FMJ Facilities Management magazine providing industry-specific intelligence to FM and property professionals
Maintenance costs are expected to rise 5.7 per cent, in the year to the fourth quarter of 2023 and between 2.5 per cent and 3.1 per cent annually for the next four years, according to the Building Cost Information Service’s (BCIS) five-year Facilities Management forecast.
Joe Martin, Lead Consultant at BCIS commented: “Overall, they’re expected to rise 17.6% in total, in the forecast period to the fourth quarter of 2027.”
Martin also predicts that cleaning costs are forecast to rise somewhat faster due to pressures on labour costs, up to 25.6 per cent over the forecast period. Martin added: “They are forecast to increase 9.0 per cent in the year to the fourth quarter of 2023. Further increases of 5.5 per cent, 2.8 per cent, 3.3 per cent and 2.9 per cent are expected in the remaining years of the forecast period.”
Whilst energy prices are extremely volatile Martin says they are “expected to fall over the forecast period”. He continued: “They may continue to rise in the short term as previous increases work their way through to consumers. But they are set to go down for the rest of the forecast period, as the markets stabilise.”
Maintenance demand, as measured by Construction Repairs and Maintenance annual output, is forecast to increase by around 6 per cent over the forecast period. After falling over 3 per cent between 2022 and 2023 it is expected to recover slowly over the next four years.
Martin commented: “We have assumed that much of the cost of the recladding of buildings in the aftermath of the Grenfell fire, as well as initiatives to tackle backlog maintenance and to cut carbon emissions will be accounted for in the Construction Repairs and Maintenance annual output, although some of it may be included in new work output.”
Martin also adds that the FM market will be “subject to competing pressures of restricted budgets and growing needs over the next few years”.
He stated: “Buildings in both the public and private sectors need substantial investment and backlog maintenance, particularly in the public sector, needs addressing and improving the environmental performance of all buildings is essential if we are to meet our climate change commitments.”
Martin concluded: “FM managers must develop whole-life plans to demonstrate the long-term costs of short-term cuts to protect their budgets and the built environment,” although “the cost and availability of labour are anticipated to be a major barrier to the delivery of maintenance services.”
With the current economic crisis resulting in higher prices and more of a squeeze on resources, FMs need to ensure that they have robust building and maintenance services in place to control costs and reduce the need for emergency repairs. When it comes to drainage and plumbing there are also the challenges of dealing with extreme weather, from droughts to flooding, the need to meet stringent regulations and to avoid causing environmental damage.
UK drainage specialist, Metro Rod, has launched a survey which explores the main areas of interest for FMs in maintaining drainage and plumbing, including how they currently assess their supply chains to ensure they’re working with partners that meet the highest possible standards and provide value for money.
The results will be published online so that you can see how you compare to others within the sector.
The survey should take just 5-10 minutes of your time, and as a thank you, you will be entered into a prize draw, where one lucky winner will be picked at random to receive a £100 Amazon voucher.
To take part click here.
