The firm said that it has redeployed around 150 staff in recent weeks as it managed the expected downturn in work, particularly at its airports business.

Around 300 staff are now likely to be made redundant as the firm joins the ranks of main contractors slimming down their operations.

Mark Reynolds, Mace Group CEO, said: “The coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on the markets that Mace operates in across the globe.

“Although we hope that many sectors will return to normal within months, activity in some industries – such as aviation – will be much lower for years to come.”

He added: “Over the last ten weeks, we have successfully placed more than 150 of our people into new roles within Mace.

“Unfortunately, it is now clear that – as a number of our projects are cancelled or deferred for the foreseeable future – we need to make a number of redundancies across the group.

“This is one of the hardest decisions we have ever taken as a leadership team, and it is not a choice that has been made lightly.

“We are consulting with our people at the moment, and we will continue to do everything we can to ensure that as many people as possible are able to find alternative roles within the business.”