District and district craftsmen's association continue cooperation
It has already become a small tradition: the exchange of experiences between representatives of the district crafts association and representatives of the Waldeck-Frankenberg district, to which the crafts invited this year to the vocational training centre. General Manager Gerhard Brühl and District Master of Crafts Ulrich Mütze were pleased about the participation of District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst, who was a guest with experts from the specialist services for construction and building management. District Administrator van der Horst thanked them for the invitation and underlined the importance of these meetings.
The main topic of the meeting, which was also attended by the senior foremen of some guilds, was the development on the markets as a result of the Ukraine war and the resulting delivery difficulties as well as the partly extreme price increases in construction. In addition, the shortage of skilled workers was discussed, which also leads to price increases and difficulties in availability.
The representatives of the trades informed about delivery bottlenecks at the manufacturers. From roof tiles to heat pumps to emergency generators, delivery times of up to two years have been recorded. How this could be calculated in advance remains a mystery. In the meantime, some manufacturers have already closed their online ordering portals. There are also concerns that the demand from private builders is declining due to rising interest rates and rising building prices. The first effects are already being felt.
The district of Waldeck-Frankenberg will continue to maintain its investments in the area of school and road construction, also to the same extent as before, emphasised district administrator van der Horst. Due to the energy crisis, however, the district is indeed facing great challenges, namely with regard to the energy supply of its buildings. Here, the expansion of district heating could be a solution, realised in neighbourhood concepts with other partners. Initial thoughts on this have already been initiated and made available to the Climate Neutral Waldeck-Frankenberg Association. The district is always available for solution-oriented discussions.
Susanne Paulus, head of the building department, reported on a noticeable reluctance to submit building permits for private housing construction and on an increased demand for advice on housing construction subsidies. Dirk Wilke, deputy head of the building services department, informed about the current situation on the market and on the building sites of the district. In particular, he referred to the supply chain problems and material price increases, even in ongoing projects.
In conclusion, both discussion partners once again emphasised that the dialogue between the craftsmen and the district administration is particularly important. All participants are already looking forward to the next crafts discussion in spring 2023.
Keywords:
Location and Economic Development Building Service Building Management Service