A facilities management firm has taken a step closer to becoming one of the top five UK companies in the sector after snapping up a building services contractor.

Bury St Edmunds-based Servest, which has acquired Arthur McKay, said it had identified the £125m turnover business, which has offices throughout the UK, as a good strategic fit for its existing building services division.

Arthur McKay delivers services ranging from mechanical and electrical to networks and facilities management services. The acquisition will help Servest, which has a turnover of £500m, expand and develop its technical expertise, as well as extending its geographical reach.

Arthur McKay was founded in 1958 and is now one of the UK’s leading providers of building support services, with a track record in the design and safe delivery of complex, multi-million pound projects.

The company’s customer base is varied across multiple, private and public sectors and it is currently in the top 50 facilities management companies list.

Those employed at the firm, which is based at Loanhead in Midlothian, will keep their jobs and the Arthur McKay name will be retained.

Servest’s Rob Legge, group chief executive officer UK and Europe, said he was looking forward to working with Arthur McKay’s senior management team on integrating the business into Servest.

“The acquisition is part of our growth strategy to become one of the top five FM service providers in the UK. I’m delighted to be able to offer new and existing customers a wider range of services through the new combined entity,” he said.

Arthur McKay’s senior management team will remain in place to help achieve a smooth transition, said Servest.

Callum Herd, managing director of Arthur McKay said: “I hand the business over to Servest with the greatest of confidence. I know that being part of such an established and industry renowned organisation our clients will be in safe hands. We look forward to seeing Servest build on Arthur McKay’s success.”

Servest, which employs more than 23,000 staff over 7,000 sites across the UK and has its corporate office in Suffolk, is 73% owned by Servest Group PTY based in South Africa with the remainder owned by the UK management team.

Servest is a member of the EADT/EDP Top100, a list of the 100 leading companies by turnover across Suffolk and Norfolk.