The GMB union has called for construction firms to come clean on the “disgraceful and immoral” blacklisting of workers, following revelations that the information watchdog left up to 90 per cent of potential evidence untouched during its investigation.

The GMB told CN that it hopes to start work over the next week to track down its members among more than 3,000 people listed by the Information Commissioner’s Office as potentially having been blacklisted by contractors.

Meanwhile, UCATT told CN it was was in “ongoing discussions” with the ICO to establish which of its members might be on the blacklist.

NEWCASTLE based Northern Construction Training Group has signed a new contract with Tyne Metropolitan College, which follows a successful partnership in 2011-12.

The one-year contract will give up to 40 students aged 16-18 the opportunity to complete the Level 2 Diploma in bricklaying or joinery from September 2012.

Northern Construction Training Group will deliver the Level 2 Diploma in Bricklaying or Joinery to help students achieve a useful, practical, stand-alone qualification, with on-site work experience making them more attractive to potential employers in the construction industry.

Creating good construction data that can be extended out across the full lifecycle of a facility continues to be among the hottest trends in the AEC (architecture, engineering, construction) market today. Companies looking to integrate data throughout this process are finding more options at their disposal thanks to technology companies becoming more involved in the FM (facilities management) process.

The latest comes via an acquisition, as Idox plc, www.idoxgroup.com, London, England, the parent company of McLaren Software, www.mclarensoftware.com, Houston, Texas, announces a merger with FMx Ltd., which provides CAFM (computer-aided facilities management) software. Ideally suited for companies that own and manage corporate, public, and commercial real estate, FMx Ltd., provides a solution targeted at all aspects of an operational facility. This includes building maintenance, asset tracking, space planning, room and resource booking, estates management, and cost control.

In 2002 when the trio of Robert Silvera, Vaughn Morris and William Tavares-Finson started Seal Sprayed Solutions, they had moved into what, at best, could be described as a patchy business.

The few practitioners who held the roofing repair industry together then took on only specific jobs - "mostly large commercial ones", which meant there were long periods of inactivity.

"They just came, did that job and disappeared." So the three men saw "a void", said Silvera, who had already had several years' experience with the product while working with the Jamaica Broilers Group.

Symantec is building a security operations center at its Springfield facility to meet a growing demand for storing sensitive data, company officials say.

The computer security and data storage company said construction should be finished by November on the nearly 3,400-square-foot center, The Register-Guard newspaper reported Saturday.

The center will be staffed by about a dozen employees who will work in shifts around the clock, 365 days a year. It's unclear whether those workers will be new hires.

CONSTRUCTION students in County Durham are being given the chance to put theory into practice after housing developer Keepmoat offered experience placements.

The company has invited students from East Durham College’s Technical Academy for Construction to spend time working alongside its own experienced staff.

And with Doncaster-based Keepmoat, which has around 100 staff in its North East offices, carrying out improvements to local properties on behalf of East Durham Homes, there have been plenty of opportunities for the youngsters to put their skills to the test.

The past two weeks have brought forth some rather market-changing news on the U.S. carrier front. Separate deals involving Sprint, www.sprint.com, Overland Park, Kan., and T-Mobile, www.t-mobile.com, Bellevue, Wash., have the potential of shaking up the way voice and data services are delivered to businesses—construction included.

First the T-Mobile news, which came down roughly two weeks ago, which proposes a deal that would merge T-Mobile USA with MetroPCS, www.metropcs.com, according to the parent companies of each, Deutsche Telekom, www.telekom.com, and MetroPCS Communications, respectively. Under the new deal the companies would create a company that would keep the T-Mobile name, and become what it calls a “value carrier” focused on competing on value.

The Tarmac Pavement Solutions division is being launched within Tarmac’s national contracting business to produce and supply cement-bound and recycled materials.

Its aim is to counter the soaring price of bitumen, which has risen 60 per cent in two years.

The move follows a backlash from contractors in March against the formulas used in contracts to determine the price of building materials.

COVENTRY: Jewson has enhanced its roofing offer across the South East with an added value design solutions service to help customers, with all roofing requirements, every step of the way.

Jewson’s Roof Design Solutions service means that in just three steps customers can visit www.jewson.co.uk/trusses and upload their requirements for trusses. Users will then receive a full list of products and prices that can be delivered from their local branch within five days.

Securing construction sites is one of the main challenges for most house builders, Swan New Homes has chosen Clarke Construction Security (CCSec) to provide comprehensive technology based site security throughout the building of its new Oldchurch Park development in Romford, Essex.

Oldchuch Park in Romford, Essex consists of 376 apartments and houses with a mixed tenure of private, rented and shared ownership.  It is anticipated to be a three year project with the first construction phase already underway.