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Hewlett unveils plans for first Scottish office.
Expanding civil engineering contractor Hewlett has today unveiled plans to open its first operations base in Scotland, as part of a strategy to win more work north of the border.
The firm, which is currently installing and modifying highways infrastructure for a major powerline on behalf of Scottish and Southern Energy, has opened offices at King James VI Business Centre, Riverview Business Park, Friarton Road, Perth – Hewlett’s third regional office, having its head office in Leeds and a Midlands office in Warwick.
Managing Director, Alan Cooper, said: “We regard this office very much as an investment for the future, and as such it is our gateway to Scotland, where we have a number of exciting new projects in the pipeline.
“We’re expecting to add between 20 and 100 people within the next two years and we are already extending the scope and reach of our work further. In addition to jobs being created we are also looking to positions for apprentices.”
Founded in the 1987, the privately-owned Hewlett Group has grown rapidly in the last decade. It is currently working on contracts in various sectors including highways, defence (MOD), industrial and commercial. It employs a total of 600 people.
The company already has a track record of delivering contracts north of the border having completed a number of contracts on behalf of Private and Public clients and is presently undertaking a major contract for highways improvement for Scottish & Southern Energy. The scheme consists of modifications to existing roads at some 350 locations between Beauly, near Inverness and Denny near Falkirk. These modifications are to provide access to the new 400KV line which is the most significant grid infrastructure in a decade. The project is over 200km and travels through Falkirk, Highlands, Stirling and Perth & Kinross Council areas.
Whilst Hewlett has recruited staff to help set-up and run the operation, Alan Cooper said that the operational workforce would be recruited locally as and when new contracts were won.
He added: “We’ve previously won work from major UK clients and local Scottish operators in the region. So far it’s been a gradual creep into Scotland. There seems to be a lot of potential here and we’re keen to take advantage of the situation. Having a physical presence gives us a fantastic tendering base.
“We secured the £6 million Scottish and Southern Energy contract against strong competition, based on Hewlett’s experience in this sector. Power and Process and renewables are going to be a particularly strong area for us going forward.”
Hewlett has progressively developed and expanded its activities from its head office in Leeds to establish itself as one of the UK’s leading civil engineering contractors. It also operates from an office in Warwick and run’s its own state-of-the-art training centre also in Leeds with plans for a second training centre in Wolverhampton.