Working on a live construction site means fitting around trades, phased handovers and tight programme dates — decoration can’t be the thing that holds a project up. That’s exactly the brief we worked to on a recent job for Wynne Construction in Wrexham, painting and decorating internal areas as part of a wider build programme.
As with all our office refurbishment work in Wrexham and North Wales, the job was scheduled around the principal contractor’s programme rather than the other way round: our team moved through completed areas in sequence, working to a Dulux Trade specification agreed in advance so there was no downtime waiting on decisions once we were on site.
Why main contractors bring us in
Working as a subcontractor on a live build is a different discipline to decorating an occupied building. It means:
Fitting into a RAMS-approved programme and site induction process
Sequencing work around other trades without causing delays
Keeping finish quality consistent even when access changes week to week
It’s the same reliability that underpins our work across the Midlands, North West and Wales — you can read more about our regional coverage in Commercial Contractor Covering the Midlands, North West & Wales. If you’re a main contractor or developer looking for a decorating partner who can work to your programme, get in touch to discuss your next project.
If you’re weighing up commercial decorators in Staffordshire, the difference usually comes down to three things: how well a contractor plans around your business hours, how consistent the finish is across a large site, and whether the paperwork (RAMS, insurance, Dulux specification) is sorted before anyone picks up a brush. As a Stoke-on-Trent based contractor working across the county, this is exactly where we’ve built our reputation.
We work with offices, schools, pubs, retail units and warehouses throughout Staffordshire, often out of hours or in phases so a Stoke-on-Trent refurbishment or repaint doesn’t mean closing your doors. Every job runs through the same process: a site survey, a Dulux Trade specification suited to the substrate and footfall, and a dedicated site team who see the job through from start to finish.
Where we work in Staffordshire
Alongside general commercial painting and decorating, we regularly handle:
Office refurbishment — full decoration and light refurbishment around live tenants
Warehouses and distribution centres are among the most demanding environments to refurbish. They are often large, operationally critical and difficult to take out of service — yet they can deteriorate quickly when maintenance is deferred, and a poorly maintained facility creates real risks around safety, staff morale and customer perception.
Whether you are planning a full warehouse refurbishment, a rolling maintenance programme, or simply bringing a tired facility back up to standard before a lease renewal or property sale, this guide covers what to expect and how to approach it.
Why Warehouse Refurbishment Is Often Deferred — and Why That’s Costly
Warehouse and distribution facilities are working environments where operational continuity tends to take priority. Refurbishment work gets pushed back, deferred to quieter periods that never quite arrive, or addressed only when a specific problem becomes impossible to ignore. Over time, the accumulated cost of this deferral tends to be significantly higher than a structured, proactive approach would have been.
Faded and damaged paintwork, worn flooring, failing lighting, damaged dock levellers and deteriorating welfare areas are not just aesthetic problems — they affect staff safety, workforce morale and, increasingly, client and customer expectations. Many large retailers and logistics clients now include facility condition as part of their supply chain audit criteria.
What Does a Warehouse Refurbishment Typically Include?
The scope of a warehouse refurbishment varies considerably depending on the size and condition of the facility, but typically includes some or all of the following:
Internal & External Painting
Structural steelwork, racking areas, walls, loading bay surrounds, external cladding and roof structures all require periodic painting. Industrial environments are harsh — UV exposure, condensation, forklift impact and chemical contamination accelerate deterioration. We use industrial-grade coatings suited to each substrate and environment, applied by trained operatives working to H&S compliant procedures including working at height.
Flooring
Warehouse floors take significant punishment. We install and repair a range of commercial and industrial flooring including safety vinyl, anti-slip coatings and carpet tiles for office areas within warehouse facilities. Line marking for traffic management and pedestrian zones is also available.
Welfare & Office Areas
Staff welfare facilities — canteens, locker rooms, toilets and office areas — are often the most visible indicator of how well a facility is maintained. We refurbish welfare areas including full decoration, flooring replacement, kitchen installation, toilet upgrades and partition installation.
Suspended Ceilings & Lighting
We install and replace suspended ceiling systems in office and welfare areas within warehouse facilities, including integrated lighting. We coordinate closely with electrical contractors to ensure all installations are compliant and certified.
Minor Works & Repairs
Doors and shutters, dock boards, fencing, paving, drainage and general external fabric can all be addressed as part of a warehouse refurbishment programme. Our minor works and planned maintenance teams handle the broad range of tasks required to maintain a large facility to a consistent standard.
How to Minimise Operational Disruption
The most common concern with warehouse refurbishment is how to carry out the works without bringing operations to a halt. The answer lies in careful programming. A few principles that make a significant difference:
Phase the works. Rather than closing down sections of the facility entirely, works can be phased across zones — completing one area before moving to the next, keeping the overall operation running throughout.
Work in off-peak periods. Evenings, nights and weekends offer the opportunity to carry out more disruptive works when the facility is at lower capacity. Wallace Contracts can work flexible hours to accommodate operational requirements.
Agree clear exclusion zones. A detailed programme with clearly marked exclusion zones — agreed in advance with the operations team — prevents conflict between trades and live operations.
Appoint a single project manager. Having one point of contact who is accountable for all trades and all communications eliminates the confusion that arises when multiple contractors are on site without coordination.
Planning for Asbestos
Many warehouse and distribution buildings constructed before 2000 contain asbestos-containing materials — most commonly in roof sheets, insulation boards, floor tiles or pipe lagging. Before any refurbishment works begin, an asbestos survey is a legal requirement. Wallace Contracts coordinate asbestos surveys with our ARCA-approved partner as a standard part of every refurbishment project.
How Wallace Contracts Can Help
Wallace Contracts Ltd have been refurbishing commercial and industrial properties across the Midlands and North West for over 45 years. We work in warehouse and distribution environments for clients in logistics, manufacturing, retail supply chain and third-party logistics — managing all trades in-house under a single project manager and delivering to agreed programmes with minimal disruption to operations.
Our warehouse refurbishment services cover Stoke-on-Trent, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Stafford and surrounding areas, with nationwide coverage available for larger projects.
To discuss a warehouse or distribution centre refurbishment, contact us for a free site survey and quotation. You can also explore our transport, warehouse and distribution sector page to find out more about the work we do in this sector.
Every commercial property requires maintenance. The question is not whether the work will need doing — it is whether you choose to manage it on your own terms, or wait until something fails and deal with the consequences.
Reactive maintenance — fixing things when they break — might feel like the cheaper option in the short term. But in practice, it almost always costs more, causes more disruption, and creates more risk than a properly structured planned maintenance programme. Here is why.
The True Cost of Reactive Maintenance
When a problem develops unexpectedly — a leaking roof, a failing boiler, a floor covering that has lifted and become a trip hazard — the costs quickly mount up. Emergency call-out rates are higher. Materials are ordered at short notice without the benefit of negotiated pricing. Works often need to be carried out during business hours, disrupting your team, your customers or your tenants. And if the problem has been developing quietly for months before it becomes obvious, the eventual repair bill is usually far larger than it would have been if it had been caught earlier.
There is also the question of reputation. A poorly maintained property sends a message — to clients who visit your premises, to employees who work there, and to tenants who might choose to renew their lease or look elsewhere.
What Does a Planned Maintenance Programme Include?
A planned maintenance programme is a scheduled, proactive approach to keeping a commercial property in good condition. Rather than waiting for problems to occur, a planned programme identifies what needs to be done, when, and at what cost — giving you predictability over your maintenance budget and confidence that your property will be looked after to a consistent standard.
Typical planned maintenance items for commercial properties include:
Redecoration cycles — internal and external painting and decorating carried out on a rolling programme, typically every three to five years depending on the specification and environment
Flooring replacement — replacing worn or damaged floor coverings before they become a safety or appearance issue
Joinery and door maintenance — adjusting, repairing or replacing doors, frames, skirting and architraves as part of a regular inspection cycle
Roof and external fabric checks — inspecting guttering, downpipes, roof coverings and external surfaces before the onset of winter
M&E servicing — boiler servicing, electrical periodic testing, fire alarm maintenance and access control system checks
Groundworks and external areas — maintaining car parks, paving, decking and site boundaries
The Benefits of Planning Ahead
A well-structured planned maintenance programme delivers several clear advantages over reactive maintenance:
Cost predictability. You know in advance what will be spent and when. There are no budget shocks from emergency repairs, and works can be procured at competitive rates rather than emergency rates.
Reduced disruption. Planned works can be scheduled for times that minimise impact on your operations — evenings, weekends or periods of lower activity. Emergency repairs rarely offer that flexibility.
Longer asset life. A property that is consistently maintained retains its value better and requires less significant capital expenditure over time. A fresh coat of paint every five years costs considerably less than a full redecoration of a property that has been left untouched for fifteen.
Compliance. Many elements of building maintenance — electrical testing, fire alarm servicing, gas safety — are legal requirements. A planned programme ensures these obligations are never missed.
Tenant and staff satisfaction. A well-maintained building communicates that you take your responsibilities seriously. Tenants are more likely to renew leases, and employees are more productive in a well-kept environment.
How Wallace Contracts Approaches Planned Maintenance
Wallace Contracts Ltd deliver planned maintenance programmes for commercial and industrial properties across the Midlands and North West. We manage the full scope of maintenance works in-house — painting and decorating, flooring, joinery, minor electrical and plumbing works, and groundworks — coordinated by a dedicated project manager and delivered to a programme that fits around your operations.
Every planned maintenance client receives a detailed programme of works with agreed timescales, regular communication throughout, and full H&S documentation on completion of each phase. Our 12-month guarantee applies to all works carried out.
If you manage commercial property and would like to discuss moving from reactive to planned maintenance, get in touch for a free site survey. You can also find out more about our planned maintenance service.
If you rent a commercial property, the words “schedule of dilapidations” can trigger a sharp intake of breath. For many tenants, it arrives towards the end of a lease and outlines — sometimes in considerable detail — the repairs, reinstatements and redecoration works the landlord expects to be carried out before the keys are handed back.
Understanding what a schedule of dilapidations actually means, and how to approach it, can make the difference between a costly dispute and a straightforward handover. Here we explain the basics and how Wallace Contracts can help.
What Is a Schedule of Dilapidations?
A schedule of dilapidations is a formal document prepared by a landlord or their surveyor that lists the disrepair, breaches of lease covenant and reinstatement obligations at a commercial property. It is typically served on the tenant either during the lease (an interim schedule) or at the end of it (a terminal schedule).
The items listed can range from relatively minor cosmetic repairs — repainting walls, replacing damaged flooring or repairing a broken door — through to more significant structural works, such as removing partitions installed by the tenant or reinstating the property to its original layout.
What Are the Most Common Dilapidation Items?
Every schedule is different, but the works most commonly required include:
Redecoration — repainting internal and external surfaces to the standard specified in the lease
Flooring reinstatement — replacing damaged or worn flooring with materials matching the original specification
Partition removal or reinstatement — removing partitions installed during the tenancy, or reinstating those removed
Joinery repairs — repairing or replacing damaged doors, frames, skirting boards and architraves
Suspended ceiling repairs — replacing damaged ceiling tiles or reinstating ceiling grids removed during the tenancy
M&E works — removing redundant electrical or gas installations and making good
What Happens If You Ignore a Schedule of Dilapidations?
Ignoring a dilapidation schedule is rarely a good strategy. If a tenant fails to carry out the required works, the landlord can engage their own contractors to complete the works and pursue the tenant for the costs through legal action. These costs — which include the landlord’s surveyor fees on top of the actual works — are almost always higher than they would have been if the tenant had managed the works themselves.
There is also the question of negotiation. Dilapidation schedules are not always set in stone. An experienced contractor who can assess the schedule, carry out the works promptly and document everything correctly can significantly reduce the overall liability.
Do You Need an Asbestos Survey First?
Yes — before any dilapidation works can legally begin in a commercial property, an asbestos survey must be completed. This applies to virtually all commercial buildings, particularly those constructed or refurbished before the year 2000. Any asbestos-containing materials identified that will be disturbed during the works must be removed by a licensed contractor before the dilapidation programme begins.
This is a step that tenants sometimes overlook, and it is one of the most important. Failing to carry out an asbestos survey before commencing works can result in serious legal consequences. Wallace Contracts coordinate asbestos surveys with our ARCA-approved partner as part of every dilapidation project.
Should You Use a Specialist Dilapidation Contractor?
Dilapidation projects are different from straightforward refurbishment work. They require careful coordination across multiple trades — decorators, electricians, joiners, plumbers, flooring installers — all working to a specific programme and against the detailed list of requirements in the schedule. Any items missed or completed to an insufficient standard can result in the landlord rejecting the works and appointing their own contractor at the tenant’s cost.
Using a specialist contractor who manages all trades in-house, provides a dedicated project manager and works to a clear programme gives you the best chance of completing the dilapidation schedule on time, to standard, and without costly disputes.
How Wallace Contracts Can Help
Wallace Contracts Ltd have been managing dilapidation projects for commercial landlords and tenants across the Midlands and North West for over 45 years. We carry out all works in-house — there is no subcontracting — and every project is managed by a dedicated project manager who coordinates every trade from asbestos survey coordination through to final decoration and sign-off.
We work across a wide range of property types including offices, retail units, restaurants, warehouses and healthcare facilities, and we provide full H&S documentation and O&M manuals on completion.
If you have received a schedule of dilapidations or your lease is approaching its end, contact us for a free site survey and quotation. We will provide a detailed, itemised quote within 10 working days of survey. You can also find out more about our dilapidations service.
