Page 1 of 2
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 5:57 pm
by DNgroundworks
Not been asked in a while, how are people doing for work? Ive been bust since this time last year, but things are going quiet.
Im hoping i should scrape through till xmas, after that...... i dunno.
Putting a "communal" utilities trench in 400 mtrs up a field at the minute.
900mm twin wall, perforated 100mm twinwall, 150mm underground waste, 50mm water, 32mm water, reinforced cable no duct, 3 phase cable ducted and bt duct, and my god its serious graft the end of the trench is like a bloody octopus.
Giles - youd like the plant mate, brand new 8t kubota and 5t taekuchi tracked swivel tip dumper 
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 6:34 pm
by GB_Groundworks
just need a klenex 
haha
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 6:40 pm
by DNgroundworks
ha ha not a bad job really, im enjoying it. we are connecting in to the land drains as we go up the field, the 900mm twinwall is connecting in to the new road gulleys, can all be quite difficult in a slippy trench. The 50mm main takes some handling as it comes off the roll, it flicked round yesterday and gave my man a black eye lol
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 7:00 pm
by Carberry
Been running about like a blue arsed fly for the last few months. Booked out well in advance all year. Sales for all aspects of my business have increased and I've expanded and started selling welding gas.
Stopped all landscaping advertising end of July.
Got 1 big job about to finish, soon as customer chooses coping and caps that he likes. Got 1-2 weeks worth of 1-2 day jobs still to do. then it should all go quiet on the landscaping front ready for me to be doing deliveries of gas all day.
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 7:18 pm
by DNgroundworks
Do you sell calor gas Carberry?
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 8:26 pm
by Carberry
Yeah, except it's one of their competitors I'm a dealer for.
Forgot that I have a couple of weeks worth of indoor work to do too, taking out carpet and replacing with laminate flooring through whole house, replacing all radiators and flooring an attic.
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 9:10 pm
by haggistini
A day off would be nice but Im still gonna be up at half five every day!
Got work lined up through winter again thank fook!
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 9:19 pm
by GB_Groundworks
weve been mega busy all year but had 2 weeks off the other week after cancelled job but filled my time updating stuff and just enjoying a bit of time off but need some time to do some bits on my house, got a cellar to convert into boys room and my bathroom to redo. but its finding the time to get it done, off at 6.30am tomorrow to wrexham got 40m3 concrete slab to pour at hospital and finsih to +/- 5mm 
tough one that on a 16mx10m slab lol
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 9:33 pm
by local patios and driveway
Not good down here, plodding along, week by week but never more than two weeks booked up. Friend of mine has copied digger templete and is now competing with me at a cheaper rate... Not nice really, seeing as i spent a bit of time teaching him how i advertise for another business he had, only for him to stiff me 6 months later with my own methods
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 10:29 pm
by haggistini
I'll be passing wrexham tomorrow about dinner time Giles i think I'll leave my welles on site tho!
Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2011 3:13 am
by lutonlagerlout
very quiet on the extension front down here,but you have to adapt to the situation so we are doing wet rooms and access ramps for the council
not my favourite laying 2 by 2 's all day long but its work
3 years in to this recession so far and its starting to grate....
got work past xmas but like LPAD its bitty
LLL
Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2011 5:11 pm
by DNgroundworks
Sounds like there is another on the way as well LLL, what dya reckon?
Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2011 7:20 pm
by parishpaver
1. Increases in govt borrowing/spending
2. Increases in commercial borrowing/spending
3. Increases in mortgage equity withdrawl and subsequent spending.
Take just one of these out of every year, whilst leaving the other two in, and the UK economy has been in recession every year since 2001.
We have all been the benficiaries of a credit fueled splurge.
It's now time to pay up, so........bend over.
Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2011 7:43 pm
by joydivision
Yeah, starting to get sparse now.
Not really had a day of for years, even in the past few years of recession. But now im starting to worry a little. Got the next 2 weeks booked up, then got 2 weeks of bits and pieces to do, days here and there.
After that, nothing on the cards, hoping the firm I generaly contract to will come up with something, they usualy do, but they too have never been this quiet before.
Id like to think next year will start to pick up for everyone, but I just cant see it!
JD
Posted: Fri Nov 11, 2011 9:28 pm
by bobbi o
Was entered into an "auction" for work today with a main contractor who'm i had tendered for a contract in May this year.he proceeded to tell me the figure he was willing to award me the contract.
5 mins later i worked out that my profit margin on the 20k job, at the price he wanted, was £90.
i called him back and said i was unable to meet his price,but was able to do it for x amont at my 15% margin.
no suprise,when he said sorry mate,we've another contractor able to meet our figure.
waste of time quoting for these boys-better to throw their tender docs in the bin. even if your stupid enough to meet their valuation,they still won't pay you for 6+ months.
otherwise its been a reasonable year for us,even accounting for 10k losses due to bad debtors who went bust on us.
it means i've reversed the last 2 years of losses into a surplus and am still alive.
however the last two weeks have seen the phone stop ringing and although we have work to xmas,we're currently looking like we'll be scratching around jan/feb,as per usual.
the dream would be to shut the doors at xmas,lie on a beach in tenerife and come back end feb/early march to resume trading.
unfortunately having 12 employees,many with 20+ years of service make this a tricky imposition.