Bristol Business News

The auction of Bristol Water is warming up with Infracapital, the infrastructure arm of M&G Investment Management, reported to be considering a bid.

Fund manager M&G – which already has a stake in Kelda, the parent company of Yorkshire Water – is likely to be the only British bidder. Two Japanese trading houses are known to be interested but talk that UK engineering firm Balfour Beatty was also considering a bid, has now been discounted.

Bristol Water reported a £15m slump in pre-tax profits from £23.1m to £7.6m in June, blaming poor weather and problems with the Competition Commission.

It was at about this time that the company was put up for sale by its Spanish owner Agbar which is controlled by French utility Suez Environnement. Citigroup was called in to help sell it by auction for a figure expected to be around £400m. Agbar paid £362m five years ago and, despite tight control by the Competition Commission, the auction has sparked interest among investors looking for slow and steady returns.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is expected to publish a White Paper next year on the future of the water industry following a review.

Hot on the heels of its success in sealing business worth at least £80m with drinks giant Diageo and winning a contract with Essex County Council, outsourcing and energy services specialist MITIE ended a week of spectacular new business wins with a four-year minor works and maintenance contract with the West Midlands Construction Framework valued at up to £350m – with the possibility of a further two-plus-two years extension.

Current works include reactive and planned repair and maintenance to all non-housing council owned buildings, primarily with the Birmingham City Council South area.

As part of this framework, Bristol-based MITIE is eligible to work with up to 13 other local authorities within the West Midlands.

MITIE says the quality of service and strength of delivery on its current contract with Birmingham City Council helped secure a place in the new framework. The company has been working with Birmingham City Council since 1995, providing reactive and planned repair and maintenance to all non-housing Council owned buildings.

As part of the contract MITIE has undertaken to create at least 15 trainee or apprenticeship placements and to develop small and medium enterprises within its supply chain.

Bill Robson, managing director of MITIE’s property management business, said: “We look forward to working with other local authorities as part of this framework and investing in the local area through back-to-work programmes.”

The new framework adds to MITIE’s portfolio in the Midlands, including non-housing works and maintenance in Walsall Council and Tamworth Borough Council.

Bristol Business News…

Ruby McGregor-Smith, chief executive of Bristol-based MITIE

Outsourcing services specialist MITIE has won a contract worth at least £80m with Diageo, the world’s leading premium drinks business.

Bristol-based MITIE will supply Diageo with integrated facilities management (FM) and hospitality services throughout its entire UK and Irish property portfolio in what it described as a transformational contract.

This will involve more than 70 sites including all Diageo’s manufacturing, packaging and distillery sites, and its global headquarters. The three plus two-year contract has a value of £16m a year – with up to £3m of project works to be undertaken each year, giving a potential total value over the period of £80m to £95m.

MITIE has been providing integrated FM to Diageo’s Irish operations since acquiring Dalkia FM in Ireland in June 2010.

According to MITIE, the deal follows a strategic review by Diageo “which has enabled a move to a fully integrated, self-delivered outsourcing model across the UK and Ireland. MITIE sets itself apart with its international coverage, technology platform and energy services capabilities, all of which were tailored to meet Diageo’s unique requirements”.

MITIE chief executive Ruby McGregor-Smith added: “We look forward to building on our partnership and delivering world-class services to this prestigious business.”

The contract win follows a deal announced earlier this week by MITIE to deliver outsourced services for Essex County Council.

Bristol Business News…

Wessex Water has won two Green Apple Awards in a national campaign to find Britain’s greenest companies, councils and communities.

The company, which supplies sewerage services in Bristol, submitted entries for its catchment management and waste reduction and recycling projects, competing against 500 other nominations.

The awards are organised by The Green Organisation, an independent group dedicated to recognising and promoting environmental best practice.

Bath-based Wessex Water’s catchment management work, launched in 2005, is a cheaper and greener approach to safeguarding drinking water supplies by working with farmers to stop pollutants entering water sources.

The waste reduction and recycling programme was developed to manage waste effectively and responsibly through reuse and recycling facilities which will help the company meet its goal of zero waste to landfill by 2020.

Wessex Water director of compliance and sustainability Julian Dennis said: “To have been recognised for these innovative projects shows how we are making a real difference when it comes to environmental best practice.

“We are committed to becoming a truly sustainable business and this means having the ability to continue providing services in ways that protect and enhance the envir nment.”

Wessex Water will now be considered to represent the UK in the European Business Awards.

Bristol Business News…

Dutch mail and parcel processing equipment provider Prime Vision has expanded with a new office in Bristol to support its “booming” business in the UK postal, warehouse and logistics markets.

Prime Vision’s speciality is in optical character recognition (OCR) systems. Following four years of “exponential” growth in the UK, it is moving into Bristol with a new office which will provide meeting venue and training facilities for up to 30 people.

“We are core developers of recognition technologies, systems integrators and project management specialists,” said Mark Ryder, head of marketing. “These abilities have enabled us to secure major contracts in the UK that are world class in their scope and capability.”

Prime Vision selected Bristol as its base because 90% of its clients are established within a two-hour drive of the city and because of its international airport which will enable staff to travel quickly to Holland where the company headquarters are located.

The company says its permanent staff numbers will grow along with business needs and it has already launched a graduate training programme and a successful internship scheme.

Tutor Bella with student Rory

Tutorhub, the online tutoring website started by two Bristol tech entrepreneurs, has reached 1,000 users within eight months.

The site helps pupils and their parents tackle homework and exam revision and since its launch last December has received questions from ‘what are enzymes?’ to ‘why is hydrogen used as rocket fuel?’

It works by linking students with more than a hundred tutors to help them with the full spectrum of subjects from algebra to zoology. Students can post simple queries and receive answers for free but pay for one-to-one online tutoring.

Targeted at the Facebook generation, Tutorhub has seen a big take-up in users swapping information and advice.

The Bristol-based firm is the brainchild of Kevin Gibson and Jon Ellis. Mr Gibson worked in Silicon Valley and Australia before returning to his hometown of Bristol to start his own tech business.

His other business interests include a privately-held commercial property company and Ebooks Corporation — an Australia-based world leader in digital book technology, where he is a leading shareholder and chairman. He also sits on the board of Hanzo Archives, a web archiving and e-discovery company.

Mr Ellis, a former head of finance at Lloyds TSB-turned-online entrepreneur, also owns Bristol-based Jiva, which builds social web applications.

Mr Ellis said: “Tutorhub is designed to serve the needs of today’s learners who are completely at home accessing, processing and sharing information. Young people are used to sharing information in real time and expect instant results. We have GCSE students quizzing our online tutors and A-level students chipping in with additional ideas and even pointers for further research.”

Parents keep control of the finances and can choose tutors to provide online help with specific GCSE or A-Level subjects or to coach children as they come up to school entrance exams.

Tutors are well-qualified, CRB-checked post and undergraduates and teachers with familiar with a range of exam boards.

Tutorhub has a target of 10,000 users by summer next year.

Bristol outsourcing services group MITIE secured 85% if its annual budgeted revenues within three months of the financial year, it said yesterday.

According to an interim statement from the group, its order book is at record levels and the pipeline of opportunities remains good.

Revenues and earnings are developing in line with management’s expectations, and, despite economic uncertainties, the board is “extremely positive” about the range of opportunities in its key markets.

The group has grown rapidly through public sector outsourcing and by businesses seeking to offload non-core services.
The trading update for the period from April 1 to date, shows a steady flow of contract awards and retentions from public sector clients.

“We remain focused on the justice, health, local authority and social housing markets which are showing a very encouraging pipeline of opportunities,” the company said.

It has also continued to win and retain work across a range of private-sector industries. The pipeline of work remains buoyant, particularly in the financial services and retail sectors, it said.

“Our current low debt levels and strong balance sheet continue to provide us with capacity for the development of organic growth and for value creating acquisitions should they arise,” the company said.

From Bristol Business News