Glasgow civil engineering contractor John McGeady Ltd has bought its South Street headquarters in the city, backed by £1.5 million from Bank of Scotland, and plans to grow its workforce to around 100.
The company, which offers civil engineering, road surfacing and plant hire, had rented the 1071 South Street site for two years before the purchase, Glasgow Chamber of Commerce reported.
It employs around 60 people, up from 35 several years ago. A small number of new recruits are lined up, and the business expects to reach a headcount of about 100 within three to five years. It also intends to offer more apprenticeships.
Turnover has climbed from about £900,000 in 2018, the year Thomas Crumlish, now managing director, took over the business from the McGeady family, to over £20 million in the latest accounts. Revenue this year is forecast at around £30 million.
Three to five years ago its typical project was worth about £150,000; it can now take on individual contracts worth as much as £4 million. Recent wins include a £30 million roads-related maintenance works framework for Renfrewshire Council and a £2 million patching framework for Glasgow City Council.
The 4.3-acre South Street yard houses a fleet of about 56 items of plant and equipment and works alongside the company’s other base in Blantyre. Plans under consideration for the site include more office space, a recycling facility and a training centre, which could train both the firm’s own staff and people from outside the business.
John McGeady founded the business in 1982 and stayed on as a director until 2010. The Crumlish family bought it in 2018 but kept the McGeady name.
Crumlish said: “We’ve grown significantly over the past few years, but the ambition has always been to build the business without losing the family values and close-knit culture that have helped us get this far.
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“Buying the South Street site gives us the confidence to think longer term. It gives us more control over how we develop the business and creates the space to invest in our people and future opportunities.”
Stephen Owens, senior relationship director at Bank of Scotland, said the company had “built impressive momentum in recent years” and that owning its headquarters “gives the business a strong platform from which to continue that growth”.
