Special projects boost Surgo's turnover by 35%
Special projects boost Surgo's turnover by 35%
Turnover jumps to £50m in 2005 with £40m-worth of 2006 workload already secured.
Surgo Construction's turnover in 2005 rose by 35% to £50m and the pre-tax profit figure will be close to £500,000 said Ian Walker, managing director.
Walker and finance director Bill Blyth led a six-man management buy-out team in 2002. The change of name from Bowey Construction was a condition of the mbo deal. Turnover at the time was £18m.
"This has been a tremendous year," said Walker. "We are continuing to win contracts from new clients but just as importantly we are wining repeat business from clients we have worked with for a number of years - that tells me we're doing a lot of things right.
"Looking to the year ahead, we have a healthy orderbook and are in discussions on a number of large projects. We will continue to work across a range of sectors including commercial property, education, retail and residential."
Surgo completed the £24m Trinity Academy in Doncaster during 2005. It was the second project for client EC Education Services.
"The first, in 2003, was in Middlesbrough," said Walker. "We have a dedicated team for bigger projects. We've groomed them and we are confident about taking on projects that are relatively large when compared with our annual turnover.
"Most of the work of the special projects team in the last decade has been in the education sector. Subcontractors, especially the M&E and partitioning specialists, are part of this team - we have known these people for almost 30 years and they help us build a tremendous team spirit.
"They have an input at the design stage as we bring them in as soon as we are selected. Paying them is tricky, but as you must have an audit trail we can demonstrate we are adding value by using them.
"This is vital as there must be an element of competition."
Other projects in 2005 included the £4m headquarters for social housing provider Nomad Housing Group, on the Gosforth business park. A £7m centre in the Ouseburn Valley was completed for Seven Stories and several projects for the Royal Grammar, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, with a combined value of £15m.
Later this month, surgo starts an £18m college in Bishop Auckland, county Durham. Walker's team have budgeted for a turnover of £53m and £40m-worth of work has already been secured "so the budget is well achievable said Walker.