CHAP Group has marked the start of work on a £4million development for A&J Robertson (Granite) with a turf cutting ceremony at the Silvertrees Business Park.
The 20,000 sq ft facility will allow the Aberdeen-firm, which currently trades from Merkland Road East and Pittodrie Street in the city centre, to relocate to a purpose-built unit at the popular Westhill site.
The deal continues the development of Silvertrees by CHAP, with existing occupiers including ROVOP and Swagelok. Work began on June 6 and construction of the new Robertson base is scheduled to be completed by April 2017.
CHAP Group joint managing director Douglas Thomson said: “We are delighted to welcome Robertson Granite to Silvertrees and to be starting work on the development to create a new home for a well-established north-east business.
“The commercial property sector in Aberdeen naturally faces challenges due to the downturn in oil and gas, but this turf cutting demonstrates there are opportunities in the market. Our experience and track record in construction, together with the accessibility and excellent road links the Silvertrees site has, are a major benefit to us.
“With turnkey packages available on the development, we have had expressions of interest from prospective tenants seeking office, industrial and warehouse space. Logistics is an emerging part of the north-east commercial property sector and the location is a natural fit for distribution purposes or for companies such as Robertson Granite, who are serving a wide geographical area.”
The site sits six-miles west of Aberdeen on the edge of Westhill, within easy reach of the city centre and Aberdeenshire’s main settlements as well as the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route.
The steel-framed building has been designed by architect HFM, with W. A. Fairhurst supporting as civil and structural engineer and Wallace Whittle as services engineer. The two-storey complex includes office, meeting and workshop accommodation in addition to associated yard and car park space. Three cranes and the provision for a range of specialist cutting and engraving equipment have been included in the plans.
Graeme Robertson, of Robertson Granite, said: “The move to Silvertrees is the next chapter in our story and we are looking forward to seeing the project take shape and to our move in 2017. The new facilities will allow us to build on our 140 year old tradition of providing a first class service to all of our customers and it is the right time for us to be taking this step and investing in the future of the business.”
CHAP Group operates divisions in the construction, commercial property, house building, civil engineering and quarrying sectors. Headquartered at Westhill, the group has a quarrying operation at Park on Deeside and a concrete ready-mix plant at Belhelvie. The house building division, CHAP Homes, is currently developing sites in Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Inverness – with new residential and commercial opportunities high on the agenda. For further information visit www.chap.co.uk .