Dilapidations are a necessary part of any property management strategy, but they often lack sustainability. It is possible for sustainability and dilapidations to go together and we can all start by making small changes although bigger systemic change is also needed.
We have the ability to give existing fittings a new lease of life, reducing the amount of waste created and the need for new materials to be sourced. These measures may seem like small changes, but they can make a big difference when it comes to sustainability. Reusing existing fittings is just one way in which dilapidations can be made more environmentally friendly and this approach can be used in conjunction with other suggestions which improve the role of dilapidations in sustainable property management.
What are the problems for sustainability and dilapidations?
The traditional strip-out cycle produces large quantities of waste, and uses unnecessary carbon, which is neither sustainable nor economical. The normal approach has been that a tenant’s fit out must be stripped out at the end of a lease without thought being given to which elements of the fit out would be appropriate to retain and reuse.
What can be done to improve the dilapidation process?
Facilitating communications between the property owners, old tenants and new tenants could have benefits for all as well as improving the sustainability of the process. By offering a solution that can reuse some of the existing fittings, there are financial savings to be made by both incoming and outgoing tenants and time savings for landlords.
A new lease of life for existing fittings
Whilst there are obvious benefits to reusing existing fittings in terms of their environmental impact, it is also obvious that a new tenant is not going to be prepared to accept a shabby commercial space. As such it is essential that the retained fittings are of the highest possible standard and our spray painting services can help with this. With a range of paint finishes design to refresh and protect your fittings we can help give a new lease of life to:
- Heater casings
- Window frames
- Lift doors
- Suspended ceilings
What else can be done to improve sustainability and dilapidations?
Changing the process of dilapidations so that appropriate fittings are still in place when the space is marketed to new tenants would be a significant move towards improving the sustainability of the property industry. This would allow the existing fit out to be assessed to determine which parts can be kept and repaired to show the space off in a more appealing way than the bare spaces typically shown to the market. Should a new tenant be happy with the existing fittings still in place, the previous tenants will make a saving on dilapidations, and the new tenants can save on fit out costs. This is also likely to provide time and carbon savings important to so many businesses.
More information about this can be found here.
Thinking ahead at the fit out stage
Another way in which the sustainability and dilapidations can be improved is by starting from the fit out point with some key principles in play:
- Use fittings that can be re-used in future should they need to be removed at the end of tenancy
- Make use of fittings that have been used before
- Avoid use of concrete
- Use timber from certified sustainable sources and steel with a high recycled content
- Keep the existing services layout in place where possible
- Use solvent free, low VOC fittings and finishes
- Work with contractors committed to minimising their impact on the environment
Spray painting and dilapidations
We are experienced at spray painting as part of dilapidations and fit out work and would be happy to discuss what we can do with you. Please get in touch to find out more.