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Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company

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Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company
Company typePrivate (after 2000 management buyout)
IndustryBridge construction, Structural steel fabrication
Founded1877 in Darlington, England
Defunct2021
FateEntered administration and closed
Headquarters
Darlington
,
United Kingdom
Area served
United Kingdom and international
ProductsBridges, Structural steelwork
Number of employees
Approximately 600 (circa 1913 and 1999)
ParentAl Rushaid Group (majority owner after 2002)

Cleveland Bridge & Engineering Company was a UK-based firm specialising in bridge construction and structural steel fabrication, headquartered in Darlington.

The company was responsible for building prominent landmarks including the Victoria Falls Bridge, Tees Transporter Bridge, Forth Road, Humber Bridge, and Tsing Ma Bridge.

In 1967, The Cementation Company acquired Cleveland Bridge, which itself was later taken over by Trafalgar House. A merger with Trafalgar’s subsidiary Redpath Dorman Long in 1990 resulted in the formation of Cleveland Structural Engineering. Independence was regained in 2000 following a management buyout supported by Saudi investors. Nevertheless, legal challenges related to projects such as The Shard and Wembley Stadium contributed to the company entering administration and ultimately closing in 2021.


History

Established in 1877 in Darlington with an initial capital of £10,000, the company changed hands to Charles Frederick Dixon in 1884 and became publicly listed on the Stock Exchange by 1893. By 1913, its workforce had expanded to around 600 employees.

The Cementation Company acquired Cleveland Bridge in 1967; subsequently, Trafalgar House purchased The Cementation Company in 1970. Trafalgar also acquired Redpath Dorman Long in 1982, merging both subsidiaries into Cleveland Structural Engineering by 1990. After Kværner’s acquisition of Trafalgar House in 1996, the business was rebranded as Kvaerner Cleveland Bridge.

By 1999, Kværner intended to divest from heavy manufacturing sectors, with the company’s staff numbers reduced to approximately 600. Despite efforts to secure government financial aid, support was not granted. In 2000, a $12.3 million management buyout restored the company’s autonomy. This transaction included the purchase of its Dubai-based subsidiary established in 1978. Saudi Arabia’s Al Rushaid Group provided financial backing, eventually increasing its ownership stake to 88.5% by 2002.

Throughout the 2000s and into the following decade, employee numbers varied according to contract acquisitions. The firm participated in various road and rail infrastructure projects and played a role in significant developments like The Shard and Wembley Stadium.


Final years

By July 2021, Cleveland Bridge requested additional investment from Al Rushaid Group while notifying approximately 220 employees about potential layoffs. The company faced impending administration due to project delays and economic pressures stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Al Rushaid Group declined further funding; consequently, FRP was appointed as administrator and initiated a sale process. In August 2021, 51 employees were made redundant, about 25 staff supported FRP during administration efforts, and 128 workers were furloughed under the Coronavirus Jobs Retention Scheme pending resumption of operations.

Unable to find a buyer, FRP announced on 10 September 2021 that the company would cease operations permanently with an additional loss of 133 jobs. FRP indicated that sustaining business activities through 2021 would have required £12 million in funding. The company’s assets were liquidated in November 2021.

2016 Fatality and HSE Penalty

In 2022, the Health and Safety Executive imposed a £1.5 million fine on Cleveland Bridge & Engineering, alongside £29,000 in legal costs, due to a fatal incident in 2016 involving a fall caused by a crane access panel that was not properly secured. This penalty related to four violations under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. According to FRP, it was doubtful that the company would settle the fine or associated costs.

The Shard Dispute

Cleveland Bridge was mandated in 2013 to compensate Severfield-Rowen plc £824,478 for delays connected to their subcontracted steelwork on The Shard. The court identified a significantly high level of substandard workmanship in Cleveland Bridge’s steel components. Internal documents exposed an "extraordinary" workload during 2010, leading the judge to determine that the firm had overcommitted beyond its operational capacity.

Wembley Stadium Conflict

In 2002, Cleveland Bridge won a £60 million contract for steelwork on the bowl structure of New Wembley Stadium. However, tensions with main contractor Multiplex escalated during construction, resulting in Cleveland Bridge being removed from its erection duties and replaced by roof steelwork contractor Hollandia. Approximately two hundred erection workers and subcontractors from Cleveland Bridge transferred to Hollandia but were dismissed following a strike. Subsequently, Cleveland Bridge renounced its remaining fabrication contract.

Both companies accused each other of causing additional expenses, delays, defective workmanship, incorrect steel elements, damaged paint finishes, and disorganized documentation. Legal proceedings concluded with Cleveland Bridge ordered to reimburse Multiplex £6,154,246.79 for overpayments, contractual breaches, interest charges, and 20% of legal fees. Evidence suggested that some steelwork fabricated by Cleveland Bridge in China for Wembley was redirected to the Beijing National Stadium.

In his 2008 ruling, Mr Justice Jackson criticized both sides for their failure to resolve the dispute early, which became an expensive conflict involving over 500 lever arch files and around £1 million in photocopying expenses. He highlighted that the legal costs greatly surpassed the disputed monetary amounts.

Notable bridges

Bridge Location Year Total length Image Ref
ft m
Ramsey Harbour Swing Bridge Isle of Man 1892 420 130
Victoria Falls Bridge Zimbabwe 1905 650 200
Waibadu / Garden Bridge Shanghai 1906 344 105
King Edward VII Bridge Newcastle 1906 1,151 351
Blue Nile Road and Railway Bridge Sudan 1909 1,837 560
Victoria Bridge Hamilton 1910 500 150
Tees Transporter Bridge Middlesbrough 1911 851 259
Goz Abu Goma Bridge Sudan 1911 1,759 536
Trent Bridge widening Nottingham 1926 300 91
Chiswick Bridge London 1933 606 185
Verrugas Bridge Peru 1936 574 175
Howrah Bridge India 1942 2,313 705 \
\ Spit Bridge \ Sydney \ 1958 745 227 \
\ Auckland Harbour Bridge \ Auckland \ 1959 3,350 1,020 \ [[File:Auckland Harbour Bridge (9380408897).jpg |}
\ Tamar Bridge \ Saltash – Plymouth \ 1959 \ {{convert 1099 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Tamar Bridge from train.JPG |}
\ Forth Road Bridge
(ACD) 		\ Scotland \ 1964 \ {{convert 8241 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:The Forth Road Bridge (before all the trouble...) - panoramio.jpg |}
\ Severn Bridge
(ABB) 		\ UK \ 1966 \ {{convert 5249 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Old severn bridge small.jpg |}
\ Wye Bridge \ UK \ 1968 \ {{convert 1340 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Wye Bridge - geograph-3877950-by-Lewis-Clarke.jpg |}
\ Bosphorus Bridge \ Turkey \ 1973 \ {{convert 1560 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Boğaziçi Köprüsü - Aerial view.jpg |}
\ Rio–Niterói Bridge \ Brazil \ 1974 \ {{convert 43602 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Ilha de Mocanguê by Diego Baravelli (cropped).jpg |}
\ Ballachulish Bridge \ Scotland \ 1974 \ {{convert 964 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Ballachulish, above Ballachulish Bridge - geograph.org.uk - 922007.jpg |}
\ Humber Bridge \ Hessle \ 1981 \ {{convert 7300 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Humber Bridge2.png |}
\ Kessock Bridge \ Inverness \ 1982 \ {{convert 3465 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Kessockbridge.jpg |}
\ Queen Elizabeth II Bridge \ London \ 1991 \ {{convert 9423 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Queen Elizabeth II Bridge - geograph.org.uk - 122668.jpg |}
\ Tsing Ma Bridge \ Hong Kong \ 1997 \ {{convert 4518 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Tsing Ma Bridge 2.jpg |}
\ Jiangyin Yangtze River Bridge \ Jiangsu \ 1999 \ {{convert 4544 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Jiangyin Yangtze River bridge-2.jpeg |}
\ Carquinez Bridge \ Vallejo \ 2003 \ {{convert 3465 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Alfred zampa memorial bridge.jpg |}
\ Rio–Antirrio Bridge \ Gulf of Corinth \ 2004 \ {{convert 9450 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Rio-Antirio bridge.jpg |}
\ Infinity Bridge \ Stockton on Tees \ 2009 \ {{convert 787 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Infinity Bridge in Stockton.jpg |}
\ Twin Sails Bridge \ Poole \ 2012 \ {{convert 456 ft m disp=table }} \ [[File:Twin sails bridge.jpg |}

External links

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