Roger Bullivant sinks into the red

Foundation engineering firm Roger Bullivant has recorded a pre-tax loss of almost £2.3m in 2008, after what it called a "disappointing" year.

The company, which has become heavily involved in the house building market, has also seen turnover plummet 25% to £95.9m for the year to 2 November 2008.

In its directors' report the company said: "2009 continues to see difficult economic conditions, with some competitors going out of business and most others undergoing similar restructuring exercises; these economic and competitor conditions combine to create a tough sector, where every contract is hard won and margins are continually under pressure."

The company said that it had acted quickly to reduce overheads, which have fallen by £4.4m from £36m in 2007 to £31.6m in 2008. The highest-paid director at the firm took a major pay cut of more than £500,000, down from £761,842 to £225,545.

It warned that the principal risk that it faced continued to be bad debts from trade debtors, and that it was monitoring its cash flow "on a daily basis".

The statement added: "The construction sector remains difficult in 2009 and indications are that recovery will be minimal until the second quarter of 2010."