Author Archives: Chris Smith

Infrastructure and property services contractor United Living generated £453m of revenue in just eight months, according to its latest accounts. Audited figures, covering the eight months to 31 March 2024, also revealed that the firm made a pre-tax loss of £5.7m. Directors said the diversified group had benefited from "tailwinds…

Two major deals secured the top spot for Multiplex in October’s league table. The £500m Project Vista scheme in London and the £300m Keystone Building contract for the University of Glasgow (pictured) put the firm comfortably ahead. In second place was Morgan Sindall with 47 jobs worth a total £516.7m,…

A contractor has lost a court case in which it claimed it was not contractually responsible for completing technical designs on a dairy scheme. The court found in favour of client Workman Properties Ltd (WPL) in a case that sought to clarify the design obligations under a construction contract with…

Developing new ways of working is becoming a top priority for the construction industry – as is having the right people in place to do it. Firms this week have revealed hiring decisions that will help them adopt new technology and meet demands on emissions to hit net zero. Permasteelisa…

A family-owned construction group is to be split into specialist firms in a fresh demerger. Warwickshire-based Stepnell Group announced it is being split among members of the Wakeford family that helped create it in 1906. Currently the group operates as a whole-service contractor including construction, energy and joinery work on…

Construction SMEs need to ensure they are not caught out by changes to reporting rules on leases, a tax advisory firm has warned. Firms that do not check asset values based on their end-of-year stocktake may be unaware they could be classed as larger firms and need a statutory audit,…

A drilling firm has become the latest acquisition for utilities specialist OCU Group. The private equity-backed group acquired Peter McCormack & Sons, which specialises in trenchless technology solutions, for an undisclosed sum, OCU said when announcing the deal this morning (24 October). OCU chief executive Michael Hughes said the addition…

Workers at a construction products firm are being balloted for strike action over a “derisory” pay offer. Unite the Union has begun balloting 300 employees at five Marshalls sites across England after rejecting a £700 pay rise for all staff for 2024. According to the union, negotiations have been going…

The boss of a collapsed Essex construction firm that failed to complete more than £300,000 of work has been banned as a director for eight years. The Insolvency Service announced yesterday (21 October) that Samantha Fairweather had been barred with immediate effect, after taking money as a deposit for work…

A string of acquisitions has contributed to specialist OCU Group racking up a pre-tax loss of £30.9m, its latest annual accounts have shown. However, the infrastructure contractor revealed a 34 per cent increase in revenue to £610.6m in its accounts for the year ended 30 April 2024. That compares to revenue…