Commencing mobilisation as early as possible on any BtR project ensures that work on the creation of a brand and the scheme identity can commence. Design agency procurement and the brand creation process can take time and it is imperative to have the brand and assets ready 5-6 months prior to PC.

Another driver for the early start is for large scale procurement of operational elements that may need to be incorporated into infrastructure or impact operational income and expenditure such as security and access systems, broadband, utility contracts, private waste collections, and other building related FM contracts.

Lastly, we believe that by supporting the client and the process early we gain visibility on aspects that we can positively influence to create better outcomes for the contractor, the client, operations, and ultimately the resident. These outcomes inevitably impact the NOI for the building and this is one of the reasons why all of our Mobilisation team have operated BtR sites in their own right whilst our Asset Management teams have extensive multi-site BtR experience at a national level.

As part of our mobilisation service, we produce a bespoke GANTT project plan with key milestones and dependencies. This ensures our monitoring and oversight both internally and for our client. Full visibility and access is provided to our client and we welcome their own input on the timescales. Ultimately, we are here to help deliver an optimised product and to lease up as efficiently and as profitably as possible. Working with our client in a collaborative way ensures we understand their drivers and meet their requirements.

Another key element of our mobilisation service is the mobilisation budget, which, for many clients, forms part of the development cost (not post PC operations). We develop this budget separately from the Income and Expenditure budget ensuring client collaboration and approval prior to commencement of services and spend. An early draft form of this budget has been included on the reporting and budget comparison tab. Understanding our client's approach to the expenditure is vitally important. It ensures we are account for costs in their preferred P&L but also gives the opportunity to flag any matters they might not already have considered.

It is vital that we work closely with the developer, contractor/s, and suppliers and are able to establish the operational site team, with a view to all operational aspects dovetailing in line with PC, whilst also managing all aspects of pre-let and ensuring a minimum of four months out the site is able to also be used for marketing, complete with a safe and appealing customer journey to the show flats. Mobilisation is itemised on a GANTT chart that maps the entire handover which demonstrates how to on-board, essentially moving the scheme from being a development to bringing it to life. It is a huge undertaking and requires a skilled team whose depth of expertise and ability to be fleet of foot and adaptable will pay dividends. Mobilisation is an area where you want the confidence of experience and a proven record of accomplishment.

It is for this reason our Mobilisation team will report into The Head of Asset Management to ensure we provide the experienced resource to deliver this prestigious site.