Morris & Spottiswood has acquired part of the former construction firm ISG, saving 111 jobs.
The Glasgow-headquartered company announced it purchased fit-out business ISG Cathedral. The value of the acquisition has not yet been disclosed.
The firm was originally an independent retail fit-out specialist called Cathedral Contracts, before its buyout by ISG for £12m in 2007.
Morris & Spottiswood, which operates in fit-out, refurbishment, mechanical and electrical services, facilities management and construction services, said the deal would add “up to £100m in revenue across the next 15 months”. It predicted its annual turnover would rise to £265m.
In its latest published accounts, for the year to 31 December 2023, Morris & Spottiswood turned over £128m and made a pre-tax profit of £2.8m.
The contractor said it would form a new division, called Morris & Spottiswood England, to sit alongside existing divisions Morris & Spottiswood Scotland and Livingston M&E.
ISG, which turned over £2.2bn in 2022 and made a pre-tax profit of £11.5m, went under after a long-running effort to sell the business broke down in September. The contractor owed more than £300m to its supply chain, including £111m from its fit-out arm.
It employed more than 3,000 people in total.
Morris & Spottiswood chief executive Jon Dunwell said: “The demise of ISG was sad news for the construction sector, causing significant disruption to valued clients and affecting many of our industry peers.
“We are pleased that as an agile family-owned business we have been able to move quickly to bring some stability to the situation, offering continuity and assurances of longevity to our new colleagues and clients alike.”
He added: “With our solid foundations already in place, we hope that this will give confidence to clients and the supply chain as a whole, as we embed the new division, while also expanding our services and geographical reach.”
Already established within the Scottish market and active in the North of England, the creation of Morris & Spottiswood England would extend the group’s nationwide reach, with 10 offices stretching from Glasgow to Whitstable, the company said.
The group’s in-house design company, McLennan, will also open a London office, as part of the expansion plan.
Morris & Spottiswood recently acquired JB Engineering, a specialist provider of offsite fabrication services, as a subsidiary of its Livingston Building Services arm.
