In announcing record profits,, Aberdeen-based Stewart Milne Group (SMG) has issued an update on plans to extend its timber frame manufacturing operations in England.
SMG’s £10m timber frame factory being built at Witney, near Oxford, is expected to be operational by early next year and will provide capacity for fully-automated production of 6,000 house kits per year. Employment on the site will rise to around 300 by 2003.
Chairman Stewart Milne said this ‘strategic move’ would enable SMG to consolidate its position as ‘the leader in the timber frame manufacturing market’. He added: ‘This will also lay the foundation for future geographic expansion of our homes operation as well as our timber frame business.’
Pretax earnings at SMG jumped 20% to £7.5m while turnover increased by £18m to £150m in the year to June. Turnover within its timber systems division has soared 47% over the past two years to around £36m, with production of 6,000 kits per year based solely in Aberdeen.
