LAWRENCE Bellamy talks construction in his latest column.

 

CONSTRUCTION is a business which has always suffered from strong cycles of activity.

At the moment given a movement out of recession there has been a general upturn.

Within the North West it is estimated there has been £2.4billlion worth of projects starting within the last 12 months.

With any growth cycle there are also challenges.

A lack of skills is being experienced by contractors, who may find that they have to pay more to find the right labour.

Good for the workers, but this depresses profits and puts the price of projects up.

In addition materials prices are high too, given a growing demand again pushing up overall contract prices.

Clients will not get the value they hoped for.

The North West overall has seen the strongest area of growth in Retail contracts and in relation to that there is a need for retail warehousing, which Warrington’s logistics parks can provide.

One area of shortage indicated is for ‘grade A’ office space. Warrington East, as an alternative to Manchester has an opportunity here, with road improvements planned and good rail connections into the city.

However it needs upgrading and currently building is costly, how can we attract the investors?