Last updated 22nd September 2022
Spencer Group
Hull-based Spencer Group specialises in larger engineering projects such as work on the rail network, the design and build of power stations and suspension bridges. Established in 1989 by executive chairman Charlie Spencer, the group employs over 400 people and had a last-reported turnover of £75 million.
Key sectors where the group works include rail; energy; materials handling and distribution; industrial building and civils. The company also provides design services on major projects and has a specialist contractor, Slipform Engineering, which is working on the Thames Tideway project and is tendering for HS2 work.
Major rail projects where the group has worked include the design and construction of the Etches Park Rail Depot in Derby for East Midland Trains and Finsbury Park Phase 2B works, a three year project for London Underground.
In the group’s latest annual report, published in July 2022, the group said the business has enjoyed a strong recovery in activity levels during 2021/22 and the current work outlook remains positive in all sectors, particularly in rail and the structural repair, refurbishment and maintenance of bridges.
The group is also continuing to restructure its service delivery to match its capabilities to market sectors and generate more work opportunities. Meanwhile, the firm won 34 tenders in 2022, compared to 12 in the previous year.
Financials
To see the financials for the Spencer Engineering Group Ltd. go to Companies House and use Company number 08670410
Spencer Engineering Group has seen some mixed financial times recently. Turnover has re-bounded and in the year to end-March 2022 rose to £75 million from £46 million previously. Meanwhile, the group moved back into the black with a pre-tax profit of £790,000 compared to a loss of £1.66 million previously. Cash at bank and in hand rose to £1.36 million from £1.3 million previously. No dividend was paid but the group said it was trading satisfactorily and entered its current financial year with £50 million work in hand and a pipeline of £210 million to draw opportunities from. Figures for C Spencer Ltd, the main trading group, show a turnover of £70m, up £28m (67%) on the previous year, while after-tax profit was £1.9m, an almost four-fold rise on the £526,000 seen previously.
Operations
In summer 2022, Spencer Group was appointed by Associated British Ports (ABP) to its industrial buildings framework contract to build large-scale industrial buildings for the ports group in the South East and North West England, Scotland and Wales. The framework will run for five years and ABP plans to invest heavily across the four regions.
Earlier, in spring 2022, Spencer Group and three other companies formed a new alliance to provide decommissioning to highly-regulated sectors, including nuclear, industrial and marine. The Deplant UK Alliance – which also involves Inglenorth, Matom, and Shield Services Group as well as Spencer Group – aims to provide smart solutions, using a ‘best athlete’ model with key components including complex demolition and dismantling.
Spencer Group recently worked with Slipform Engineering to deliver a major new 52 m high cement handling facility on Hull’s William Wright Dock for Damac Group.
In the rail sector, Spencer Group started work in spring 2022 on the new £26.5 million White Rose Railway Station in south Leeds, a two-platform facility on the main trans-Pennine route to Manchester via Huddersfield. Meanwhile, Gary Robson recently joined Spencer as engineering manager, with 20 years experience in the sector, to drive the growth of the group’s in-house rail design capabilities.
Meanwhile, the group has recently worked on a project to refurbish and rebuild one of the world’s oldest suspension bridges; the 202-year-old Union Chain Bridge across the River Tweed in Northumberland.
Glenigan data
Glenginan data shows Spencer Group has been appointed to the £1.6 billion Gateshead Health NHS Trust civil and infrastructure framework which got underway in summer 2022 and is set to run for four years (Project ID: 21270187). Spencer Group is also a civil contractor on an £18 million upgrade/painting project on the Erskine Bridge in Strathclyde for Transport Scotland where work is set to run until late 2022 (Project ID: 18246270). Spencer Group is also the client on a £2.74 million scheme of 40 new houses at Mill Lane in Barrow on Humber where work is due to start in late summer 2023 and run for 12 months (Project ID: 18152558).
Conclusion
Spencer Group is in the happy position of seeing both government and private client spending on infrastructure set to grow over coming years. The company’s specialities, particularly in the rail, energy and industrial sectors, leave it well-placed to maintain and grow its business in a generally expanding market. Whilst the rail sector is likely to provide a solid support for the company’s workload in coming years, the recent energy shocks which the country has faced recently have underlined the need for urgent investment in new power capacity which should also play to the company’s strengths.
How to win work with Spencer Group
A page on the group’s website here and which gives details on the group’s approach to its supply chain which puts an emphasis on internal and external collaborative working. Businesses can also register on the site as a potential supplier.
Key Contacts
Emma Jones, Lead Buyer at Spencer Group, Hull.
Telephone: 01469 532266