What Metro Rod Ltd. does

Metro Rod Ltd. is a UK-wide specialist drainage services franchise network founded in 1983 in Macclesfield, Cheshire, and now operating more than 40 regional service centres, a fleet of over 80 tankers and access to over 500 drainage, pump and plumbing engineers. The company delivers a full suite of drainage services — drain unblocking, high-pressure water jetting, CCTV drain surveys, pipe lining and relining, electro-mechanical cleaning, drain mapping, pollution prevention and gutter cleaning — to commercial, public-sector and domestic customers, with approximately 80% of work delivered on a reactive or emergency basis and the remainder on planned preventative maintenance contracts. Supporting digital infrastructure includes the Connect customer portal for real-time job tracking and invoicing on commercial accounts and the iTouch mobile system for capturing CCTV survey data in the field.

The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Franchise Brands plc, a London-listed multi-brand franchisor, and sits alongside sister franchises Metro Plumb (plumbing, 30+ franchisees), Willow Pumps (pump design and installation) and Filta (FOG management), enabling cross-sell of an integrated water-management proposition to national account customers such as Costa Coffee, NHS, Bupa, Wetherspoon, Holiday Inn and ENGIE. Metro Rod's go-to-market combines a 24/7 UK call centre, a postcode-based local finder driving leads to the nearest franchisee, a dedicated national accounts team managing multi-site commercial customers with consistent pricing and SLAs, and an active franchise recruitment programme; revenue is generated through service delivery, planned maintenance contracts, and franchise fees.

The business is underpinned by an extensive compliance and pre-qualification portfolio — including BFA full membership since 1997, CHAS Premium Plus, Constructionline Gold, Achilles, Exor, Cyber Essentials Plus, eight consecutive RoSPA Gold Medals (as of 2016) and EcoVadis Silver (2025) — which functions as a procurement gate for facilities management, healthcare, education and local government tenders. The overarching business model is asset-light at the parent level (franchise-owned vans, tankers and depots) but capital-intensive at the franchisee level, with switching friction for national accounts driven by consistent pricing, delegated authority arrangements, and embedded portals rather than by data lock-in.

Name

Metro Rod Ltd.

Legal name

Metro Rod Ltd.

Website

https://metrorod.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Drainage Services

NAICS

Water and Sewer Line and Related Structures Construction (23711)

SIC

Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

Lift Station & Pump Station Operations & Maintenance (BPALAMAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sewer Pump/Lift Stations & Wet Wells (EUANACAC), Pump Stations, Lift Stations & Booster Stations Construction (IMAFAGAD)

Keywords

• Drainage services
• Drain unblocking
• CCTV drain surveys
• Pump installation maintenance
• Tanker services

Headquarters

HQ city

Kidderminster

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Drainage Services Revenue: Revenue from providing drainage clearance, maintenance and repair services including drain unblocking, CCTV surveys, pipe lining, patch repairs, excavation, and high-pressure water jetting. Approximately 80% of services provided on a reactive/emergency basis.
2. Pump Services Revenue: Revenue from pump station design, installation, maintenance and repair services for commercial and domestic customers
3. Tanker Services Revenue: Revenue from tanker operations including flood water removal, de-silting, grease trap emptying, septic tank emptying, and highway gully cleaning
4. Plumbing Services (Metro Plumb): Revenue from sister company Metro Plumb providing emergency and routine plumbing solutions to domestic and commercial customers. Metro Plumb operates with more than 30 franchisees
5. Franchise Fees: Revenue from franchise network - franchisees pay fees to be part of the Metro Rod brand, receiving training, support, marketing, and access to national accounts

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Metro Rod Ltd. provides UK-wide drainage clearance, maintenance and repair services through a franchise network of over 40 regional centres, supported by 500+ engineers and 80+ tankers. Its offering covers drain unblocking, CCTV surveys, drain repair and relining, pump station design and maintenance, tanker-based services (flood response, gully cleaning, de-silting, septic tank emptying) and, via sister brand Metro Plumb, emergency and routine plumbing.

Product overview

Metro Rod Ltd. is a franchise-based drainage services company operating across the UK with over 40 regional service centres. The company operates a one-stop shop model offering a comprehensive suite of drainage services (drain unblocking, CCTV surveys, repairs, jetting, mapping), complemented by specialized pump services, tanker services, plumbing (via Metro Plumb), and pollution prevention. The core offering is built around reactive emergency response and planned maintenance contracts, with the Connect customer portal enabling commercial customers to track jobs in real-time. Services are delivered through a network of over 500 franchise engineers supported by a central operations team.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Drainage Services Comprehensive UK-wide drainage services delivered via 40+ regional franchisees, covering drain unblocking, CCTV drain surveys, drain repair and relining (ambient and heat cured), high-pressure water jetting, electro-mechanical cleaning, drain mapping, robotic cutting, grease trap and FOG management, gutter cleaning, cesspit and septic tank emptying, drain interceptor maintenance, soil pipe fitting and pollution prevention.
• Pump Services End-to-end pump station design, installation, ongoing maintenance and repair for commercial and residential properties, delivered via the network and coordinated with sister brand Willow Pumps under Franchise Brands plc.
• Tanker Services UK-wide 24/7 tanker operations covering flood water extraction, de-silting and silt removal, road and sewer gully cleaning, grease trap emptying, high-pressure drain jetting, pump chamber cleaning and cesspit/septic tank emptying, delivered via a fleet of over 80 tankers.
• Plumbing Services (Metro Plumb) 24/7 emergency plumbing and routine plumbing installations and repairs for domestic and commercial customers across the UK, delivered through more than 30 Metro Plumb franchisees (sister brand to Metro Rod under Franchise Brands plc).
• Pollution Prevention Services Pollution control and prevention services for manufacturing and other commercial customers, including drain maintenance measures, asset mapping and Environment Agency compliance guidance.

Quantifiable outcome

• 24/7/365 emergency availability
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments11 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Franchise Brands plcflagshipOthersParent company that acquired Metro Rod in March 2017. International multi-brand franchisor with over 450 franchisees in 12 countries. Owns Metro Rod, Metro Plumb, Pirtek, Willow Pumps, Filta, ChipsAway, Ovenclean, and Barking Mad brands. Founded September 2008 by Stephen Hemsley (Executive Chairman) and Nigel Wray (Non-Executive Director).
• Metro PlumbcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister company launched in February 2016 providing emergency and routine plumbing solutions to domestic and commercial customers across the UK. Operates with more than 30 franchisees. Originally served the emergency insurance market and now offers broader plumbing services.
• Willow PumpscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister company under Franchise Brands plc specialising in pump design, installation and maintenance. Provides bespoke solutions for below-ground pumps, above-ground pressure improvement, and water circulation. Available to national account customers through referral.
• FiltacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister company under Franchise Brands plc providing Fats, Oils and Grease (FOG) management including grease recovery units, replacement fridge seals, and TR19 compliance. Supports hospitality sector customers with environmental compliance.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Dyno-Rod: UK-wide drainage and plumbing franchise network offering unblocking, CCTV surveys, repairs and emergency response. Direct competitor to Metro Rod with a near-identical franchise delivery model and national footprint.
• Lanes Group plc: One of the UK's largest drainage, wastewater and utility services providers operating a national depot network with tanker fleets, drain cleaning, and wastewater infrastructure support. Comparable scale, fleet intensity and customer mix to Metro Rod's tanker/utility services.
• Drain Doctor: UK national franchise plumbing and drainage service covering emergency unblocking, repairs and CCTV surveys. Competes with Metro Rod for both domestic emergency work and commercial maintenance contracts.
• R & D Services (now part of Lanes): UK drainage and pump station services contractor focused on maintenance for water utilities and industrial customers. Similar pump services and planned maintenance offering to Metro Rod's enterprise side.
• Aquatech (Industrial Services UK): UK specialist provider of drainage, pump services and industrial cleaning with a national footprint. Overlaps Metro Rod's pump maintenance, CCTV surveys and tanker offerings to commercial/industrial customers.

Regional players

• Cappagh Browne Utilities: UK contractor providing drainage, sewer rehabilitation and utility services infrastructure. Competitor on larger commercial and municipal infrastructure work (gully cleaning, sewer rehab) where Metro Rod tenders.

Others

• Metro Plumb: Sister brand within Franchise Brands plc offering 24/7 plumbing services through 30+ franchisees; important ecosystem comparable as it shows the franchise plumbing template Metro Rod replicates alongside its drainage core.
• Willow Pumps (Franchise Brands sister): Sister brand under Franchise Brands plc providing pump design, installation and maintenance. Closely comparable on the pump services side and a built-in cross-sell channel for Metro Rod.

Broad incumbents

• WaterCare Services (Severn Trent / Anglian contractor base): UK water utilities and their Tier-1 contractor ecosystems provide outsourced drainage and wastewater services, including for combined sewer overflows. Comparable as upstream institutional buyers/competitors in the utility drainage segment.
• Sulzer Ltd (Pumps & Service UK): Global pump manufacturer and aftermarket service provider with a UK pump service business. Adjacent to Metro Rod's pump services revenue stream and to the equipment supply side of the franchise network.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/MetroRodUK
• LinkedInuk.linkedin.com/company/metro-rod-deeside-chester-north-wales

Compliance12 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Metro Rod Ltd.