Laing O'Rourke is 'super heavyweight ' as turnover hits £4.24bn

Laing O’Rourke is on its way to being a construction ‘super heavyweight’ as it pushed turnover up to £4.24bn, according to its chief operating officer Tony Douglas.

In its full-year results for the period ended 31 March 2008, the group revealed a 21.5% rise in turnover, while profit (EBIT) jumped 63.9% to £87.7m.

The aggressive growth comes as Laing O’Rourke seeks to establish itself as a Vinci-style ‘total solutions provider’ for the UK with a greater role to play in lucrative markets like energy infrastructure new build.

Speaking to CJ, Douglas said: “We are absolutely convinced that we will see significant consolidation in the UK construction industry.

“By definition there will be consolidators and consolidatees. There isn't currently a Vinci equivalent in the UK – i.e. a dominant force in service delivery and we are very ambitious.”

The firm acknowledged that the economic climate in Europe was "worse than 12 months ago and shows little sign of improvement" and that it would remain "vigilant" to the danger of slowing orders.

Douglas said that in Europe, and particularly in the UK, the company would seek to shield itself from the worst of the current economic difficulties by chasing top quality earnings.

“Increasingly in a mature market like the UK, there are a number of markets that aren't attractive to us at all, such as residential. We're concentrating now on quality of earnings.

“In terms of the UK it is clear that this market is under pressure. But we have not seen any let up in terms of large scale government procurement and significant infrastructure related projects. We are also very keen in terms of nuclear decommissioning and new build and energy generation in general,” he added.

Meanwhile, he acknowledged that Laing O’Rourke’s overseas arms would play an increasingly important role in driving up the business’ turnover and profit.

Douglas said he expected to see “disproportionate growth” outside of the UK and Europe – particularly in the Middle East and Australasia – over the coming years.

And he highlighted the company’s win of the £10bn Al Raha Beach scheme in Abu Dhabi as the kind of project that made the Middle East such an exciting market for Laing O’Rourke.

In its annual financial statement, chairman Ray O’Rourke put his company’s financial success down to its growing geographical diversity, insulating it against the worst of the credit crunch. Laing O’Rourke operates arms in Europe; the Middle East and India; and Australasia.

"Our hub-based business model, coupled with the skills of our directly employed workforce, has ensured flexibility to respond to changing macroeconomic circumstances," O’Rourke said.