Abu Dhabi work boom sends revenue above 拢20m
Stansted Airport expansion architect Pascall & Watson saw profit and turnover soar last year as the transport specialist cashed in on growing demand from across the Middle East.
The firm, whose plans for a 拢130m arrivals building at the Essex airport were given the green light last week, said pre-tax profit for 2016 was up to 拢2.6m from the 拢135,000 recorded in the eight months to December 2015.
And revenue soared to 拢20m from 拢7.8m with the company saying that pro rata turnover increased by 70%.
It said 鈥淸the] most significant growth [came from] our Abu Dhabi office鈥� with new schemes in the Gulf emirate including a Macy鈥檚 and Bloomingdale鈥檚 store, a hotel along with work on the Expo 2020 Pavilion. In the UK, the firm is working on 13 Crossrail stations while it is working on a new health and sports centre at London鈥檚 Brunel University.
In a report accompanying the results field at Companies House, the practice said profits were helped by 鈥渧ery good performances from both our London and Middle East bases鈥�.
Turnover in the UK more than doubled to 拢14.6m while its business outside the UK and Europe increased from 拢919,000 to 拢4.2m.
To cope with its increased workloads, staff numbers increased by close to a third to 149 which sent its wages bill up from 拢3.8 million to just over 拢8 million. The highest paid director, who is not named, took home just under 拢103,000 鈥� up from 拢68,000 last time.
Pascall & Watson鈥檚 work at Stansted is part of a wider redevelopment of the airport which will see Norman Foster鈥檚 main arrivals and departures building, which opened in 1991, reconfigured to become a departures-only building. The wider work is expected to be finished around 2023.
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