New construction methods used on a Stoke development, see’s builders running out of land


A construction boss is using innovative building methods to speed up the process of building new homes - including 20 at a brand new site in Dresden, Stoke.

Ian Hodgkinson, director at Hodgkinson Builders, based at Derby’s Pride Park, has not only laid the foundations for the new properties, but his team have also trialled a brand new way of working to speed up the process.

The firm is building a brand new development of 20 homes on the site of the “eyesore” former Florence County Primary School, in Dresden.

The scheme, which consists of 11 three-bed and nine two-bed homes for rent and is delivered in conjunction with Staffordshire Housing Association, has been welcomed by local residents and police.

Seven houses will be completed in September, seven will be handed over the following month and the remaining six will be finished by November.

Ian, who has seen his turnover increase to record levels in 2019, said: "We have trialled the use of timber frames and liquid screed to speed up the efficiency of the build process at our development in Stoke, and we hope to roll this out over at our site in Ripley.

“By using modern methods of building we can work on both the interior and exterior of a property at the same time, and the use of liquid screed means that several plots can be done in one day, which is phenomenal.

“We are building homes so fast that we are running out of land.”

It comes after Hodgkinson Builders announced that the first half of the year has been 'epic' as Ian’s team laid the foundations for 168 new homes.

Ian, who co-founded the Access Training Construction Academy in Derby earlier this year, added: “Hodgkinson Builders is going 'great guns' at the moment. We have just completed a fantastic first half of the year.”

Ian, whose business is set to feature on a demolition programme for TV channel Quest later this year as he paves the way for another housing development, in Ilkeston, Derbyshire, said: "The success of the business is fully down to the innovative ideas of our team, combined with the passion of the original directors and the senior staff recruited from major housebuilders.”

And he added that the training academy he is helping to spearhead was helping to solve any potential staffing issues caused by Brexit.

He said: "We are in a fantastic position with the forward order book, and with our current developments in Stoke, Ilkeston, Ashbourne, Eastwood, and Worksop. Most construction firms are being affected by Brexit from a resource and staffing point of view.

Many are struggling with the lack of tradespeople coming from Europe, Hodgkinson Builders are certainly not!

Our academy is providing the much-needed skilled workforce that we require, and from our 100-strong bricklaying workforce, 22 of those are a direct result of our training and academy, which is a testament to its success."

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