M&E contractor Axima has been forced to withdraw from the northern English market and restructure after being hit by financial problems.

The £70m-turnover firm has replaced its managing director and is closing its northern regional office, in an attempt to recover from a series of problem contracts.

Axima has worked on many flagship projects including the Greater London Authority’s City Hall, the BBC’s Broadcasting House and The Edge apartment block in Manchester.

The French-owned company is currently working on Bovis Lend Lease’s civil justice centre in Manchester. It says it will finish this before its withdrawal from the northern market.

The firm is also working on Unilever House – the prestigious Stanhope development in Blackfriars, central London.

The company last week appointed Brian Woodcraft as managing director.

The changes have been made with the support of French parent Suez, which bought the firm in 1991.

An Axima spokesperson said: “We have experienced difficulty with certain projects – an issue we identified at the end of 2005. This has led us to withdraw from the northern market. Senior people have left the firm and we are restructuring to focus on the South.”

He stressed that the firm’s withdrawal would be gradual.

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