Survey reveals high expectations in the building industry for the remainder of 2015

With the economy streaking ahead, it’s no surprise the trade’s expectations for the building industry in 2015 remain positive. Leading supplier of roof windows, domes and accessories, LB Roof Windows, reveals new results from its market survey that show optimism across the industry, and highlight some interesting trends.

Partnering with Insight Data, the leading provider of market intelligence for the building sector, LB Roof Windows emailed 12,000 builders and installers with the purpose of “taking the industry’s pulse”.

The majority of respondents – just under 80%, believe there will be more growth across the building industry this year than in 2014, while the remaining c.21% think this will be similar to levels recorded last year.

LB Roof Windows sales director, Adrian Cooper, comments: “These results show incredible confidence in the economy and, after years of ‘battening down the hatches’, it’s great to see businesses in the building sector thriving again.

“The figures are also confirmed by our own surge in sales of roof windows, flat roof domes and accessories over the first quarter of 2015. We doubled our storage space at the beginning of the year with the addition of a new industrial unit in order to make sure we meet our customers’ growing demand for these products. It is especially our Aurora Roof Window, produced by the VKR Group, who also manufacture Velux, that is spearheading our growth,” said Adrian who also believes the success recorded with the Aurora Roof Window is due to both quality and competitive pricing.

He added: “Launched in the UK just over a year ago by LB Roof Windows, Aurora is now recognised in the industry as an alternative to its more well-known ‘relative’, the Velux roof window. Aurora delivers very similar benefits to the VKR Group’s most popular brand, but allows builders to obtain much better profit margins.”

Mortgage availability and affordability are also back on the rise, and seen as an encouraging sign by the majority of builders: just over 58% of the respondents believe this will have a positive effect on the number of jobs in 2015, as it inspires increasing trust in the national economy, leading to a kick-start of long postponed home improvement projects. However, a good part of the respondents (37.5%) don’t believe the “don’t move, improve” trend will slow down, as the current housing shortage means old properties will have to be renovated anyway.

Adrian said: “Our market research also showed that companies in our industry expect home improvement spending to increase this year – 75% of the respondents, while a quarter of the builders taking part in our survey believe it will maintain at the levels recorded in 2014. So an all-round positive response.”