 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Construction and civil engineering |
| Founded | 1970 |
| Founder | Peter Birse |
| Defunct | 2014 |
| Headquarters | Tadcaster, England |
Area served | United Kingdom |
| Products | Construction projects |
Number of employees | 786 |
| Parent | Balfour Beatty |
| Website | www.birsecl.co.uk |
Birse Group was a construction and civil engineering company based inNorth Yorkshire, England. It was acquired byBalfour Beatty in 2006 who retired the brand in 2014.
The company was founded by Peter Birse as the Birse Group inDoncaster in 1970.[1] It wasfloated on thestock market during 1989;[2] one of the results of which being that the German civil engineering companyBilfinger Berger acquired a 15% shareholding in the firm.[3] Peter Birse also held a considerable personal stake (at one point amounting to 14.1%) in the business, which he largely retained through to the 21st century.[2]
Birse Group routinely worked with various state-owned bodies. In 1990, it was awarded a contract to extendHM Prison Leeds,[4] as was a separate arrangement with theProperty Services Agency valued at £3 million;[5] the company also commenced construction of theLeighton Linsdale Bypass on behalf ofBedfordshire County Council under a £22 million project.[6] By the end of that year, an almost 50 per cent rise in pre-tax profits was anticipated for 1990–91.[7]
The company would often enter intoconsortiums for some of its undertakings, such as with Purac to fulfil a £14.7 million design and build contract for a new water treatment plant forYorkshire Water.[8][9] Road construction was a key area for the company during the early 1990s;[10][11] however, despite being awarded multiple such contracts valued in the tens of millions that year, 1993 was a fiscally unsatisfactory year for Birse Group.[12]
During 1996, Birse Rail was setup as asubsidiary of Birse Group for the purpose of providing high quality construction services to Britain's recentlyprivatised railways.[13] It worked with the national rail infrastructure companyNetwork Rail, as well as other organisation active in the railway sector, on various civil engineering works, including one-offtendered design and build projects (for new stations and depot refurbishments), as well as longer term schemes delivered through long term framework contracts and the delivery of complex route works.[13][14][15]
In mid-1996, the company recorded a profit of £1.12 million, the first such profit returned in five years.[16] During July 1999, it was announced that Peter Birse would step aside from the day-to-day operations of the company.[17]
Birse Group operated anoff-the-shelf service for larger buildings; while initially targeted atfootballstadiums, this service was expanded to cover both business and retail units during 2002.[18] That same year, the company took a £5.5 millionwrite-off on a £27.5 million project to buildWalkers Stadium forLeicester City F.C. after the latter declaredbankruptcy.[19]
During February 2002, following a dispute over payment, rival construction companyBovis took over a £21 million contract forCitibank that had previously been awarded to Birse Group.[20] That same year, the company's construction arm was viewed as having underperformed.[21]
Birse announced that it planned to reduce the size of building division due to persistent losses totaling £30m over the previous five-year period.[22] In December 2005, the company recorded a £10 million loss.[23]
During June 2006, Birse Group was acquired by rival construction companyBalfour Beatty in exchange for £32 million.[1][24][25] Less than a year after the acquisition, Peter Birse stood down from his roles with the company amid a boardroom reshuffle.[2] Initially operated as a subsidiary, Birse Group was fully integrated into Balfour Beatty and all use of the brand ceased in January 2014.[1]
Notable projects included:
