Opening of the new, bigger office on the west side of Edinburgh is part of a strategic growth plan. The move to larger premises on an initial five-year lease has been made to help meet rising demand after a series of contract wins, with further growth planned in 2021.
The expansion into a new main office at New Mart Road comes after nearly seven years at the previous base at nearby Craiglockhart Avenue.
Aynsley Cheatley, regional managing director (Scotland), said: 鈥淒uring 2019 it became clear we were outgrowing our main office where we had been operating from for nearly seven years and started to look at alternative options.
鈥淲e鈥檙e delighted with the new premises. It鈥檚 in a more commercial area, close to a number of our clients and can accommodate future expansion. Due to recent contract successes there is a need for a larger space. We have more capacity than our previous office which allows us to accommodate our future growth plans.鈥�
He added: 鈥淚t not only provides much better facilities for our staff, but is also a much more modern and presentable commercial office space. Like everyone, when lockdown was announced we switched to home working and have been able to seamlessly facilitate that due to recent investment in our IT and communications systems, with a cloud-based system and remote access facilities.
鈥淲e work much better collaboratively so although we can work from home, our new base will eventually allow us to do that. I don鈥檛 see us returning to full-time office working in the short term but do envisage more flexibility in how we operate going forward.
鈥淲e will predominantly be office-based but we have seen how successful working from home can be. It can improve productivity in some respects, but we still need that face-to-face collaboration as I feel that鈥檚 how the construction industry works best.鈥�
Summers-Inman supported local businesses for the fit-out of the new office. Local contractor MPACT undertook the refurbishment works with Leith-based Nutrend supplying the furniture. They also used their own in-house teams to design, specify, procure and manage the office fit-out and refurbishment works. 鈥淲e wanted to use local suppliers to not only support them during this difficult period but to also reduce the carbon footprint associated with the move and refurbishment,鈥� said Cheatley.
鈥淭here are exciting times ahead for the business in Scotland as we start to see signs of recovery based on recent success. We look forward to welcoming staff back to the office when circumstances permit.鈥�
In addition to its Scottish headquarters in Edinburgh, Summers-Inman also has offices in Newcastle, Leeds, Manchester, Leicester, Birmingham and London, specialising in quantity surveying, project & programme management, building surveying, health & safety management and environmental advisory services.
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