38 property


How to achieve the best results in choosing commercial property


Choosing the right property for your business is difficult; how do you know if you have picked the right location or the best terms? writes David Thomas, partner, Vail Williams


At Vail Williams we have a useful acronym of recommendations to help.


Price – everything is negotiable and not necessarily included. Be sure that you gain a firm understanding of not only the rent quoted but also rents achieved in the area. Ensure that you fully understand potential total costs of service charges and business rates which vary from property to property.


Requirements – what are your requirements? Consider these not only in terms of staff numbers but other factors such as whether the building will provide adequate, cooling and ventilation to allow you to occupy it intensively, for example.


Expansion – when choosing a premises be sure to think about future expansion; will the premises accommodate your staff numbers in 12 months, or three to five years’ time? If not, you may wish to build in


flexibility to your lease to allow you a clean break and to relocate or take an option on potential expansion within the same building.


Macro and micro location – easy for your staff and customers to get to; sufficient car parking; access to public transport and nearby amenities? Does the location suffer from congestion? Due diligence in this area can vastly improve the usability of premises on a daily basis for your staff and clients alike.


Inspection – caveat emptor: let the buyer beware. Surveys prior to signing a lease are essential to ensure you uncover any potential condition or repair issues that may have costly implications not only in terms of direct repairing liability but potentially through onerous service charge recoveries unless protection is negotiated into place.


Sustainability – important not only for managing down energy costs


but also because proposals under the Energy Act 2011 may make it unlawful from 2018 to let premises below an ‘E’ EPC rating. This should be given great consideration if you are signing up to a five-year lease – who would be responsible for upgrading the energy performance of the building at lease renewal?


Expertise – when choosing premises and negotiating a lease do you have the right expertise? Leases can be littered with bear traps for even the most diligent of individuals in the form of conditional breaks, unfair rent review provisions or onerous repairing covenants. While there may be some upfront cost in engaging the services of an occupier representative, the long-term savings in cost and face can be invaluable.


Size – with new technology such as 4G, wi-fi connectivity, business lounges, virtual offices, home working and average staff occupancy


Businesses continue to prosper in larger premises at Surrey Research Park


Future Biogas, specialists in construction and operation of biogas plants for the UK, and Eseye, a Machine to Machine (M2M) communications solutions provider, are just two examples of companies on the Surrey Research Park that have experienced significant growth and expanded their operations by moving into larger premises on the Park - more than once.


Both companies started life in the Surrey Technology Centre, a facility that provides space for small technology companies (for example in research, development and design fields). The Park’s overriding focus to support business growth and provide grow-on capacity on the same site significantly helps to reduce the costs and disruption normally associated with moving office.


Founded just five years ago, www.businessmag.co.uk


this is now the third time that Eseye has moved into larger self-contained office space on the Park. This expansion follows another strong year in which the company’s turnover rose threefold to over £1 million.


“Moving to our own building gives us the space we need to continue expanding the business,” said Ian Marsden, one of founders at Eseye. “The Surrey Technology Centre gave us a fantastic start, and now we’re bursting at the seams. We have a large solid customer base that we’re determined to support and maintain, so that Eseye can continue to build on the fantastic success we’ve had this year.”


Companies within the Technology Centre are able to rent office spaces of different sizes; this not only gives companies a flexible option but


also the benefit of retaining critical continuity for their work force and customer base. Around 800 companies have now grown and developed on the Surrey Research Park in this way – with experience showing that companies like Future Biogas and Eseye choose to stay on the Park, and that serial entrepreneurs also return to the site to start a new venture after selling their companies.


Future Biogas specialises in construction and operation of biogas plants for the UK, and its plants operate on a range of locally sourced biomass feedstocks, generating clean and reliable energy.


The company’s biogas plants are providing stable renewable energy to help the Government meet its target of ensuring 20% of the UK’s energy is from renewable sources by 2020.


of 55-65% on a daily basis, do you really need so much space? Changing the desks you use or the way you work can save considerably on floor space requirements with associated cost savings.


Your property solutions should support your specific business needs – professional expertise focused on securing the right premises can make all the difference.


Details: David Thomas 0118-9097404 dthomas@vailwilliams.com www.vailwilliams.com


Future Biogas is Dr Joachim Lukas’s third successful business venture since he first became a business tenant on the Park in 1993.


“These two companies are fine examples of innovative businesses that are growing and flourishing, and which continue to benefit from the Science Park model here in Surrey,” said Dr Malcolm Parry, director of the Surrey Research Park.


“Starting out with the support of the Surrey Technology Centre near other like-minded businesses, Eseye and Future Biogas have been able to expand into larger serviced accommodation as and when they have needed to whilst retaining essential business continuity for staff and clients.


"The UK has more than 100 science parks now, and this success story from Surrey is an illustration of the vital contribution that the science park movement is making to boost the UK economy.”


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – MARCH 2013


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44