Annual Report 2016
STRATEGIC REPORT
SSI Services is in a strong position to continue to grow
due to the strategic decisions that have been taken
throughout the year.
Over 1,700
SSI Services
employees
“We continue
to focus on
developing a
strong Health
and Safety based
culture.”
16
Overview
SSI Services is the Group’s specialist
infrastructure contracting division.
We provide a broad range of
specialist infrastructure based
services from design through to
installation, testing and repair to
long-term maintenance. Our focus
is on regulated environments and
legislative needs, managing client
risk and using specialist technologies
to provide added value.
SSI Services is made up of three
business areas: Clean Water,
comprising IWS Mechanical and
Electrical Services (IWS M&E) and
Hydrosave; OnSite; and Water
Hygiene which also trades as IWS. In
addition Omega Red, which provides
lightning protection and electrical
earthing services, also trades as part
of SSI Services.
We have developed a broad
customer base across both the
public and private sectors from
major water utilities, infrastructure
providers, government agencies
and local authorities through to
major contractors and facilities
management (FM) companies.
Whilst we historically mainly worked
in the water and wastewater
sector, we are now increasingly
operating in the water hygiene, rail,
power generation, industrial and
construction markets, reducing the
division’s reliance on the water and
wastewater sector. Our strategy is
to deliver these services through
a number of specialist operating
companies using a nationwide
mobile operation and maintaining
long-term relationships with our
customers, providing a quality
service at competitive prices.
The division has over 1,700
employees, all of whom are key
to the division’s success, with the
majority operating remotely and in
often challenging environments.
Health and Safety is therefore very
important to us and we continue to
focus on developing a strong Health
and Safety based culture across all
of our businesses. We have achieved
our safety targets through the year,
resulting in a year-on-year reduction
in both the frequency rates and
severity of accidents.
Review of last year
The division had a very positive
year, despite a challenging first five
months of the year due to a slow
start to customer activity. However,
tight cost control initiatives were
implemented and these measures
largely mitigated the negative
impact of initial difficult trading
conditions. Subsequently, as
revenue levels started to increase
during the year and net margins
improved due to the lower
operational cost base, the division