Byrne Group has posted an increase in pre-tax profit, after its businesses working in tier one contracting and concrete structures delivered steady growth.
In what it described as a “robust performance”, profit increased from £6.8m to £7.4m, as the firm withstood a “very challenging economic environment” in the year to 30 June. The rise in profit was despite a fall in turnover, from £191m to £170m.
Cash at the group also increased, from £24.1m to £32.2m.
Profit was up at every one of its subsidiaries, which work across the new build, fit-out, retrofit, concrete structure and groundworks sectors.
In particular, concrete structures firm Byrne Bros grew its operating profit from £2.5m to £3.4m, while turnover was up by more than 30 per cent, from £64.6m to £85.3m.
That was partly down to a couple of jobs: delivering HS2 infrastructure for the Balfour Beatty Vinci joint venture in Birmingham, and concrete work for John Sisk’s £230m NE02/03 residential scheme in Wembley Park.
O’Keefe Construction, Byrne Group’s groundworks firm, which it bought out of administration in 2022, did not perform as strongly, with turnover falling from £43.1m to £29.4m. Byrne Group said O’Keefe remained profitable despite the revenue drop, but did not specify a figure.
“Whilst the markets have been challenging to all within the construction sector, O’Keefe Construction [has] had the benefit of the continued support of the Byrne Group, its immediate parent company,” Byrne Group’s accounts state.
O’Keefe is currently working on projects including Shinfield Film Studios, a £250m project in Reading, where it is doing the groundworks.
Byrne Group’s fit-out, refurb and new-build segment, Ellmer Construction, saw turnover fall from £82.5m to £61m, although its operating profit increased from £2.4m to £2.6m.
Its current jobs include a fit-out of 18 luxury residential apartments at the five-star Peninsula Hotel in London, plus main contract works at the BoTree Hotel, and work at 15 high-end residential apartments in Vauxhall.
The segment particularly focuses on the high-end residential, hotel and leisure, and commercial sectors, while it can also deliver modular work.
Byrne Group pinpointed its “diverse approach […] in terms of sector and location [as] critical in capitalising on emerging opportunities”, especially for Byrne Bros, and said it remains “well positioned for future growth”.