Scottish housebuilder Springfield Properties Plc has celebrated an impressive year of sales and awards and is looking forward to more success with major construction projects in Tayside.
It hopes its plans for Dykes of Gray in Dundee’s Western Gateway and Bertha Park north of Perth will help it continue to perform well after a year which saw a 19% rise in profit to £4.1 million.
Turnover of the Elgin and Larbert-based company is predicted to rise in 2015 to around £86 million after a year when it climbed to £74m from £47m.
Springfield handed over a record 456 homes during a year in which it was awarded Scottish Business of the Year by the Scottish Chamber of Commerce, and for the second successive year won the Scottish House Builder of the Year prize.
Managing director Innes Smith said: “Sales are up again, profits are up again and we made the final payment for the £50m business we acquired from Redrow in 2011.”
It strengthened its workforce across all functions by 25% to more than 420 people, including more than 35 apprentices and trainees.
Mr Smith continued: “Developing young people is important for our continued growth, so this year we launched our new apprenticeship scheme, Springboard.
“It makes sure our young people get a broad experience of their discipline and a good understanding of what their work means to the business.”
Chairman Sandy Adam said: “We have excellent people working for us, and it is because of their efforts to look after our customers and generate sales that we are successful.
“Customers like what we do for them and that generates sales.
“We have been busy buying land and now hold a strong land bank which is at various stages in the planning system,” he added.
He cited the Dundee and Perth developments on the horizon.
Dykes of Gray is a £150m, 600-house development for Dundee’s western expansion which is set to start next spring.
Bertha Park in Perth is a potentially massive £1 billion project for a development north of the River Almond.
It would be equivalent to the size of Stonehaven.
The countryside community of around 3,500 homes will have all the supporting infrastructure, facilities and amenities demanded by modern life.
There will be new secondary and primary schools, shopping, hospitality and leisure locations and opportunities for a variety of businesses.
A cross-Tay link road will be built and landscape features include a loch, paths, cycle routes and public transport, and work could start in 2016.
Springfield also hopes to build 50 new homes at Dalgety Bay.