The tip that lit up Windsor Castle

FOUNDED in 1889 and listed 60 years later, engineering group T Clarke installed electric lights and servant bell systems into Windsor Castle and St James’s Palace, electrified hospitals, universities and government buildings, and powered landmarks from the Tower of London to the Dorchester Hotel.

Times have changed since those days, but T Clarke boss Mark Lawrence has made sure his company has changed with them.

Today the business covers everything that makes a 21st century building function effectively – LED lighting, heating and air conditioning, security alarms and robust IT systems so that electrical devices can run smoothly.

The group works with housebuilders and commercial developers; schools, universities and hospitals, and, in recent years, data centres, where T Clarke puts the IT systems and electricals in place, sometimes building the sheds from scratch.

Across the group, customers include Apple, Facebook and Google, as well as major property firms, such as British Land and its rivals Landsec and Stanhope.

This broad range helps to insulate T Clarke in tough times.

The firm also runs one of the bestknown apprentice schemes in the country.

Lawrence himself started out as a 17-year-old apprentice in 1985 and two-thirds of the group’s 1,200 workers were trained on the scheme, engendering loyalty, encouraging skilled workmanship and shielding T Clarke from the worst of today’s labour shortages.

Results for 2021 showed a 41 per cent increase in turnover to £327million with profits up 53 per cent to £7.8million and a 10 per cent hike in the dividend to 4.85p.

Lawrence is targeting £500million of revenue for 2023 and is highly likely to achieve that goal, with profits and dividends rising in sync.

Traded on: Main market Ticker: CTO Contact: tclarke.co.uk or 020 7997 7400

MIDAS VERDICT:

Midas recommended T Clarke in 2017 when the shares were 76½p. They have doubled since then to £1.53 and should continue to gain ground. This company has played a central role in Britain for decades and, crucially, proved that it can evolve with the times. A lasting investment.