Engineering giant secures £7.2 million Government contract

The order has been won by Chatteris-based Avingtrans through its newly acquired Booth Industries, which makes blast proof doors for a range of markets from off-shore oil and gas to nuclear.

It comes five months after Avingtrans, which owns Peter Brotherhood, of Peterborough, and Stainless Metalcraft, of Chatteris, bought Bolton-based Booth out of administration.

The acquisition did not include an existing order book, which has meant rebuilding Booth from scratch.

The new order brings the total contract value secured since June to £12 million plus.

Austen Adams, managing director of Avingtrans’ PSRE division said: “This is fantastic news. When we acquired Booth we were excited by its potential.

“Securing these contracts supports that judgement and, as home to a number of great British engineering brands, we remain confident in our abilities to restore Booth Industries to a clear leadership position in its chosen niche markets.”

Steve McQuillan, chief executive of Avingtrans, said: “We have a strong track record of identifying under performing businesses in highly-regulated engineering markets and investing in them to turn the underlying business around.

“As the Booth acquisition shows, it’s an approach that continues to deliver significant shareholder value while securing the future of traditional UK engineering businesses and retaining essential skills in the economy.”