When Rob Pratt talks about the issues surrounding Henderson Green, he always comes back to looking after his clients, staff and planet earth. Here, Rob discusses the company’s success with Paul Braithwaite
WHEN the 'Southampton Seven' started their own consulting engineering practice in 1999, it was not without some trepidation.

No-one knows how things are going to turn out. But, according to Rob Pratt, one of the original partners at Southampton-based Henderson Green, a couple of significant commissions came through quite quickly, everyone breathed a sigh of relief and then got on with the work.

Initially, the company was sold on its strength as a specialist in the health sector. Most had worked for regional health authorities until the late '80s when the non-core work had been outsourced and architects and engineers went to private practices.

'We still had a lot of contacts within the hospitals in the area, says Rob.'

Henderson Green also prided itself as a practice with control of its own destiny. He insists the company was determined to focus on its customers and give them a good quality service.

He laughs when he describes the work of two of his engineers whose designs are so thorough, and the contractors and clients are looked after so well, they rarely make any money, although the clients love them.

The company also has all its work cross-checked by other designers.



'Colleagues will spend a couple of hours checking the work before it goes to the client. It could save time and money for us and everyone down the line. It is all about quality of service.'

Further, Rob agrees that if the contractor is saying 'This is the best set of drawings I have seen for a long time,' then again that client should remember Henderson Green.

The company also looks after its staff, of which there are now 22.

Looking after clients and staff seems to have worked.

'I am proud to say we have never lost a client and no engineer has chosen to leave the team.'

Henderson Green has had its share of luck. Rob admits the hospital sector has had a boom time.

'When we set out in 1999, we did not expect the boom which was to come in NHS work.

And it is still going on.

While some of the big, directly- funded projects have tailed off, Henderson Green has been involved in a number of PFI schemes and NHS LIFT, which is more community-based.

'There is a very big NHS estate and it is constantly changing.'

Southampton University Hospitals Trust is still Henderson Green's biggest client and currently the company is involved in a £25million extension to Southampton Hospital and the business case for a £70million PFI scheme.

From concentrating on the specialist health sector, Henderson Green has branched out.

About three years ago, the partners made a conscious effort to increase its education work.

'If you can be successful in the health sector, then education is not a difficult transition. There is a similar client base and we are used to the way they work.'

The move was successful. Henderson Green has worked on large projects for Portsmouth and Southampton Universities, King Edwards VI School and it is one of the framework partners for the Isle of Wight Council for its schools improvement programme.

And while Rob insists being a framework partner means the company gets the work, it is, he thinks, beholden on each partner not to drop standards and let the others down.

And it is a true partnering set up with open book, profit pot, and pain and gain.

That said, Rob favours an informal partnership.

'This is where a client selects his team specifically because he knows and trusts them and knows the team work well together. But standards are maintained because you are always only on the next project as a result of your performance on the last.'

With a formal partnership, the partners are sometimes thrown together and you may or may not enjoy working with each other. Rob admits to having to change team members when there has been a conflict of personalities.

Nevertheless, Rob is convinced partnering is good for construction. He insists his engineers are pro-active at the meetings.

'It is no good our engineer sitting for an hour or so waiting to say his piece, he should be listening to what is being said and making a contribution.'



How do you choose new employees?

Rob is reluctant to advertise and most staff have been appointed following personal recommendation. 'We are protective of our engineers and how they work together.'

The company also has an office in the Channel Islands with two of the Southampton-based engineers doing all the health work there.

Other than that it is a case of working locally - up to London, Chichester, Poole, Basingstoke.

'There are always issues on site and this way an engineer can be there quickly to help sort them out.'

And they can be home for tea with their families, not staying away in an hotel for days on end.

Nevertheless, about a year ago, the partners felt the company had achieved all its original goals and needed a new focus. It was clear also that the company was becoming too big to be managed in the same way. The company decided it would benefit from business coaching and employed Paul Cooper of Protégé Management.

The outcome of this coaching was that the office was split into two teams, healthcare and education/commercial with two directors responsible for each team.

The healthcare team would be responsible for looking after the existing comfort zone which has a turnover of £800,000.

The other two directors, with the support of the second team, would be responsible for growing the business and build what is currently £300,000-worth of fees into £800,000 at the end of two years.

Rob says it is working. He adds that when staff start to talk to people in the field of education or leisure, the jobs seem to come their way.

Jobs like the refurbishment of the Sandy Balls Holiday Centre on the edge of the New Forest. Henderson Green has also just begun work for the Savoy Holiday Village at Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, so the leisure centre work is most definitely coming in.

Rob says the consulting engineer is also working for the Royal Bank of Scotland and this is, again, the sort of commercial work the company wants. Recently the company has secured a £7million scheme to extend the 3rd Cruise Terminal for Associated British Ports in Southampton.

'We believe we are going in the right direction.'

And Rob expects to have to split teams again as the need arises.

Rob admits the company needs to be marketed more efficiently.

'I still believe it is a people business and extending our contacts is the way to go. Most of the work we get comes direct from former clients or via architects, quantity surveyors or project managers who have used us before,' he insists.

'When someone knows you do a good job then they are happy to recommend you to others.'

This attitude will help grow Henderson Green for the future.

The current offices will hold up to 30 people so when that total is reached then Rob believes the next plan would be to branch out into satellite offices which the company would be able to service partly from that town and partly from Southampton.

Rob suggests Oxford might be one City which would, perhaps, be right for a satellite office because of the significant health and educational estate there and also because he has contacts there.

He cites the firm of James Nisbet quantity surveyors as an example of how to grow. It has eight offices in the midlands and south of the country, all with small and efficient teams, which works well for them.

Rob adds he would expect to have another one or two offices within the next four or five years.

'I'm very optimistic about the future.'