While Mr Edmondson will remain on the board of Waterloo, his brother, Ron Edmondson, is moving into the role of chairman for the company.

Meanwhile, the day-to-day management of the business will be undertaken by John Tiernan, who has been appointed as managing director.

Mr Tiernan, who joined the Waterloo team four years ago, said: “Our ‘customer first’ strategy was put in place several years ago and is at the core of our current success. We understand the importance of our position in the supply chain, as contractors and building engineers are under more pressure to deliver projects on time.”

New chairman Ron Edmondson added: “These are exciting times for Waterloo. After a record year in 2017, we are in a strong position.

One of the long-term projects has been the implementation of a new software system at Waterloo, and that’s now in place. This makes it a great time to ensure a smooth handover to John.”