The British Woodworking Federation Group

Key dates for your joinery manufacturing business in 2016

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Posted By
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28/01/2016

With last year showing steady growth and a maturing market in the joinery and woodworking industry, it’s been a promising couple of years for the industry. Product sales volumes have remained healthy on the whole since Q2 2014 and current market research indicates that the market share enjoyed by premium window materials such as wood is expected to grow at the expense of PVC-u.

Key dates for your joinery manufacturing business in 2016The recent closure of bespoke door manufacturer Leaderflush Shapland should help guard against complacency – cashflow and fair payment are still major concerns for many joinery businesses, with raw material costs still rising, albeit slower than previously. The availability and cost of appropriately skilled labour also remains a burden for the sector and uncertainty remains over whether the UK construction industry has the skills to match demand.

So what will 2016 bring? With plenty already in the calendar for this year, below we have compiled some of the dates and events that your joinery manufacturing business should be aware of in 2016, but remember of course that we are only a phone call away to members. For further updated events and advice, don’t forget to visit our website or read our Join In member newsletter.
 

Throughout 2016: Pension Auto-enrolment. Visit our member auto-enrolment hub to find out the staging date for your business and more information on your duties.

January: BWF launches a series of E-Learning packages, in conjunction with the National Association of Shopfitters, covering Contract Procedures, Pre-Quals, BIM, Procurement and Setting Out.

1st February: New guidelines for sentences relating to health and safety offences and corporate manslaughter come into force. The Sentencing Council are part of an effort to provide a more universal system that punishes the worst offenders.

17 February: BWF Windows & Doors Tech Committee meeting:, London.

8-10 March: Ecobuild at the ExCeL, London. UK’s leading event for sustainable design and construction.

9 March: BWF Heritage & Conservation Group meeting.

14-18 March: National Apprentice Week

16 March: Chancellor George Osborne's Budget Statement

1 April: Compulsory National Living Wage introduced for all working people aged 25 and over. This will be set at £7.20 per hour. The minimum wage rates and apprentice rates will still apply for workers aged 24 and under.

The Government has indicated that the annual increase in the weekly rate of statutory sick pay, statutory maternity pay, statutory paternity pay, statutory adoption pay and statutory shared parental pay will not happen in 2016 due to a fall in the consumer prices index.

4 April: New BIM rules. All central government clients will be required to issue Employer Information Requirements (EIR) with tenders, setting out their BIM Level 2 information requirements on projects.

6 April: Income tax personal allowance increases to £11,000. Higher rate tax threshold increases to £43,000.

5 May: Scottish Parliament  elections, United Kingdom local elections and Mayoral elections including London, Bristol, Liverpool and Salford. The results of the polls could see new local and regional policies on issues such as housing, manufacturing and business rates. We have been delighted to see so many BWF members proactively raising the profile of the joinery industry in the wake of the 2015 elections so don't forget to use our manifesto and other tools to engage with your local political candidates.

18 May: Queen's Speech

23 June: Referendum on the United Kingdom's membership of the European Union

6 July: BWF Annual General Meeting and Members' Day Dinner

7 July: BWF Members’ Day 2016.

1 September: CE Marking of Fire Doorsets to be permitted (although this is now likely to be pushed back).

21 September: BWF Heritage & Conservation Group meeting: Details to be confirmed.

26 September-2 October: Fire Door Safety Week 2016.

2-5 October: W16 exhibition at the NEC, Birmingham.

4 October: BWF Annual Dinner and Awards 2016: Celebrating achievement by the rising stars of the industry and technical innovation, last year's event was an outstanding success and this year’s, which is co-located with W16 and is to take place at the National Motorcycle Museum, will again be a night to remember.

Further changes to look out for will be the forthcoming requirement for large companies to publish their payment practices, a consultation on extension of shared parental leave and pay to working grandparents, plus developments in the world of technical standards including a new PAS 24 (Enhanced security performance requirements for doorsets and windows in the UK) and additional work on BS 8214 (Code of Practice For Fire Door Assemblies) which should be out by end of the year. Below you can also see the forthcoming bank holiday dates for England & Wales in 2016:

25th March: Good Friday
28th March: Easter Monday
2nd May: Early May bank holiday
30th May: Spring bank holiday
29th August: Summer bank holiday
26th December: Boxing Day
27th December: Christmas Day (substitute day – Tuesday)

2017 will also see a number of notable events such as the introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy, which is set for April of that year.

We will of course be keeping you up to date as the year progresses, including more from our industry campaigns such as Health & Safety Hero. As part of your membership of BWF, we will continue to provide you with the resources you need to meet your technical, training, H & S and legal requirements and address current industry issues such as:

– How to satisfy the new Part Q  requirement for all accessible windows and doors in new homes need to be security-rated

– Ensuring that you don’t breach the new Consumer Rights and ADR rules

 

Posted By
site_admin
Member of Construction Products Association
National Specialist Contractors Council
Passive Fire Protection Federation
CITB
The Alliance for Sustainable Building Products