All Shouk up

Shouksmiths has expanded recently with the acquisition of KEDA Plumbing in the North West. What made you decide to buy them?

Our business plan identified that we needed to establish a permanent base in the North West and we were introduced to KEDA Plumbing at a time when the previous owners were looking to sell. What made them an attractive proposition to us was threefold; they have a very high quality and committed workforce, a healthy future workload and their corporate culture fitted exactly with ours, which is vital for an acquisition such as this.

Having a new permanent base in the North West offers great potential for the development of the Shouksmiths service and we are confident that, under the leadership of Michael Draper, this new division will be a great success.

You also rebranded your Turner & Pritchard operation as Shouksmiths Gloucester Division in the summer. Why was this?

Turner and Pritchard had developed an excellent reputation in the local and regional area, but we are dealing increasingly with national clients who prefer to see a standardised brand image throughout the country. Taking the name Shouksmiths Gloucester Division helps strengthen their service offering, identifying them as part of a larger organisation, and will support the development plans we have for this area.

We understand you have a new team in place in the Shouksmiths Sheffield Division. What’s happening there?

Yes, we have three new people in place. There’s Keith Bradley, who is the new divisional manager, Andrew Horton who is the new contracts manager and Georgina Stewart who runs the administration side. Keith and Andrew bring with them many years’ experience of working in the building services sector in Sheffield and are busy with a range of existing projects as well as securing new ones. South Yorkshire has great potential for growth and the new team is working hard at developing the market opportunities available.

What sectors are the most active for you at the moment and which markets do you see developing in the future?

Our busiest sectors involve inner city living and student accommodation. I think this will continue to be the trend, though indications are that the leisure market will move up a gear. There’s increased demand from clients across all sectors wanting a joined up offering on projects up to £5 million. It makes life easier for them and, with our skill base, we are in a prime position to provide it.

At the moment, we have 23 craft apprentices and seven adult trainees, which is becoming a more important area of recruitment every year.

Your Leeds operation, Morfitts, focuses on the commercial and industrial markets. What is the division working on at the moment?

Morfitts turns over £10·5 million per annum and works nationally from its base. It has many repeat clients, including the De Vere Hotel Group and McDonalds, and is also busy with a new office development in York and a Police Custody Centre in Keighley.

And the Morfitts Maintenance Division is this developing well?

Yes, demand for this service continues to grow, and it will be one of the key areas that we’ll be promoting in the future. Reliable, cost efficient, preventative and reactive maintenance is a must-have for clients in all sectors, as buildings that are not functioning correctly cause them headaches they can do without.

Training is a big issue in the construction industry as a whole. What is your view on this, and are you doing anything about it?

In total, we employ more than 200 people and have always had a strong commitment to the training and development of our staff. At the moment, we have 23 craft apprentices and seven adult trainees, which is becoming a more important area of recruitment every year.

All companies currently need to support the industry associations in encouraging people to come into the building services industry, firstly explaining to them exactly what it is, and secondly proactively demonstrating what a dynamic, skilled and rewarding career it offers. The first steps of this have already been put in place, and the industry now just needs to keep up the momentum and continue repeating the message.

What do you think will be important to clients in the future?

Value for money will always be the key requirement for clients. In addition to this, the demand for sustainable solutions is growing. The green topic is now on everyone’s agenda, and will become more and more important in the future. As an industry, we can have a significant impact on the sustainable solutions that are offered to clients when they plan new or refurbished buildings, and we must not take this responsibility lightly.