FEATURE PICTURES BY GRAEME ROWATT
FORGING AHEAD
Finley Structures looks to next 20 years after milestone
An Aycliffe-based company is continuing to grow despite the challenges of the pandemic . Peter Barron talks to the managing director of Finley Structures , Julie Raistrick …
At the start of a milestone year for the family-owned
construction company she leads , Julie Raistrick had every reason to think 2020 would be relatively straightforward .
The order book had never been healthier as Finley Structures headed into its 20th anniversary year , with contracts already securely in place for 8,000 tonnes of steel .
Little did Julie know then , that 2020 would turn out to be a year none of us would ever forget , with the coronavirus pandemic causing unprecedented economic turmoil since the lockdown began in March .
And yet , Julie takes pride in being able to say that the company , based on Aycliffe Business Park , has not only consolidated its position , but gained new orders too .
“ It ’ s been hard but we ’ ve come through it , and we remain very confident about the future ,” says Julie , who took over as managing director of the company six years ago .
The key to Finley ’ s continued success has been its reputation with a strong client base built up over the past two decades .
“ Every one of our key clients had orders to place , and we ’ ve benefited from a lot of repeat business , instead of having to cast around for new contracts ,” explains Julie .
“ Despite a lot of confusion over the government guidelines to begin with , all of our sites stayed open , so it ’ s been very much business as usual .”
Highlights have been the continuation of the Milburngate development in Durham , featuring an attractive mix of offices , apartments , bars , restaurants , a cinema , and hotel , with Finley supplying 3,200 tonnes of steel to Tolent for the construction of the flagship site .
Across the river , Finley has supplied another 1,000 tonnes of steel for Kier Construction to build the new headquarters for Durham County Council .
Those two contracts followed Finley working on the 1,100-tonne Riverwalk retail and entertainment complex and , as someone who was born in Dryburn Hospital , Julie takes justifiable pride in the company playing such a pivotal role in a momentous period of development in County Durham ’ s history .
In addition , the Aycliffe company has also been heavily involved in three school projects outside of the region – two for Galliford Try , one in Doncaster and one in Silsden , and the other for Bowmer and Kirkland at Lewes , in Sussex .
Despite the economic upheaval , the impact on staffing at Finley Structures has been relatively small . Six staff who had to shield at the start of lockdown were replaced by temporary staff , and only three employees – a receptionist , estimator , and contracts trainee – were furloughed . But everyone is back now and , because of the healthy state of