Bradford hire group acquires Derbyshire firm

The Driver Hire Group, the LDC-backed parent company of Driver Hire Group Services Limited, has acquired Derbyshire Infra Safety Services Labour Ltd, a specialist provider of professional and labour services.

The transaction will create an £85m to £90m turnover, based on forecasted figures, and supports the management team’s strategy to diversify its operations.

The business, which will continue to trade under its existing brand and with its current management team, boasts a wide range of blue-chip clients.

Alongside the provision of labour and consultancy services, ISS Labour also supplies and manages plant to support rail infrastructure projects, including track lighting and safety barrier fencing.

For the financial year ending June 2013, ISS Labour generated turnover of £12 million.

Bradford-based Driver Hire Group Services currently operates a number of service areas including Driver Hire UK, which is the country’s largest transport and logistics recruitment specialist.

The division manages over 3,000 drivers each day through its franchise network of over 100 offices and 300 staff.

Driver Hire UK provides around 5,000 corporate customers with fully compliant LGV, van, fork lift truck and fleet care drivers, warehouse operatives and professional logistics managers on both a short-term and long-term basis.

As Driver Hire Training, the Group provides Driver CPC training to over 30,000 transport professionals per year. In its latest venture, the business also provides online training and licence checking services. In 2012, the Group launched Driver Hire Australia and now operates offices in Perth and Brisbane.

As part of the ongoing evolution of the Driver Hire Group, IT and Quality Director Jeremy Neale has been appointed Managing Director of the Driver Hire UK recruitment business. Jeremy, who started his career at GE Capital, joined the business as a Director in 2007 from Cap Gemini Ernst & Young.

Chris Chidley, CEO of the Driver Hire Group, said “Over the past two years our business has diversified to provide complementary recruitment, training and consultancy services.

“The acquisition of ISS Labour further expands our offering and enables us to capitalise on rapid growth opportunities within the rail infrastructure sector. We look forward to having ISS as another stand-alone business within the Group. We believe that each of our businesses will benefit from the synergies that will emerge from being part of a wider group.”

Gary Beeston, Managing Director of ISS Labour, said: “Government and private investment is set to transform the UK’s rail infrastructure, however we face a severe shortage in highly skilled labour to deliver these projects.

“With the backing of the Driver Hire Group, we are confident that our business can help support the industry through a period of growth and provide the quality workforces needed to achieve the nation’s rail ambitions.”

Steve Harrison, Director at LDC in Yorkshire and the North East, said: “The transaction is a clear statement of Chris and his team’s intentions to expand the business and cement its position as a leader in niche sector specific recruitment. We look forward to further supporting the Driver Hire Group as it delivers its organic and acquisitive growth strategy.”