The Aberdeen-based contracts division of Space Solutions, a workplace design specialist, is celebrating a substantial surge in orders.

A series of major contract wins in the North East - fuelled by the success of the division's specialist procurement services - has seen the 13-man team pull in £6.3 million worth of business.

The bumper order book means the Contracts Division is already £1.5 million ahead of its annual budget forecast after the first four months of its financial year – with that figure expected to grow as further new contracts are secured over the remainder of the year.

The division – lead by Contracts Director Mark Wilson and including a team of quantity surveyors and project managers – has won a raft of work with leading North East clients, including projects with Stena, Premier Oil, Marathon, Taqa, BG Group and Petrofac.

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Mark said while Space Solutions' excellent reputation and commitment to deliver projects on time were key, he believes the major factor behind the success is their innovative approach to budgeting and work planning.

He said: "Before the recession took hold, the main concern from clients was timescales, mainly to ask questions on how long it would take to complete a job. Now, although this is still very important, the emphasis has very much moved to focus closely on cost considerations.

"We have adapted to this change by implementing an 'open-book' tender approach. It means that clients get total transparency throughout the project and the security of a guaranteed cost."

Space Solutions operates UK-wide to design, build, fit-out, refurbish and relocate modern and productive business environments.

Mark, who joined the company five years ago from Aberdeen-based North Offshore, said the growth of the division was further evidence of the role Space Solutions was playing in helping businesses to manage workplace change through the recession.

He said: "We are helping companies, especially those managing high overheads or wanting to dramatically reshape operations, to understand the importance of creating good workplaces.

"The growth of our business has very much been client-led and we have reacted to the strong demand from companies who need to sweat their assets like never before."

(GK/KMcA)