Another great start to the week: the CBI say the recession will last longer than we thought; the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors are calling on the government to bring forward some construction projects to save 300,000 jobs; and Jaguar Land Rover have asked Browne for a £1bn loan so it can continue to make cars no one can afford anymore. Hooray then for McDonalds: diners Philip and Tina Sherman left their mobile phone in a restaurant in Askansas and staff said they’d keep the phone safe until Phil could swing by and collect it. However staff went into the phone to find nude photos of Mrs Sherman which they thoughtfully posted on a website alongside her name, address and phone number. The Sherman’s are suing McDonald’s for £2m. McTasty.

I have to admit developing a bit of a crush on the lady from the Wolseley we met at last year’s Sussex Grad Fair - she reminded me of my room mate at naval college. So I am sad to hear the buildings material giant has seen profits drop 77% - a real marker of how the UK housing Market is getting its trousers pulled down by the credit crunch. Wolseley – the world’s biggest distributor of plumbing materials - was always seen as a safe bet because its traditionally made half its sales in the USA – but of course over there the trousers are not only down in this sector, but the botty is being smacked too. The firm is refusing to go cap in hand to the banks, but is instead trying to save £176m through restructuring and other initiatives, the firm said. That will send a chill through the cistern of their 14,000 UK staff. We’ll be at the built environment fair at Oxford Brookes Uni shortly, so will get a real snap shot of the industry then. You’re man at street level, me…

Built environment, construction, property, blokes with their arse hanging out…whatever you want to call it, this industry is an interesting place right now: a dire need for home grown talent like engineers, but a market where the roof seems to have caved in. Why my old friends at commercial real estate giant CB Richard Ellis have cancelled their 2009 world conference (jolly) for staff, clients and sponsors. At Canada last year we were treated to some warbling from Sheryl Crow (I think I left my watch in her hotel room) but we’ll have to wait to 2010’s event to heckle her again. We’ll be getting stories from a couple of construction industry specific career fairs this autumn, but against expectations right now, Balfour Beatty has shaken off the gloom and reported a 25% rise in half-year profits (£95m compared to £76m last year). As Britain’s biggest infrastructure firm, their current order book stands at over £12bn, which is 14% better looking than the same time last year. Big boss Ian Tyler said the firm had seen no slow down in orders. Good work chaps. Also a doff of the bowler hat to maintenance and building group Interserve who, by focusing on contracts in the growing Middle East market, has seen its half year profits up by almost 20%. Get Sheryl Crow on the phone!

If you’re planning a career in property construction right now; don’t. The credit crunch as pulled down the shorts of that industry and is laughing at the colour of its underpants. Total job losses in this sector number 5,000 since the start of the year. Barratt Developments has now said it will axe 1,200 staff and take an £85m hit in its full-year results. The firm will close two divisions, saving £40m – but the cost of implementing changes is expected to be about £15m. Despite the troubled times, Barrett’s total number of completed projects were up 8% but there’s simply no one prepared to gamble and buy the new homes – home sales dropped 43% in the last six months (ouch!) while housing production will fall to its lowest levels for 50 years. (double ouch!) Barratt is the first housebuilder to strike a deal with its banks, giving it breathing space to pay back its £1.66bn debts. Its been here before: once Britain’s biggest housebuilder, the firm almost went bust in the early 90s but turned things around.

If I had my time again it would be engineering for me: if you have that qualification you are in sky-high demand. Germany has over 90,000 engineering vacancies, and companies there are looking for a long-term solution. Hence, thousands of “discovery boxes” have been distributed to kindergartens throughout the country, containing science experiments suitable for small children, such as how to construct a basic electric circuit with batteries and lights, or the basics of how a car works. Leading firms such as Siemens, Bosch and ThyssenKrupp are among hundreds of companies now giving materials and money to kindergartens to try to interest children as young as three in technology and science. While the nation could employ engineers from overseas, its finding that many do not want to live and work in Germany (funny that).