Our Company

EBC stood for Exeter Building Contractors Ltd which was the result of combining the efforts of a number of local firms in order to meet Government criteria for repairing war-damage in 1939. So effective was the collaboration that it was decided not to disband after the war but to continue trading. The Group went on to acquire more trusted local building firms across the region such as Cruse & Bridgeman, Torbay; Hill & Lang in Plymouth and Wilkins & Coventry in Bristol.

EBC Group joined the unlisted Securities Market of the London Stock Exchange in 1981, and moved to the Official List of the London Stock Exchange in 1988.

Expanding into the South, an Eastleigh office was opened, which is in Fareham, and another opened in Reading through an acquisition.

Garvis Snook was appointed Chief Executive in June 2000. Following a thorough review of the business, the Board announced plans for a radical restructuring to achieve a leaner, more efficient and empowered culture. A business in Yeovil called Bartlett was bought.

March 2001 saw the creation of Rok and the beginnings of its strategy to become The Nation's Local Builder™. The acquisition of Retail Maintenance Services, a Glasgow-based Company, enabled Rok to offer a nationwide 24/7 maintenance service, using its own offices wherever possible.

In 2002, Rok acquired the Llewellyn Group which brought with it offices in London and along the South Coast. John Dickie Construction joined in 2004 adding to Rok's presence in Scotland before a major step northwards was taken with the inclusion of four former Ballast branches.

There followed a succession of office openings and purchases including Team Maintenance in Birmingham and Stafford; Lark in Cornwall, Durose & Gourlay in Bolton; Lemmeleg in Wakefield and Topcon in Grimsby.

Rok's largest acquisition to date came in October 2006 with the arrival of Tulloch Construction which included the Corrie Group with its plumbing, heating and electrical capabilities. This gave Rok a similar presence in Scotland to the one it had come to enjoy across the rest of the UK. Earlier Rok had purchased Kingfisher Building Company Limited which operated in the West Midlands.

Added to the central England coverage in 2007 was SOL Construction, which operates from offices in Nottingham and Warwick. This was followed by the arrival of the construction arm of Harrison in Malton, Yorkshire and the plumbing, heating and electrical services group Avonside with offices in the North. The assets of Aquilo Inspection and Reinstatement Services acquired at the end of 2007 provided Rok's Maintenance operations with an enhanced service for its leading insurance customers.

2008 began with the addition to the Rok family of Pitkerro, a plumbing and heating business in Tayside. In April, Rok acquired social housing specialist Richardson Projects which employs 350 people working from offices in Rochdale and Leeds.

Today, Rok continues its rapid but sustainable expansion through a mixture of organic growth and acquisition and the board has made known its intention to increase it outlets across the UK to more than 100 in the next five years.