{"id":857512,"date":"2025-06-23T09:12:26","date_gmt":"2025-06-23T14:12:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/23\/glasgow-based-contractor-seizes-silver-lining-from-isg-collapse\/"},"modified":"2025-06-23T09:12:26","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T14:12:26","slug":"glasgow-based-contractor-seizes-silver-lining-from-isg-collapse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/23\/glasgow-based-contractor-seizes-silver-lining-from-isg-collapse\/","title":{"rendered":"Glasgow-based contractor seizes silver lining from ISG collapse"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Business opportunities following the collapse of ISG have helped diversified contractor Morris & Spottiswood to boost its pre-tax profit, as it targets turnover of \u00a3260m-\u00a3280m in two years\u2019 time.<\/p>\n

Newly released accounts from the Glasgow-based group<\/a> show a 71 per cent profit hike from \u00a32.8m to \u00a34.7m in the year to 31 December 2024.<\/p>\n

Turnover grew by a third from \u00a3128m to \u00a3172.5m, resulting in a broader margin of 2.7 per cent compared with 2.2 per cent in 2023.<\/p>\n

The latest result means the firm hit its target of \u00a3150m revenue by 2026 two years early, chief executive Jon Dunwell told Construction News<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Dunwell said he expected the financial growth trend to continue. \u201cThis year, I think we\u2019ll do about \u00a3200m [in turnover]. Our target for the next two years is \u00a3260m-\u00a3280m, so it\u2019s quite rapid expansion,\u201d he said<\/p>\n

Repeat business and frameworks are expected to account for 70 per cent of turnover, but Dunwell said the firm also aimed to acquire a facilities management company, adding: \u201cI want to grow that nationally.\u201d<\/p>\n

The improved financial performance was partly due to the fall of ISG<\/a> in September 2024. Morris & Spottiswood said it recruited more than 100 staff from its collapsed rival ISG Retail the following month, including the senior management team.<\/p>\n

This move brought \u201cnew blue-chip clients\u2026 including major financial institutions and key large retailers\u201d, directors said in their strategic report within the accounts.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs this took place at the end of the year the impact on the 2024 financials was limited, although [it] still accounts for 18 per cent of the turnover growth,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n

Turnover and profit growth last year also resulted from higher demand from clients in the financial sector and the renewal of multiple frameworks, the accounts said.<\/p>\n

Dunwell emphasised Morris & Spottiswood\u2019s holistic service offering, derived from its diverse portfolio of companies specialising in fit-out, mechanical and electrical (M&E) services, offsite fabrication, refurbishment and new-build housing.<\/p>\n

The component parts work on standalone projects but also come together to provide what he described as a \u201ccircular delivery model\u201d for clients.<\/p>\n

This keeps costs down and maintains margins by removing the extra expense that can occur with a lengthy external supply chain, Dunwell said.<\/p>\n

A diverse workload spread across a variety of sectors serves to \u201cmitigate risk of a downturn in any one sector\u201d, directors added in the firm\u2019s accounts.<\/p>\n

Last year, Morris & Spottiswood set up an in-house joinery service and established an interior fit-out business called Inspire Spaces (FF&E) Ltd.<\/p>\n

M&E subsidiary Livingston Building Services is poised for further growth after acquiring fellow Scottish firm JB Engineering \u2013 which specialises in offsite manufacturing, modular assembly and packaged plant rooms services \u2013 last November.<\/p>\n

Cash at hand and dividend payouts each rose. The former grew by two-thirds from \u00a313.6m to \u00a323.2m, and the latter increased from \u00a3100,270 to \u00a31.2m.<\/p>\n

\u201cCashflow projections up to the end of 2026 demonstrate the ability to meet working capital requirements from reserves with a reasonable level of headroom,\u201d directors said.<\/p>\n

Short-term repayable loan debt remained stable at \u00a3522,680, although the firm reduced its loans falling due after more than a year from \u00a31.3m to \u00a3884,130.<\/p>\n

The acquisition of ex-ISG staff was the main factor behind an increase in average monthly headcount \u2013 up from 449 to 562 employees \u2013 and an annual wage bill that rose by a third from \u00a326.9m to \u00a335.7m.<\/p>\n

Morris & Spottiswood operates offices in Carlisle, Livingston, Leeds and Warrington, plus new premises in Bristol, Huntingdon and Whitstable.<\/p>\n

The firm has just moved into an expanded London office, Dunwell added, with further \u201csignificant growth\u201d envisaged in southern England this year as the firm takes on even more ex-ISG clients.<\/p>\n

Morris & Spottiswood is also completing an 18,000 square metre ex-ISG office fit-out job for an unnamed financial client in central London.<\/p>\n

In February, it took over the job to complete an \u00a38m distillery in the Inner Hebrides<\/a>, left unfinished after ISG\u2019s collapse.<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, the firm also won a place on the University of Glasgow\u2019s \u00a3500m construction framework<\/a> in February this year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Ben Vogel<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Business opportunities following the collapse of ISG have helped diversified contractor Morris & Spottiswood to boost its pre-tax profit, as it targets turnover of \u00a3260m-\u00a3280m in two years\u2019 time. Newly released accounts from the Glasgow-based group show a 71 per cent profit hike from \u00a32.8m to \u00a34.7m in the year to 31 December 2024. Turnover<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":857513,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26535,144808],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-857512","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-contractor","8":"category-glasgow-based"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=857512"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857512\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/857513"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=857512"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=857512"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=857512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}