Shortfacts - October 2019

Subcontractor in technical field service

In a market study, MobileX surveyed 112 companies from the mechanical and plant engineering, medical technology, energy supply, facility management, IT and telecommunications sectors in the DACH region on the topic of subcontractor integration.

The survey revealed that almost all companies work with external service providers for various reasons. The biggest challenge here is commissioning and feedback, as most companies do not yet use dedicated IT systems for this.

The potential for optimization in the integration of subcontractors, such as the avoidance of media disruptions and the acceleration of processes, is therefore particularly high.

The proportion of contracts awarded to subcontractors varies from company to company. For a good third of the companies surveyed, the proportion of contracts awarded externally is less than ten percent.

The reasons for hiring subcontractors are varied. 37% use external service providers due to a lack of internal capacity. For 21%, they cover certain regions or countries.

Eleven percent of the companies surveyed use them to cover certain service times, such as weekends. A particular challenge when working with subcontractors is the way in which they are commissioned and receive feedback on the work they have done. Two thirds of respondents would like to see better communication with their subcontractors via a joint portal.