A well-known figure in the sector has joined a new concrete and quarry services business spun off from a leading civil engineering firm.
Christopher Bennett (pictured) is heading up the concrete division of Cambrian Services Limited, which has been founded by respected UK contractor, Jones Bros Civil Engineering.
The family-owned firm, which has a turnover of £90m and employs 350, owns mobile batching plants, whose services it has been providing internally to its own construction sites for 10 years.
Now it has decided to spin off the business into a separate company, wholly owned by Jones Bros Ruthin Co Ltd to further support external partners.
Cambrian Concrete Services provides concrete plant rental and site batching services. It has just been appointed as the sole UK supplier of SIMEM equipment and spares. It is also an authorised sales and support partner for Dorner Electronic control systems.
It has become the first company in the UK to offer a complete batching plant delivery system from civils to placement thanks to existing technical and operational experience within the Jones Bros business.
The diverse skill set means Cambrian Services Limited can also provide decommissioning and relocations, upgrades and modifications, servicing, maintenance and spare parts.
Jones Bros managing director John Dielhof, who is also managing director of Cambrian Services said:
“We’ve been installing, operating, servicing and relocating our own batching plants around the UK for a decade. We’ve amassed a lot of knowledge and expertise and we know how to operate them commercially for the best margins.
“Now that Chris has joined us, we have one of the UK’s most knowledgeable mixing technology specialists heading up our new venture, which is backed by the financial strength and stability of the established, privately-owned Jones Bros.“
Chris’ heritage led him into the concrete sector as a holiday job while still at school. As an undergraduate in international business at Nottingham Trent University, he spent six months studying entrepreneurship and new venture creation at California State University, Long Beach. In recent years he worked on behalf of Italian concrete plant manufacturers SIMEM, globally supporting sales and onsite service and is currently completing a concrete technology course at the University of Derby.
Chris said: “Cambrian Services Limited is set up perfectly to meet the demands of construction firms for efficient on site batching and technologically advanced equipment. They don’t need to have the expertise in-house as we can provide the knowledge and advice to deliver the specific production requirements.“
Founded in the 1950s, Jones Bros is a leading civil engineering contractor in highways, energy including renewables, flood and coastal protection work and construction of waste management facilities.
It has previously formed 50:50 joint venture partnerships with civil engineering giant Balfour Beatty to take on large-scale highways and wind farm projects.