The expectations of European architects concerning opportunities and threats in 2009 vary considerably: Whereas Spanish architects are most uneasy about ceasing assignments, more than half of German architects don’t see any threats at all. The opportunity seen by most architects in the current situation are possibilities in new segments. This results from the European Architectural Barometer, a market study commissioned by Arch-Vision among architects in six countries.
During the research, architects in all six countries were asked to spontaneously name developments that are offering the biggest opportunities in 2009. In Italy and the Netherlands, half of the architects believe that government impulses offer the biggest opportunities in 2009. Possibilities in new segments are regarded as the biggest opportunities by architects in the Netherlands (54 percent), Spain (36 percent), Germany (26 percent), and the United Kingdom (19 percent). One-third of French architects think better financing conditions are the biggest opportunity. In crisis-stricken Spain, as many as 36 percent of the architects feel there are no opportunities in 2009 at all.
Four Out of Five Spanish Architects Fear a Lack of Assignments
The pessimism of the Spaniards is rooted in their difficult assignment situation, as can be seen in their spontaneous answers to the t question asking for the biggest threats in 2009. More than four-fifths of Spanish architecture firms fear the lack of assignments to be the biggest threat (83 percent). Among British architecture firms, this is the most frequently mentioned threat as well (42 percent). The biggest threat marked by 35 percent of the French architects is the postponement of the finance decision. In Italy, architects fear smaller assignments (34 percent) and a price war due to increasing competition (37 percent). Strikingly, the majority of the German architecture firms do not experience any threats at all (52 percent).
