Birtley-based, Beal Architectural, a fourth-generation family-run business, is celebrating its 90th anniversary with a major recruitment drive and a doubling of turnover, following a period of exceptional growth.
Led by managing director, Chris Dobbing and fellow directors, son, Martin, nephew, Tom, Garry Halliday, who joined in 2021 and Mark McCafferty, accountant and company secretary, the company will add up to 15 staff to its 50-strong team, as it hits a turnover in excess of £5 million.
Beal Architectural provides tailored project management, manufacturing and installation services for architectural metalwork and secondary steelworks, playing a critical role in the construction sector in the North East and across the UK. Projects include Sunderland Civic Centre, the futuristic Catalyst building, Newcastle Science Central, Charlotte Square, Edinburgh, Stephenson Building at Newcastle University and Newcastle Pilgrim Quarter.
Reflecting on the growth the company is currently experiencing, Chris Dobbing, said: “The financial crash of 2008 and the recent pandemic, slowed us down. However, these setbacks provided us with an opportunity to reset our direction and bring in fresh ideas and thinking which Tom, Martin and Garry are now driving forward at pace and with great energy. Underpinning this confidence is a recent £200,000 investment in equipment, processes, vehicles and training.
“As we celebrate our 90th anniversary, we are excited to embark on a new chapter of growth, which is probably the fastest the company has experienced in its lifetime. We are set to achieve a £5 million turnover this year, which is double the pre-pandemic level. To support this expansion, we plan to create several new jobs during 2024, which will fuel our growth and drive us towards even greater success. The new staff are not just needed to resource the growing number of projects we
are working on in the North East but by the footprint we now have outside of the region, in particular, Scotland, where we see a real opportunity for sustained growth.”
At its Birtley headquarters, the company has an impressive two-acre site, housing production facilities, including state-of-the-art technology, an overhead craneage system, offices and storage area.
Chris and his brother, Stuart, who is retired, joined the business in the 1970s to work alongside his father, Douglass Dobbing Jnr who joined the firm as a 14-year-old in 1945 to work with his father, Douglass Dobbing Snr, who had worked for and bought the firm from the Beal family during the 1950s.
Beal Architectural embodies the true spirit of a close-knit and supportive firm, with a team of dedicated and loyal employees, many of whom have been with the company over 20 years and nine who have over 20 years of service.
Chris Dobbing, added: ”Some of our employees have been with us close to 40 years which, by any standard, is incredible loyalty. Not only are they all highly skilled operators, but they also know our customers exceptionally well and those relationships, which are built on trust and friendship, are invaluable to the business. We have been very pleased to repay that loyalty by employing many of our employees’ family members and friends and we are always delighted to offer employment opportunities and apprenticeships to young people. It is said that there is no such thing as a job for life but, here at Beal Architectural, we can most certainly guarantee very long-term employment.
“We are far more than a family firm, we are a truly supportive group of people who know each other extremely well. We have created a very strong, can-do culture, that manifests itself in the quality of the service and products we provide clients.
