Balfour Beatty hosted local MP Mike Crockart on the Forth Bridge where he met with Balfour Beatty’s director of supply chain and procurement, Martin Chown, to discuss the contribution Balfour Beatty is making to the local economy.

The firm has committed to increasing spend with small and medium UK companies in 2014 by one third, to £1 billion.

This spend, which will be the largest ever by a UK construction company, will contribute to supporting around 200,000 jobs within smaller businesses across the UK, 50,000 more than in 2013. With Edinburgh being one of the top ten areas for Balfour Beatty’s supply chain investment in the UK, this will provide even greater investment for the area including jobs, apprenticeships, training and commercial opportunities.

Mike Crockart, MP for Edinburgh West, said: “It is always good to meet companies that are investing in the local economy. Especially heartening is that an international company monitors live local and SME spend data on its projects to ensure it is meeting its supply chain investment commitments. Of course it was great to visit the top of the Forth Bridge, it really is an amazing feat of civil engineering.”

Martin Chown added: “Targeting our investment at smaller supply chain partners is a high priority for Balfour Beatty as their agility and innovative abilities are key to providing a leading service for our customers. Balfour Beatty has a strong Scottish heritage and is proud of its long association with the Forth Bridge.

“Like so many of our other projects, our works on the complex restoration and maintenance of the bridge have made a significant contribution to the local economy. We are delighted that Mike Crockart joined us on this iconic structure to discover more about our work and plans.”

Balfour Beatty carried out the £130m Forth Bridge refurbishment on behalf of Network Rail. During the works up to 400 people were on site at peak production, 30 apprenticeship opportunities were provided and 75 per cent of the people employed were from within a 15 mile radius of the bridge.

The 10 year project, which was completed in 2012, was one of the most remarkable restoration projects in civil engineering history. It was the first time the bridge had been fully repainted since its completion in 1890. Today Balfour Beatty continues to play a significant part in the ongoing care of the bridge under a maintenance contract for minor works.