M&A

Civils contractor Alun Griffiths has halved its pre-tax loss amid a rejig to focus on smaller contracts, as it battles soaring costs on large projects. The firm tabled a pre-tax loss of £48.9m in the year to 31 December 2024, down from £95m, as it continued to combat “significant loss…

Henry Boot plc has completed the sale of its construction arm to a firm led by three of its former directors. The deal was officially completed on 31 December, the parent firm said today (5 January). The management buyout (MBO) of Henry Boot Construction (HBC) was originally announced last September,…

Wakefield-based Thurston Group Ltd and two associated firms have been sold out of administration in a pre-pack deal, saving more than 200 jobs. Privately owned industrial manufacturing and distribution firm GCH Corporation Ltd acquired the modular and offsite construction specialist for an undisclosed sum, administrators from Leonard Curtis announced on…

Construction materials specialist GRS has acquired the 23.7 per cent stake in its business held by Tarmac, ending a long-standing shareholding arrangement for an undisclosed sum. The buyout returns the company to full private ownership and will support expansion of its sustainable aggregates portfolio, digital materials platform and construction solutions…

Environmental and engineering services conglomerate RSK Group has deepened its footprint in the infrastructure sector after announcing the acquisition of civils contractor Octavius. In a statement today (24 November), RSK said the addition of Octavius marked a “pivotal step” to deepen its presence in the transport infrastructure sector. “Infrastructure is…

Contractor John Sisk and Son has completed its acquisition of Farrans Construction in a move that could push its turnover beyond £1bn. Sisk, the 45th biggest contractor in the UK and the biggest contractor in Ireland, “has completed all legal and regulatory requirement[s]” for the acquisition, it said in a…

Two businesses owned by Assent Building Compliance have been acquired by a Munich-headquartered certification company. Certania Group announced this morning that it had acquired Clarke Banks and Xact Consultancy & Training, as it begins a strategic expansion into the UK buildings market. Registered building control approver (RBCA) Clarke Banks was…

Turnover and pre-tax profit both took a nosedive at Farrans Construction, in what could be its final results before it is acquired by John Sisk. Profit at Farrans Construction more than halved to £3.3m in the year to 31 December 2024, down from £8.2m, while turnover slipped from £512.5m to…

Henry Boot’s announcement yesterday (23 August) that it was selling its construction arm reflects the tension between development and contracting operations, experts have argued. The Yorkshire-based developer announced a £4m sale of its contracting division to a newly formed vehicle in a management buyout (MBO). Henry Boot said the disposal…

Liverpool-based mechanical and electrical (M&E) specialist HE Simm has called in administrators, citing “enormous pressure on the business” that it could not withstand. The family-owned firm, represented by law firm Hill Dickinson, submitted a notice of intention on 5 September and appointed administrators Patrick Lannagan, Adam Harris and Richard Hough…