Overseas work helps engineer to make 拢116,000 pre-tax profit after incurring loss in previous year
Engineer Ramboll鈥檚 UK arm has returned to profit in the first six months of 2013 after making a loss of over 拢6.5m in the previous year.
Speaking to 星空传媒, Ramboll UK managing director Steve Canadine (pictured) said he was 鈥減retty pleased鈥� with the change.
鈥淲e have put a lot of effort into focusing on our markets and our clients,鈥� he said.
Canadine said the firm lost 拢6.5m in 2012 due mainly to a lack of work. He said 拢900,000 of the loss had resulted from leases where the firm had closed offices; 拢4.1m from operating losses, and 拢1.5m in integration and redundancy costs following the acquisition of engineer Gifford in April 2011.
But he said Ramboll had made a pre-tax profit of 拢116,000 in the first six months of 2013. He added: 鈥淚n the second half of 2013 we are expecting to ramp that up a bit.鈥�
In the first half of 2013, the firm was bolstered by its performance overseas, where its work nearly doubled and which now accounts for 20% of Ramboll UK鈥檚 workload. Canadine said he has a target to get Ramboll鈥檚 international work to 25% of its total revenue by the end of the year.
鈥淚鈥檓 not sure it should ever get to more than a third of our revenue but it would be nice to increase it [from its current level],鈥� he said.
Ramboll鈥檚 order book also increased to 拢22m at the end of June 2013, up by over a third on the same time last year. However, total revenue fel