with the so called credit crunch and people getting payed off all over whos worried about thier job,crime is going up so more security is required youd think, but hear the 3 big nationals have or are going to lay off hundreds between them,will they end up at the locals on better pay due the experience they could bring or will the set up on their own and take more work off the rest of us,will the nationals use their buying power to kill the small co's off(it happens with the supermarkets) and buy the work...interesting and worrying times ahead i feel...

with the so called credit crunch and people getting payed off all over whos worried about thier job,crime is going up so more security is required youd think, but hear the 3 big nationals have or are going to lay off hundreds between them,will they end up at the locals on better pay due the experience they could bring or will the set up on their own and take more work off the rest of us,will the nationals use their buying power to kill the small co's off(it happens with the supermarkets) and buy the work...interesting and worrying times ahead i feel...

According to the latest report into the UK Security market from industry analysts Plimsoll, rates 160 of the UK's leading 908 Security companies as being in financial Danger.

So I would say there will be a few more companies going pop before the end of the year

So I would say there will be a few more companies going pop before the end of the year

Difficult times ahead for many I would imagine but, as always, there is always a demand for security and the cream of the companies and the cream of individual engineers will rise to the top and survive.

natural selection

Difficult times ahead for many I would imagine but, as always, there is always a demand for security and the cream of the companies and the cream of individual engineers will rise to the top and survive.

It must be a wonderful world you live in, where all the good guys always beat the bad guys ..... unfortunately, in the real world it aint like that.

The survivors will be the most astute businessmen .... and that doesn't necessarily mean the work they turn out is good. There all lot's of cowboy installers and most of them will survive a credit crunch because they haven't got any serious overheads.

Good point TBH and I'll admit I over looked that angle.

If cheap is accepted over quailty more "in these difficult times" it might not be a good thing for the industry.

You've seen a resession or 2 already AG (no offence intended) did the same as you say above apply before?

C.

Good point TBH and I'll admit I over looked that angle.

If cheap is accepted over quailty more "in these difficult times" it might not be a good thing for the industry.

You've seen a resession or 2 already AG (no offence intended) did the same as you say above apply before?

C.

Afraid so. Customers tighten their belt. They look for cheaper jobs and the cowboys queue up.

It must be a wonderful world you live in, where all the good guys always beat the bad guys ..... unfortunately, in the real world it aint like that.

The survivors will be the most astute businessmen .... and that doesn't necessarily mean the work they turn out is good. There all lot's of cowboy installers and most of them will survive a credit crunch because they haven't got any serious overheads.

I can assure you I do live in the real world and have done for some considerable time, also I didn't say the good guys always beat the bad guys but in my experince when a company has to make redundancies (which is what I belive this post was originally about), the best engineers tend to be the ones who go last.

Also, and again only in my experince, cowboys do tend to succeed better in a busy economy, this stands to reason really.

When things are bouyant and trades are in short supply many chancers jump on the bandwagon because the good guys are all busy which leaves opportunity for cowboys.

Perhaps it tends to depend on geographic location but there is always a demand from customers who demand and are prepared to pay for top quality work, the most succesful companies are those who know how to sell into this market.

During recession who would you put your money on, Woolworths or Marks and Spencer's? Ooops, too late.

lol, M & S have been on their //.B.W.F.// for years, but know what your saying.

During recession who would you put your money on, Woolworths or Marks and Spencer's? Ooops, too late.

That's my point. Woolworths sold good quality items and they've gone ...... Poundstretcher sells cheap stuff & they're doing OK

I understand your other points (I was just poking a bit of fun) but the thing experience has taught me is you just can't rely on the obvious actually happening .... eg, in the recession of '79 a friend of mine had a business wholesaling washing machine & vacuum parts, and TV/video consumables and tapes. He said, "I'll be OK. They'll still have to keep their washers and vacuums going. Boy, was he wrong. The washer and vacuum business bombed but he doubled his sales on TV/video stuff.