Kier Group director leaves to join Grenfell Tower cladding building firm Rydon Construction
Kier Group operations director Mark Norris is to leave the beleaguered contractor to join Rydon Construction as a director.
Norris leaves Kier as it continues struggling with its finances after a botched issue late last year caused the company’s shares to plummet.
Read more: Outsourcer Kier Group's lenders face underwriting headache after rights issue flounders
He will start work at Rydon, the firm that led a refurbishment of Grenfell Tower that involved installing flammable cladding before it went up in flames in June 2017 killing 71 people, in February.
Norris was responsible for delivering projects worth more than £300m at Kier, and a key part of his new role at Rydon will be to “identify and drive improvements in quality and safety”.
Mark Mitchener, managing director of Rydon, said: “Mark has the right combination of wide-ranging experience and a dedication to quality. This will ensure Rydon’s long pipeline of work in education, housing & healthcare continues to be delivered to a very high standard for our clients.”
Mark Norris added: “I’m excited to be working for Rydon, a company that shares my passion for industry excellence as well as delivering positive social and economic impact. It is a business with a strong financial track record and a fantastic team to drive the business forward.”
Over the weekend, it emerged leading fund manager Neil Woodford is leading a push to unseat construction group Kier’s top executive team after the rights issue.
Read more: Kier sees shares plummet as it asks shareholders for £264m to slash debt
Woodford Investment Management, which owns a 16 per cent stake in Kier, is leading a push to replace chief executive Haydn Mursell and finance director Bev Dew, Sky News reported.
The report said other major shareholders are supportive of Woodford’s desire for change at the outsourcer.