Profits rise again for Osborne

Profits have reached record levels for the second year running for contractor Geoffrey Osborne. 

Results for the financial year 2002/3, published today (Friday) show pre-tax profits at the independently owned company are up 44% on last year to £4.136m. Turnover has also increased by 13% to £181.6m.

Osborne's chairman Tony Kelley described the results as "excellent", and said they could be attributed to a number of factors; a focused, dedicated and skilled workforce; management strength in depth; being in the right markets and working with quality clients;
every operating unit contributing to the profit; a concentration on the core businesses; and detailed planning over a number of years.

Last year the company said its good results justified its focus on public sector markets such as affordable housing, rail, highways, health and education.

Kelley added: "The order books are in a very healthy state and, while we remain heavily committed to the publicly financed markets, there are small signs of an upturn in the privately financed sectors, which is good news."

Osborne recently announced its move into the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) arena, which it sees as a natural extension to its existing long term relationships with both clients and supply chain.