Terrain drainage stacks help solve the growing skills gap

Take a look at the skyline of any UK city and you’ll notice one common factor - cranes. Cranes are a good sign, they mean investment into the city, a new influx of residents or businesses and plenty of work for architects, developers and contractors. But what happens when demand for new projects accelerates beyond what the supply chain can deliver?

There are several sectors that have struggled to attract and retain enough talent and construction has felt that pain more than most. A recent report by main contractor Laing O’Rourke points to stats from Infrastructure UK, which estimates the pipeline of projects means that an additional 250,000 construction roles will need to be filled by 2020. This sounds like great news, but more troubling is findings from the Employer Skills Survey found that construction employers are now struggling to fill one in three vacancies.

So, what happens when skilled tradespeople can’t be found? It could mean that projects run over time, delaying the creation of much-needed residential and commercial space. It could also mean that some projects get cancelled altogether, with developers and investors deciding that the project is too difficult to deliver. When skilled tradespeople can be found, it’s likely that they’ll charge a premium for their in-demand skills. Whichever scenario is true, it’s not ideal. Thankfully, manufacturers like Polypipe have been developing ways to mitigate this skills gap by creating systems that perform without the need for skilled labour – allowing on-site contracting teams to get on with the job.

Fabricated drainage stacks featuring Terrain drainage systems are designed and manufactured in a state-of-the-art facility, meaning that they meet the exact specifications of the project and remove the need for specialist teams on-site to undertake significant work to install them. Every stack is also air tested at the factory to ensure quality, giving installation teams one less thing to worry about.

Fabricating drainage stacks before their delivery to site minimises the need for jointing, with stacks simply connecting with those installed in floors above and below. What’s more, Polypipe also clearly label stacks with easy to follow instructions and have Technical Support available for situations where teams need advice and guidance.

Why install any other way?

Contact us to find out how Terrain fabricated drainage stacks can help your project.