Material Shortages & Inflation
The finishes and interiors sector is facing unprecedented material shortages and inflation in a number of areas (including gypsum products, steel, fixings, insulation, sealants and adhesives and timber).
Over the past two years the finishes and interiors sector has faced intense supply issues, these have continued into 2023 and FIS is urging the supply chain to heed the advice of the Construction Leadership Council and apply the lessons learned in 2020 about working in partnership and collaboration. This is a issue for the entire supply chain, but specialist contractors are reporting these acute challenges are being ignored in the wake of pressure to simply maintain programme and adhere to a fixed price contractual culture that is not designed to cope with inflation at current levels. This situation is unacceptable, we need to be working together, alert and reactive to the challenges on the ground and focussed on the very real risks of undermining specifications, warranties and even compliance and, at the same time, destroying businesses in our rush to get the job done.
You can access the latest FIS Statement and guidance on Material Shortages and Inflation (which provides a backdrop and links to available price index sources) here.
You can access the latest Construction Leadership Council Product Availability Statement here.
FIS Wage Rate Survey points to ongoing inflation and contractual pressures
The FIS Wage Rate Survey H2 2023 conducted in January 2024 revealed that, across the trades, FIS members have continued to experience wage rate increases averaging around 4% in key trade occupations (the full index is available to contributors only. The survey also...
Rate of inflation reducing, but costs are still going up warns FIS
The Building Cost Information Service (BCIS) has reported at the start of November that construction materials prices for all work fell by 1.8% in the 12 months to September 2023, according to new figures from the Department for Business and Trade. This was a smaller...
Government survey of critical supply chains
The Department for Business and Trade is asking FIS Product Supplier members to respond to a short survey which is being conducted by their Global Supply Chains and Economic Security Directorate to identify businesses’ experiences of managing their critical supply...