Amey balancing act gives perfect service

Construction firms need to have a turnover and employee count weighted to 80% contracting and 20% consultancy before they can be truly regarded as an end-to-end service provider.

That is the opinion of Amey Infrastructure Services managing director Chris Webster, who told CJ that companies need to achieve this winning formula to say "you have arrived" in the market.

"If you look at the overall budgets of the whole construction industry, the spend is generally 80% contracting and 20% consultancy. This ratio is a good test of what I think a genuine end-to-end provider should look like.

"We are keen that our organisation matches those market dynamics so that we provide the resources and our shape is in line with the way that clients spend their money."

Webster added that last February's acquisition of Owen Williams, which is now made up of more than 1,000 staff after absorbing Amey's professional services division, swung the balance from Amey's original split of 90/10 in favour of contracting.

"We are now the only true end-to-end service provider in the markets we operate in," he added. "The target is to make the split 75/25, through organic growth, by 2008. We don't want to be a 50/50 organisation."

And in what could be interpreted as a sideswipe at other players in the market who regard themselves as end-to-end service providers, Webster added: "A consultant doing a bit of road sweeping does not make it an end-to-end service provider. A contractor doing a bit of design doesn't make it a genuine end-to-end service provider. At the 80% to 20% mark you know you have arrived."

Webster added that the Owen Williams acquisition had increased Amey's winning ways and would add to the company's bottom line, although it was "too early" to say by how much.

Amey factfile

• Amey Infrastructure Services - part of Amey Group.
• Key markets - local government, rail and highways.
• Turnover £500m-plus, of which more than £100m is made up of consultancy services.

[Contract Journal, 7th Feburary 2007, p 4]