Table of Contents
1. Commercial and HMO Work: A Core Part of What D&M Does
D&M Building Services is known primarily for residential construction – extensions, loft conversions, and renovations across the East Midlands. But a significant proportion of our project portfolio has always been commercial and investment property work: HMO conversions, office refurbishments, school refurbishments, and commercial unit fit-outs across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Leicestershire.
Commercial and HMO work requires a different set of skills and disciplines from standard residential construction. It requires understanding of licensing requirements, Building Regulations compliance specific to Houses in Multiple Occupation, fire safety standards for commercial and educational buildings, and the project management discipline to deliver to a programme that minimises disruption to an occupied building or a running business.
D&M Building Services is FMB accredited, fully insured for both residential and commercial projects, and director-led on every project regardless of scale or sector. Our commercial clients, landlords, HMO operators, commercial property owners, and educational facilities, receive the same written contracts, staged payment schedules, defined programmes, and proactive communication that our residential clients do. The professional standard does not change based on the client type.
This guide covers the specific categories of commercial and investment property work D&M delivers, what each involves, and what working with D&M on a commercial project actually looks like.
2. HMO Conversions: What’s Involved and What Clients Need
What is an HMO conversion?
A House in Multiple Occupation is a property let to three or more tenants who form more than one household and share facilities such as a bathroom or kitchen. Converting a single-occupancy dwelling into an HMO, or upgrading an existing HMO to meet current licensing standards, involves a defined programme of construction work alongside a regulatory compliance process that is more complex than standard residential refurbishment.
D&M Building Services has delivered HMO conversions including a 6-unit conversion and a 4-unit conversion across the East Midlands. These projects required: structural reconfiguration to create self-contained or semi-independent living units; installation of fire-rated doors, compartmentation, and interlinked fire alarm systems; individual kitchen and bathroom facilities where required by the specification; electrical rewiring to EICR standard for each unit; gas and heating systems compliant with current safety requirements; and Building Regulations sign-off throughout.
HMO licensing requirements
HMO properties of five or more occupants across two or more storeys require a mandatory HMO licence from the local housing authority. Many local authorities also operate additional or selective licensing schemes that extend licensing requirements to smaller HMOs. Landlords operating unlicensed HMOs face significant financial penalties and may be required to repay rent received during unlicensed periods.
The physical standards required to obtain and maintain an HMO licence, room sizes, fire safety, heating provision, kitchen and bathroom ratios, are defined by the local authority and by national HMO Management Regulations. A building contractor delivering HMO conversion work needs to understand these requirements and build to a standard that will satisfy the licensing inspection, not just the Building Regulations inspection.
D&M Building Services manages the full compliance process on HMO projects: Building Regulations, fire safety specification, and coordination with the licensing authority’s requirements. Landlords do not need to navigate this process alone.
The D&M approach to HMO conversions
Our HMO conversion projects begin with a thorough site assessment that covers the existing structure, the proposed unit configuration, the planning position, the Building Regulations requirements, and the HMO licensing standard. We produce a fully itemised quotation that covers all elements of the conversion, structural, mechanical and electrical, fire safety, finishes, and a programme that gives the landlord a clear timeline from start to first tenancy.
We understand that an HMO conversion is an investment project with a financial return attached to it. The sooner the conversion is complete, signed off, licensed, and tenanted, the sooner that return begins. Our programme management approach is built around minimising the void period between the end of the conversion and the first tenancy day.
3. Office Refurbishments: Minimal Disruption, Maximum Result
Office refurbishments present a specific project management challenge: the client typically needs the space to remain partially or fully operational during the works, or needs it handed back on a defined date to accommodate a business move or lease renewal. Both scenarios require a level of programme discipline and communication that goes beyond standard construction project management.
D&M Building Services has delivered office refurbishments across the East Midlands for commercial property owners and business occupiers. Our office refurbishment work has covered: full internal strip-out and reconfiguration; partition wall installation and removal; suspended ceiling installation and replacement; new electrical installations including data, power, and lighting to current commercial standards; flooring, decoration, and fit-out to client specification; and mechanical and heating upgrades.
Working around occupied businesses
Where an office refurbishment must be delivered in a partially occupied building, working floor by floor, wing by wing, or during business hours only, the project management requirement increases significantly. The programme must be constructed to accommodate the client’s operational constraints. The site must be managed to prevent dust, noise, and disruption from affecting the occupied areas. Communication between the D&M site team and the client’s building or facilities manager must be daily and proactive.
This is the kind of project management challenge that director-led delivery is specifically designed to handle. Monika’s background in commercial operations and Darren’s site management experience combine to produce the kind of disciplined, communicative approach that commercial clients need. We do not leave building managers to discover problems, we tell them before they discover them themselves.
4. School Refurbishments: Working in Occupied and Sensitive Environments
School refurbishments are among the most demanding construction projects from a programme and logistics perspective. Schools are occupied during term time, meaning construction work must either be scheduled entirely within holiday periods or managed with exceptional care around students, staff, and the daily routine of a working educational environment.
D&M Building Services has delivered school refurbishment projects in Nottinghamshire. These projects have required: working within school holiday windows to minimise disruption; strict DBS and safeguarding compliance for all operatives working on or near an educational site; coordination with school management to ensure access, security, and communication throughout; and delivery to a hard deadline, the first day of the new term.
Safeguarding and site compliance
All D&M operatives working on educational sites hold current DBS clearance. This is a non-negotiable requirement for any contractor working in proximity to children and young people, and it is one that D&M manages proactively rather than reactively. Safeguarding compliance is confirmed at the outset of every school project and maintained throughout.
School site security requirements, visitor sign-in, access control, hoarding and segregation of construction areas, are managed as standard. We understand that a school is not just a building, it is a community with responsibilities to its students and families that cannot be compromised by the presence of a construction team.
Holiday window delivery
Delivering a significant refurbishment programme within a six-week summer holiday window, or a two-week Easter break, requires the kind of pre-start planning and programme discipline that D&M’s director-led approach is specifically suited to. Materials are procured and on site before the school closes. Sub-trades are booked and sequenced. The programme is constructed around the hard end date and worked backwards from it. Every day of the available window is planned before it starts.
5. Commercial Unit Refurbishments and Fit-Outs
D&M Building Services delivers commercial unit refurbishments and fit-outs for commercial property landlords and business occupiers across the East Midlands. Commercial unit work ranges from light cosmetic refurbishment between tenancies through to full structural reconfiguration and fit-out for a new occupier.
Our commercial unit refurbishment work has covered: full internal strip-outs; structural alterations including mezzanine installations; electrical rewiring and distribution board upgrades; plumbing and drainage modifications; fire alarm and emergency lighting installations; insulation and cladding upgrades; and full internal decoration and floor finishes to landlord or occupier specification.
Landlord refurbishments between tenancies
For commercial property landlords, the period between tenancies is the window in which refurbishment work must be completed before the next occupier moves in. Programme management is critical — every week the unit remains empty is a week of rental income not earned. D&M’s approach to landlord refurbishment projects is built around maximising the quality of the refurbishment within the shortest practical programme, so that the unit is market-ready as quickly as possible.
Occupier fit-outs
For business occupiers fitting out a newly leased commercial space, the fit-out programme is typically tied to a lease start date and a business opening date. The pressure on programme delivery is significant and the cost of overrun, in delayed business opening, duplicate premises costs, and disrupted staff and customers – can be substantial. D&M manages commercial fit-out projects to a defined programme with clear milestones and regular progress reporting to the client and their project manager or architect.
6. Why Commercial Clients Choose D&M Building Services
Commercial clients choosing a building contractor have different priorities from residential homeowners, but the fundamentals are the same. They need a contractor who delivers to programme, communicates proactively, manages compliance properly, and does not create surprises.
- FMB accredited since 2016. Independently assessed professional standards. Verifiable at fmb.org.uk. Applicable to both residential and commercial work.
- Written contracts on every project. Covering full scope, programme, staged payment schedule, and variation process. Commercial clients receive the same contractual rigour as residential clients.
- Full commercial insurance. Public liability, employer’s liability, and contract works insurance appropriate to commercial project scale. Certificates available on request.
- Director-led delivery. Monika leads commercial management and client communication. Darren leads site operations. Both are directly accountable throughout every project.
- Building Regulations and compliance managed end-to-end. Including fire safety, HMO licensing coordination, DBS compliance for educational sites, and completion certification.
- Programme discipline. Commercial clients need hard-deadline delivery. D&M’s programme management approach is built around delivering to defined end dates, not estimates.
- Multiple award-winning. FMB Master Builder Awards 2019 – Highly Commended. Central England Prestige Awards: Construction Company of the Year 2025, Building & Maintenance Company of the Year 2024, Home Construction Company of the Year 2023, Loft Conversion Specialists of the Year 2022.
If you are a landlord, commercial property owner, facilities manager, or school business manager in the East Midlands with a refurbishment or conversion project to deliver, we would be glad to discuss it. We offer a free site visit and detailed, itemised written quotation for all projects we are considering.
7. Frequently Asked Questions
Does D&M Building Services work on commercial projects as well as residential?
Yes. D&M Building Services delivers a significant volume of commercial and investment property work alongside its residential portfolio, including HMO conversions, office refurbishments, school refurbishments, and commercial unit fit-outs across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Leicestershire. All commercial work is delivered under the same written contracts, staged payment schedules, and compliance management approach as our residential projects.
What HMO work has D&M delivered?
D&M Building Services has delivered HMO conversions including a 6-unit conversion and a 4-unit conversion in the East Midlands. These projects covered full structural reconfiguration, fire safety installations, individual kitchen and bathroom facilities, electrical rewiring, and Building Regulations sign-off. We manage the full compliance process including coordination with local authority HMO licensing requirements.
Can D&M work within school holiday windows?
Yes. D&M Building Services has delivered school refurbishment projects in Nottinghamshire within school holiday windows. Our pre-start planning and programme management approach is specifically designed for hard-deadline delivery. All operatives working on educational sites hold current DBS clearance and we manage safeguarding compliance throughout.
Does D&M hold appropriate insurance for commercial projects?
Yes. D&M Building Services carries public liability insurance, employer’s liability insurance, and contract works insurance appropriate to commercial project scale. Insurance certificates are available on request. We confirm the specific insurance position at the outset of every commercial project.
How do I start a commercial refurbishment conversation with D&M?
Contact us via our website or phone to arrange a free site visit. We cover Long Eaton, Nottingham, Derby, Leicester, and the wider East Midlands for commercial and investment property work. We will visit your site, understand your requirements and programme constraints, and provide a detailed, itemised written quotation. Call us on 0115 877 3009.
D&M Building Services is an FMB-accredited, award-winning building company based in Long Eaton, delivering HMO conversions, commercial refurbishments, school refurbishments, and commercial fit-outs across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and Leicestershire alongside our residential portfolio.
D&M Building Services
Residential & Commercial Construction | HMO Conversions | Refurbishments | Property Development
Based in Long Eaton | Covering Nottingham, Derby, Leicester & the East Midlands
Get in touch: 0115 877 3009
Further Reading
7 Proven Signs of a Reliable Building Contractor – D&M Building Services Blog
7 Reasons to Choose D&M as Your Building Contractors in Nottingham – D&M Building Services Blog
What Our Accreditations Actually Mean – D&M Building Services Blog
