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Balfour Beatty's order book sits at a record £3.9m, a 20 per cent increase from 2000, the company has revealed. The news of higher than ever numbers of forward orders comes as the company reports a 17 per cent increase in pre-tax profits.

Profits from building, building management and services work grow by over 50 per cent to £22m. Pre-tax profits before exceptional items and goodwill amortisation, for the first six months of the year were £41m, up from £35m in the last reporting period last year.

'We have established positions in a number of markets where future growth is predicted ... [one being] the UK infrastructure market, including, particularly, that segment which is wholly or partly privately financed, ' the company said in a statement.

Balfour Beatty is involved in a number of big projects around the country, including the PFI scheme at the North Durham Hospital, phase one of which began in April and London Underground PPP.