Lincolnshire-headquartered specialist civil engineering firm Jointline has fuelled its continued expansion with a £300,000 investment in hydroblasting technology. Established in 1987, the privately-owned company – which works across highways, airport runways and internal lining projects – is on track to achieve a record annual turnover approaching £18m.
The hydroblasting equipment delivers rapid line and rubber removal and retexturing across concrete, asphalt and composite surfaces. The new investment has enabled the company to add a service that had been wholly outsourced to its raft of in-house capabilities.
Two members of staff have been recruited to operate Jointline’s new hydroblaster unit, which benefits from a bespoke fit-out, eight-hour operation and low noise emission. Two high-performance jet driers have also been purchased to enable quick drying across external surfaces.
Gary Massey, Managing Director of Jointline, said: “The demand for hydroblasting from airfields, National Highways, tier one contractors, and local authorities led to our strategic decision to invest in bespoke machinery and boost our in-house capabilities. While we will continue to work with preferred supply partners on some major projects, by self-delivering this service we can be more flexible and reactive to client needs.
“We are proud that one of the new members of staff we have taken on to operate the hydroblaster is ex-army and applied for the role because he saw that we were members of the Armed Forces Covenant.
“It is encouraging to see the new wave of infrastructure projects being tendered across the UK and overseas in recent months, which will help to our expansion plans. We are also eager to see the detail of the government’s 10-year infrastructure strategy, which is anticipated to be published in late spring. The early success of this investment may even lead to us commissioning additional hydroblasting units next year.”
Jointline’s recent hydroblasting projects include the removal of thermoplastic lining at Immingham Docks for Dyer & Butler, to make way for the installation of new walkways. The firm has also removed epoxy road markings and parking areas airside at Heathrow Airport for Ferrovial to allow for temporary roadway linings to be applied.
In Norfolk, Jointline was commissioned by Tarmac to remove old road markings and install a new cycle path and thermoplastic road marking configuration.
Jointline has four main divisions; airfields; highways; off-highways and civils; and maintenance. Earlier this year, it deployed £1m of company funds in the investment of specialist grooving plant and machinery and took the headcount of skilled professionals to a record high of 120 employees.
The Witham St Hughs-headquartered firm has recently completed extensive rehabilitation works and grooving on the Southern Runway at Heathrow Airport, along with the significant Aircraft Servicing Platform (ASP) replacement works at a military airbase in Lincolnshire.
The team has also successfully completed a comprehensive National Highways project to upgrade M1 North and Southbound carriageways from Junctions 39 to 42.
The firm has undertaken renovation and improvement works at the majority of major civilian airports in the UK, as well as runways across continental Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America.
