The economic challenges of the post lockdown world become clearer

The economic challenges of the post lockdown world become clearer

There are so many unknowns about the ways in which the Covid-19 pandemic will shape our world in the coming months and years but what it has highlighted are the strengths and weaknesses in the global and UK economy and their implications for the commercial property sector. In its latest white paper, property consultancy and chartered surveyors Bruceshaw examines the macro and micro economic challenges that will shape the property sector for many years to come. (more…)

Demand for workspace in Oxford-Cambridge Arc set to soar

Demand for workspace in Oxford-Cambridge Arc set to soar

New research from Property Consultants Bidwells claims that up to 20 million sq ft of new lab and office space will be required in the Oxford-Cambridge Arc within the next two decades to keep pace with demand, twice the volume of the previous 20 years. The new report, ‘Oxford-Cambridge Arc Beyond the Covid-19 Crisis’, also estimates that the Arc will represent almost 11 percent of UK GVA by 2050, up from 6 percent today, equivalent to £100bn a year. (more…)

BBP and BSRIA publish new soft landings report for property owners

BBP and BSRIA publish new soft landings report for property owners

Better Buildings Partnership, together with BSRIA (Building Services Research and Information Association), has today published the joint report: Soft Landings: The Benefits to Commercial Property Owners. The commercial property sector is waking up to the fact that it needs to take responsibility on climate change and there is a broad recognition that a significant gap exists between the design expectations and operational performance of buildings. Part of taking climate action involves minimising this gap, the report’s authors claim. (more…)

Offices in the post lockdown era will focus on what they are good at

Offices in the post lockdown era will focus on what they are good at

Office spaces will become a hive of activity in the future as more businesses embrace office designs which promote innovation, creativity and team collaboration, predicts commercial real estate advisors Colliers International. The EMEA Workplace Advisory team has published its latest report, Exploring the post-COVID-19 Workplace, which evaluates feedback from its global Work from Home survey to discuss future workplace trends. (more…)

Data is changing the role of the workplace and HR

Data is changing the role of the workplace and HR

Business leaders have been heavily dependent on HR, real estate, and technology functions working together to help their organisation adapts to this new world of work during the pandemic. Ensuring personal safety, promoting wellbeing, encouraging collaboration, and maintaining efficient service delivery will never be more important than in the coming months. The challenge facing CRE leaders is how to advise on the appropriate range of workspaces and hygiene standards to allow organisations and their people to thrive, and how to cut through the complexity of accessing and interpreting data to achieve this. (more…)

The new era of work will embrace an ecosystem of spaces

The new era of work will embrace an ecosystem of spaces

The results of a new survey on people’s experience of working from home during lockdown will accelerate the  shift from primarily office-based work to a “total workplace ecosystem”, based on offices, homes and other locations including digital space. That is the conclusion of a new report from  Cushman & Wakefield which analysed responses from more than 40,000 individuals from around thirty companies across nearly twenty sectors. (more…)

The role of workplace professionals in the new era of work

The role of workplace professionals in the new era of work

Epicenter Coworking Space in Stockholm workplaceMany consequences of the COVID-19 crisis are immediately apparent to workplace managers and users. Potentially less obvious, are the fundamental changes to the job roles involved in managing commercial property, both within occupier businesses and property management teams alike. (more…)

Demand for London office space plummets, but will bounce back (to an extent)

Demand for London office space plummets, but will bounce back (to an extent)

London office spaceThe impact of the measures taken to curtail the spread of COVID-19 have dramatically changed the working landscape, not least of all for the commercial property market, claims a new report from property consultancy DeVono Cresa. Commercial occupier demand for London office space fell by 30 percent across Q1 of 2020, according to the report. However, it also suggests that the market fundamentals at the end of March remain relevant and will dictate heavily on future real estate decisions. (more…)

Most British workers reluctant to work mainly from home, BCO poll claims

Most British workers reluctant to work mainly from home, BCO poll claims

Rumours of the demise of the office are much exaggerated, according to new independent polling commissioned by the British Council for Offices (BCO), the representative body for the UK’s office sector. Just one in five (20 percent) UK adults plans primarily to work from home in the future, while only 16 percent hope that working from home replaces the office. Last week, Twitter, the social media company, announced that staff could ‘forever work from home’ if they wanted to. However, that offer would only be partially taken up by British workers, with many instead opting for ‘mixed working’, balancing time between the office and home. (more…)

Less desk sharing and more screens for receptionists, say property industry experts

Less desk sharing and more screens for receptionists, say property industry experts

Shared desking is likely to become less popular as a result of COVID-19, but we are likely to see an increase in the use of unisex superloos and screens for receptionists, according to a new thought paper by the British Council for Offices. The paper claims to outline how the workplace may change as a result of COVID-19, and how Britain can safely return to work in the coming weeks and months. (more…)

EDGE London Bridge will be most sustainable tower in capital

EDGE London Bridge will be most sustainable tower in capital

EDGE, the developer of a number of groundbreaking, energy-efficient office buildings has reveals its designs for its new London project. The name of the new sustainable development at St Thomas Street on London’s South Bank is EDGE London Bridge. The development aims to make the 255,000 sq ft nia (23,500 sq m) tower featuring 26 floors of commercial office space into London’s most sustainable office tower. (more…)

Finance leaders gear up for life after lockdown

Finance leaders gear up for life after lockdown

As the impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic becomes apparent, and the vast majority of workers are now remote working, CFOs are working closely with their real estate teams to re-assess workspace costs both now and in the future. (more…)