Medical construction firm responds to Covid-19 challenge with support from Lloyds Bank
A specialist healthcare construction and engineering firm is working with the NHS to deliver additional hospital bed capacity in the continued fight against Covid-19, with support from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.
London and Essex based CFES delivers complex building and installation projects to both public sector and private healthcare clients.
Its medical construction team specialises in providing design and build solutions for projects including sterilisation and decontamination units, operating theatres, imaging and radiology and major plant replacement projects in live hospital environments.
As part of the national response to Covid-19, CFES has received a number of substantial orders, which it is moving at pace to fulfil.
Lloyds Bank has provided a package of support to enable the firm to mobilise quickly in response to the heightened demand for its services. The package includes additional invoice discount facilities and increased credit limits to support cashflow.
The company, which employs 18 full-time members of staff, has expanded the number of subcontractors it is using to four times the usual amount and is currently working with 250 supply chain partners.
Rob Doubtfire, managing director at CFES, said: “This is a coordinated national effort and we’ve been working flat out, designing and building as we go. We want to be able to support the NHS in any way that we can and we have been doing so across at least two sites but we need to have the right finance in place to make this happen quickly.
“Lloyds Bank says in its marketing material that it will support and be by the side of business, and to be fair, when tested, it absolutely has been. The bank has made quick decisions for us, dealing with requests within hours and working with us at every opportunity.”
Brendon Shanahan, SME relationship director for Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “It has never been more important to work collaboratively with businesses. We’re supporting customers with the challenges that they’re facing, whether it be financing to support unprecedented demand for their services or help with cashflow while some have had to close their doors.”