This environmental consultant is set to open a Preston office

Hampshire-based Omnia has revealed ambitious plans to expand its team and presence in the region with a new office at Millennium City Park, Ribbleton, supporting its long-term strategic growth plans as its services to house builders and commercial clients across a range of sectors continue to expand.

Omnia’s skills in working on the redevelopment of brownfield sites and its experience in rail infrastructure are in high demand and the time is right to move north, said director Tim Mitchell.

The company was set up in 2014 by managing director Lee McDonald and Tim Mitchell, in Portsmouth, expanding to the Midlands four years later. The firm now employs more than 30, including trained consultants from a range of disciplines, with plans to add more to the new offering.

Mr Mitchell, who is originally from Lancashire, said: “There is a strong demand for housing and the associated commercial services in the North West as more people are drawn to the region with its natural beauty and increasing connectivity.

“It has good international links that continue to be strengthened by increasing investment, especially following the break with the EU and the increased uptake of online sales during the pandemic, which are galvanising the region as a gateway to the country.

“And linked to the area’s strong industrial past, there is an increasing redevelopment of brownfield sites and government investment in road and rail infrastructure which all play into the core services that Omnia can offer.”

The company has expanded from a core geo-environmental consultancy into a multi-disciplinary service for the development, construction, infrastructure and transport sectors. Its team includes qualified environmental scientists, geotechnical engineers, geologists, hydrogeologists, and acousticians with extensive experience in the industry.

Tim, a qualified geologist and chartered environmentalist, said: “Our reputation has really grown by word of mouth as we were increasingly recommended by house builders and our commercial clients.

“Dealing with problems like ground contamination and non-standard foundations is crucial to the land development process and we have dealt with many variable sites, growing our specialist teams. We also have our own ground investigation equipment in-house which makes the process smoother and supports our ability to react very quickly to our clients’ problems.”

He added: “Along with extra housing is the need for schools and other urban facilities and we can assist with this, drawing on our work on similar schemes elsewhere in the country alongside work on a number of local authority frameworks.”

“These are exciting times and our team can’t wait to see Omnia progress even further,” he said. “We have ambitious growth plans and want to keep building on our reputation for listening to our clients and working closely with them to progress their schemes.”