1971 – The company was first registered as WAM Civil Engineering.

1972 – Awarded its first contract by Moira Rural Council to install 4,000 linear yards of 9–12″ concrete pipes. Invested in Massey Ferguson 450S hydraulic excavators, which were at the forefront of replacing rope-type excavators.

1975 – Invested in some of the first four-wheel drive loading shovels, driving greater efficiency in civil engineering operations.

1976 – Established Causeway Equipment, specialising in dewatering systems (Sykes pumps) and trench support solutions (Shorco boxes).

1978 – Acquired Seagoe Concrete Products, Portadown from the McNeill Group to expand into precast manhole ring production, an emerging technology at the time.

1979 – Completed numerous contracts across Northern Ireland, including projects in Belfast, Carrickfergus, Ballykinler, Lisburn, Newtownards, Craigavon, and Enniskillen. The company became recognised for expertise in difficult ground conditions and developed strong capabilities in tunnelling, sheet piling, and dewatering.

1980 – Purchased a 70-acre quarry in Carryduff (now the Head Office), producing high-quality aggregates. Introduced the Krings trench support system, which significantly improved pipe-laying productivity, and invested in Fiat Allis S15 excavators with greater capacity than their competitors.

1983 – Completed the Mourne Trunk Main, a challenging scheme requiring the installation of 10-ton pipes. Specialist equipment, including Fiat-Allis FE28s with 9-ton drag boxes and CAT966 shovels with loading forks, was used to transport and install pipes up the mountainside.

1984 – Expanded operations into England with the purchase of a yard in Greater Manchester, delivering civil engineering works in the Northwest.

1987 – Acquired the company’s first Krings leader rig for sheet piling. Adapted three Fiat Allis excavators into piling rigs (two 12m and one 14m) with 40-ton vibrating hammers. This marked the beginning of a long-standing partnership with WA Dawson, then agents for Krings.

1988 – Completed a four-year project to realign 40 miles of the River Blackwater, supported by the purchase of two pioneering long-reach Atlas excavators. This project also introduced the company to 6-wheel drive Moxy dump trucks and CAT D6 Hi-Drive dozers.

1989 – Secured the company’s first major sheet piling contract, awarded by Yorkshire Water Rivers Division (now the Environment Agency), on the River Worth Flood Alleviation Scheme in Keighley, West Yorkshire. This success led to further piling-intensive contracts across England, Scotland, and Wales, particularly within the water industry.

1992 – Commenced construction of the £21M Duncrue Wastewater Treatment Works, the largest of its kind in Northern Ireland at the time.

1993 – Purchased the UK’s first ‘silent’ piling system from Japanese manufacturer Giken, revolutionising work in sensitive environments.

1997 – Sold its materials supply businesses to focus investment on piling and civil engineering. Acquired WA Dawson’s equipment and Bedfordshire yard, strengthening the company’s national presence.

1998–2005 – Began long-term works at Canary Wharf, London, delivering marine foundations for flagship buildings now occupied by Barclays Bank, Balfour Beatty, and JP Morgan.

1999 – Invested in ABI telescopic leader rigs from Germany, introducing multi-disciplinary piling techniques and beginning the company’s move into concrete piling.

2000 – Rebranded as Dawson-WAM, formally combining the Dawson piling brand with WAM Civil Engineering.

2001 – Completed the company’s first close-proximity basement, installing piles within 100mm of an adjacent property to form a 450mm diameter secant wall.

2003 – Began its largest piling subcontract to date: the £5M Quinn Glass Bottle Factory in Elton, Cheshire. Works involved installing 9,000 piles, combining bored piles into sandstone with vibro displacement piles.

2004 – Purchased the first ABI TM18/22 leader rig, then the largest sheet piling rig available in the UK.

2005 – In joint venture with Black & Veatch, delivered the £17M Culmore Wastewater Treatment Works.

2006 – Awarded the foundations and substructure package for the first building in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, going on to complete most of the piled foundations in the development.

2007 – Purchased a Bauer-manufactured RTG RG25S piling rig, the largest sheet piling leader rig in the UK and Ireland.

2008 – Commenced the Moneymore Flood Protection Scheme, which achieved a CEEQUAL Excellent rating of 93% – at that time the highest score ever awarded.

2009 – Completed nearly 500m of secant piling and 1,000 load-bearing piles for Titanic Belfast, the world’s largest Titanic visitor experience.

2010 – Secured the sheet piling package for the M25 widening scheme, establishing Dawson-WAM as a leading sheet piling contractor in UK motorway infrastructure.

2012 – Completed the refurbishment of the Bedfordshire office, introducing geothermal heating to cut carbon emissions. The Belfast Head Office and workshop transitioned from fossil fuels to biomass wood pellet boilers, with electric car charging points added at both offices.

2013 – Commenced the £10M extension to Newcastle Wastewater Treatment Works in County Down. The project later received a CEEQUAL Excellent award.

2016 – Delivered major hospital infrastructure works in Belfast, including basements, retaining walls, and load-bearing piles for both the Royal Victoria Hospital and the Ulster Hospital.

2018 – Commenced the £7M Ormeau Avenue Sewer Upgrade in Belfast, involving complex tunnelling, pipe-laying, and piling in a busy urban environment. This was the first scheme to separate foul and storm sewers originally constructed as combined Victorian sewers. The project won multiple awards, including ‘Most Considerate Site’ in the UK’s Considerate Constructors Scheme.

2019 – Began work on the M4 J3–12 and M6 J13–15 Smart Motorway Projects, installing over 14,000 linear metres of sheet piling with up to seven rigs operating simultaneously at peak delivery.

2020 – Commenced construction of the £10M Duncrue Wastewater Treatment Works in Belfast for NI Water and secured the company’s first contracts on HS2, Europe’s largest civil engineering and infrastructure project.

2022 – Completed the £6.3M Shimna Flood Alleviation Scheme in Northern Ireland and began work on the £12.6M Campbeltown Flood Prevention Scheme in Scotland. Expanded the piling fleet with a fifth ABI TM22 rig and a Soilmec SR125.

2025 (Present Day) – Dawson-WAM continues to invest in the latest piling technology and civil engineering plant, delivering projects across the UK and Ireland and contributing to some of the largest and most complex infrastructure schemes in Europe.