By Kristy Dorsey
I&H Brown is predicting improved profitability in its latest financial year even though revenues are forecast to be lower than in the previous 12 months.
Accounts now filed for the year to September 1, 2019 show a surge in turnover for the Perth-based engineering company from £39.5m to £59.8m. However, this failed to translate to the bottom line after racking up losses on some key contracts run out of its English offices in Warrington and Exeter.
The gross operating loss of £2.5m was salvaged by a £2.7m gain on the disposal of land, buildings and investments. As a result, group pre-tax profit for the year to September 2019 came in at £180,000, down from £277,000 previously.
The firm has since closed its Exeter office, while the team from its Scottish office has exerted “greater control” over operations in Warrington.
In an accompanying briefing note, I&H Brown said it is anticipating an upturn in profit for the latest financial year that closed at the end of August, even though turnover is expected to dip further to £55m. The Covid-19 lockdown from March to June resulted in “significant losses”.
“However, our workload has been excellent which has allowed us to bounce back in July with a diverse range of projects being carried out for highly respected clients including Winchburgh Developments, Springfield, Ineos, Suez, Hargreaves Land, the City of Edinburgh Council, GE, Murray Estates and The Coal Authority,” the company added.
Employing 200 people, I&H Brown’s dominant plant hire, civil engineering and waste disposal operations are accompanied by smaller property development, property investment, farming and estate management divisions. The development division includes projects at East Kingsway in Dundee, and a large site in North Dunfermline where I&H Brown has sold land to housebuilders Persimmon and Bellway Homes.
“The development division continues to progress towards site starts on a number of other strategic landholdings which either have planning consent or which are allocated for development,” the company said.
“Strong housebuilder interest continues to be shown across a range of sites.”
The company is supporting NHS Charities Together with a gift of earnings from one of its excavators, the “Lockdown Ranger”, which was named by a local school pupil from Winchburgh. The donation is being matched by Winchburgh Developments.
The privately-owned firm is headed by managing director Scott Brown, whose father Hardie Brown and uncle Ian Brown set up the business in 1964.
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