Marmox wound up its 25 th  anniversary year with a strong showing at London Build Expo (19-20 th  November), where the manufacturer’s original launch product proved its continuing relevance to the bathroom, wetroom and other sectors of the construction market, drawing interest from many amongst the thousands of attendees within the majestic setting of Olympia. While the coated XPS board, available in a wide range of thicknesses, continues to find applications as a tilebacker

By Aaron Morley, Contracts Manager at Ruskins The quality of a finished home begins with the ground it stands on. The soil beneath every development plays a critical role in the long-term stability and success of that property. Too often taken for granted, soil is the hidden risk that can determine whether a site thrives or fails. Poorly understood or mismanaged soil can cause subsidence, structural movement and damage to buildings, alongside surface problems such as flooding

Andy Lake, Sales Director at Pyroguard, explains how multi-functional fire safety glass can help architects and contractors navigate the complex requirements of modern building projects. Fire safety glass is specifically designed to withstand high temperatures and prevent the spread of flames, smoke and toxic gases, therefore protecting people, property and possessions in the unfortunate event of a fire. However, its capabilities extend far beyond just fire resistance.  In fa

A £170m production facility opened in Bristol this year by Etex to produce plasterboard for the Siniat brand has been named Global Gypsum Plant of the Year.   Achieving international recognition, the new plasterboard line was singled out at the industry’s high-profile Global Gypsum Awards, which recognise innovation and excellence in the gypsum industry.   Opened in March this year, the production line has been designed to deliver efficiency and to support sustainable manufac

SCOTLAND has the chance to lead the way in housing innovation say industry bosses who were invited to present their solutions to the Scottish Parliament. VASO by Eco, based in Dumfries and Galloway, presented its industrialised construction innovation to the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group for Housing. VASO by Eco is a world-leading circular housebuilding innovation which creates building solutions from structural composite panels manufactured from recycled glass, pro

RAUVIPEX, REHAU UK’s pre-insulated district heating pipework solution, has won in the ‘Commercial HVAC Product of the Year – Components and Peripherals’ category at the 2025 Heating & Ventilating News Awards. RAUVIPEX stood out to the judges for its technical excellence and contribution to improved efficiency and sustainability for heat networks. The judging panel also noted how RAUVIPEX’s design demonstrates strong innovation, reliability and had addressed feedback from desi

ACO Water Management has supplied two bespoke attenuation tanks to keep a major new data centre running smoothly and safe from flooding.   With data centres becoming critical pieces of infrastructure in an ever-more digitalised world, these gigantic buildings are now emerging across the globe, and, given their purpose, avoiding failure or damage to is non-negotiable. However, as part of one data centre construction project in Ireland, it was found that existing surface water

Josh Owen of the Rinnai Technical Design looks at some possibilities coming out of the forthcoming EPC scheme.   Plans to ensure that all rented properties across the UK will have a minimum EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) rating of C by 2030 are underway. Presently, just over 2.5 million rented properties maintain a rating in between D and G. This could offer a major business boost to the UK HVAC industry with an unprecedented commercial opportunity that could stimulate

Andy Sutton, co-founder and Chief Innovation Officer at Sero, shares his outlook on the key developments that will shape social housing retrofit in 2026. 2026: Time to get on the right boat  I believe 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for the UK’s journey to Net Zero. Right now, the energy and construction sectors are moving on different trajectories, and unless we bring them together, we risk losing impact.  The energy sector is already out at sea, accelerating toward

The most recent government data shows that the UK is monitoring more high-rise buildings with potential cladding risks than ever before, yet fewer are actually entering remediation.  Property Inspect UK  is now warning that the widening gap between identification and action reflects a persistent structural issue in how remediation is managed, verified, and delivered.   As of October 2025 (latest available data), a total of 5,570 residential buildings over 11 metres tall are b

SmartThings Pro  is a software solution suitable for commercial buildings and any multi-site residential or retail space, designed to control multiple devices and monitor energy usage from a single dashboard.   At first glance, the application proves that Samsung has put action into words when designing the platform. With its user-friendly interface, SmartThings Pro enables users to manage multiple sites and review the operating status of various HVAC and IoT devices across d

Abode , award-winning designer and distributor of market leading kitchen sinks and mixer taps, boiling water taps, bathroom taps and showering solutions provide expert advice on the most popular bathroom trends influencing both home and lifestyle in 2026.   Dave Boddy, Product Manager at Abode  has identified three top trends for the basin, bath and shower zone next year, and these include:   1. Off-white: Move over all-white sanitaryware as next year, the bath and basin will

TerraQuest , the operator of Planning Portal, says an agile footing will continue to be critical to property industry success as it unveils a report distilling the key real estate trends built environment professionals need to know for 2026.    The report brings together insights from across land, property and planning to give an overview of the state of the residential and commercial markets. Coming at a pivotal moment for the UK real estate sector as the government’s planni

Shoreham Beach House is a private development in Sussex designed using Passivhaus principlies and the Schöck Isokorb T type S. Specify & Build reports. Shoreham Beach House is a private residential development at Shoreham-by-Sea in Sussex. Jim Miller Design, a leading architectural practice based in Hove, has designed the project using Passivhaus principles. One of the challenges of the project involved the extensive number of connections between the internal and external ste

CARLISLE Construction Materials is celebrating success at the 2025 NFRC Scottish Roofing Awards, after project partner Site Group won the Green Roofing category for the Tynecastle Student Accommodation project in Edinburgh, which features CARLISLE’s high-performance RESITRIX waterproofing system. The winners were revealed at a ceremony held at The Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow, recognising outstanding achievements and innovation across Scotland’s roofing industry. The redeve