One of the UK’s leading joinery and interior fit-out contractors, which has posted the highest annual revenues in its history, has £60 million of secured work for the new financial year. Leicester-based EE Smith Contracts, which is celebrating its 125th birthday this year, has recorded a turnover of £61.5 million
One of the UK’s leading specialist interior fit-out contractors has completed a milestone 16-storey contract at Edwardian Hotels’ new flagship super boutique hotel in London. EE Smith Contracts, which has been carrying out work for Edwardian Hotels Ltd for the last 35 years, opened its factories on the Clarendon Industrial
Sliding and folding door hardware manufacturer, P C Henderson, has released two new installation videos for its market leading range of Pocket Door Pro and Husky Soft Stop systems. Launched early 2019, Pocket Door Pro and Husky Soft Stop, although new to the market, have quickly grown to become two
Howden Joinery has signed a 10-year lease term to become the newest tenant at Sanderson House in Wythenshawe, Manchester. CBRE’s Manchester industrial agency team secured the letting whilst acting on behalf of Cargo Overseas. Sanderson House is a 14,611 sq ft detached warehouse located on Roundthorn Industrial Estate in Wythenshawe.
BDC 319 : Aug 2024
One of the UK’s leading joinery and interior fit-out contractors, which has posted the highest annual revenues in its history, has £60 million of secured work for the new financial year. Leicester-based EE Smith Contracts, which is celebrating its 125th birthday this year, has recorded a turnover of £61.5 million for the year to March 31, 2022. This record-breaking activity has been secured partly by working on multiple prestigious developments including the luxurious The Peninsula London hotel overlooking Hyde Park Corner and the completion of 15 super-prime apartments in Knightsbridge in London. Profits have bounced back strongly following Covid-19 and are forecast to exceed pre-pandemic levels for the year ahead. EE Smith Contracts enters the new financial year with £60 million of secured work, with significant flagship opportunities for the months ahead. The business, which employs 285 staff, has reduced carbon emissions by over 20 per cent in the last year despite the growth in activity at its sites in Leicester and London by investing in a new £125,000 extraction system. There is also continued growth in long-established apprenticeship programmes, with 35 new apprenticeships having been recruited since the outbreak of Covid-19. Neil Simpson, Finance Director at EE Smith Contracts, said the company has enjoyed record-breaking liquidity through the year, giving it a secure platform for the coming years. He said: “The annual results to March 2022 have delivered the highest annual revenue in the company’s history which is due to the hard work and unwavering commitment of our staff. “We are in advanced discussions regarding a few contracts in the high-end residential and hotel markets which remain stable despite a challenging economic backdrop. “All this is the best possible way for the business to celebrate its 125-year history which is a history built on employee training and development and investment in cutting-edge technology, and delivering best-in-class craftsmanship. “EE Smith Contracts has a long history of training youngsters and a significant number of our current employees are former apprenticeships who have stayed with us because it is a family environment. “We have established great links with London colleges and have 30 apprentices on our sites in London who are learning from among the finest craftspeople in the country. The London labour market is very dynamic and we’re building the EE Smith Contracts family environment on those sites as well to retain our apprentices and provide a pathway for their career. “Further reductions are forecast in our carbon emissions following significant investment in carbon saving technology in the last six months because this is an area which is really important to us. “Overall, after evaluating the cost of the pandemic, which we estimate cost the business £3.8 million, to reach a stage where profits are now healthier than pre-Covid is testament to the high standard of our work and the high calibre of our staff.”
One of the UK’s leading specialist interior fit-out contractors has completed a milestone 16-storey contract at Edwardian Hotels’ new flagship super boutique hotel in London. EE Smith Contracts, which has been carrying out work for Edwardian Hotels Ltd for the last 35 years, opened its factories on the Clarendon Industrial Estate in Leicester 24 hours a day during peak capacity to help create London’s largest new luxury hotel, The Londoner. The Londoner, which has been designed in collaboration with Toronto and New York based design studio Yabu Pushelberg, has been branded as the world’s first super boutique hotel and its highly-anticipated opening is due this month. (September) There are 350 guest suites with views over Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square over 16 storeys which also includes six food and beverage outlets. There is also a two-screen cinema, a 1,000 capacity pillarless ballroom and an event space for corporate hire or private parties with a bespoke half honed half polished green marble floor and unique, fabric clad wavey walls. The Londoner features an area called The Retreat which has a swimming pool, private cabanas, a detox juice bar, hair and nail salon, treatment rooms and a gym. There is also The Residence which features three exclusive bars and eateries which are open 24 hours a day for exclusive use to meet every hotel guest’s needs. The hotel is home to £5 million worth of art throughout the building to enhance the boutique style experience within the west end district of London. The work has involved finishes on the project from all over the world such as 350 lava stones from Italian volcanos. Neil Bottrill at EE Smith Contracts said it had been fantastic to work on helping to create The Londoner. He said: “We have continued our 35-year relationship with Edwardian Hotels by collaborating on their super boutique flagship, The Londoner. “When this first-of-its-kind ‘iceberg’ hotel opens, it will be the largest hospitality opening in London post-Covid. “This has been a very collaborative project that we were chosen for due to our in-depth understanding of Edwardians’ expectations, standards and their way of working. “There were 78 finishes schedules across the project whereas we usually have a maximum of three which highlights the scale of this project. “We have shown our innovation and adaptability in the manufacturing of bespoke joinery for each of the 350 suites which was made possible by operating 24/7 from our Leicester HQ. “Covid did interrupt completion but the finished result is absolutely stunning and the opening of The Londoner will definitely give a much-needed boost to the hospitality industry.” Krishma Singh Dear, of Edwardian Hotels London, added: “Edwardian has worked with EE Smith for 35 years on all of our refurbishments. “We therefore know that EE Smith is able to produce a high-quality fit-out that withstands the test of time. “The Londoner was a project that was extremely complicated in terms of its detailing and scale. We believe EE Smith has done a fantastic job and we are all proud of the finished product.”
Sliding and folding door hardware manufacturer, P C Henderson, has released two new installation videos for its market leading range of Pocket Door Pro and Husky Soft Stop systems. Launched early 2019, Pocket Door Pro and Husky Soft Stop, although new to the market, have quickly grown to become two of the company’s most popular products due to their high quality design, flexible functionality options and easy installation. The company has now developed two high quality installation videos in order to complement the product offering. Stephanie Lee, Marketing Manager at P C Henderson, “Since launching our first set of installation videos back in 2015 – we’ve gone onto develop a total of 17 videos which have been watched by almost half a million people worldwide – making them the most popular of their kind. Due to the popularity of our Pocket Door Pro and Husky Soft Stop products, we know our latest videos are going to be a big hit”. Developed in the company’s in house studio, with the help of an outside agency, the videos detail the tools required and kit contents before guiding customers through the installation process step by step, highlighting ‘top tips’ along the way. Featuring a realistic CGI background, the videos enable customers to see what the products will look like in situ – providing a realistic demonstration. “Developing tools to make our customers lives easier is always a fundamental part of our marketing strategy – the videos have been an extremely successful development. Customers can view them on our website, scan the QR code on our paper fitting instructions or, if you’re a P C Henderson distributor, embed them onto your own website. “They’re also a great way to instill confidence, customers can watch the videos prior to purchase and see just how easy our kit packs are to install”, continued Stephanie. Currently receiving over 10,000 views a month, the videos are available for the majority of P C Henderson’s kit pack sliding door hardware products which are predominantly aimed towards the DIY market. P C Henderson offers a wide range of sliding and folding door hardware catering for maximum door weights of between 9kg and 8000kg. As well as kit packs the company also offer a large selection of commercial and industrial door hardware, with plans to develop more technical videos for this side of the business in future. To view the installation videos or to find out more about P C Henderson’s range of sliding and folding door hardware visit www.pchenderson.com/installation-videos or email marketing@pchenderson.com
Howden Joinery has signed a 10-year lease term to become the newest tenant at Sanderson House in Wythenshawe, Manchester. CBRE’s Manchester industrial agency team secured the letting whilst acting on behalf of Cargo Overseas. Sanderson House is a 14,611 sq ft detached warehouse located on Roundthorn Industrial Estate in Wythenshawe. The unit offers modern features, including open plan offices with air conditioning and comfort cooling, warehouse heating and high bay sodium lighting. Secure parking spaces for 29 vehicles and CCTV is also on site. The premises is located on Floats Road in the centre of Roundthorn Industrial Estate in South Manchester. The A5103 Princess Parkway and junction 3a of the M56 motorway are within 2 miles. These provide direct access to Manchester International Airport and the M60 orbital motorway. Paul Cook, senior director for the industrial agency team at CBRE Manchester, said: “We are delighted to secure Howden Joinery for Cargo Overseas as tenants at Sanderson House. “The property is situated in a good position close to the A56 motorway in South Manchester. We have recently been successful in securing a number of deals in the North-West area demonstrating the consistent, high demand for good quality industrial accommodation within the region.” Montagu Evans acted on behalf of Howden Joinery throughout the proceedings. Meanwhile, the future of Manchester’s oldest theatre remains unclear – four years after it was bought by a hotel developer. The Theatre Royal was purchased in 2012 by the Edwardian Group, the firm behind the Radisson Blu Edwardian Manchester Hotel next door in the old Free Trade Hall. Based in Peter Street, the Grade II listed theatre was built by Mancunian businessmen and philanthropist John Knowles and opened in 1845. Bosses at the Edwardian Group said they are carrying out an ‘internal feasibility study’ at the site.
