May 13, 2025
Top 3 Barriers in Commercial Electrical Services
5 Min. Read
As building technology continues to grow in scope and complexity, the commercial electrical maintenance required to maintain and upkeep these electrical systems is becoming more challenging for multifamily and commercial properties.
Unfortunately for property managers, finding and vetting electrical contractors with the right skills and availability can be difficult.
With the right maintenance plan, electrical systems can become differentiators that contribute to modern and competitive properties, and falling behind on maintenance can lead to unhappy occupants, missed sustainability goals, and even lost profit and greater expenses.
So how can you navigate upgrades and maintenance for increasingly complex electrical systems without the hassle of trying to find and hire qualified electricians? Read on to discover common barriers to commercial electrical services and learn how to seamlessly navigate these challenges.
The Biggest Barriers to Successful Commercial Electrical Services
You’re not the only property manager running into challenges related to commercial electrical maintenance and upgrades. These barriers reflect industry-wide problems.
One key issue is the shortage of skilled electrical contractors, which leads to longer project completion times and delays. The impact is even greater if you manage properties across multiple locations.
For property owners and managers, these delays mean electrical upgrades take longer, and, as a result, they often end up exceeding your budget, making achieving operational and energy goals even more challenging when essential upgrades are out of reach.
The shortage of skilled contractors also affects commercial electrical maintenance, making regular checkups difficult to schedule. For this reason, you’re more likely to run into electrical problems and experience downtime for your property.
To stay ahead, your property needs a clear electrical plan.
This plan should allow for quick upgrades, ongoing maintenance, and rapid responses to issues. Scalability is also key, especially for large projects and multiple locations. Finally, your plan should account for the expertise needed to take advantage of the latest technologies, such as building automation, smart panels, load-shedding solutions, and more.
Why Do Commercial Electrical Projects Take So Long?
Being proactive about electrical systems is key for modern and competitive properties—whether it’s rolling out smart lighting to save money or replacing an outdated panel before it fails.
With a labor shortage of skilled contractors and rising demand for qualified electricians capable of tackling commercial electrical projects, it can take months to find a licensed electrical contractor and get your projects started. Even then, labor challenges can often mean smaller crew sizes, longer project completion times, and limited project coordination.
As if that weren’t enough, electrical contractors are having trouble getting some of the products they need due to ongoing supply chain problems. For instance, a new panelboard can take more than 40 weeks to secure, and a commercial-scale switchboard can take twice as long! Working with an established contractor with industry partnerships and connections can mean getting ahead of the competition and securing the materials your projects need faster and more efficiently—removing unnecessary delays and keeping your schedule on track.
Permitting delays are also a reality. As building and electrical codes get more complex, this creates a stricter environment for project planning. An experienced electrical contractor will be familiar with the necessary steps needed and be able to rapidly secure the correct permits, ensuring everything passes inspection the first time and again, preventing avoidable delays.
The longer a project takes, the more disruptive it becomes for your building and its occupants, leading many property managers to avoid electrical projects altogether to prevent extended downtime.
Electrical projects should be a source of growth for your property, but instead, they’re becoming bottlenecks. To prevent this from happening, you need a well-coordinated approach and the right vendor by your side.
The Growing Shortage of Specialized Electrical Expertise
With many electrical contractors and electricians reaching the age of retirement, there are currently 80,000 job openings in this field each year, but new generations aren’t filling these positions quickly enough.
To make matters even more challenging, the increasing complexity of commercial services and maintenance for property owners means that electricians must also have specializations and additional training in commercial electrical services to adequately support the growing needs of building technology. Contractors now need a mix of electrical and programming skills for applications such as building controls—and with the building automation market growing at an annual rate of over 7%, professionals with the right mix of skills are in high demand!
Building controls aren’t the only field fueling the demand for advanced skills. Advanced energy solutions, electrification projects, and commercial-scale microgrids are creating a higher demand for specialized knowledge as well.
The Challenge of Expanding Across Multiple Locations
Managing properties remotely is a well-established model in commercial real estate. However, coordinating electrical work at scale becomes challenging when overseeing multiple commercial or multifamily properties from a distance.
As building and electrical codes are getting stricter, you might find yourself dealing with different standards across several municipalities while coordinating complex electrical upgrades without being physically present on-site.
Multiple properties mean a scattered vendor network, leading to inconsistent service, higher costs, and timeline misalignment. In short, this type of fragmented approach makes it difficult to expand your properties.
Fast and Skilled Commercial Electrical Services at Scale
For property owners, taking a more strategic approach to commercial electrical upgrades and maintenance should be a top priority. Building the right partnerships and securing local contractors with the necessary skills are essential for effectively managing commercial electrical services.
As America’s largest network of licensed electrical contractors with a proven reputation for excellence, a thoughtfully designed platform for managing electrical projects, and the skills, scale, and speed needed to deliver critical commercial electrical services and maintenance across North America, Qmerit is in a unique position to address your commercial electrical challenges with PowerForce by Qmerit™.
PowerForce by Qmerit™ is your single-source solution for all your commercial and multifamily electrical service & maintenance needs—assigning your facility’s needs to a qualified electrician on our easy-to-use digital platform that streamlines everything from scheduling to tracking to project close-out.
All Qmerit-certified contractors are licensed electricians who are fully insured and carefully screened, and our platform connects you directly with electrical contractors specifically trained and credentialed according to your requirements.
Work order execution is fast, and you’ll have access to the right skills for your unique project. Besides, it’s a scalable solution you can deploy across multiple properties, no matter how big or small your electrical projects are.
Learn more about PowerForce by Qmerit™ here.
