Director’s welcome
Welcome to the winter edition of our quarterly newsletter, which contains a roundup of construction news across all areas of our business: automotive, commercial, education, healthcare and residential. I hope you find this newsletter of interest and would be delighted to help with any enquiries you may have.
Plenty of things continue to change for all of us since our previous newsletter – second national lockdown, tier systems, evolving guidelines… the list goes on – so, in some respects, not much has changed at all. We have become more used to continuous changes in our lives and in business to adjust to our new world. Adapting to change, based on external factors, is an important aspect of a business to identify new opportunities, and I believe our team has met this challenge. We have seen an encouraging increase in activity in specific construction sectors and growing confidence through enquiries from our construction partners.
I am pleased to announce we have just recently been awarded a new education contract at a school in Wood Green, London, which further demonstrates our expertise within this sector – lookout for a full announcement on our website and on social media. Our team is also making great progress at Chelmsford County High School for Girls which is reported on below, including drone footage captured in the summer.
We currently have several healthcare contracts underway, including sites at Dartford, Maidstone and Woodbridge. The new care home in Dartford – a facility including 75 bedrooms – is nearing completion and now the wraps have been taken off the building, we are especially pleased with the results. We have also recently posted on social media the completed photos of Fornham House Care Home in Bury St Edmunds. More information about each of these projects and others is below.
We have seen recent research into the UK construction industry showing wide-spread inefficiencies and how it is behind other industries with the implementation of digital strategies to improve performance and to reduce risk. Industry evidence of construction projects not completing on time, on budget and on quality has grown and is regularly publicised in the press on particular high-profile projects. The spotlight is now on the construction industry to embrace more change and to deliver more confidence in projects to customers. This research to Horizon Construction is very timely. Over the last 12 months, we have successfully implemented a digital strategy on the basis of delivering new efficiencies in our commercial and financial processes in construction. We are looking forward to further demonstrating the benefits to our clients. The full article about our digital strategy is in the “Latest News” section below.
Following the recent announcement of ISO certification in construction management systems (ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001), our team is actively engaged in exploring public sector projects and framework agreements, so watch this space for announcements in 2021.
Over the last 3 months, we have launched targeted sector-specific campaigns. Videos from our residential and automotive campaigns are included below to demonstrate our expertise in those areas. We have seen a rise in enquiries and, again, look forward to announcements next year.
In light of social restrictions, we have missed not having our traditional gatherings at this time of year. Instead, we are proud to support two charities this Christmas: St Helena Hospice in Colchester and MDS UK Patient Support Group. See “Latest News” section below for more information, as well as how to get involved.
Finally, and very importantly, on behalf of us all at Horizon Construction, we wish you good health, a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Thank you for supporting us this year and we are looking forward to our time ahead.
Phil Holding
Managing Director
Our Christmas video to you
Automotive and residential construction expertise
These short videos demonstrate our expertise within a broad range of completed construction projects across automotive and residential sectors.
Project updates
Horizon Construction undertake construction projects valued between £500k and £8m.
Residential: Chelmsford, Essex
All construction works on Railway Street in Chelmsford will soon be completed. The project involved the construction of 14 apartments in the city centre. The newly named “The Signal Yard” is in a lovely location near to the railway station and our client, Brodie Property Group, is underway with sales activity.
Our construction partners included Arcady Architects and Daniel Connal Partnership.
Residential: Wix, Essex
Our team is in the advanced stages of the residential development in Wix, Essex. Construction work is being completed and all 11 houses will soon be ready for their new owners. We were pleased to be selected by Northeast Real Estate Development, a large Chinese developer, to deliver their first construction project in the UK.
Our team enjoyed working on this project with Colchester-based architects, Duncan Clark & Beckett.
Healthcare: Dartford Care Home, Kent
Our healthcare construction contract in Dartford to build a 5-storey, 78-bedroom bespoke care home for Bostall Group is in its final phases of completion. The wraps have come off to show a really impressive building. We are looking forward to showing you more photos of the finished project in the new year.
Healthcare: Woodbridge Care Home, Suffolk
Site works commenced in Woodbridge during May on a £6m contract to create a 2-storey, 55-bedroom bespoke care home for Angel Care. The basement has been installed and the superstructure is advancing. We are pleased to be working on another healthcare construction project with DWA Architects.
Healthcare: Maidstone Care Home, Kent
During the summer, Horizon Construction was awarded a £7.3m healthcare construction contract for a new 72-bedroom care home in Maidstone, Kent, for Oakland Care. Our team is well underway with groundworks, the substructure and core infrastructure. We are delighted to be part of a project delivery team which includes Aedifice Partnership, ADG Architects and WA Consulting Engineers.
Education: Chelmsford County High School for Girls, Essex
Construction works at Chelmsford County High School for Girls to create a new sports hall and teaching block, including other extensive alterations to the site, is progressing well. This £5.2m contract is due to complete in September 2021 and we are pleased to be working with an excellent team at PCH Associates.
Automotive: BMW & MINI Sales and Aftersales Facility, Surrey
The new showroom and servicing centre in Hindhead, Surrey, for Group 1 Automotive is due to open in the new year. We are proud to include this project within our extensive portfolio of automotive construction projects and further demonstrates our expertise in this sector. The delivery team included Bruce Shaw, Taylor Design Architects, D&d Building Services Consulting Engineers and MNP.
See our video of a broad range of completed automotive projects.
Commercial: Essex Wildlife Trust, Langdon
The construction of a new visitor centre at the Langdon Nature Reserve for Essex Wildlife Trust has been completed and is due to be officially opened in the new year. The natural look of materials used throughout the building (designed by GROW Architects) has created a truly bespoke and special commercial facility. We look forward to sharing with you the final photos of this project in our next newsletter, including the publicity about its opening.
Completed projects
The following project has been completed since the previous edition of our newsletter. As indicated above, we are expecting to show you a number of newly completed projects in the next edition.
Healthcare: Fornham House Care Home, Bury St Edmunds
Horizon Construction was delighted to deliver a £1.7m extension, which included new 17 bedrooms and associated facilities, to an existing care home for our longstanding client, Healthcare Homes. We were also pleased to feature in local press sources about its opening.
See full project profile of Fornham House Care Home.
Latest news
Follow us on social media to stay up-to-date with our latest news and announcements, including construction projects and job vacancies. Our LinkedIn company page now has over 2,500 followers.
The following is a selection of news on our website since the previous edition of the newsletter:
- Corporate news: “Digital strategy positions the company for the future”… Read article
- Corporate news: “Fundraising for blood cancer charity this Christmas”… Read article
- Corporate news: “Supporting St Helena Hospice at Christmas”… Read article
- Insight: “Confidence in Construction”… Read article
- Corporate news: “ISO Certified in Construction Management Systems”… Read article
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