Lindum Group has reopened 70 per cent of its construction sites after the coronavirus outbreak prompted almost all of its work to be halted.
Site managers and operatives are now back in action across Lincolnshire, Yorkshire and Cambridgeshire, following strict new guidance on hygiene and social distancing.
Building sites and offices have been overhauled to accommodate safer working practices, including new one-way systems and extra sanitation stations.
In the coming weeks, Lindum hopes to restart even more projects as and when it is safe to do so.
Director Freddie Chambers said: “Like many companies, Coronavirus is having a significant impact on our business. In the first instance, for the safety of our staff, customers and the wider community, we took the decision to pause all construction work. We continued only with essential maintenance work, NHS Covid-related projects, waste recycling and vital vehicle repair and maintenance work for Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue and ambulance services,” he said.
“We have considered each project individually and carefully, carrying out new risk assessments and establishing how construction teams can operate while adhering to the Government advice around social distancing. We are working closely with our suppliers and subcontractors to ensure everyone understands the new methods of working, while keeping an eye on material purchasing and ordering further ahead of time as necessary.
“On sites, we are implementing many changes to enable staff to operate within guidelines. For example, we have converted our meeting rooms to create additional welfare facilities, we are limiting the number of people in our site cabins, we are providing more hygiene stations and we are introducing one way systems where necessary to ensure we respect social distancing.
“Meanwhile, some office staff are working from home, using video conferencing where needed. We are generally trying to apply a common sense approach across the board, with many people still having to look after children as schools remain closed.
“Office teams are also facing new one way systems, hygiene stations and rules about how many people can be in any one place at any one time.
The impact of this pandemic will be felt well into the future, but we have been sensible in the past and are diverse, practical and local in what we do so we hope this will help in the inevitable tough times ahead. We will do what we can to adapt, remain competitive and most importantly, keep safe.”
