High Flyers

A Bishop Auckland based roofing company is on target to finish a £40m contract to complete all the roofing at Heathrow's new terminal by the end of this year.

The prestigious contract is the largest won to date by Hathaway Roofing, now the biggest roofing contractor in the UK with a turnover of £39m and employing 160 people.

The new Terminal 5 construction involves an investment by BAA in excess of £4.3 billion. The structures include Europe's largest single span roof - 39m high, 396m long and 175m wide. The team at Hathaway Roofing has been involved from the very earliest design stage through to the installation of roofing on the terminal building, satellite buildings and various buildings such as the energy centre and sub-stations.

The contract has involved the supply of more than 3,500 pre-assembled roofing cassettes fabricated at Bishop Auckland and then transported to Heathrow. Work began on site in 2003 and the contract has provided temporary work for an additional 30 fabrication employees during 2004 and 2005.

"This is our largest contract to date and it has proved to be the most challenging," says Company Secretary Diane Thompson. "Five years on from the start-up meeting, it is great to see the results of the commitment of the Hathaway personnel, operatives and supply chain members involved. The bulk of the work was scheduled during 2005 and we are on target to complete the contract by the end of this year."

Hathaway Roofing, set up in 1967, boasts a client list of blue chip companies across the UK that include Asda, Costco and Rolls Royce. The company has worked closely with Business Link in County Durham for the past two years on a range of different business issues.

"Our most recent project with the Enterprise Agency has been to replace our IT system," said Diane Thompson. "Account Manager Austin Stenhouse advised us and helped us to fund the new system. We have invested around £60,000 and now have a highly sophisticated and efficient system in place. It covers everything from wages and accounts to a comprehensive purchase order system.

"There was a lot of preliminary work involved and Austin's advice was invaluable," she added.

Austin Stenhouse, Agency Account Manager said: "Hathaway Roofing is a thriving company leading the UK in its field and winning highly prestigious contracts such as Heathrow Terminal 5 in the face of stiff competition. It is one of the largest companies able to take advantage of our support and we have been able to help in a number of different areas."