General Building · Bournemouth, Poole & Dorset
General Building
& Refurbishment
Across Bournemouth & Dorset.
Reactive and planned general building works across blocks, commercial premises and private clients, one team, properly documented. From a single make-good repair through to a fit-out, the same accountable contact and the same paperwork standard runs throughout the job.
FDIS Qualified · Firequal Qualified · BS 8214 Compliant · Bournemouth-Based
Service Overview
General Building:
The Brief, In Plain English.
What It Is
General building and refurbishment: internal alterations, structural openings, dry lining and plastering, brick and block repair, render and pointing, screeding, second-fix integration across joinery, plumbing and electrics, post-incident make-good and inter-tenancy refurbishment.
Who It's For
Managing agents needing block-scale refurbishment delivery, commercial landlords on tenant fit-outs and make-good, freeholders on planned-works programmes, and private clients on extensions and conversions.
When You Need It
Inter-tenancy turnarounds, planned refurbishment programmes, post-incident make-good (water, fire, impact damage), commercial fit-out and strip-out, planned redecoration prep and FRA close-out works.
Why It Matters
On a block or commercial premises, building works fail when the trade interfaces fail, the joiner waiting for the plasterer, the painter waiting for the dry-liner, the plumber needing access. A single contractor coordinating internally removes the gap that costs you time and money.
What Happens If You Wait
The Cost Of
Doing Nothing.
Most general building issues aren't isolated: water ingress causes plaster damage causes decoration damage causes joinery damage. Treating one without the upstream cause means it comes back. Building works without an integrated trade base produce snag lists that drag on for months.
Risks Of Ignoring It
- →Multi-trade refurbishments slipping programme because no single contractor owns the interfaces.
- →Repeat visits where upstream defects (leaks, structural movement) weren't addressed before make-good.
- →Inter-tenancy turnaround running over and missing the next letting cycle.
- →Quality variation across trades on a block-scale package, undermining the redecoration spec.
- →Hidden CDM compliance gaps on projects that have grown past the notifiable threshold.
Common Mistakes Customers Make
- ×Letting trades self-coordinate, the resulting timeline is always longer and the snag list is always larger.
- ×Skipping the upstream diagnosis: fixing the symptom and not the cause.
- ×No CDM principal contractor on a project that's clearly notifiable: exposing client to enforcement.
- ×Buying on lowest hourly rate across trades: true cost lies in the coordination overhead.
- ×Accepting verbal change-orders: disputed final accounts always trace back to missing written variations.
Our Process
First Call To
Final Sign-Off.
01
Inspection
Site visit at an agreed access window: measurements, photographs, scope and constraints recorded against your reference.
02
Diagnosis
Findings written up against the standard, BS or building safety case clause they relate to, with severity and priority assigned.
03
Proposal
Itemised quote, programme, RAMS and product/competency evidence: sent to the distribution list you nominate.
04
Works On Site
Tidy, resident-aware delivery. Dust control, drop sheets, daily clear-up and notified working hours. One named lead on site.
05
Sign-Off & Handover
Photographic completion pack, certificates and product traceability documents supplied for your file.
Why It's Worth It
What You
Actually Get.
Faster Refurbishment Delivery
Single-contractor coordination cuts typical block refurbishment programme by 15-25% versus multi-trade.
Safer Sites
RAMS, principal contractor coverage where applicable, full CDM compliance and weekly site safety audits.
Longer-Life Make-Good
Upstream diagnosis means leaks, movement and ventilation issues addressed before make-good: work that lasts.
Reduced Coordination Cost
One contractor, one programme, one accountable contact: removing the 15-25% coordination overhead built into multi-trade.
Reliable Programme Delivery
Detailed programme with weekly progress reporting, photographic record and clear forward-look on critical path.
Peace Of Mind On Compliance
CDM duties met, RAMS supplied up front, public liability evidenced, principal contractor agreement where required.
In Detail
General Building,
Every Variation Covered.
Materials, methods and the situations each variation applies to, so you know what you're buying before you buy it.
Working across
Bournemouth · Poole · Christchurch · Wimborne Minster · Ferndown · Blandford Forum · Dorchester
Full Service Area MapInternal alterations & structural openings
Non-loadbearing and loadbearing openings (with structural engineer's design), wall removal, room reconfiguration. Includes RSJ supply and install, lintel replacement and head-restraint detail.
Dry lining, plastering & screeding
Plasterboard fixing on metal stud or timber stud, two-coat plaster, skim finish to fine-decoration standard. Sand-cement and self-levelling screed for floor finish prep.
Brick, block & masonry repair
Match-pointing on Edwardian and Victorian elevations, brick replacement and toothing-in, cavity-wall make-good, lintel replacement and arch repair.
Render & external make-good
Sand-cement render, monocouche render repair, EWI patch-and-match (within competence limits and only where the original system manufacturer permits).
Post-incident make-good
Water damage, fire damage, impact damage. Upstream cause diagnosed first, then full make-good across plastering, joinery, decoration and floor finishes.
Inter-tenancy refurbishment
Standard 5-10 day turnaround on flat make-good, including paint, carpet, joinery snag, kitchen and bathroom sanitary refresh, light fittings and EPC remediation.
Commercial fit-out and strip-out
Partition installation, ceiling grid, services coordination, floor finishes, decoration. Cat A and Cat B fit-out within competence limits.
Questions
Straight
Answers.
Cost, timeline, documentation, lifespan, availability: the questions everyone asks, answered before you call.
Ask YoursHow do you price general building work?
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Defined scope is fixed-price against a measured schedule of works. Time-and-materials only for genuinely reactive work where scope can't be defined in advance. Day rates documented up front.
Do you act as principal contractor under CDM?
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Yes: for projects under the relevant CDM threshold, with written principal contractor agreement, F10 notification where required, RAMS pack and welfare provision.
Can you handle a complete refurbishment?
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Yes: strip-out through to final clean, including coordination of M&E specialist trades where required (gas safe, NICEIC, specialist roofing). Most blocks and commercial fit-outs deliverable in-house.
What's your turnaround on an inter-tenancy refurbishment?
+
Standard scope (clean, paint, joinery snag, sanitary refresh, light fittings) typically 5-10 working days from instruction. Heavier scope (kitchen replacement, bathroom replacement, EPC remediation) typically 15-20 working days.
Do you handle post-incident make-good?
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Yes: water damage, fire damage and impact damage make-good, working direct or with the insurer's loss adjuster. Upstream cause always diagnosed before make-good.
Can you do structural alterations?
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Yes: with a structural engineer's design (we work with established local engineers if you don't have one), building control notification and inspection.
What cover applies to supplied products?
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Supplied products carry the manufacturer's standard warranty, passed through to you on completion.
Do you work on listed buildings?
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Yes: within the scope of standard repair and like-for-like replacement. Listed building consent is the client's responsibility; we work to the approved consent.
What's the minimum project size?
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No formal minimum, but most general-building scope sits above £1,500. Smaller work runs through our block maintenance retainer model.
On The Job
General Building & Wider Novopro Work.
A rolling gallery from live and recently completed jobs across Dorset and Hampshire.
Next Step
Plan Your Refurbishment: Book A Site Visit.
Site survey within our coverage area, written quote issued after the visit, no obligation. Bournemouth-based, covering Dorset, Hampshire, Berkshire and the South Coast.
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