Burchills is back from the brink

Written on the 31 May 2015 by Gold Coast PR Company Consulting Hall

Burchills is back. The iconic Gold Coast engineering consultancy which has helped transform the city skyline and shape the suburbs is recovering its once-held position as the "go to" firm in the region.

The company that was founded by Geoff Burchill in 1974 has shaken off its post-Global Financial Crisis doldrums and is recovering its gloss.

The turnaround received recognition this week when the company received a major honour in the May Gold Coast Business Excellence Award for Trades, Professions and Services.

In its 40 year history Burchills, which has been involved with more than 50 high-rise projects and tens of thousands of residential homesites, has changed its name and its ownership structure several times as it grew and grew. During 2006 it was taken over by Perth-based listed company VDM only for it to struggle and dwindle in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.

The company was rescued when it was once again purchased and privatised by a surprising new owner, Steve Coote, a former senior executive with rival company Cardno and who is still a Cardno shareholder.

Mr Coote said since buying the company in December 2013, the company had rebranded itself as Burchills Engineering Solutions, restructured, the organisational culture had improved, and the company had been reinvigorated.

"Burchills has been blessed with a terrific reputation in the market place and with having some extraordinarily loyal and talented professionals working for the organisation for a long time,'' he said.

"The company and the team were simply needing better leadership and direction focused on our clients."

"We have turned around what was a loss-making operation under the control of a management team on the other side of the country into a vibrant locally owned company that is growing again."

Mr Coote said the Burchills brand was still very well known and highly regarded among the company's customer base, who are developers, builders, government agencies and institutions.

The company's current clients includes a Who's Who list of organisations. This includes Sunland Group, Seymour Whyte, Walker Corporation, the Queensland Government, Mirvac, RAWCORP, SEQ Catchments, AECOM, Gold Coast Waterways Authority, City of Gold Coast and QM Properties.

Mr Coote said it was a pleasure to win a Gold Coast Business Excellence Award, especially because the company had previously won the same award back in 2006.

"The company is getting back to where we should be, at the forefront of our industry,'' he said.

Mr Coote received the award on behalf of Burchill's at the Gold Coast City Council.

Mayor Tom Tate said the Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards, now in their 20th year, did the city an invaluable service.

"These awards have heightened competition, created a real sense of community and given nominees and award recipients a great endorsement when marketing their goods and services," he said.

"There are more than 60,000 small business registered on the Gold Coast and we are seriously committed to supporting local businesses through our Buy Local Procurement Policy.

"When the policy commenced, around 53 per cent of our procurement spend was with suppliers on the Gold Coast. This figure is now edging towards 70 per cent."

In the other categories, food manufacturer Family Fresh won the Mayor's Innovation Award, Border Security won for its environmental efforts, Lucy Cole Prestige Properties won the Family Business Award, Paradise Ultrasound Specialists collected the Health and Wellbeing honours, KT Cable Accessories tied up the Retail, Wholesale and Distribution category, Nucrush Group cemented its place in the finals in Manufacturing and Construction, e-CBD claimed Knowledge Management and Information Technology, Cav's Steakhouse and Butchery cleaned up in Tourism, Hospitality and Events and Shoebox Bookkeeping accounted for the Emerging Business trophy.

The awards' sponsors include City of Gold Coast, Suncorp Bank, AusIndustry, OntheNet, Griffith University, Regional Development Australia Gold Coast and Gold Coast Airport.

The major supporters are SMART McCann Worldgroup, Document Solutions Australia, Consulting Hall, Jupiter's Gold Coast, Regina King Photography, Bruce Lynton BMW, Bond University, KPMG, Dreamweavers and CGC Premiums and Merchandise.

The awards' media sponsors include the Gold Coast Bulletin, NBN Television, 92.5 Gold FM and 90.9 Sea FM.