Keller's UK profit cut in two

Keller, the building foundation specialist, has reacted to a downturn in its UK operating profit, which has halved to £930,000 in the fist six months of the year.

Announcing the group's interim results this morning, chief executive Tom Dobson said: "We have withdrawn from under-performing heavy piling activities." He said that weak margins were the result of overcapacity as many general contractors hang on to a surplus of large-diameter piling equipment.

Makers, the group's concrete refurbishment subsidiary, was hit by poor productivity in the highways sector and by the cancellation of a £6m concrete car park project in Norwich. Makers has pulled out of reactive maintenance. Restructuring the business has cost £700,000 and another £1.3m will be needed in the second half to complete the sort-out.

Overall, the group's turnover was 11% higher at £280m while pre-tax profit was unchanged at £10m.

Dobson said: "Market conditions in the UK foundations sector were stable, with housing remaining strong but the commercial and infrastructure sectors flat. Workload on CTRL and T5 has been out a long time and new workload is slower."

By contrast, the US market for foundations work remained resilient.