Coronavirus and the construction industry

On 31 December 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) was informed of a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. On 12 January 2020, it was announced that a novel coronavirus had been identified.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by coronavirus (CoV), and can affect people’s lungs and airways. Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. COVID-19 is a new strain that was discovered in 2019 and has not been previously identified in humans. There is currently no specific treatment available.

COVID 19 has had a significant impact on world economies, both as a result of the disease itself, and from the measures that have been introduced to reduce the rate of infection. This has included travel restrictions, the closure of events and some businesses, and the isolation of at risk or infected populations.

Measures intended to mitigate the impact on business were announced in the 2020 Budget on 11 March, and a further £330bn package of support was announced on 18 March.

On 23 March the UK entered a period of strict lockdown, during which people were only permitted to leave home once a day for the purposes of exercise or essential shopping, or if their job was essential and they could not do it from home.

On 26 March, the chancellor announced a Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) scheme to support the UK’s self-employed affected by the coronavirus outbreak. Ref

Lockdown began to lift through a phased process in England on 13 May 2020.

The construction industry has been seriously affected, from supply chain disruption to absences from work, contractual implications, financial strain and long-term design implications. There has also been a degree of confusion about whether construction sites and builders merchants should remain open.

Articles about coronavirus on Designing Buildings Wiki include:

• Adapting your technology to the new working normal.
• An interview with Matthew Mallows - Surveyor at British Damp Proofing.
• Beyond the pandemic.
• Budget 2020.
• Budget 2021.
• Building ventilation and COVID-19 transmission risk.
• Business interruption cover under COVID-19.
• CEOs predict COVID-19 workplace changes will be permanent.
• CICV creates COVID toolkit.
• CICV Forum report on repair and maintenance and the COVID-19 green economic recovery.
• CIOB reacts to 2020 Winter Economy Plan.
• CIOB urges construction industry to share PPE with healthcare providers.
• CLC releases Site Operating Procedures v6.
• Clear contracts during uncertain times.
• Construction sites urged to integrate test and trace.
• ConTech in a post lockdown, pre-vaccine economy.
• Coronavirus and force majeure.
• Coronavirus impact survey.
• Coronavirus job retention scheme.
• COVID-19 and mental health within construction firms.
• Covid-19 and the new normal for infrastructure systems.
• Covid-19 and the new normal for infrastructure systems - next steps.
• COVID-19 and the US HVAC sector.
• December 2020 GDP figures show construction vulnerable.
• Designing HVAC to resist harmful pathogenic microorganisms (bacteria and viruses such as influenza and 2019-nCov)
• ECA Survey: Industry remains optimistic despite downturn.
• Eight organisations form engineering services alliance.
• Engineering services bodies issue coronavirus site safety guides.
• England housing market resumes operations.
• Ensuring a green recovery beyond the pandemic.
• Face covering.
• Face coverings and a shifting policy background.
• Furlough.
• Government to support businesses through Trade Credit Insurance guarantee.
• Growing focus on IAQ challenges for specifiers and HVAC manufacturers.
• Health performance indicators in the built environment.
• Hospital isolation rooms.
• How technology can support social distancing.
• IAQ developments accelerated by COVID-19 pandemic.
• Identifying COVID-19 scams.
• IMMUNE Building Standard.
• ISO/PAS 45005 Guidance for working safely during COVID-19.
• January 2021 construction output figures.
• Keeping commercial premises safe during extreme times.
• Maximising maintenance budgets after lockdown.
• Pandemic.
• Pandemic migration.
• Plan proposes to reinvent construction industry.
• 2020 Vision: Planning in a post-COVID world.
• Priorities for Wales during COVID-19 economic recovery.
• Re-starting construction in a COVID-19 environment.
• SAGE EMG guidance on ventilation and COVID-19.
• Social distancing compliance marshal.
• Social distancing on construction sites.
• Study reveals cost of inefficient contact tracing.
• Survey records business projections after coronavirus storm.
• The future of the coronavirus furlough.
• The use of infrastructure systems - insights into the new normal.
• Ventilation and control of COVID-19 transmission.
• Winter Support 2020 - 2021 packages for businesses.