Building Briefs – April 8th

• Work starts on £4m Dumbarton care home

The new home, located at Gooseholm Road, is being developed by Meallmore Ltd, which runs 23 care homes across Scotland.

Following a planning application submitted to West Dunbartonshire Council, plans to refurbish the former Langcraigs residential care home have been updated.

The existing building will now be demolished and replaced with a purpose-built, single storey building.

The overall plans to develop a 32 bedroom care home remain unchanged.

Preparatory work is currently under way at the site, which will be followed by up to six weeks of demolition work to allow for the main construction to commence.

The demolition is being carried out by David Morton Ltd.

• ISG one of top companies to work for in Scotland

ISG has been ranked the 16th best company to work for in Scotland 2019. 

The list of Best Companies to Work For in Scotland represents the 50 organisations with the highest Regional Best Companies Index (RBCI) following a survey of staff who anonymously score their employers based on a number of factors, from work-life balance to salary. 

ISG ranked number 16 on this year’s list, making it the highest rated construction company in Scotland and one of only two to make the coveted top 50. 

Using the Best Companies b-Heard Survey, employees are asked to score 70 questions on a 7-point scale ranging from ‘strongly disagree’ to ‘strongly agree’.

Almost 800 organisations registered to enter the Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For list, with the top 50 Scottish companies then entering into the Scottish regional list.

To see the full list, click here.

• Surge in Edinburgh office up-take

Office take-up in Edinburgh during the first quarter (Q1) of 2019 has soared by more than 40% across both city centre and out of town markets, according to research by commercial real estate services firm Avison Young.

However, with the availability of Grade A and B office stock in central Edinburgh estimated to be at critical low at around 496,000 sq. ft, strong competition amongst occupiers could be a catalyst to further rent increases.

Against this backdrop, the research also reveals a surprisingly high rise in the number of unrepresented tenants who are not seeking professional advice.

The latest Avison Young figures reveal that total Q1 take-up across the Edinburgh region held at 206,000 sq. ft, marking an increase of 38% from the same period in 2018. The results indicate the strength of out of town markets, where activity accounted for 53% of total take-up - up 24% from Q1 2017.

While growth in out of town markets is likely to be sustainable, the findings show that some 450,000 sq. ft of leases are expected to expire in the city centre over the next 18 months.

Meanwhile, figures for Q1 for Glasgow show that activity was below average, as city centre take-up for Q1 totalled 103,497 sq. ft. 

• East Lothian care home reopens after £9m revamp

A care home in East Lothian has reopened after a £9 million refurbishment.

Edinburgh firm Randolph Hill Nursing Homes Group said the redevelopment of Muirfield in Gullane with 60 high-spec en suite rooms will improve residents’ quality of care.

It also secures the jobs of 50 existing staff.

• Graham + Sibbald snaps up Edinburgh site for Lothian Buses fit-out

Graham + Sibbald is to create a travel centre for Lothian Buses after acquiring a site in central Edinburgh on behalf of the transport operator.

The chartered surveyor and property specialist has purchased, and will manage the refurbishment of, a 9,140 square foot site at Shandwick Place to develop a customer-facing travel centre and incorporated staff facilities for Lothian.

Graham + Sibbald also project managed the 2014 redevelopment of the Waverley Bridge travel centre for Lothian, which is the UK’s largest municipal bus operator.