The construction industry – the major business issues

Numerous sectors across the UK have been affected to varying degrees by the global financial crisis. The retail sector has received a great deal of recent press attention but the construction industry has also experienced a number of serious blows over the last 5 years.

A number of medium-sized firms have been forced into company administration recently as they fail to grapple with existing costs and complex payment agreements. Recent news that a new pilot scheme has enabled a number of small construction firms to secure up to £500,000 of new funding provides a more positive outlook.

However, there are still a number of issues which are hampering the industry, but what are they?

Skills shortages

As a number of small to medium-sized contractors battle the threat of business insolvency amid a turbulent climate, they are likely to consider redundancies or make a decision to source jobs with fewer personnel. Over time there is a concern that this  may  lead to skill shortages in key areas that could have a counter-productive effect.

House building

The house-building sector is a pivotal part of the construction industry as a whole. It used to be a reliable source of new projects but this pattern has fluctuated in the last few years, which has led to understandable anxiety. Stabilisation in this area would be warmly welcomed by firms of varying sizes across the UK.

Poor planning

Planning a budget, to include fund sourcing and cashflow at the start of a job is essential.. All outcomes, however unlikely, should be considered at the planning stage of a job to make sure that should things go wrong, your business can deal with the consequences.

If you would like to have a free no obligation chat with one of our advisers please call us on 0207 186 1143.

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