A CONTRACT worth nearly £4 million to help combat water pollution in London has been successfully completed by a Keighley firm.

Powerrun Project Management Ltd, in South Street, was given the job of designing, making, testing and delivering a huge quantity of large diameter stainless steel pipework for Lee Tunnel, which runs under the London Borough of Newham.

This is by far the largest ever single order carried out by Powerrun in its 25-year history.

The company's managing director, Paul Moore, said: "The biggest contract we'd done before this was worth £1.8 million.

"This latest job has gone very well, despite being extremely challenging technically and commercially.

"We had the right calibre of staff to manage the project and it's proved to be successful and profitable.

"We got the job in March 2014 after tendering competitively, and it was a massive coup for us to get an order of this size.

"As managing director I honestly feel that much larger companies would not have handled this project as professionally as we've done.

"In particular our senior project manager Andy Johnson and Alan Hodgson our quality, health, safety and environment manager took up the challenge and ensured this project was completed on time and within budget."

The production, design and procurement took 18 months, with most of the manufacturing taking place in Keighley.

As part of the work needed to complete the order, Powerrun converted a property at its premises – which had previously been used for vehicle maintenance – into a stainless steel fabrication workshop.

Mr Moore added: "We invested a six figure sum to convert the building and we also bought new, specialist welding equipment."

Powerrun has supplied Lee Tunnel with 480-metres of 1,000mm diameter by 16mm thick stainless steel piping, which will convey raw sewage to a treatment works.

The firm has also supplied various other pieces of piping and a substantial amount of supporting steel work.

The 4.3-mile long Lee Tunnel stores and conveys sewage mixed with rainwater, and runs from Abbey Mills Pumping Station to Beckton Sewage Treatment Works.

It is up to 80-metres deep and designed to capture sewage which would otherwise flow straight into the River Lea and eventually the Thames Estuary.

Thames Water awarded the £630 million tunnel construction scheme to the MVB joint venture consortium, which in turn passed on a contract worth £3.9 million to Powerrun.

Mr Moore said: "The project started out at £2.9 million, but it grew and grew. It's unusual for companies of our size to get a job this big."

Powerrun, which employs 30 people at its base in Beech Mills, is not resting on its laurels.

The business has just taken on an order worth £1 million to make and supply piping for the United Utilities Davyhulme Sewage Works, near Manchester.

Powerrun won the manufacturing/engineering business of the year prize at the 2014 Keighley Business Awards.

Last year, at the same awards, the firm was named large business of the year.