Developer Willmott Dixon has increased its construction turnover to £1 billion after landing a list of infrastructure and regeneration projects.
The firm’s 2022 accounts ending on 31 December show a total turnover of £1.1 billion and an order pipeline worth £1.625 billion for the next 18 months.
Most of the company’s turnover (76%) came from framework projects with partners like Scape, Procurement Hub, and the Southern Construction Framework (SCF).
Willmott expects 59% of its 2023 orders to be repeat business, lining up 91% of its budgeted work for the remainder of the year.
Full scope
The firm’s post-tax profit stands at £2.4 million, with its net assets at £170 million.
Besides macroeconomic factors affecting the industry, like the war in Ukraine and Covid, the new regulations set out by the Building Safety Act (BSA) have affected Willmott’s high-rise residential division with a material loss of £62 million.
Despite this shortfall, the firm’s order book remains stable, and inflation rates are starting to subside.
Construction Pipeline
Willmott has delivered more than 575 projects in partnership with Scape, from hospitals in Sussex and Luton to a bus station in Stevenage.
The company has secured much of its pipeline in the public sector with large-scale regional regeneration projects. This includes:
- A community and residential development in Wolverton, Milton Keynes.
- 660 homes for the Gascoigne neighbourhood scheme in Barking.
- Phase two of the £58 million Riverside scheme in Rochdale involves a Hilton hotel and 242 build-to-rent apartments.
Additionally, the company has recently landed a £30 million contract to transform the entrance of Darlington Station as part of Network Rail’s £140 million masterplan for the station.
Willmott is working with Napper Architects and F&G as QS for the scheme and will construct two new platforms and a multi-storey car park.
Work on this project will begin this Summer and finish by 2025 before the Stockton and Darlington Railway bicentennial celebrations.
Moreover, the firm will soon complete other infrastructure schemes, including Stockport Interchange, Halifax bus station and North Tyneside Transport Interchange.
“Our industry will remain a complex and challenging sector in which to operate. We are yet to experience and understand the real procedural impact of the Building Safety Regulator’s department, but 2023 should give initial visibility and interaction,” said Rick Willmott, group CEO.
“Despite this, and as ever, we face the future in the knowledge that our values, culture and ultimately the dedication and commitment of our brilliant people to our company, our shareholders, and indeed to our wider society, will provide us with a strong and reliable platform for ongoing success.”
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