The Building Costs

As anyone who has undertaken a construction project recently will testify, the global financial crisis is having a serious impact. James Mathews speaks to Matthew Steggall, LLP Partner at Appleyard & Trew, about the growing need for professional advice 

The world has seen the perfect storm in terms of fiscal damage, initially the Brexit process, then Covid and now the war in Ukraine. Every household has been affected by rising utility costs rising sharply. 

The construction industry is no exception to these financial pressures. Fuel costs have impacted delivery charges for large vehicles, Brexit has made importing high quality materials from the continent more difficult and time consuming, whilst many European workers returned to their home country after Brexit was announced and of course throughout the downturn of Covid.  

Even wages are increasing due to workers requiring more financial income to cope with their personal increase in utility bills and soaring inflation. Contractors, face the very real proposition of carrying out work that was quoted 6 months ago, with costs that are now heavily out of date in terms of labour, material and delivery costs. It is a financial nightmare for the contractor, but how do people protect themselves in these circumstances? 

Matthew explains: “The simple answer is clear, honest, professional advice throughout all stages of a project. At Appleyard & Trew, we pride ourselves on the relationships we build with clients and design team from the outset. We are involved in the decision-making processes and the design development, enabling informed choices to be made in terms of materials and how these choices impact the potential construction phase. For example, Sanitaryware from Italy has a longer procurement route currently than UK based. We will also continually update clients on potential cost increases depending on commencement of the construction phase, monitoring tender price indices from within our sector. “ 

Appleyard & Trew have four regional offices throughout the UK, which regularly shared updated financial information between each office. This allows every member of the team to be fully up to date on financial trends within the marketplace, enabling Appleyard & Trew to provide the best quality service for clients and architects. 

In the current market, financial uncertainty is commonplace; however, with the right cost consultant on board allows the mitigation of uncertainty and help deliver the stunning final project desired.  

Appleyard & Trew are that Cost Consultant, so if you have a project in mind that you would like to discuss, please contact: 

london@appleyardandtrew.co.uk