ARCHITECTURAL FIRM Scott Tallon Walker made a modest profit in 2010 despite a one-third drop in turnover.

It had a pretax profit of €211,308 on a turnover of €10.2 million. This compared with a pretax profit of €1.26 million in 2009 on a turnover of €15.5 million.

A dividend of €300,001 was paid, substantially below the €2.34 million paid to shareholders in 2009.

An underprovision for tax in the previous year meant that only €5,886 was left after the 2010 profits were taxed. Shareholders’ funds at the end of the period were €7.2 million.

The directors, in their report with the accounts for the 2010 year, said the results were in line with expectations and that the company had performed well in comparison to trends in the sector.

Architectural firms have been badly hit by the downturn in the construction sector. Last year one of Ireland’s best-known architectural firms, Murray Ó Laoire, went into liquidation with the loss of more than 120 jobs.

Scott Tallon Walker is one of Ireland’s most highly regarded architectural practices. In their report the directors said the company had reduced its headcount for the anticipated needs of the future and they felt it was well-placed to take advantage of opportunities arising in the industry.

The directors said they were pursuing business abroad to counterbalance the downturn in Ireland and had already secured commissions in healthcare and education in Britain and the Middle East.

The accounts show that administrative and other costs were reduced to €9.9 million from €14.2 million in 2009. The number of staff involved in administration fell to 86 from 127, while the number of architects employed remained at 15. Staff costs fell to €6.8 million from €9.7 million.

Rent of €538,057 was paid to a company that is, in turn, owned by directors Ronald Tallon and Niall Scott.