What a system...!

Judging by the reaction to the alternative brick distribution system highlighted in the last newsletter, I thought you might be interested in this even more unusual way of passing bricks through the system

…..maybe I could tempt him to a bite-sized version…… ‘Gebrik Lite’?

Where has 2010 gone……?

2010 seems to have come and gone in a bit of a blur! Certainly there’s been a huge amount of change in the year - not least with the new coalition government, its comprehensive spending reviews and revised budgets.

Despite the merry-go-round of initiatives, investment plans and budget cuts, we’ve actually seen a number of significant projects move from design through construction to completion. Click here to read more about a wide range projects that we have completed during the year.

I’ve no doubt that 2011 will bring an equally interesting set of challenges – and that the year will go by just as quickly and be every bit as eventful as 2010!! So on behalf of everyone here at Aquarian Cladding, may I sincerely thank you for your support and interest in 2010 and wish you a very happy Christmas, followed by a healthy and prosperous New Year.

Back to school for the new 3R's

So now we know that local authorities have had their allocations for their Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) for 2011-12 and it appears to be good news! I understand that no authority will lose more than 2 per cent of its budget in cash terms compared with 2010-11, which hopefully means the local authorities can now start working with their schools to plan how they are to spend it.

With spending money on school estates in mind, I was interested to see a booklet recently produced by the British Council for School Environments (BCSE), which looks at the opportunities for refurbishing existing schools under the heading of 'Refresh, Refurbish and Re-use'. As we all know, the BSF programme for new build is dead and whilst we wait until January for the findings, courtesy of the James Review, combined with the increasing need to reduce carbon emissions and the drive to increase the number of independent academies, this publication provides some excellent reasons and benefits for refurbishing the existing stock. To download a copy visit https://www.bsria.co.uk/bookshop/books/rethinking-schools-capital-investment-the-new-3rs-refresh-refurbish-reuse/

(Incidentally these two photos were taken before and after a school in Eastleigh was refurbished with Gebrik. Visit our case studies page for more details)