A civil engineer from Denmark, Olaf Kier joined along with another engineer to create the contracting firm J Lotz and Kier becoming one of the earliest pioneers in reinforced concrete design and construction.

The partnership was incorporated under the name of J L Kier and Co Ltd, over the following 10 years took on significant jobs in gas works, water works, grain silos, roads and bridges. One prominent construction was a 1,200ft road bridge over the river Mersey in Stockport.

During the Second World War J L Kier became actively engaged in defence projects. Kier took part in the construction of Mulberry Harbour Units which played a significant role in the D-Day invasions.

J L Kier was starting to grow both at home and abroad with a number of joint ventures, including a major contract to build a dam and power station on the Nile as well as extensive work in Africa, Mauritius, Seychelles, Bahamas and Spain.

During the 1960’s J L Kier expanded rapidly and went public with the move to current offices at Tempsford Hall, and created a new building division in 1968.

Marriott joined Kier, expanding the Group’s commercial and building activities. This was shortly followed by the merge of J L Kier and W & C French in 1973 to become French Kier Holdings Ltd.

French Kier acquired the William Moss Group PLC, bringing over 160 years of comprehensive construction experience into Kier, creating a dedicated building service to the Midlands and Thames Valley.

French Kier was acquired by Beazer plc, a national house building company, which also incorporated Wallis, seeking a stronghold in the UK construction market. The Group was rebranded with the Beazer name.

A subsequent takeover by Hanson plc triggered a buyout by management at Beazer, leading to the forming of the Kier Group, creating Britain’s first major contractor to be employee-owned reinforcing Kier’s status as a true ‘people’ company.

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