We’re delighted to announce that we’ve been named as finalists in two categories at this year’s Humber Renewables Awards- Humber Renewables Medium / Large Business of the Year and Best Renewable Energy Project or Installation.
 
Our shortlisting for Best Renewable Energy Project is for our work at the recently completed multi-million-pound onshore operations and maintenance centre for Ørsted.

The shortlisting for Medium/Large Business of the Year comes after the Aura Innovation Centre marked the eighth scheme we have undertaken in the offshore energy sector, a remarkable achievement considering as a business we have never stepped foot offshore.

Richard Hunter, managing director for Hobson & Porter, said: “The offshore energy sector has brought in revenues of £22 million us in the past four years, with our construction of the Aura Innovation Centre the latest flagship offshore scheme in the Humber region.

“We’re very proud to be supporting such an exciting upcoming industry which is developing a lasting legacy here in the Humber. Through its growth we are seeing the generation of jobs, improving economy and a dedication to preserving the environment through green energy generation.

“We look forward to the 2019 awards with great anticipation and wish everyone who has entered them the best of luck on the night.”

The 2019 winners will be revealed at a glittering awards night, held at the Country Park Inn, Hessle, on Thursday, June 13. To book tickets, click here for details.

Our site teams are moving around in style, thanks to a new vehicle fleet investment of more than £400,000.

We have invested in a new 26 vehicle fleet, consisting of a mix of Peugeot Boxer tipper and Vauxhall Vivero vans, that have been supplied by Beerhouse Self Drive as a result of an ongoing partnership.

We’ve enjoyed a strong working partnership with Beerhouse Self Drive for a number of years.

The new vans feature livery designs showing the face of the Humber’s iconic skyline. Hobson & Porter has had a presence in the region for almost 50 years, contributing positively to the built environment and delivering projects which help it to grow and prosper.

Mike Gibbin, financial director for Hobson & Porter, said: “We have chosen to invest in this new fleet to provide our teams with vehicles that are more fuel efficient and lower in emissions. The tipper trucks are also class-leading in payload, saving fuel and improving productivity.

“This new fleet investment will improve our presence in the region and help reinforce the Hobson & Porter brand, which is building on success and delivering social value and lasting legacy on all of our projects.”

Work on the redevelopment of East Riding Leisure Centre Hornsea is now officially underway, following a press and media event held on Thursday 14th March.

Hobson & Porter and East Riding of Yorkshire Council welcomed local representatives, primary and secondary school students to the construction site, where they posed for photos with Hobson & Porter’s giant spade and learned more about the new centre for leisure and learning.

Bertie Field, aged two-years old and a regular visitor of the site, was invited to see the scheme’s diggers in action.

The £7.5 million project will bring a complete refurbishment and extension of the leisure centre with new facilities including an extended Tone Zone with 60 stations on the first floor overlooking the promenade; a new extended café area; new changing rooms; two new squash courts; and a dedicated Spin and Exercise Studio. The pool area and changing rooms will be extensively refurbished.

The redevelopment will also see the town’s library, customer service centre and resource centre relocating to the new facility, as well as the Children’s Centre.

The design incorporates a stunning two-storey extension and high-quality landscaping, the new centre for leisure and learning will provide a major new focal point for the central promenade.

Part-funded from the £3.77m Coastal Communities Fund awarded to Hornsea, the project is part of a wider regeneration programme for the sea front. With a dedicated education room, beach-side access to the café and toilets and stunning sea views from the outdoor seating area, the development is designed to attract more visitors to Hornsea, as well as catering for residents.

As part of the project, we are excited by the prospect of working with ERYC on several community engagement initiatives, including a site hoarding competition for both primary and secondary students.

Keep in touch with the progress of the redevelopment at www.eastridingleisure.co.uk/hornsea or via the new Facebook page : www.facebook.com/eastridingleisurehornsea

Work has started at our project at Marjorie Waite Court in Clifton, York where are delivering 33 new homes on behalf of York City Council.

The project, which is part of the council’s Older Person’s Accommodation Programme, will see us add four new bungalows and 29 apartments to the existing independent living scheme. We are also constructing a new community hall as part of the extension, which is set for completion and opening in winter 2020.

The new apartments we are building at Marjorie Waite Court will be wheelchair accessible and residents will benefit from extra care services. This includes providing 24-hour care for residents and those living with dementia. The four bungalows will be built with their own parking space. They will also be wheelchair-accessible and will be connected to a warden call system for added security.

Residents of both the new and existing apartments will be able to use refurbished and extended communal facilities. These will include a dining facility, a laundry, lounges on all floors with balconies, a hair salon and treatment room, and extra offices to deliver a wider range of services. To support residents’ mobility, an electric buggy store and charging area will be built.

Local community groups can also, through a booking scheme, use the new community hall which will provide space for community and leisure activities.

David Blades, business development director for Hobson & Porter, said: “We’re very excited to be underway with this project at Marjorie Waite Court. The additional housing and multi-use facilities will be of great benefit to residents at the site and we’re proud have been chosen by City of York Council to deliver a scheme of such lasting social value.

“As proud partners of the Considerate Constructors Scheme we are committed to demonstrating best practice in all aspects of our work, and we will be working closely with the council and the local community to provide regular communications on the project, while also minimising disruption to the surrounding area and that ensuring the highest site safety and environmental standards are adhered to.”

York City Council’s Older Person’s Accommodation programme aims to deliver over 900 extra new units of accommodation with care for older people by 2020 and will see over £100m new investment to deliver it.

We are delighted to have recently worked with The Deep to support its conservation work in protecting endangered marine species.

As part of our commitment to site sustainability we have been encouraging our employees to switch from single use plastic to reusable drinks bottles, with the proceeds from these sales being donated to conservation projects organised by The Deep.

Our donation contributed to aquarist Shoshana Levine’s recent trip to the New England Aquarium Turtle Rehabilitation Centre, Boston, to assist in the care and rehabilitation of stranded sea turtles.

415 cold stunned sea turtles were rescued, suffering from life-threatening hypothermia, emaciation, dehydration and other injuries. The majority of the turtles rescued were Kemp’s Ridley Sea turtles, one of the most endangered species, they were cared for at the rescue centre and will be released back into the wild once when they are strong and healthy.

David Blades, business development director for Hobson & Porter, said: “We’re pleased to be supporting The Deep’s fantastic conservation work which will help protect these rare and precious sea turtles.

“As a building contractor we have a responsibility to protect and preserve the environment and our commitment to switching to reusable drinks bottles is helping us combat the impact of plastic waste on our sites. It has been a great initiative and we’re proud to be putting the proceeds towards a worthy cause on behalf of The Deep.”

The Deep is continuing to work on and support vital research and conservation work around the world, something made possible through donations such as those raised by Hobson & Porter and other charitable donations.

We are continuing with our rollout of reusable drinks bottles which will eventually become available at all of our sites for staff to stay hydrated while helping to reduce single use plastics.

Our construction of the new Preston Road Women’s Centre- the first purpose-built women’s centre in the UK for 20 years – has gained the highest award given by Secured by Design (SBD), the national police crime prevention initiative, for incorporating crime prevention techniques into the layout, landscaping and physical security of the development.

Preston Road Women’s Centre – known locally as Purple House – offers women and girls from across Hull access to domestic violence and abuse services, sexual health services, outreach support, nursery provision, accredited courses, a housing service, legal services, a volunteer programme and a young women’s participation project.

Established in 2000, it has directly helped more than 4000 women, and engaged with many thousands more from its current building on Preston Road. As its services have grown, the organisation outgrew its space.

During the scheme, our project team worked closely with an SBD trained Designing Out Crime Officer worked and the architects, LNS Partnership, from the planning stages through to construction to incorporate SBD crime prevention techniques and security in the build.

The measures included the built environment, are lighting, fencing, CCTV, alarms and the installation of SBD accredited windows and doors.

The new building, which is more environmentally friendly and will allow more services to be offered to local women and children, has:

• A bigger nursery, with room for 18 children
• Four one to one rooms where support can be offered to women in private
• More room for volunteers to look after women visiting the centre
• Clinical space for women to see medical practitioners when needed
• Two training rooms
• A large meeting space for groups, including their Girlz Only group
• A laundrette so local women don’t have to travel to do their laundry
• A pram park
• A bigger charity shop
• More office space for growing number of staff

Ann Clarkson, Centre Coordinator for Preston Road Women’s Centre, said: “We are delighted to have this new facility which will help us extend the services we have provided to women and children in the area for over 18 years.

“Safety is such an essential part of our services and it was important for us to know that the new building is fit for purpose and built for visitors to feel secure and protected in their surroundings. The additional SBD security features are very reassuring for both staff and visitors alike and we’re really grateful for the support of this scheme.”

Marc Dias, Designing Out Crime Officer for Humberside Police, said: “This is an excellent new addition to Preston Road that will provide an important service for years to come. The incorporation of SBD standards helps ensure that the development provides a safe, secure and sustainable setting in to the future”.

Dave Blades, Business Development Director from Hobson & Porter Construction, said: “The security of any public-use building and the safety of its users are always important considerations for us as a contractor. It was a valuable experience for our project team at Preston Road Women’s Centre to work alongside the Designing Out Crime Officer and learn more about SBD crime prevention techniques, and we will look to utilise this knowledge to help provide further protection on future schemes.”

Our £2.5 million scheme to construct 10 new retail units at Wawne Road in Hull is well underway, with completion targeted for May.
Work has begun on the units which will be delivered on behalf of developer Priority Space on Wawne Road between North Bransholme and Kingswood.

The Hobson & Porter team are providing a full design and build service from basic design principles, working to a 32-week programme due to be completed in May 2019.

Footings for the units are complete and the site’s car park has been surfaced, enabling the commencement of the steel frame structure for the 10 adjoining units.

The units will include a One Stop convenience store, a veterinary practice, pharmacy, bakery and takeaways, plus a family restaurant.

The mixed-use retail development in Kingswood, Hull, is part of a partnership between the council and property consortium KSHP – made up of housing developer Keepmoat, Strata Homes, Persona, part of Home Group and commercial property specialists, Priority Space.

The development will include an 80-space car park for the 10 units, all of which vary in size to attract a range of tenants to serve the residents of the new housing development.

Dave Blades, business development director for Hobson & Porter, said: “We’re pleased to be working on this retail development which will provide a boost for the local economy. We are committed to working on projects which benefit the communities we serve.”

We’re pleased to confirm the award of a multi-million-pound contract to construct the Aura Innovation Centre at Hessle’s Bridgehead Business Park for the University of Hull, which will mark more than £20m of projects we have delivered in the offshore wind energy sector.

The Aura Innovation Centre will be a purpose-built facility providing businesses with space to collaborate and innovate to deliver low-carbon energy and clean growth. Its aim is to foster innovation and research to address the real challenges faced by the offshore wind and low-carbon energy industries.

Our ventures into the offshore renewables sector began in 2014 when we delivered a new onshore operations base and warehouses for Dong Energy Power (UK) to service its Westermost Rough wind farm. Following this, we delivered five further projects for the same client, which has now rebranded as Ørsted, through both our Major and Minor works divisions on projects throughout the Humber Region. We were also commissioned to undertake a specialist project in the sector in Northern France earlier this year.

Hobson & Porter Managing Director Richard Hunter said: “We’re very excited to have been appointed as the main contractor of this landmark project. The project will be our eighth scheme in the offshore energy sector, which is remarkable considering we have never stepped foot offshore! This is a true reflection of the economic impact the sector is bringing to our region.

“The Aura Innovation Centre will play a huge role in strengthening the region’s reputation as a leader in offshore wind innovation, bringing together the major players in the industry to foster a collaborative and forward-thinking culture in a world-class research facility. But it will also demonstrate the fantastic opportunities available to land-based contractors looking to become involved in the offshore sector.

“The sector has a very exciting future in the Humber region and we want to play our part by working on schemes that contribute positively to this. We are a business which was established in the early 70’s, when the North Sea fishing industries played a huge part in the economic footprint of our area. This relatively new, fast-emerging market is testament to the hard work and collaboration of key decision makers in the region and we’re proud to be part of it.”

Construction of the Aura Innovation Centre is under way, and is expected to be completed next year.

We are delighted to announce we have been awarded a £7.5 million contract for the redevelopment of East Riding Leisure Hornsea.

Work at the site of the leisure centre will commence in the New Year, with a reopening planned for Easter 2020.

The project follows our completion of a number of similar leisure projects, including the refurbishment and extension of East Riding Leisure Haltemprice in Anlaby.

Our redevelopment of the leisure centre includes a complete refurbishment and extension with new facilities including an extended Tone Zone with 60 stations on the first floor overlooking the promenade; a new extended café area; new changing rooms; two new squash courts; and a dedicated Spin and Exercise Studio.

The pool area and changing rooms will also be refurbished.

Hornsea’s library, customer service centre and resource centre will be relocating to the new facility, and there is also provision to relocate the Children’s Centre there.

The project has been part-funded from a £3.77m Coastal Communities Fund awarded to Hornsea and is part of a wider regeneration programme for the sea front.

Hobson & Porter has provided sponsorship towards a Christmas charity project which encourages children to bake cookies in exchange for gift donations.

The Cookie Elf Project is a fun and exciting initiative for the children who take part, a project aimed at inspiring the true spirit of Christmas among children and young people and acknowledging that not all youngsters may be as fortunate as themselves.

In the unique Christmas project, youngsters bake homemade cookies and swap them for wrapped toys and gifts to pass onto local charities.

Hobson & Porter has helped the project by providing certificates, frames and gifts for the elves to exchange. We also worked with Beerhouse Selfdrive who provided vans to help deliver the gifts to local charities across the Humber region.

Now in its third year, Cookie Elves 2018 saw 88 elves aged between three months and 16 years collect a whopping 650 presents – with more still being donated – far surpassing the original target of 300.

Throughout December, elves each baked their own cookies before visiting family, friends and colleagues dressed as Christmas elves to exchange them for gift donations, which were this year used to support seven charitable causes across the Humber region.

Anyone interested in the project can contact the team via the ‘Cookie Elves 2018’ Facebook page or on twitter @cookie_elves