Property Focus: The Interview – Adrian Aston

THIS week’s Property Interview speaks to Adrian Aston, a director with Wakemans in Birmingham.

The property consultancy specialises in project management and surveying both nationally and internationally and also has offices in Bristol, Caernarfon and Cardiff.

If you are interested in taking part in ‘The Interview’, please email tamlyn.jones@thebusinessdesk.com and click through to see all our previous Property Focus Interviews.

1. What are your views on the current state of the commercial property and property development markets?

The cuts in public spending will inevitably show itself in cuts in the capital projects for this sector which will lead companies into the commercial sector in order to find work. Whilst there is still a certain amount of tenant demand at present, there is still an inability to finance new projects at reasonable terms.

The continued lack of funding in this sector by the banks is going to make commercial development very flat for the foreseeable future. Schemes take a considerable time to get to site and so construction activity will be severely depressed in the coming months.

There are still pockets of activity such as food, retail and the leisure sector which remain buoyant but funding remains a challenge.

2. What are the key challenges and pieces of legislation you think will most affect your sector over the coming months?

Increased requirements resulting from Part L of the Building Regulations and also the increasing sustainability targets that are being imposed through the planning system will provide a great challenge to developers to try and make schemes stack up.

The targets being set by planners are not always realistic in terms of the technology that is currently available and the risk that is being downloaded to the contractors is manifested through higher prices.

3. Why do you think the West Midlands is a good place to do business?

The West Midlands was the birthplace of the industrial revolution and still has a tradition of engineering and innovation. It is a central location and has an impressive infra structure enabling easy access to all parts of the country and to Europe.

4. What is your favourite building/development in the West Midlands and why?

The Mailbox. We did the quantity surveying as a business for the construction originally and were involved with it throughout its life as a sorting office. It is fantastic to see it evolve into what is a centre for retail and leisure.

5. If you could improve anything in the region, what would it be?

Cycle lanes and the parlous state of the roads.

6. What barriers have you had to overcome during your career and how have you overcome them?

Multiplying duo decimals without a calculator and trying to measure metric quantities from imperial drawings. To overcome this I brought a calculator and a conversion scale rule!

7. What was your first job and how did you enter your current line of work?

I left school and went labouring on a building site and was intrigued by the functions of the site management and the visiting consultants.

8. What do you most enjoy about your job?

The people you meet in the industry, with very few exceptions. The construction and property industry is a friendly and social world and an enjoyable place to be.

9. What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

When you have to speak in public or give a presentation, no-one knows how nervous you are but you and if there are no outward signs then no-one is the wiser.

10. And the worst?

Learn to play bridge and become a mason.