Construction Net

There is little doubt that construction suffered more than most industries during the downturn. Now, a new report has revealed that January 2010 saw the slowest rate of construction decline for almost two years, raising hopes for the struggling sector.

The retention system originated in the railway construction sector in the 1840’s. The vast and rapid expansion of the railway network led to a high demand for construction workers and the subsequent creation of a large number of small construction companies. Inevitably a lot of these newly formed companies became insolvent. The rate at which such companies were becoming insolvent caused delays and cost’s to the clients that employed them. Therefore the client’s started deducting monies from payments to ensure there was a fund available to them to help defray the cost of completion and thus retention was born.