Thorburn Colquhoun has appointed Les Venus as new Business Development Associate Director. Mr Venus has spent almost 20 years working for the MoD, 16 of these in the Royal Air Force. His MoD property management expertise will enable him to identify opportunities for Thorburn Colquhoun, singly or in partnership with other contractors to add value by ensuring service provision is tightly focused on the clientÕs operational and budgetary needs, is flexible and responsive to change.

"The Ministry of Defence is currently undertaking a fundamental change in its contracting procedures as, like other public sector bodies, it recognises the need to drive down costs and improve value," commented Mr Venus. "Thorburn Colquhoun has been assuming responsibility for more and more MoD sites since our first commission was awarded in 1993, which means that we are extremely well placed to work with the MoD to create comprehensive value added services solutions that cover a wide range of disciplines."

Thorburn Colquhoun provides a wide range of services to the MoD. It is already involved in Prime Contracting and working with other teams on MoD projects across the UK. It is also the Establishment Works Consultant at 46 sites in Southern England, responsible for consultancy services for 17,500 DHE houses across central England and all of Wales and - uniquely - is the Estates Advisor for the MoD in Scotland, a role that encompasses all army bases north of the border.

Richard Byatt