Discover how Perega has achieved sustainable growth with an agile, forward thinking and collaborative approach
A forward-thinking and independent civil and structural engineering consultancy, Perega consistently embraces innovative ideas that solve problems, reduce costs, and make engineering projects run more smoothly. With expertise in engineering design and complementary services available nationwide through a network of locations, the company offers a wide range of options, including structural, civil, glass and facade engineering design, building surveying and expert witness services. Rachel Davis, Director, sheds light on the company’s operational footprint.
“We began as a family business and have undergone various iterations of ownership models before becoming an employee-owned trust (EOT) in 2019. We now operate from seven offices: our main registered office in Guildford, followed by our second largest in Leytonstone, with additional locations in Leeds, Waterloo, Southend, Belfast, and a newly opened office in Bristol. Our expertise spans four main engineering areas: structural, civil, glass and facades. We also have a dedicated building surveying team. We work in a variety of sectors across the different offices, including healthcare, residential, retail, retirement living, commercial and insurance. This is encouraged strategically, as it gives us greater stability across the business to accommodate market changes, which have been quite frequent over the last five years. As a result, we have a much more adaptable and agile approach to business strategy, which we have found easy to embrace in the open and collaborative environment of an EOT,” she begins.
Expansions in Bristol and central London play a key part in Perega’s growth strategy, as Rachel unveils: “Opening an office in Bristol serves as a gateway to the Southwest, Wales, and Birmingham. We had a senior member of staff who was keen to establish a local office closer to home, and we supported this initiative to expand our presence in the region. As for our Waterloo office, which only opened a year ago, the motivation was to establish a central London location. Although we have a historic base in Leytonstone, East London, many professionals live in central London, making it easier to recruit talent in that area. Within the next 18 months, we plan to combine our Leytonstone and Waterloo offices into a new central London location to better serve our clients and accommodate our staff.”
From its Leytonstone site, Perega has successfully helped deliver many healthcare schemes, a source of pride for Managing Director Fraser Robb. “This type of work is particularly rewarding, and our staff tend to find it very fulfilling. What we do truly improves lives, as the buildings we develop and the changes we implement enhance the well-being of individuals. While we value all our clients, this sector provides an extra layer of motivation because our team feels they are contributing to the greater good. That being said, we take great pride in all our projects, because as engineers, we thrive on solving problems and are passionate about doing an excellent job for our clients. Our team of technical staff is dedicated to tackling engineering challenges across various sectors, and that is what excites them most,” he expresses.
Across each location, Perega remains dedicated to training and developing talent, a commitment that is at the core of its company ethos. “Generally, we aim to develop our staff internally, assessing what they need to advance to the next level as part of their training plans. We run a structured training program for our technical staff, focusing on guiding our graduates through the program to become chartered professionals, with mentors assigned to each of them. Additionally, we have a strong apprenticeship plan, employing at least one apprentice in each office every September. Furthermore, we aim to take on one-to-two paid interns per office each summer from local universities to give them valuable work experience. Many of them enjoy it so much that they end up joining us in the business once they have completed their degrees,” Rachel highlights.
Everybody’s business 
As illustrated by its emphasis on promoting internally and providing opportunities for paid internships, the company deeply values its workforce. This aligns with its status as an EOT, which embodies the idea of making Perega “everybody’s business,” in Rachel’s words. “Keeping everyone informed is crucial as an EOT, so we produce monthly updates that outline key figures across the business, detailing our current status, goals, and achievements in terms of revenue and profit. These updates also cover all our ongoing business initiatives, as well as insights from trustees on communication and engagement and our progress on achieving training goals, customer satisfaction feedback and meeting our corporate social responsibility goals.
Becoming an EOT has resulted in many positive changes across Perega including better integration between offices, improved communication and a more unified focus on performance. “This is supported by the trustee directors, who review the activities of the directors and gather staff feedback from a variety of sources to help drive change and improvements within the business. To support and celebrate becoming an EOT, we host an annual party in central London, where employees from all our offices come together. This event includes an awards ceremony recognising achievements such as long service awards, outstanding achievements, business development champions, customer satisfaction champions and apprentice of the year,” she continues.
Perega is passionate about the environment and the communities it works in, which has resulted in a focus on embracing sustainable practices. “Three years ago, we established a Net Zero Carbon (NZC) team, led by Monika Rogers, our Net Zero Carbon Champion. Each Perega office has a designated Champion who attends various events, participates in training, and keeps up with guidance from the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) regarding carbon. We are working hard to educate both our staff and clients on the importance of achieving net-zero carbon. The NZC team are undertaking regular internal training sessions, producing support materials and have developed a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) presentation to inform clients on high carbon materials, carbon hotspots and design solutions that could aid them in reducing embodied carbon on their projects. To support this, our NZC and digital engineering team collaborated to create a bespoke Revit-based carbon calculator which utilises the IStructE’s carbon reduction tool. Once a model is created in Revit, the software provides quantities of materials and calculates the embodied carbon for the structure. This allows us to compare the embodied carbon of different materials and look at the carbon impact of changes to the structural design,” Rachel ends.
This forward-thinking, communicative and driven approach across the company has created a resilient, innovative business model that balances national reach with local knowledge from passionate, skilled staff. As the organisation continues to expand its footprint, develop its commitment to employee ownership, encourage collaborative problem-solving and maintain a dedication to building a greener future, it is well positioned to meet the evolving demands of the UK construction sector.