04 / 05
T
he synergy and understanding
between family-run Finley Structures
and construction giants Sir Robert
McAlpine are obvious.
Despite one being a huge, national
corporation with sites across the UK, it is still
a family-owned business with almost identical
values to Finley Structures at its core
Sir Robert McAlpine has been a stable
presence in the industry since its first contract
in 1869 – the repair of a mine chimney for
£2.45.
Since then, McAlpine has delivered many of
the building blocks of our society, including
landmarks and iconic structures that place
us at the heart of the UK’s history and future
landscape.
Many of those have been done with the
help of steel fabrication specialists Finley
Structures, from its five-acre, state-of-the-art
site in Newton Aycliffe.
The company was launched by John Finley
in 2000 and is still run by members of his
immediate family today, with his daughter
Julie Raistrick its managing director.
Finley Structures has worked on more than
20 major projects totalling more than 12,500
tonnes of steel for Sir Robert McAlpine since
its first contract win with the firm in 2005 – a
217-tonne job at Ryehill House, Newcastle
College.
ISSUE 17 | SPRING 2020
Other projects since then have included
Hexham Pool, Benfield School, Metroland,
Walker Technology College, the Unipres
factory in Washington and Nissan’s battery
plant, an initial 1,100-tonne contract with
further works in 2013.
Finley Structures has also worked on a
2,500-tonne project at the Victoria Gate
shopping centre in Leeds and the Riverwalk
development in Durham, involving 1,100-plus
tonnes.
Other new projects include the Lumen and
Spark buildings – part of the ambitious Helix
development in central Newcastle – and
another factory for Unipress in Washington.
“We enjoy an excellent working relationship
with Sir Robert McAlpine and we have since
day one,” says Julie.
“But it isn’t just about winning the work or
doing it necessarily just for the best price.
It’s how you work together on projects going
forward and have respect for each other.
“We have respect for the team at Sir
Robert McAlpine’s Newcastle office, who we
predominantly deal with, and we’d like to think
that’s reciprocated.”
Finley Structures is one of only a handful
of steel fabricators on Sir Robert McAlpine’s
preferred supply chain list, which is testament
to the positive working relationship the two
businesses enjoy.
Julie adds: “Certain parts of the construction
industry have a terrible reputation – it’s about
the best price, and there’s no respect at all for
the work we do.
“But McAlpine appreciate companies who
not only deliver their projects professionally
and on time, but operate respectfully and treat
their own suppliers and staff with respect.”
Sir Robert McAlpine is headquartered
in Hertfordshire but has 10 sites across
the UK, including Newcastle, Birmingham,
Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, London, Leeds and
Manchester.
The firm designs, develops, builds and
preserves some of Britain’s most iconic
buildings, shaping the towns, cities and
landscapes.
On its website, the company says it aims to
“continue to build on, strengthen and apply
the values that have always been at the heart
of our operations: an absolute commitment
to our clients, our people and our partners, as
well as to the highest standards of technical
excellence. It is this ethos that will help guide
us as we proudly build for the future”.
Mark Gibson, Northern regional managing
director from Sir Robert McAlpine, added:
“Finley Structures are one of our key supply
chain partners in the North-East and have
been an integral part of our success over
recent years.
“We have enjoyed a long and successful
working relationship with Julie and her team,
and we will continue to partner together to
develop our key capabilities around safety,
quality, cost, innovation, and sustainability to
meet and exceed our clients’ expectations.”