WS Atkins’ profits rise despite falling revenues
Accounts filed by WS Atkins Ireland Ltd show the firm recorded the increase in pre-tax profits despite revenues falling 28% from €14.4m to €10.3m in the 12 months to the end of Mar 31, 2011.
The firm is a multi-discipline design consultancy, including architecture, engineering, motorways, water, transportation planning, quantity surveying, and project management.
Numbers employed by the firm last year reduced from 138 to 102 and the filings show that redundancy costs of €150,541 following a spend of €244,322 under the same heading in fiscal 2010, reduced profits.
The directors’ report states: “The business has declined considerably over the last financial year because of decline in workloads due to the recession.
“We have taken the opportunity to restructure the business over the last 12 months, whilst at the same time keeping all our core teams in place in each of the businesses. All of this will put us in a strong position to take advantage of the economic recovery when it happens.
“The company continues to trade in a challenging business environment. The construction and civil engineering sectors have been impacted by both Government capital spending reductions and overall weaker economic conditions.” The firm paid a dividend of €600,000 last year and this followed a dividend pay-out of €502,307 in 2010.
The report states: “The current economic downturn is being managed by ensuring full staff productivity through staff secondments and the importation of work from other Atkins offices outside Ireland.”
The firm’s operating profit totalled €612,476 but net interest payments totalling €429,775 reduced pre-tax profits to €193,199.
