Steel specialist J&D Pierce has reported a small drop in profit following tough market conditions.
The Ayrshire-based specialist, which delivered structural steelwork for Liverpool Football Club’s £80m Anfield Road stand revamp (pictured) last year, tabled a pre-tax profit of £13.3m in the year to 31 December 2023, in comparison to £19.2m in its previous financial period, which spanned 17 months.
The group’s pre-tax profit therefore fell by nearly £45,000 per month, amounting to £535,000 over a year-long period. Turnover also dropped by nearly 50 per cent, from £195.3m to £103.8m, although this is equivalent to a 25 per cent on a like-for-like basis.
The firm’s profit margin therefore increased by 86 per cent, or 0.5 basis points, to 1.07 per cent.
J&D Pierce acknowledged in its accounts that “the market [had] contracted”, but said the company performed “well” over the course of the year.
“A number of large projects were successfully secured and completed during the year and the order book remains strong into the new financial year,” the accounts say.
“The company continues to secure its customer base across the whole United Kingdom.”
The firm cut its average number of employees by seven, from 481 to 474. But it paid off £3.8m in bank loans over the course of the year. Cash was also up, from £17.3m to £39.9m.
As well as fabricating and erecting trusses for the Anfield Road site last year, J&D Pierce also provided cladding works on a distribution centre for publisher HarperCollins in Robroyston, Glasgow, developed steelwork for two warehouses in Coventry, and provided steelwork for office space in Milton Keynes.
The Anfield Road project has faced substantial delays after the main contractor on the job, Buckingham Group, collapsed last September. Rayner Rowen Construction was appointed in its place.
