LONDON: Avingtrans PLC’s wholly owned subsidiary, Booth Industries, has secured a multi-year contract worth £36 million to supply cross passage doors for the HS2 rail link.

The doors will provide fire protection between cross passages along Phases 1 and 2a of the HS2 route (London to West Midlands; West Midlands to Crewe), creating a safe means of escape in the event of fire. With trains capable of travelling in excess of 200mph passing within metres of the doors, the cross passage doors will not only need to provide fire integrity and insulation for up to two hours but will also have to withstand a wide-range of challenging, day-to-day environmental pressures.

The initial phase of the contract will focus on developing and testing door and frame designs, with the first frames expected to be delivered to contractors before the end of 2021. Most of the revenues for this contract will be generated when the door manufacturing and installation begins in 2025 with a project completion date of 2030.

Mike Jenkinson, managing director of Booth Industries, said: “This is a landmark contract with a new customer, which recognises the extensive experience we have developed over years’ supplying high-integrity door sets for a range of infrastructure projects.

“Our designs are based on existing Booth IP and will be manufactured at a new, purpose-built facility in Bolton, creating a number of skilled jobs in the area over the next decade”.

Austen Adams, Divisional Managing Director of the PSRE division of Avingtrans, said: “This is great news for Booth. The business has enjoyed a promising 12 months since we acquired it, following the collapse of its previous owner and the team has worked exceptionally hard to modernise its approach.

“When we took the decision to acquire the assets of the business from administration, we were excited by the history, reputation and wealth of design and engineering expertise it had built up over the years, but there were clearly operational issues that were hampering performance.

“This contract recognises Booth’s vast experience and capabilities in the sector, along with the strides it has made to deliver a high-quality end-to-end service. It marks the beginning of another exciting chapter for the Booth team and we look forward to working closely with HS2 to deliver another high-profile infrastructure project.”