Beard’s pre-tax profits for the year to 31 December 2013 rose 21% from £1.4m to £1.7m. Group revenue was up 12% to £77.3m (2012: £69.0m).
The order book increased 8% during the year from £37.0m to £40.0m while cashflow also remained strong during the year, often exceeding £7m.
The family-owned business has offices in Guildford, Oxford and Swindon. Projects won during the year included a £3.5m sports centre development for Prior Park College in Bath; a £4.2m science centre for St Helen & St Katharine school in Abingdon; a £1.7m extension of St Andrew’s Church in north Oxford; a £3.5m office refurbishment and expansion of the former Beaufort House building in Guildford; and a £2.2m intensive care extension at Royal Surrey County Hospital, also in Guildford.
“We’ve had another great year, beating the construction industry blues by winning high quality work,” said managing director Mark Beard. “Our success has been driven by a strong focus on prompt and faultless delivery of all our buildings projects, good cost control and being selective about the clients we work with and the projects we take on. Our strong commercial results have also enabled us to invest in training and developing our people and improving our customer service.
He added: “Looking ahead, we’ve got a strong order book and we’re well positioned to take advantage of improving market conditions. 2014 is going to be a great year for Beard – the future is bright.”
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