Southern comfort
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Despite having its O-licence curtailed for a week last summer, family-owned construction contractor Cappagh is moving forward
Words: Roger Brown / Images: Tom Lee
WHEN CM ARRIVES at the ofices of Cappagh Contractors in South London, we are greeted by MD Thomas Ferncombe, who then introduces us to grandson Conor, who at 19 has become the third generation of the family to join the company after gaining his HGV licence in January.
In his ofice at the irm’s headquarters in Wimbledon, south London, Ferncombe shows us photos of Conor as a small boy: one behind the wheel of a truck and another in a hard hat at a demolition job. Like many who have built a family haulage business up from scratch, the Irishman is delighted that his grandson has decided to take the same path.
All in the family
“I’m so happy that Conor has decided this is what he wants to do; he’s had an interest in the business from an early age. Now he’s at an age where he is starting to get involved – I’m thrilled.” Cappagh has come a long way since Ferncombe senior started the business in 1967 with a solitary £2,000. The leet now comprises more than 200 vehicles (including a variety of DAF tipper trucks, artics and low loaders) working on utilities and civil engineering operations, while its headquarters are converted warehouse buildings close to the old Wimbledon football ground in Plough Lane.
The irm also has recycling facilities at 11 locations throughout London and the South-East.
“We own all the property and the trucks, and every penny we have we invest back into the company,” Ferncombe says. “It’s been hard work, it’s a tough industry to be involved in, but also one that’s enjoyable and has to be in your blood.” One large piece of business Cappagh has picked up is transporting and processing waste concrete for Ferrovial – the owner of the forever-developing Heathrow Airport. Cappagh has had a contract for the past ive years to recycle all the concrete from Heathrow, at its recycling centre in Hatton Cross.
Ferncombe says: “We did work on the Terminal 5 project, and the demolition of the Queen’s building at the airport. Although I live under the light path, I was disappointed that the plans for the third runway have been scrapped – it would have been a good source of work for us!” Cappagh also has a contract with Thames Water to carry out transport related to sewage, drainage and repair work as well as a ive-year agreement to carry out work for Southern Gas Networks (SGN). In addition, it collects waste from buildings that have been refurbished and, furthermore, it is a licensed operator of three landill sites for Cemex LTK.
Ferncombe says: “We have a strong link with the utility operations, and a good knowledge of this area.
“At the moment, we are happy with what we are doing, although we might consider general haulage if the sums were right. My attitude is that you shouldn’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Last summer, the irm’s O-licence was curtailed from 75 to 60 vehicles for seven days, after it picked up two S-marked prohibitions in February 2010, both relating to trucks with lose wheel nuts.
The public inquiry was told how the irm had received a total of 14 prohibitions since another curtailment following a July 2009 hearing into maintenance matters. Deputy Trafic Commissioner Mary Kane said that the irm had to put in place systems including: random audits of drivers; safety inspections twice a month; and a nil defect daily reporting system. Furthermore, all systems have to be audited by Road Haulage Association or the Freight Transport Association once every six months for a period of two years.
Getting through bad times
Ferncombe says of the incident: “Unfortunately, the problems were due to one employee who was here for a short period and who let us down. We’ve been through a bad spell and it set us back 12 months, but we are very proud of the trucks and our maintenance facilities.” Cappagh employs 75 drivers and 30 ofice staff and as the business has grown, Ferncombe has introduced all of his four children into the fold, and each one now has a key role at the irm. His two sons – Michael and Thomas – both joined the company as drivers in the 80s, and are now transport managers, while daughters Stella and Anne work in the accounts department of the company.
Ferncombe is clearly a proud family man: “All of the family have been incredible. The engineers who plan street works; the health and safety experts: the mechanics; the drivers; all the staff are wonderful, I’m so lucky to have them.” Conor is the son of Thomas senior’s eldest son Michael – who is joint transport manager at Cappagh. He passed his HGV Class II test at the age of 18 and then in January this year gained his HGV Class I licence at the age of 19 years and one month.
One of his irst jobs as an HGV driver was to help Heathrow airport deal with an unexpected crisis – the high levels of snow that brought the runways to a standstill in December. Conor tells us: “It was a huge job, we were airside and had 25 tipper lorries on standby to remove the snow. It was a 24/7 job for a period of about two weeks.”
Working the business
But he says he takes an interest in all aspects of the business: “I did an engineering course at college that gave me a good education on building materials. Then I had a spell in the transport ofice. I enjoyed working in the transport ofice, talking to drivers. I’m looking to do the transport manager CPC in the next few years or so.”
However, Ferncombe, who still works at the irm between 12 and 14 hours most days, is not passing the reins just yet: “I plan to be around a very long time, and I’m not planning to go anywhere else soon!” ■