The ONS has released its Output in the Construction Industry figures for December and Q4 2013. These figures show that construction output in the final quarter of last year was up 0.2% when compared with Q3 2013. Output in December 2013 is also 2.0% higher than the previous month.  

With UK construction output showing growth, it has been predicted by Euro-Construct that overall construction output in Europe will grow in the period 2014 to 2016, following two years of contraction in 2012 & 2013. The growth will be moderate in 2014 with a forecasted increase of 0.9%, and more substantial increases of 1.8% in 2015 and 2.2% in 2016.

Markit/CIPS released their PMI data for February 2014. The Construction Managers Purchasing Index for February shows a slight fall since January 2014 from 64.6 to 62.6, but still remaining above the neutral value of 50.0. Survey respondents suggest that this slight drop is related to disruptions due to adverse weather conditions in February.

The Nationwide House Price Index reported that house prices increased by 0.6% in February 2014, and are 9.4% higher when compared to February 2013. This also shows that house prices are now 3% below the peak of 2007. The Halifax House Price Index reported that house prices in the 3 months to February 2014 were 2.1% higher than in the preceding 3 months to November 2013. They have also reported that house prices increased by 2.4% in February 2014, making this the eleventh monthly increase in the last year.

DECC has also announced an increase in the cashback payments under the Green Deal.  Assessments totalled 145,110 as at the end of January 2014. For the measure installed under ECO, 33% were for cavity wall insulation, under the Green Deal 31% covered boiler replacement for full details click here.

The Renewable Heat Incentive Roadshow visited Ecobuild 2014, and has a nationwide roadshow of events planned to educate consumers and installers about the scheme. DECC has just published the fourth quarterly forecast for the non-domestic RHI scheme, total forecast expenditure for the scheme stands at £79.2m. In summary this Government environmental scheme provides financial incentives to increase the uptake of renewable heat, with domestic and non-domestic working in parallel.

BIM remains high on the agenda, with the NBS reporting that failure to adopt BIM could affect consultants ability to work internationally, a reminder of the cultural change required around the adoption of BIM. With this in mind the Construction Products Association are launching BIM4M2, a sub-group for manufacturers, on the 28 March, for further information email andrina.dhillon@constructionproducts.org.uk The group will also work with other BIM4 groups to establish common standards, reduce duplication and deliver the benefits of BIM.

The CBI are conducting a business review of the government's construction pipeline as part of the wider delivery of Construction 2025. The Construction Pipeline Survey looks to understand more about how businesses currently uses the pipeline and what more can be done to improve its value and content, results will be shared with contributors and the wider industry.

The Zero Carbon Hub has released its latest report continuing the work on the Design versus As-Built Performance Gap project. It states that "Products with energy performance different to the intended design are being used on site without being fed back to the design team......typically foundation block work, lintels, windows and ventilation ductwork."