Balfour Beatty
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| Balfour Beatty plc | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Type | Public (LSE: BBY) |
| Founded | 1909 by George Balfour and Andrew Beatty[1] |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
| Key people | Steve Marshall, Chairman, Ian Tyler, Chief Executive |
| Industry | Construction, Civil engineering |
| Revenue | £7,488 million (2007)[2] |
| Operating income | £201 million (2007)[2] |
| Net income | £151 million (2007)[2] |
| Employees | 30,000[1] |
| Subsidiaries | Numerous |
| Website | www.balfourbeatty.com |
Balfour Beatty plc (LSE: BBY) is a London-based construction, civil engineering and rail services company. It is the second largest construction company in the UK, and the 15th largest in the world.[3] It is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.
Balfour Beatty undertakes projects around the world, but the majority of its turnover comes from the UK. Turnover for the year ended 31 December 2007 was £7,488 million and profits before tax were £157 million.
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[edit] History
Balfour Beatty was founded in 1909 by George Balfour, a Scottish mechanical engineer, and Andrew Beatty, an English chartered accountant. They described the company as "general and electrical engineers, contractors, operating managers for tramways, railways and lighting properties and for the promoting of new enterprises" and soon it expanded into civil engineering. In 1922 George Balfour and Andrew Beatty established Power Securities to develop and fund hydro-electric projects. By the 1930s the business was operating internationally.
In 1969 Power Securities, which by then owned Balfour Beatty, was taken over by cable manufacturer BICC.[4]
In 2000 BICC, having sold its cable operations, renamed itself Balfour Beatty.[5]
In 2003 Balfour Beatty acquired Mansell plc, another construction services business, for £42m.[6]
In 2007 Balfour Beatty acquired Centex Construction, the commercial construction division of the US builder Centex, for £180m.[7]
In 2008 Balfour Beatty acquired GMH Military Housing, a US-based military accommodation business, for £180m.[8]
In 2008 Balfour Beatty acquired Dean & Dyball, a leading UK regional contractor, for £45 million.[9]
[edit] Hatfield Rail Crash
Balfour Beatty were held partly responsible for the Hatfield rail crash which killed 4 people and injured 102 in the year 2000. The cause of the crash was a broken rail, which was identified 21 months before the crash, but hadn't been fixed. Balfour Beatty were fined £10 million. In 1999 it was fined £1.2m, a record penalty at the time, over the collapse of a tunnel during construction work at Heathrow Airport.[10]
[edit] Structure
Balfour Beatty has four business streams:
- Building, Building Management and Services
- Civil and Specialist Engineering and Services
- Rail Engineering and Services
- Investments and Developments
The company is a 50% shareholder in Gammon Construction, based in Hong Kong.
[edit] Major projects
Projects involving Balfour Beatty include:
- The Kielder Dam, Northumberland, 1982[11]
- The Docklands Light Railway in London, 1985[12]
- Large parts of the M25 motorway around London, 1986[13]
- The Channel Tunnel, 1994[14]
- The Cardiff Bay Barrage, 1999[15]
- The Lesotho Highlands Water Project, 2002[16]
- Nam Cheong Station, Hong Kong, 2003[17]
- The Pergau Dam hydroelectric project in Malaysia, 2003[18]
- The M6 Toll, 2003[19]
- University College London Hospital, 2005[20]
- Igor I. Sikorsky Memorial Bridge, Connecticut, U.S.A., 2006[21]
- Burj Mall, Dubai, 2008[22]
[edit] Non-construction related activities
[edit] Balfour Beatty Utility Solutions
A division of Balfour Beatty, the company was formed in November 2007 following the merger of Balfour Beatty Utilities with Balfour Beatty Power Networks. The enlarged company has over 5,200 employees and is one of the UK's largest utilities engineering companies with contracts with some of the biggest utilities companies in the UK. [23]
[edit] Haden Young
A division of Beatty, Haden Young Limited is one of the UK's largest mechanical and electrical (M&E) services contractors with an annual turnover of around £200 million. The company, founded in 1816 by George Haden, focuses on heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC), electrical, plumbing, fire protection, and information technology design, construction and commissioning.[24]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b Balfour Beatty. Key Facts. Retrieved on 2007-03-23.
- ^ a b c Balfour Beatty (7 March 2008). Preliminary results for the year to 31 December 2007 (PDF). Retrieved on 2008-03-07.
- ^ Digital Look. Balfour Beatty. Retrieved on 2007-03-23.
- ^ Notes on Financial Times Actuaries Index 1969
- ^ Shake-up will see BICC change to Balfour Beatty
- ^ Balfour Beatty set to buy Mansell
- ^ Balfour Beatty pays £180 for US builder
- ^ Balfour Beatty targets $350m US military deal
- ^ Balfour Beatty buys Dean & Dyball for £45m
- ^ Hatfield victims and unions call for new corporate killing law
- ^ Structure information
- ^ Docklands Light Railway Official Handbook, Stephen Jolly and Bob Bayman (1986) ISBN 0 904711 80 3
- ^ Motorway Archive - M25
- ^ Channel Tunnel on Structurae database
- ^ Cardiff Bay Barrage Report
- ^ Corner House
- ^ Government of Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department
- ^ Turkish Dam gets UK Support
- ^ Motorway Archive - M6 Toll
- ^ University College London Hospital wins award
- ^ New bridge wins praise
- ^ Balfour Beatty website: Burj Mall Dubai
- ^ Balfour Beatty Utility Solutions Web home page
- ^ Haden Young Web home page
