Why UK Specialist Construction Companies Are in Such Demand

Within recent years there has been a huge push to undergo all types of building conversions in order to meet the growing demand for housing. Many homeowners are converting their lofts, garages and garden buildings into extra living space whilst other prospective homeowners are buying and renovating buildings which can easily be converted to function as a home. As a result, specialist construction companies are in greater demand than ever before. Here are some of the types of specialist construction contractors you may need if you are considering a building conversion.

Specialist Roofers for Loft Conversions

One of the hottest trends in construction at the moment is loft conversions. For a number of reasons many homeowners find they need extra living space but are either reluctant or unable to move to larger quarters. Loft conversions are quite trendy and can be used for anything from an extra bedroom to an office to a playroom for the children. One thing to keep in mind though is that not every roofer can handle converting a loft into a living space. Many times there needs to be actual structural changes to the home which necessitates a different and more specialised type of construction company.

Oast Conversion Specialists

Many redundant oasts line the countryside of the South East and they are just begging to be used for something. The foundation and central structures are still in good repair on a great number of them but when it comes to the oast cowls, they may need to be restored due to decades of unuse. Cowls are the conical structures that captured wind to send into the oast for the drying of hops. Most roofers and building construction companies simply don’t have the technical knowledge nor the experience to restore or renovate a cowl so it will take expert oast specialists to do this part of the conversion.
An interesting note here – where most oasts still in existence today were once converted themselves, they are now being re-converted back to usable space. Many had been barns which were converted to oasts. Now that modern technology has more advanced drying procedures, these buildings are now being converted once again, usually to homes.

Finding Specialist Contractors

Whether you are a general construction contractor or a property owner looking for a specialist contractor, it may not always be easy to find what you need in your general locale. Depending on how highly specialised the industry is, you may need to do a bit of searching online to find the specialist contractor you need. Many specialist contractors network with others either within their own industry or parallel industries through such mediums as trade magazines. Others join B2B networks or post company/director profiles on such sites as LinkedIn.
Since there is an abundance of buildings not being utilised at the current time, it is only logical to convert them whenever possible and as cost permits. Most often you will find these structures being converted to homes but because of the dwelling codes in most areas, it is imperative to hire specialist contractors who can safely do the work per regulations. In a nutshell, safety, regulations and trends are the three most common reasons why specialist contractors are in such demand in the UK.