The firm has more than doubled its footprint in south-west Scotland by investing in a 60,000-square-foot manufacturing site in a move that will create up to 70 jobs.

Eco group said the manufacturing facility will help alleviate the housing crisis in Scotland as well as in the rest of the UK and abroad, by adopting industrialised construction methods.

VASO by Eco creates building solutions from panels manufactured from recycled glass, providing affordable, thermally efficient, low carbon dwellings which are rapid to construct.

The manufacturing plant, which also has 1.8 acres of yard space at the Dumfries site, will immediately create 12 new jobs rising to a total of 70 new jobs within the next five years.

Eco founder and managing director Eddie Black said: “Manufacturing VASO by Eco panels in Dumfries and Galloway will allow Scotland to be at the forefront of a building solution which will help solve the housing crisis in Scotland, the rest of the UK and in other places around the world.”

It only takes a matter of hours to manufacture a VASO by Eco house offsite. It only takes a few days to build it onsite using minimal labour and mechanical equipment, all while achieving high standards of quality, performance, sustainability and durability.

The innovation also tackles the construction skills shortage issue, as it needs much less labour to build a VASO by Eco home.

Aligning with national strategies like Housing to 2040, VASO by Eco said it recognises the need for collaborative action to address housing pressures.

Eddie Black said: “There is now a golden opportunity to embrace industrialised construction which takes the stress away from traditional supply chains and creates a housing solution through circular and advanced manufacturing.

“We are delighted to be launching the manufacturing site at this time so that VASO By Eco’s speed and efficiency can provide a systematic solution to the housing crisis.”

One of Eco’s two units at the Dumfries site will be utilised as a VASO by Eco production line, the other as storage. The base also has office space and a training room facility.

Eco is now on site and preparing to start production, launching with a Research and Development product line.

The plant will manufacture panels for Eco to demonstrate its first VASO by Eco showhome. It will also manufacture VASO by Eco product for a construction project in Scotland already in the planning process, and be used to build commercial Battery Energy Storage Solution (BESS) container units and heat pump base panels.

VASO by Eco is already proposed for a new affordable housing project, at Closeburn north of Dumfries.

As a partnership between Nith Valley Leaf Trust (NVLT), South of Scotland Community Housing, and VASO by Eco, South of Scotland Enterprise recently commissioned a feasibility report for development of the brownfield site at Closeburn.

Eco plans to launch a second line at the factory in October 2026, and a third by October 2027, by which time it will have created 70 new jobs.