A lot of businesses will talk about the benefits of ‘buying British’ and in some cases it boils down to sentimentality or self-interest. Working with a UK supplier is undoubtedly a good thing. It creates jobs and supports the local economy. But as far as temporary buildings are concerned there are some other tangible benefits of working with a UK owned and based company. Here is why:
1) Customer Service
Being an independently owned British business has important benefits for customer service – especially in a business where we’re dealing with maintenance support. Every part of our operation is based in the UK: including some of our manufacturing facilities, all of our installation teams, and our entire management and customer service teams. This means there will always be someone available to talk to who a) is available to help immediately and b) is able to solve whatever problem you have without delay.
A foreign owned and based company with a UK sales office may well offer an attractive price because they have little or no overhead to support here in the UK.
But when you inevitably call to report a maintenance issue, more and more companies in this business have stripped out all of the operating costs to reduce their selling prices, which whilst seeming attractive on the pricing front; is of no use at all when they do not have the resource to provide the on-going support you will probably need.
2) Price
A foreign owned and based business will be dependent on UK third parties for installations and customer service. This will make it slower for the business to respond to customer service issues and could lead to installation delays. It may also ramp up the price, as the supplier will have to cover third party costs, as well as the logistics of getting your building component to the UK from wherever they are based.
3) Stability
Working with a British business makes it easier for you to verify their accreditations, experience and financial stability. At Smart-Space we have a continuous record in business since 1984. As a well-established company, we value long-term customer relationships and work hard to sustain our professional reputation. Many clients hire temporary buildings from us repeatedly over many years – and we have some rental agreements in place for 10 years or more. This stability is important because it gives you peace of mind that we are solvent and are not going anywhere in a hurry! We have the resources, experience and expertise to deliver the highest quality buildings and maintenance services for any duration of rental agreement.
4) Stock Availability
Wherever possible, all our temporary building components are manufactured in the UK. When you purchase or rent from us you know that everything complies with EU and UK quality standards – something which can’t be taken for granted when buying from abroad. We keep plenty of stock at our warehouse which can quickly be dispatched for installation in just 7 to 21 days of ordering. This is an important factor for maintenance too. Most temporary buildings occasionally need maintenance – which is why we offer an inclusive maintenance service during your rental period. Our broad stock of replacement parts are ready to ship out to site the moment you need them.
5) UK Building Regulations
As a British business, we are fully aware of the building regulations which affect temporary and relocatable buildings. Each building is designed to reach (and in many cases exceed) the standards required for temporary buildings in the mainland UK. These include regulations affecting wind speed resistance (BS6399), snow loads (BS1991 pts 1-3), fire resistance for roofing materials (BS2D0) and many more. We provide full static calculations with every temporary building, which can be used in the dealings you have with your local building authorities.
Find Out More
To find out more about our range of temporary and semi-permanent relocatable buildings, please get in touch today by phone on 01827 330000, or by online message.
