Build UK is now
working with leading data and contract lead provider, the Builders’ Conference.
Offering access to a
comprehensive database with the latest information on contracts and market
conditions and a 25% discount for Build UK members, this new partnership will
provide valuable data and reports on the current and future state of the
industry.
The first report for
Q1 of 2019 on Contract Performance has now been published. If 2018 was defined
by an unprecedented degree of stability within the UK construction sector for
new contracts, then the beginning of 2019 can be best described as almost
remarkably positive.
For twelve
consecutive months during 2018, according to data collected by Builders’
Conference the sector delivered new contract awards valued at upwards of £4.0
billion. January 2019 marked a notable increase on this value with the monthly
total topping £7.424 billion an increase in value of just over 50% compared to
December 2018.
But even the most
optimistic of market watchers could not have predicted the results in February
and March which delivered totals of £10.754 and £6.77 billion respectively to
make the total value for Q1 2019 of £25.006 billion up 32.5 % from Q4 2018. The
number of new construction projects starting also increasing by 9% in the
quarter to 2,250.
Going forward, what
may affect construction durability, is the period between submission of bid and
start on site, which, according to recent Builders’ Conference research,
currently runs on average at around 24 weeks. If this period extends due to the
lack of clarity from negotiations in Europe, this may have a significant impact
on how the UK construction sector finishes 2019.
Build UK contractor
members contributed over £9.1 billion (36%) of all new construction contracts
in the quarter. These included a £300 million mixed use regeneration scheme in
Blossom Street on the edge of Spitalfields Market in London for British Land and
a £98 million new hospital specialising in non-emergency procedures for Frimley
Health NHS Foundation in Ascot, Berkshire.
For the sector to
deliver such results at any time would be notable. But to do so when the UK’s
future in Europe hangs in the balance, when the nation is gripped by economic
uncertainty and when several of the sector’s biggest and best-known names have
been forced to restructure and refinance, Q1 2019 performance truly is
impressive. Furthermore, based upon the prevalence of forward bidding that
would see contract awards extend beyond whichever date Brexit might finally
take place, it seems that this positivity is set to continue.
Research by
Builders’ Conference of their members indicates that what might impact upon
that positivity is resourcing adequate materials & personnel to meet
demands, particularly as a number of key issues have yet to be determined with
Brexit negotiations over customs & borders.
