As the Olympic Park in London nears completion, the last of the big-ticket construction projects is coming to an end.

According to Glenigan, the economic research consultancy, the number of large scale projects worth in excess of £100m has halved since the start of the downturn.

The average value of individual projects for the top 50 contractors fell from £10.3m in 2010, to £8.7m in 2011, the lowest level for three years. Outside London, values are even lower.

What's more, contract values are expected to deteriorate further once work on the Olympics has ended.

They say good things come in threes and I'm pleased to say that, for the West Midlands construction sector, 2012 kicked off with a trio of good news stories.

To describe New Street Station as a blight on the face of Brum is probably being a bit unfair to the unpleasant things in the world that are merely blights. At best, you could describe it as a necessary evil - an awful lot of us use it (140,000 every day, double the capacity it was built to deal with) but I don't imagine anyone likes the experience much.

It will come as no surprise when I say that I can't wait until it looks like this (the first half of which will be open at the end of this year):

So, imagine how chuffed I was when, before Christmas, I was able to be shown around the construction site. I was particularly impressed to see all the work going on out of public view whilst keeping the station up and running with little (if any at all) disruption.

Had it not been a breach of healthy and safety, I would have taken my hard hat off to the team from Network Rail and Mace who are delivering the project. As of the time of my visit, most of the work had been in relation to the new atrium (roughly the size of two football pitches) in what was the second floor of the old NCP car park.

However, over Christmas, the project went into overdrive. Between Christmas Day and 27 December, engineers used a 700 tonne crane to lift out an old section of the Navigation Street footbridge and install the new parts which extend it all the way to Platform 12.

Christmas also saw a new tower crane at the front of the station, the removal of the old Pallasades link bridge and escalator above Station Street, preparatory work on platforms 1-7 to construct the foundations for new public space and construction of new train crew accommodation above Platform 1, all achieved whilst Brummies hit the sales or went to the panto at the Hippodrome (which, if you are reading this before 29 January, I would wholeheartedly recommend seeing).

In what are troubled times for the construction industry, the project is also keeping a lot of people gainfully employed between now and 2015. It will also provide 350,000 sq ft of new development to the south of the station and, once completed, is anticipated to deliver 3,200 new jobs (650 in the John Lewis store alone).

We are also going to get a transport hub fit for the 21st century; one which will not only help make the daily commute a lot more pleasant but will provide a far-more-welcoming first impression for visitors to the Second City. It's good to have some good news to look forward to.

But, every silver lining comes with a cloud and I must admit to one reservation about the project: that pesky John Lewis. My good lady has intimated that it is going to result in the hard-earned Pemble shekels being spent on never-knowingly-undersold household knick-knacks that I (no doubt foolishly and incorrectly) suspect we could do without. I suppose I shouldn't complain too hard: I have been given 3 years' advance notice.

Another week, another survey portending gloom for Britain's construction industry.

This time it's the Construction Products Association (CPA) forecasting that growth will not return until 2014, which marks the worst decline in 30 years. Next year, the CPA expects construction output to fall by 3.6 per cent, compared to its previous estimate of 2.8 per cent.

Can we export our way out of recession? My own view is that economic recovery will need to be much more broadly based but trading internationally and taking advantage of the opportunities the global economy still provides will play an important part in the economic wellbeing of this country.

Exports have always been the cornerstone of UK trading success and they are still equivalent to nearly 30 per cent of UK GDP.

We need to increase exports from existing exporters and increase the overall number of West Midlands exporters - and recent research has shown that the signs are promising.

The percentage of companies nationally doing business overseas has risen from 26 per cent to 31 per cent over a two year period.

More young companies are seizing opportunities at an early stage. One in five companies currently doing business abroad is classified as " born global" - ie has been doing international business since day one. While more than one third of companies less than five years old reported significant growth due to exporting.

Nearly 40 per cent of companies say that exporting delivers levels of growth that wouldn't be possible otherwise. Companies also report a significant return on investment, improved financial performance and higher levels of innovation and productivity as a result of doing business overseas.

Most companies do business by selling direct to foreign companies or through agents, but there is growing evidence of the use of other routes to market such as distributor networks, joint venture/partnering, manufacturing under licence and establishing a direct presence in a market.
The research also shows that companies who access support services like those provided by UKTI tend to be more ambitious, innovative and strategic, and are more likely to progress faster than those who do not access support.

If you want to know more about the research or more about how UK Trade & Investment can help you start exporting or increase your exports why not arrange to talk to one our specialist International Trade Advisers? This is a free UKTI service available through the Chambers of Commerce in the region and if you contact http://www.wmchambers.co.uk they will arrange for someone to call you; or simply get in touch with me on 0121 345 2205.

In the race to find reasons for the riots that gripped our major cities in August, the built environment has come in for some flak.

Over the years, planners have been encouraged and aspired to create social cohesion through architecture. Buildings, we are told, can influence the way we live our lives.

Ironically, however, much of the civil unrest we witnessed took place in areas where regeneration had already taken place.

For example, millions of pounds has been ploughed into Tottenham in recent years; English Heritage has restored Victorian shop-fronts and facades along the high street, the Tottenham Hale Retail Park has been expanded and new housing is springing up on estate regenerations in the neighbourhood.

I was convinced before the riots, and remain so, that urban utopia cannot be created on a drawing board.

My experience working for a large constructor tells me that while buildings can provide opportunity, they are not an end in themselves. They need to fulfil a community need - perhaps educational, perhaps cultural, certainly a means for improving lives and instilling a real sense of attainment. There is clearly a section of society that does not feel connected to the prosperity and growth that new developments should bring.

Locally, a reported £65million has been ploughed into West Bromwich's digital arts centre, The Public. The Will Alsop designed building was meant to kick-start the regeneration of the town centre, but instead seems to have attracted criticism regarding its funding and low visitor numbers. Could that money have been used for other purposes to create real civic pride and engagement?

I suspect the current funding climate means we will see fewer statement public buildings. If that's so, we must make sure that investment in the built environment helps create a sense of community pride and ambition that was lacking in those who caused so much damage to their areas by rioting and looting.

ENDS

In 2001 I found myself in New York, just two weeks after the 9/11 attacks.

To be honest, my wife and I agonised over whether we should go. Although it was part of a long-planned holiday, we felt slightly uncomfortable; It didn't seem appropriate somehow, almost ghoulish.

However, we were persuaded after we rang our hotel and they told us they were "desperate" for tourists to return to New York. Mayor Giuliani's impassioned speeches urging visitors to support the city, and not let terrorism win, also helped sway our decision.

For a couple of days we deliberately avoided Ground Zero. But, as those of you who have visited the Big Apple will know, the city is smaller than you think and whilst we were in a taxi, en route to the Staten Island ferry, we stumbled across the site.

I was a little shocked by the number of people surveying the debris - their curiosity seemed morbid to me. Many were taking photographs and videos of what was, to all intents and purposes, a living cemetery. I thought it unnecessary: the images of the still-smoking ruins of the Twin Towers, and the neighbouring buildings, inches thick in dust, will be etched on my memory forever.

We are now a decade on from the atrocity.

Whilst there remains a hole in what must be the world's most recognisable skyline, work has commenced on the site.

A who's who of global architects, including our very own Norman Foster and Richard Rogers, have been marshalled to build six office towers - including the tallest dedicated office building in the world - a memorial, a national 9/11 Museum, public plazas and a transportation terminal to rival Grand Central Station. Sadly, legal issues, battles with insurers and the troubled economy have stalled progress, but the £10.5bn project is on target for completion in 2015.

As a contractor, I wonder how it would feel being involved in what is probably the most famous construction site in the world, and the birthplace of the skyscraper.

Would I feel the same unease I felt as a tourist?

The weight of history would undoubtedly hang heavy, but to help create new landmark buildings that make a statement not just in their architecture, but as a symbol for a city moving on, I think would be a massive privilege.