Aecom London contractors survey: cost and skills pressures for project teams
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on New Civil Engineer
30 Second Briefing
Short-term confidence among London construction contractors has dipped, with Aecom’s latest survey citing rising input costs and persistent skills shortages across key trades. Firms report pressure from higher prices for materials such as steel and concrete, alongside difficulty recruiting experienced site managers, project planners and specialist subcontractors. The survey points to tighter margins on major infrastructure and commercial schemes in the capital, with contractors likely to price in greater risk allowances and become more selective about bidding.
Technical Brief
- Respondents report project pricing increasingly driven by quantified risk allowances rather than base construction costs alone.
- Survey feedback indicates preconstruction periods are lengthening as clients interrogate cost plans and programme assumptions in more detail.
- Contractors cite programme risk around late design information and coordination as a key commercial pressure point.
- Aecom notes contractors are reassessing preferred procurement routes, with more interest in negotiated or two-stage tenders.
- For similar UK urban infrastructure programmes, Aecom expects more emphasis on early contractor involvement to de-risk delivery.
Our Take
Aecom’s wavering confidence signal in London contrasts with its role in buoyant markets such as Northern Ireland, where our coverage shows construction output recently hitting its highest level since 2010, suggesting regional reallocation of resources may become a live issue for UK contractors.
Recent UK-wide data in our database, including the ONS-linked piece on back-to-back monthly output declines, supports the idea that London contractors’ concerns are not purely local but sit within a broader softening of new work pipelines ahead of major public spending decisions.
Despite the downbeat tone around London, Aecom continues to secure major design and delivery roles in other regions and sectors – from Scottish Water’s long-term framework to the Unite32 JV on Brisbane 2032 venues – which likely gives it more resilience to UK capital pressures than smaller, London-centric firms.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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