North East construction company Meldrum has seen profits jump in a year of consolidation as it looks to the future with a pipeline of opportunities worth £500m. The Dunston-based business,

which also has bases in Cambridgeshire and Teesside, operates divisions covering everything from construction and civils, to facilities, building services and a new fire engineering

business. Accounts for 2024 show turnover stayed flat at £54.3m, from £54.9m in 2023, but strong margins saw its operating profits jump from £1.9m to £2.4m, while overall profit for the year

was £1.86m, up from £1.58m. Directors described 2024 as a year of consolidation and preparation for growth, hailing the company for its “remarkable resilience” against a backdrop of

everyone in the company a stake in its future. Within the accounts, founder and director Dave Meldrum said the group of companies performed strongly again during 2024. He said inflation,

which had presented significant challenges in 2023, eased significantly and cost increases were factored into the pricing of new contracts delivered during the year, which helped to deliver

a “much improved” gross margin. In his report, Mr Meldrum said: “Detailed business plans and a continued recruitment strategy allowed us to prepare through the period for an anticipated

increase in volume through the latter half of 2025 and well into 2026. This anticipated increase has already been seen to be turning into a reality with the group securing several contracts

and signing up to a number of large value PCSA’s (Pre-Construction Services Agreements) guaranteeing the predicted growth through to the end of 2026. “At the same time, business development

initiatives continue to provide positive results with the growth in our pipeline of opportunities to £500m, and circa £120m in value for projects which are down to final stage negotiations

alone. “2024 had challenges across the whole construction industry, skilled labour shortages continued across several disciplines, which continued to place inflationary demands on wages as

companies competed for a smaller pool of available candidates. “The group continued working on initiatives to focus further on staff training and development, flexibility, and welfare as

well as enhanced remuneration packages to aid with both retention and recruitment. “Continued success in this area has been proven, with staff numbers being maintained above the 220 number,

and for 2025 we look forward to a year with a stable and motivated workforce.” Looking ahead, Mr Meldrum warned that “with the change of Government in the year have become evident which has

led to a noticeable ‘slow down’ in decision making due to uncertainty on policy going forward and the tightening of spend across any projects requiring local or national authority support.”

Separately, Meldrum Civil Engineering has worked with Engineering Paddler Designs on an initiative called Rapid Water Courses to create a new flood water training facility for the Northern

Ireland Fire & Rescue Service (NIFRS). Sister companies Meldrum Building Services & Meldrum Fabrication helped on the £5m project, which comprises a 100-metre flood channel with

6,300 cubic metres of water, plus mock buildings and vehicles in the water and a weir simulator. After the accounts were published, Mr Meldrum said: “Our 2024 was largely in line with what

we anticipated, despite economic challenges. Although turnover remained relatively flat, we increased the profitability of gross margin to 15.1%. Driving efficiency and performance as well

as succession planning, were a key focus for 2024 and remain so for 2025 as we look to build strong foundations for the new era of the Employee-Owned Trust. The performance allows us to

maintain and improve our investment within the business as we continue our focus on sustainable growth.”