News
Facilities Managers Consider the Benefits of Refurbishment
Watlington, 4 March 2008
Forecasts of a slowdown in commercial property and construction markets are leading organisations to put plans for relocation to new premises on hold, according to an Oxfordshire-based grounds maintenance firm. This, says Mulberry Grounds Maintenance, is focusing facility managers’ minds on refurbishment – with an eye to cutting costs and increasing value.
According to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, 2007 saw tenant demand for commercial property fall to back to 2003 levels. The RICS Commercial Property Survey, published in January 2008, reported that surveyors continued to be pessimistic as a bleaker outlook was anticipated across all sectors. Surveyor confidence in the office sector turned negative for the first time since 2003, while in the retail sector, confidence in the future dipped to its lowest point in six years.
And, whilst there is currently a boom in office construction, new builds are mainly in city centre sites, and particularly in London. The situation is significantly different as experienced outside the M25.
“The evidence is”, says Mulberry managing director Anthony Ussher, “that organisations generally are staying put. They are making the most of what they already have, rather than relocating. Companies like ours can help them improve the working environment, reduce costs and add value to their premises, without the cost and disruption of an office move.”
Based centrally in Oxfordshire, Mulberry Grounds Maintenance provides high quality landscape services for customers across South East England. These range from care of lawns, trees, shrubs and borders, through interior plants and floral displays, to drives, car parks and water features. Expertise runs from large complex sites to smaller independent businesses.
What can this offer organisations that are refurbishing their facilities?
First, a contractor like Mulberry can recommend sound and innovative solutions that are tailor-made to each customer’s needs. Second, its solutions are grounded in sustainability, working with the changing natural world rather than against it. Last, but not least, these principles ensure exceptional value-for-money.
These principles apply from site maintenance audits, through design of landscape enhancements, to Implementation of landscape and environmental improvements,
For example, Mulberry was recently called-in to assess the site for a major headquarters building, which included an outdoor fountain as a key architectural feature. Its pumps were prone to breakdowns as well as using significant amounts of electricity. Plus – the closed system needed constant attention to leakage, and keeping the water clear gave ground staff a constant headache.
The proposed solution recommended planting a feature tree in place of the artificial fountain: sustainable water feature: one that doesn’t use power and reduces the carbon footprint. The result: an equally imposing architectural focus, with savings in both maintenance and utility costs.
Concluded Ussher: “This is just one example of the ways that companies can improve their image and the working environment, without the cost and hassle of moving.”
ENDS
