Last Updated 11th March 2022
Carey Group Plc
Carey Group is a family-controlled construction group involved in main and specialist contracting across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland
Based in Wembley, the group provides a wide range of specialist construction and waste management services. Having scaled back in recent years it has a turnover of over £400 million, of which the main building & civils business Careys – previously PJ Carey (Contractors) – employs 814 people and is the largest element. The group also has a £17 million-turnover dry-lining business BDL, which employs 99 and reported an operating loss for 2021.
After some challenging years, the group recently reported a strong group order book worth £667 million and chief executive officer Jason Carey said that following the introduction of a five year strategy last year the group has ‘maintained momentum’.
In recent years, the company has broadened beyond its roots as a groundworks contractor and as well as London it has offices in Milton Keynes, Glasgow and Dublin. Key services include construction engineering, demolition, site remediation & enabling works, infrastructure & civil engineering, construction of complex basements, substructures and concrete superstructures and creation of public realms and hard landscapes. The group’s latest reported turnover was split between contracting £316 million, property development £11.6 million and waste recycling £16.8 million.
In March 2021, a new senior leadership structure was introduced with Bjourn Bingley as managing director of Careys and six regional directors. The group’s building and civils business in Ireland no longer exists as a brand and the firm has ceased developing new homes.
Key projects where the group has recently worked include the concrete packages at London”s tallest tower at 22 Bishopsgate, demolition and remediation at Ford Dagenham, civil and infrastructure works at Aberdeen Exhibition Conference Centre and the first phase of Edinburgh Airport” expansion plan. The group has also worked on the conversion of BBC TV into White City Place and on the start of 150 Bishopsgate, which includes London”s first Pan Pacific Hotel.
Financials
To view the financials for Carey Group Plc visit Companies House and use Company ID 02644192.
Having scale back its activities in recent years, Carey reported a slide in turnover to £344 million in the year to end-September 2021, down from £748.8 million in the 18 months to end-September 2020. Over the same period, operating profit fell to £1.09 million (after a loss of £7.95 million on discontinued activities) from £16.8 million previously. Similarly, pre-tax profits fell to £1.08 million from £15.3 million, previously. Meanwhile, net assets rose slightly to £111.7 million and net debt stood at £2.4 million.
Careys
Carey’s has a strong in-house expertise and wide experience across all sectors. The firm uses a self-delivery model which it believes gives it control of all elements of a project, guaranteeing quality and safety and a high level of repeat business. Key projects where Careys has worked include the huge One Nine Elms in Battersea where its is delivering substructure works for its 43-storey River Tower and 56-storey City Towers. The division reported an operating profit of £1.7 million in 2021.
The firm works across a wide range of sectors including energy, retail, education, industrial, arts & leisure, aviation, residential, infrastructure, healthcare and mixed development. Key sources of turnover are 20% residential, 17% energy, 16% arts & leisure, 9% healthcare and 7% commercial.
The businesses” forward order book remained strong at £578 million of secured work as it entered 2022 helped by a significant increase in residential, education, infrastructure and energy work. It is see more opportunities in London and it has a pipeline of over 70 projects worth over £1.8 billion.
Dry Lining Contracting
Founded over 30 years ago, Carey”s acquisition BDL Group is a market leader in the drywall lining, working mainly in London and the South East on residential (60% of turnover) and commercial/washroom schemes (40%) and is led by managing director, Lee Daniels.
Key sectors include installing dry lining and suspended ceilings, screeding of floors and design and fit-out of washrooms. In autumn 2021, the business had over £50 million of work secured for the year ahead. BDL reported an operating loss of £2.7 million in 2021, compared to a profit of £4.4 million in the 18 months previously.
Glenigan Data
Figures from Glenigan show Carey Group is involved in some significant projects around the country. The group is the groundwork contractor on a £350 million scheme of 30 apartments at Audley Square House in Mayfair where work started in spring 2022 (Project ID: 05672482). Meanwhile, Carey is contractor on the demolition works on the Shepperton Studios Enabling Works in Surrey where work started in late summer 2021 to run for 15 months (Project ID: 21468518).
Conclusion: Strong niches with healthy level of repeat business
Whilst it retains some strong niches, Carey is a broadly-based group today with a good geographic spread and a healthy level of repeat business. Profits have been hard-hit in the past by the group”s problem contracts in Ireland but its specialisms in areas such as demolition and concrete structures have served it well in winning work. It is also benefitting from a strong presence in Scotland. Meanwhile, its reputation for quality is reinforced by a large direct workforce and its strong track record notably in civil engineering. Assuming those markets remain healthy, the group is likely to continue to prosper in the long term.
Winning work with Carey Group
Carey aims to evolve its capabilities to provide an integrated service. It is committed to partnering and building lasting relationships with clients, sub-contractors and suppliers and it adopts a non-adversarial approach to dispute resolution. The firm’s model is based upon self-delivery and managing – rather than transferring – construction risks. The group also invests significantly in its staff and plant and equipment. It also puts an emphasis on personal ethics and a code of honesty, transparency and consistency.
Companies interested in working with the group are referred to the head office in Wembley.
The Chief Buyer for PJ Carey Contractors
is Paul Bignold.
Tel: 020 8900 0221
Email: paul.bignold@careysplc.co.uk