WET News

wwtonline.co.uk | DECEMBER 2018 WET NEWS 11 he sees the main trends being an emphasis on customer experience a n d o n d o i n g t h i n g s m o r e efficiently. "Water companies are looking for efficiency – but it's not effi- ciency in terms of driving us down to the lowest price, and having a race for the bottom. Effi- ciency has got to be achieved by collaboration, and the water com- panies that we are working with are very much aligned to the fact that we have to create the right environment to collaborate. Eve- rybody at the end of the day must make a profit, because that's what business is about, but there are ways of both making a profit and creating efficiencies for the wa te r co m p a ny t h ro ugh t h e whole regulated cycle. PR19 has probably just amplified the need for that." The rebranded nmcn is already working with most of the major water and sewerage companies, as well as several water-only com- panies, and is actively working on its offering to the remainder, says Homer. He says that it is encourag- ing that the water companies' procurement of major contracts following PR19 looks like it will be staggered rather than all coming at the same time, which should help avoid some of the issues of cyclicality that are associated with the AMP cycle. "From a business point of view we need to cut our fixed costs and keep our people busy. Negative growth can be curtailed through an AMP cycle, but in terms of the fixed costs we need to ensure we've got the throughput to bal- ance that out," says Homer. Offsite manufacture is a key offering of the company, with its factories and workshops in War- rington, Mansfield and Plymouth geared up to offer modular prod- ucts such as UV and chemical dosing units that can be supplied to water companies or their con- tractors for more efficient project NEED TO KNOW • Engineering and Construction company nmcn (formerly known as North Midland Construction Plc/ Nomenca Ltd) has 1,800 employees and offers multi-sector engineering and construction skills, technical innovation, design and specialist fabrication • The company delivers major built environment and water industry projects across the UK – from buildings and highways to large-scale water networks and treatment plants • With a history dating back to 1946, nmcn now has 12 UK offices and four off-site manufacturing facilities • The majority of the company's £340 million annual turnover – around £250 million – is earned in the water sector THE VERDICT "We're bringing the technical expertise and innovation that flows throughout our business within one united identity. Our success is, and always has been, built from the strength and experience of our people. Together, we're creating buildings and infrastructure used by millions of people and for future generations to come." John Homer, nmcn delivery. Its emphasis on innova- tion helped it win the Contractor of the Year award at the Water Industry Awards, organised by WWT and WET News, in May this year. The company has in recent years worked in joint ventures with Barhale, with Doosan Enpure and with Laing O'Rourke and BAM Nuttall; it has also been part of delivery alliances, most notably for Severn Trent. Homer says that the company is positive on taking part in alliancing arrangements going forward, saying that nmcn is happy to offer up its expertise and innovation to such collabora- tion, but is more cautious on the prospect of forming any new joint ventures. "We are quite selective with regard to who we do business with," he says. "When we go into a joint venture we look at the cul- tural aspects of whether we can we work together, and it needs to be a good fit in terms of technical expertise and resources. "Clearly we also need to con- sider the risk profile in doing that, and making sure that whoever we go into business with is going to hold their part of the bargain and will be around to see it through. With the demise of Carillion still fresh in the mind, there is a risk there and that's something we are obviously want to avoid." Homer says that the workforce is "enthused" by the rebrand to nmcn, which has been high- lighted internally through road- shows and conference events. "We took quite a lot of time to consult with our people and make sure we took their thoughts and feelings into account," he says. "It was definitely the right thing to do. "The identity that we have cre- ated is one identity, one brand, one name, so our people can express who they are. 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