Construction sector struggling for new orders

The number of construction firms requiring insolvency advice could be set to rise after the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) claimed the future is not looking particularly rosy for the industry.

Data from the Office for National Statistics released on September 2nd showed that new construction orders in the second quarter of this year fell by 16.3 per cent in comparison to the first three months of 2011.

It means the total volume of all new orders is now at its lowest since the third quarter of 1980.

The figures also represent a 23.2 per cent year-on-year decline in new construction orders, which might suggest that some firms could struggle and need bankruptcy advice to help them stay afloat during tough times.

FMB media and communications manager Jayne Runacres explained that the scale of the problems depends on which sector a firm is operating in.

"While some parts of it have seen some modest improvements, albeit from a very low base, others have not. Overall the future for the industry certainly doesn't look too rosy," she said.

The expert added that things could be about to get a whole lot worse with work based around specific events drying up soon.

"Major projects such as the Olympics are coming to an end with not a great deal coming forward to replace them and house building is currently predicted to be flat for the next three years and still far short of 2007 in 2015," Ms Runacres claimed.

She pointed out that recent FMB research shows that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in certain sectors are particularly prone to a lack of work – a fact that could see them require insolvency advice if problems get out of control.

"Our own state of trade survey shows that SMEs in the domestic repair maintenance and improvement sector haven't seen work load growth in over three-and-a-half years."