Amey buys leading consultancy firm, Owen Williams

07 February 2006
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Deal strengthens end-to-end capability of Amey’s Infrastructure Services business increasing consultancy, technical and management service availability.

Amey, one of the UK’s leading support services providers, announced the acquisition of Owen Williams today.  The deal will increase Amey’s ability to offer the full range of support services to current and future clients; from design to management and operations.

Mel Ewell, Chief Executive of Amey, said:

“This is a fantastic deal for Amey and is a core strategy in our continued pursuit of long term, end-to-end service contracts.  As well as having nearly 100 years of heritage Owen Williams has modernised to become a leading professional support services provider to a wide range of public sector bodies.  Combining Owen Williams with our Infrastructure Services business will create a true market-leader.”

The acquisition reflects a growing desire from public sector procurement professionals in the highways, rail and local government sectors to work with one-stop-shop support services companies. Owen Williams’s strong professional services brand together with Amey’s reputation for excellence will offer prospective clients everything they need, without having to undergo fragmented procurement processes.

Owen Williams is well known and well respected in its markets and was recently awarded the “Consultant of the Year – Major Firm Winner”, by the Association of Consulting and Engineering and New Civil Engineer. Its work on the complex strengthening of the Tinsley Viaduct on the M1 has also received high profile accolades. Owen Williams’s revenues totalled £47m in the last financial year and the company made pre-tax profits of £3.0m.

Amey has been organically growing its professional services for several years during which time the benefits of a broad-based service, embracing design, management and maintenance provided from within a single organisation, have become clear.  The combination of Owen Williams’s professional services brand strength and capability with Amey will provide a recognisable option for clients requiring the benefits of sound operational experience and skills transferred into design and management solutions.

Mr. Ewell continued: “Owen Williams has a tremendous strategic fit with our organisation, having complementary capabilities in our core highways, rail, local government and property management markets.” 

Notes to editors

Amey

Amey is a leading provider of integrated business and infrastructure services to the public and private sector and is working closely with central and local government to develop major projects, including PFI and PPP projects, in the education, health, transport and defence sectors. Services range from the management of large-scale transportation infrastructure to the delivery of professional consultancy services, all of which are underpinned by leading-edge technology and a genuine partnering philosophy.

Owen Williams
Owen Williams has provided excellence to clients in the built environment for over 80 years. During this time the company has played a key role in the development of some of the best-known and innovative buildings and structures of the 20th Century. These include Wembley Stadium, the Daily Express Buildings in London, Manchester and Glasgow, the M1 motorway and Gravelley Hill Interchange – perhaps better known as Spaghetti Junction.

Today the company continues to deliver high quality.

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