing or replacing of necessary devices, equipment, machinery , building infrastructure, and supporting utilities in industrial, business, governmental, and residential installations. Demolition
13056-478: The owner's equity in the property is the most obvious source of funding for a building project. Accountants act to study the expected monetary flow over the life of the project and to monitor the payouts throughout the process. Professionals including cost engineers, estimators and quantity surveyors apply expertise to relate the work and materials involved to a proper valuation. Financial planning ensures adequate safeguards and contingency plans are in place before
13192-671: The owners are often required to use specific materials or techniques. Although most sites appearing on the lists are buildings, other structures such as bridges, monuments, sculptures, war memorials, milestones and mileposts , and the Abbey Road zebra crossing made famous by the Beatles , are also listed. Ancient, military, and uninhabited structures, such as Stonehenge , are sometimes instead classified as scheduled monuments and are protected by separate legislation. Cultural landscapes such as parks and gardens are currently "listed" on
13328-454: The post on 15 April 2019). On 28 January 2019, Kier shares dropped 4% after reports it would sell its housing maintenance arm to cut debt, and the company was also reducing its waste management activities. On 11 March 2019, Kier revised its average net debt for the six months to December 2018 by over £50m from £130m to £180.5m, raising average month-end net debt over the period from £370m to £430m. These revisions followed £10.3m in adjustments to
13464-520: The process slightly predated the war with the Marquess of Bute (in his connections to the National Trust for Scotland ) commissioning the architect Ian Lindsay in September 1936 to survey 103 towns and villages based on an Amsterdam model using three categories (A, B and C). The basis of the current more comprehensive listing process was developed from the wartime system. It was enacted by
13600-414: The project brief and then selects a preferred supplier. Often this will be a consortium involving a design firm and a contractor (sometimes more than one of each). In the United States, departments of transportation usually use design-build contracts as a way of progressing projects where states lack the skills or resources, particularly for very large projects. In a construction management arrangement,
13736-435: The project is ready for handover. Design-build became more common from the late 20th century, and involves the client contracting a single entity to provide design and construction. In some cases, the design-build package can also include finding the site, arranging funding and applying for all necessary statutory consents. Typically, the client invites several Design & Build (D&B) contractors to submit proposals to meet
13872-405: The project is started, and ensures that the plan is properly executed over the life of the project. Construction projects can suffer from preventable financial problems. Underbids happen when builders ask for too little money to complete the project. Cash flow problems exist when the present amount of funding cannot cover the current costs for labour and materials; such problems may arise even when
14008-528: The project site. Typically, a construction site will include a secure perimeter to restrict unauthorised access, site access control points, office and welfare accommodation for personnel from the main contractor and other firms involved in the project team, and storage areas for materials, machinery and equipment. According to the McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction's definition, construction may be said to have started when
14144-745: The project will be located) for its potential impacts on neighbouring properties, and upon existing infrastructure (transportation, social infrastructure, and utilities including water supply, sewerage, electricity, telecommunications, etc.). Data may be gathered through site analysis , site surveys and geotechnical investigations . Construction normally cannot start until planning permission has been granted, and may require preparatory work to ensure relevant infrastructure has been upgraded before building work can commence. Preparatory works will also include surveys of existing utility lines to avoid damage-causing outages and other hazardous situations. Some legal requirements come from malum in se considerations, or
14280-594: The public, including those caused by construction delays . Some models and policy-making organisations promote the engagement of local labour in construction projects as a means of tackling social exclusion and addressing skill shortages. In the UK, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation reported in 2000 on 25 projects which had aimed to offer training and employment opportunities for locally based school leavers and unemployed people. The Foundation published "a good practice resource book" in this regard at
14416-547: The reduction of overheads and cost control"). On 19 September 2019, Kier announced a £245m pre-tax loss on revenues of £4.5bn for the year to 30 June 2019, resulting from £341m in impairment costs and write-downs related to preparing businesses for sale, restructuring and loss-making contracts. The continuing restructuring had resulted in over 751 lay-offs, with a further 450 roles set to be axed. Group chairman Philip Cox stepped down, replaced by former Royal Mail FD Matthew Lester from 1 January 2020. In October 2019, Kier announced it
14552-539: The relevant local planning authority. In Wales, applications are made using a form obtained from the relevant local authority. There is no provision for consent to be granted in outline. When a local authority is disposed to grant listed building consent, it must first notify the Welsh Parliament ( i.e. Cadw ) of the application. If the planning authority decides to refuse consent, it may do so without any reference to Cadw. Carrying out unauthorised works to
14688-571: The responsibility for the listing process rests with the Historic Environment Division of the Department for Communities , which took over the built heritage functions of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (formerly the Environment and Heritage Service) following the break up of the Department of the Environment. Following the introduction of listing, an initial survey of Northern Ireland's building stock
14824-579: The rest of the UK: the first provision for listing was contained in the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1972; and the current legislative basis for listing is the Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991. Under Article 42 of the Order, the relevant Department of the Northern Ireland Executive is required to compile lists of buildings of "special architectural or historic interest". Since 2016,
14960-451: The rights issue price, on 6 June. Shares fell by over a third on 14 June, closing at 130.8p, after reports that Kier was looking to sell its housebuilding division. On 17 June 2019, Kier confirmed the housing division sale, plans to wind down its property business, and a planned exit of the facilities management and environmental services markets. CEO Andrew Davies's business review included 1,200 job cuts. Kier's share price fell 17% to 108p,
15096-470: The sale of Kier Living continued, with Kier hoping to receive around £100m for the business to help reduce debt; and Kier was aiming to make at least £105m in cost savings by the end of the financial year. Kier Living's sale came ahead of the company's (delayed) half-year results in April 2021. On 6 April 2021, Sky News reported that Kier Living would be sold to Terra Firma, for £110m, subject to agreement at
15232-491: The same period, only this time in the building sector, Kier were in the vanguard of new reinforced concrete systems for use as framework for tall buildings. Their most famous contribution in this field was an eight-storey avant-garde development of apartment blocks named Highpoint , located in Highgate Village , north London. They were responsible for the reinforced concrete and general building. When this project
15368-662: The same time. Use of local labour and local materials were specified for the construction of the Danish Storebaelt bridge , but there were legal issues which were challenged in court and addressed by the European Court of Justice in 1993. The court held that a contract condition requiring use of local labour and local materials was incompatible with EU treaty principles . Later UK guidance noted that social and employment clauses, where used, must be compatible with relevant EU regulation. Employment of local labour
15504-456: The scheme must meet certain criteria – "a three-fold test which involved considering size, permanence and degree of physical attachment" – referred to as the Skerritts test in reference to a previous legal case in England. Both Historic Environment Scotland and Cadw produce guidance for owners. In England, to have a building considered for listing or delisting, the process is to apply to
15640-413: The secretary of state; this can be done by submitting an application form online to Historic England . The applicant does not need to be the owner of the building to apply for it to be listed. Full information including application form guidance notes are on the Historic England website. Historic England assesses buildings put forward for listing or delisting and provides advice to the Secretary of State on
15776-473: The start of a project, legal advisors seek to identify ambiguities and other potential sources of trouble in the contract structures, and to present options for preventing problems. During projects, they work to avoid and resolve conflicts that arise. In each case, the lawyer facilitates an exchange of obligations that matches the reality of the project. Design-bid-build is the most common and well-established method of construction procurement. In this arrangement,
15912-496: The world" (in 1970 both Highpoint blocks were classified Grade I listed buildings ). Olaf Kier sought to retain family leaders at the head of the organisation. However, his son by his first marriage was killed in a riding accident in 1945. Then, during the 1950s, Olaf's nephew, Mogens Kier, joined the firm's management structure, but did not progress to a leading position in the company. Olaf died in an accident in 1986, aged 87; and Mogens died in 2003. J.L. Kier & Co Ltd remained
16048-463: Was acquired by Beazer in 1986. After a period under the ownership of Hanson plc , it was bought out by its management in 1992, expanded its housing interests, and was relisted on the London Stock Exchange in 1996. During the early 21st century, it expanded through acquisitions, and, following the January 2018 collapse of rival Carillion , Kier was briefly ranked, by turnover, as the second biggest UK construction contractor, behind Balfour Beatty . It
16184-403: Was appointed chief executive in order to revive the group's fortunes. Following an abortive bid for Abbey in 1985, French Kier itself was the subject of a hotly contested bid by Beazer , which eventually succeeded in January 1986. Five years later (1991) Hanson plc bought Beazer plc and made an early decision to dispose of the contracting arm, now known simply as Kier . This was the subject of
16320-564: Was begun in 1974. By the time of the completion of this First Survey in 1994, the listing process had developed considerably, and it was therefore decided to embark upon a Second Survey, which is still ongoing, to update and cross-check the original information. Information gathered during this survey, relating to both listed and unlisted buildings, is entered into the publicly accessible Northern Ireland Buildings Database. A range of listing criteria, which aim to define architectural and historic interest, are used to determine whether or not to list
16456-407: Was completed in 1935 it became widely renowned as the finest example of this form of construction for residential purposes. When Le Corbusier himself visited Highpoint in 1935 he said, "This beautiful building .... at Highgate is an achievement of the first rank." And American critic Henry Russell Hitchcock called it, "One of the finest, if not absolutely the finest, middle-class housing projects in
16592-622: Was criticised by councillors for quoting "unaffordable" prices for simple highway maintenance roadworks in Suffolk . Kier workers operating machinery on a project on the M6 motorway near Sandbach , Cheshire twice brought down overhead powerlines, in incidents in March 2018 and January 2019. In January 2023, the company was fined £4.4m after pleading guilty to safety breaches at Manchester Crown Court. In June 2023, Kier subsidiary McNicholas Construction
16728-455: Was forecast to rise to $ 12.9 trillion by 2022, and to around $ 14.8 trillion in 2030. As a sector, construction accounts for more than 10% of global GDP (in developed countries , construction comprises 6–9% of GDP), and employs around 7% of the total employed workforce around the globe (accounting for over 273 million full- and part-time jobs in 2014). Since 2010, China has been the world's largest single construction market. The United States
16864-573: Was identified as one of several social issues which could potentially be incorporated in a sustainable procurement approach, although the interdepartmental Sustainable Procurement Group recognised that "there is far less scope to incorporate [such] social issues in public procurement than is the case with environmental issues". There are many routes to the different careers within the construction industry. There are three main tiers of construction workers based on educational background and training, which vary by country: Listed building In
17000-487: Was in progress, as was the process of closing Kier's head office, set to complete in June 2020. On 24 March 2020, as the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic became clear, Kier's board of directors took a three-month 20% pay cut, then, on 30 March, announced all 6,500 Kier employees would have their base salary reduced by between 7.5% and 25% for three months; it stepped up its cost reduction programme, bringing forward
17136-485: Was named for failing to pay staff the UK legal minimum wage. It was among the 10 worst offenders, failing to pay £170,517.57 to 704 workers. Construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science of forming objects , systems , or organizations . It comes from the Latin word constructio (from com- "together" and struere "to pile up") and Old French construction . To 'construct'
17272-470: Was not seen to be as risky as Carillion's. The 2018 results were in line with City expectations – showing a pre-tax profit of £137m from stable revenue of £4.5 billion – with Kier outlining clear debt reduction plans. On 15 November 2018, Kier announced the £24m sale of its Australian road assets business KHSA to joint venture partner Downer , saying sale proceeds would help reduce net debt – £624m at 31 October 2018. However, on 30 November, Kier announced
17408-508: Was on track to meet a medium term revenue target of £4–£4.5bn. Also in January 2022, Kier was reported to be in advanced talks to acquire rival contractor Tilbury Douglas , the remaining contracting arm of the former Interserve group, with speculation it might pay around £50m for the almost-£500m turnover business. However, Kier discontinued negotiations in March 2022. In the November 2022 company AGM, 44% of Kier shareholders voted against
17544-438: Was part of a pattern that quickly developed in the company's operations during that period, namely the undertaking of innovative civil engineering techniques. Other elements within this pattern were hyperbolic natural draft cooling towers (mostly around 300 ft high), monolithic concrete chimneys (sometimes over 400 ft high), complete power station structures, and coastal works such as tanker berths, docks and harbours. In
17680-437: Was public outcry at the sudden destruction of the art deco Firestone Tyre Factory ( Wallis, Gilbert and Partners , 1928–29). It was demolished over the August bank holiday weekend by its owners Trafalgar House , who had been told that it was likely to be 'spot-listed' a few days later. In response, the government undertook to review arrangements for listing buildings in order to protect worthy ones from such demolition. After
17816-507: Was replaced in 2024 with Wales-specific heritage legislation. In Wales, the authority for listing is granted to the Welsh Ministers by section 76 of the Historic Environment (Wales) Act 2023, although the listing system is in practice administered by Cadw . There have been several attempts to simplify the heritage planning process for listed buildings in England. As of 2021, few changes had been implemented. The review process
17952-676: Was selling its Tempsford Hall headquarters in Bedfordshire to raise cash from its property assets. At the group's AGM in November 2019, shareholders objected to CEO Andrew Davies's £2.6m annual remuneration package and an associated long-term incentive scheme. Half-year results announced on 5 March 2020 showed Kier made a pre-tax loss of £41.2m in the final six months of 2019 (marginally better than 2018's restated £45.3m loss); revenues were down 9% to £1,866m (2018: £2,053m). The cost-cutting process begun in 2018 had cut 1,200 jobs with another 50 set to leave by 30 June 2020. The sale of Kier Living
18088-516: Was started in February 2000 by Alan Howarth , then minister at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The outcome was the paper "Power of Place" in December 2000, followed by the subsequent policy document "The Historic Environment: A Force for Our Future", published by the DCMS and the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DTLR) in December 2001. The launch of
18224-644: Was that the existing registers of buildings, parks and gardens, archaeology and battlefields, maritime wrecks, and World Heritage Sites be merged into a single online register that will "explain what is special and why". English Heritage would become directly responsible for identifying historic assets in England and there would be wider consultation with the public and asset owners, and new rights of appeal. There would have been streamlined systems for granting consent for work on historic assets. After several years of consultation with heritage groups, charities, local planning authorities, and English Heritage, in March 2010,
18360-451: Was then a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index . However, its share price plunged following a failed rights issue in late 2018, and by mid 2019 was suffering such deep losses that analysts considered Kier might "go bust". After an extensive restructuring, debt reduction, cost-cutting and disposals programme, which included shedding 1,700 employees and selling its Bedfordshire headquarters and its public and private housebuilding arm, Kier Living,
18496-474: Was up from £395m in December 2019 to £440m, and could rise to £485m. Further job cuts were also likely. On 17 September 2020, Kier announced a £225.5m loss on the year to 30 June 2020, on revenues down 15% to £3,476m, with the fall partly due to COVID-19 impacts. Group headcount had been reduced by 1,700. Following this announcement, Kier shares sagged to 51.40p. In a January 2021 trading update, Kier said average monthly net debt remained around £436m; progress with
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