Atkins is seeking to maximise its position in the rapidly growing international rail market to better identify and resource key opportunities, and to harness key skills, experiences and innovation from across the Group. The company’s UK rail managing director, Douglas McCormick, is taking up the assignment to develop the blueprint for this approach.
The company delivers a wide range of light and heavy rail projects, from signalling and electrification to station design and project management, across the UK and Scandinavia, as well as the Asia Pacific, North America and Middle East regions. With Innotrans 2014 taking place in September, Atkins is keen to ensure it is well placed to compete for opportunities and ensure clients worldwide understand the breadth of its service and capability and can take advantage of worldwide best practice.
Philip Hoare, who currently leads Atkins’ UK Highways & Transportation business, has been appointed to managing director of the UK Rail business. Philip brings with him a wealth of experience in the transport sector to help drive the Rail division as the industry continues to create, upgrade and maintain large programmes of infrastructure, while driving innovation and delivering value for money.
Atkins’ UK Highways & Transportation business will be lead by David Jenkins, operations and commercial director, in the interim.
David Tonkin, Atkins’ CEO for UK and Europe, said: “The UK and international infrastructure markets, in particular rail, continue to be seen as vital to economic growth as well as improving people’s lives. We have many talented people with great experience and skills working on projects across the world and we want all our clients to benefit from this broader capability. I am confident that Douglas and Philip will help us achieve this.”