Member Article

Steel River Consultants expand into the Midlands

A Teesside health and safety services outfit are expanding into the Midlands with the openeing of a satellite office to manage its growing list of blue chip clients.

Stockton-based Steel River Consultants say the time is right to grow their operations and confidence returns to the economy.

The firm’s new Shardlow office is six miles south east of Derby and located in a Grade-II listed building set on the wharf-side of what was once a tributary of the Grand Union Canal.

Managing director Grama Tyerman said: “The country is out of recession and the economy is growing strongly. Confidence is returning and we need to be ready to meet future growth opportunities. To do that we need to grow our expertise.

“Further expansion on Teesside was limited by resources and the need to attract people with specialist skills.

“Opening a second office in a different part of the country gives us added flexibility to deliver for clients beyond Teesside.”

The satellite operation will be headed up by Chris Lawson, who brings with him more than three decades of experience in the design management and construction industry.

Chris, 54, started his career as an engineer working in Middlesbrough, not far from SRC’s Teesside headquarters, before moving into architecture as a design manager working for local authorities in North Yorkshire and South Derbyshire.

He over saw a number of direct works activities before moving into health and safety management and, finally, into the local authority enforcement sector.

Chris left local government to join a multi-disciplinary international company as an associate director working in a variety of sectors including the automotive, commercial and renewable industries.

Most recently, he was involved in the 315MW offshore wind farm at Sheringham Shoal and has worked closely with Ford Motor Company helping to decommission tooling and presses at the famous Dagenham factory, in London, as well as carrying out projects at Ford’s Dunton Technical Centre and its engine plant in Bridgend, Wales.

A member of the Association for Project Safety, the International Institute of Risk and Safety Management and the European Wind Energy Association’s health and safety group, Chris has also published a number of papers on health & safety culture in the offshore industry.

He said: “I couldn’t be joining SRC at a better time. It’s great to be part of such a talented and ambitious team.”

Among the projects he will be working on for SRC are a new quayside development near Aberdeen and a UK based offshore wind farm. He will also be assisting with SRC’s renewables portfolio.

The new satellite operation will service clients in the Midlands and the South, although Graham explained: “There will be plenty of interchange between the two offices. It’s essential to match the skills of our personnel to the right project.

The new office is a logical extension of SRC’s progression. In the past three years, the company has grown from just one person to a team of ten and, despite the challenges posed by the recession, it has built an international reputation for excellence within the renewables sector.

The expansion will also enable SRC to extend its service portfolio beyond renewables to encompass a number of other sectors including the automotive industry, commercial property, ports and harbours and housing. Chris’s expertise will also enhance SRC’s training and hazard analysis programmes.

SRC also intends to make a formal response to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for the forthcoming consultation on the redrafting of the Construction (Design and Management) regulations. Government officials are looking to industry experts, such as SRC, to help shape the new framework.

Chris explained: “Interpretation of new legislation is a big issue, especially for smaller businesses which sometimes struggle just to keep up. I hope SRC can be influential in the new regulations, particularly in the renewables arena.”

Graham hopes the new office will experience similar growth to the Teesside operation and doesn’t rule out further expansion. “We have a three year plan,” he says. “We will be looking for further expansion opportunities at strategic locations within the UK.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .