Scotland’s biggest steelwork contractor J&D Pierce has unveiled a major management reshuffle as founder and managing director Derek Pierce steps up to become chairman of the Ayrshire specialist.
Pierce has led the business from the front for more than 20 years, transforming it into a leading firm turning over around £100m
From January, the group will be jointly led by Dave Ryan and Jamie Pierce, who take on the role of managing directors — each responsible for specific areas of the business to deliver better visibility and control across all divisions.
Ryan joined the firm 14 years ago, progressing from the estimating department to divisional manager for the Strubeam business.
Pierce began his career as an apprentice fabricator and welder 15 years ago, rising through site and operations management roles before becoming operations director two years ago.
J&D Pierce also confirmed that board director Andrew Caldwell will retire at Christmas after 29 years with the business. Alan Hawkins will step up to replace him on the board, moving from his current role as head of estimating.
The restructure follows a tougher trading year for the Storskogen-backed contractor. Turnover for 2024 dipped 5% to £98m as pre-tax profit slumped from £12.6m to £0.8m.
The firm blamed cost inflation in steel, coatings and energy, alongside a slowdown in large high-margin projects.
Despite the squeeze, J&D Pierce used the downturn to overhaul systems, invest in new facilities, and tackle production bottlenecks.
A centrepiece of the investment drive is its new 480-metre-long, 350,000 sq ft coating plant in Bellshill, Glasgow, capable of processing 1,500 tonnes of steel a week.
from Construction Enquirer https://ift.tt/1HlgyBG