Britain’s biggest construction contractor Balfour Beatty has returned to profit after two years of losses.

The company has today reported an £8 million profit, compared to a £199m loss in 2015, after a turnaround plan delivered “fundamental change” to the group.

Underlying revenue rose 4% to £8.5 billion as Balfour’s order book was boosted 15% to £12.7bn.

Chief executive Leo Quinn was brought in to rescue Balfour Beatty in January 2015 and set about upgrading the company’s leadership, processes and controls through his Build to Last transformation programme.

The company said that, by 2014, it had become overly complex following more than a decade of acquisition-led growth.

It added there had been an overall lack of leadership and strategic direction, and that its businesses had a tendency to compete with each other. However, Balfour says its business has now been simplified.

Leo Quinn said: “The transformation of Balfour Beatty is well underway. We have returned the Group to profit and significantly exceeded our Build to Last Phase One targets. We have upgraded leadership, processes and controls while continuing to invest in the Group’s unique strengths. As a result, we have improved not just the quality of our order book but our customer satisfaction scores.

“Having simplified the Group, we are focused on our core markets in the UK and US, where governments are committed to large scale expenditure on infrastructure.

“All this positions us for future profitable growth. During the next two-year phase of Build to Last, we expect to achieve industry standard margins and over the medium term, industry-leading performance.”