For the year ending 31 January 2014, turnover reached £231m, up from £183m the previous year, which was a new high for the 77-year-old company then.
Pre-tax profits rose 5% from £6.0m to £6.3m.
Group chief executive Stephen Martin said: “We have substantially increased turnover, improved pre-tax profits, generated excellent cash balances and further strengthened our balance sheet.”
The construction division grew turnover 40% to £136.7m from £97.5m. This is the third year running that Clugston Construction has grown by more than 30%. This success is attributed to “a combination of adhering to a selective bidding strategy and effective project management, with robust risk control procedures”.
Clugston has also remained focused on core sectors such as energy from waste, where it has achieved a market leading position through its joint venture with French process specialist CNIM. During the year the partnership secured and started work on big incinerator projects in Leeds and the northeast, bringing to eight the number of schemes to be jointly delivered.
Clugston Construction also continues to win work in the health, education, and industrial sectors. In addition, during 2013, the division opened a new regional business in the West Midlands.
Clugston Distribution Services, the logistics division, had a 21% increase in turnover from £10.9m in the previous year to £13.2m.
Clugston’s property division also performed well, seeing significant signs of recovery in a number of sectors. A new joint venture has been entered into with Park Row Ltd to acquire a 26,000 sq ft prime office block located on Park Row in Leeds. The property has now been let on a 15 year lease to the University of Law.
Mr Martin concluded, “During the past year we have continued to successfully deliver services and projects to our established customers and further build on our expertise in key sectors. We now have solid foundations on which to continue to develop. Whilst we believe 2014 will continue to be challenging, with our main markets still remaining highly competitive, we remain confident for the future.”
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