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Severfield expects to finish its work replacing nearly 4,000 bolts on the Cheesegrater later this summer.

The steelwork contractor began the task last year after two steel bolts broke at the City of London building 鈥� known as 122 Leadenhall Street 鈥� in late 2014. The work has cost the firm 拢6m which it booked last year and helped send its 2015 profits into the red.

But chief executive Ian Lawson (pictured) said just around 90 replacement bolts are left to be fitted, bringing to an end nearly 18 months of remedial work.

The firm said it was still in discussions with main contractor Laing O鈥橰ourke and engineer Arup 鈥渢o determine where the liability for the total remedial works should rest鈥� but Lawson added: 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it will go to court. We are having amicable discussions with everybody.鈥�

Severfield鈥檚 latest results saw the firm put the Cheesegrater problems behind it 鈥� the loss-making contract was one of the reasons behind 2013鈥檚 rights issue to rescue the company 鈥� as pre-tax profit bounced back from a 拢191,000 loss last time to a 拢9.6m profit for the year to March 2016. Revenue was up 19% to 拢239m.

Lawson said it had learnt lessons and the firm was now better able to manage risk properly which had enabled it to work on more than 120 projects during the past year 鈥� including the scheme rebuild Liverpool鈥檚 Anfield football stadium and a new Crossrail train depot at Old Oak Common in west London.

鈥淸That figure] is easy to manage provided you鈥檝e got good people and processes,鈥� Lawson added.

He said he was 鈥渄elighted鈥� that private investor Greybull had rescued Tata鈥檚 steelworks at Scunthorpe back in the spring. 鈥淲e buy a considerable amount from there, virtually all of our 70,000 tonnes of section steel.鈥�

The figure accounts for 70% of its entire steel purchases but Lawson said it had switched to European suppliers for its plate steel following Tata鈥檚 decision to pull out of mills in Lanarkshire.

The firm added another 100 staff to its 1,300 strong payroll and Lawson said it had largely been unaffected by next week鈥檚 referendum on the EU. He said the firm was 鈥減retty neutral鈥� about it but admitted he had concerns a vote to leave could see the country slide back to more belt-tightening.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a great shame, given where the country is. The timing is not great, when we鈥檙e coming out of a period of austerity we don鈥檛 want to be going back.鈥�

Severfield鈥檚 Indian business, which it operates as a joint venture out of a base near Bangalore in the south of the country, stabilised with the firm鈥檚 share of losses hit 拢300,000, a fraction up on the 拢200,000 last time. Lawson said the business was looking at expanding its operation out of India and into the wider Indian sub-continent.