• Publish Date: Posted almost 4 years ago
• Author:by Victoria Bannon

It's getting busy 'up north'

​Us Northerners are going to become very busy!The Civil Engineering Contractors Association has recently launched its Infrastructure Vision report for the North-west; the report includes hundreds of projects from across the region, ranging from major transport schemes to smaller environment and technology projects.The report, designed as a ‘project map’ for contractors looking to bid for schemes in the region, sets out schemes across 12 different sectors and includes details of major clients planning investment in the North-west. The report included Sellafield and Highways England.Major Highways England schemes in the region include improvement works at junction 6-8 of the M56, and improvements to the A585 between Windy Harbour and Skippool.CECA said the report shows that the North-west would be “one of the busiest regions in the UK for infrastructure” over the coming years.Further research from Transport for the North showed that the Northern regions will need to develop 50 ha of distribution space a year to meet their logistics and infrastructure needs to 2033, with many logistics projects centred around major cities including Liverpool and Manchester.So what does this mean for the recruitment industry? As a specialist in White Collar MEP staff in London and the North I can only draw one conclusion; it’s going to get busy and specialist skill sets such as MEP Quantity Surveyors will be in high demandThe London market is very buoyant, I can spend days on end scouring the market for a good quality QS “open” to a move and it takes my many years of experience to ensure that when it comes to offer stage the candidate will accept.  This market isn’t for the faint hearted, so as things pick up in the North, I am sharpening my elbows getting ready for the boom!