BUILDING company the Stewart Milne Group plans to expand operations at its timber-frame factory at Witney and increase staffing levels by one-third.

Chief executive Glenn Allison said shifts at the Witney plant would increase from one per day to two over the next six to nine months.

The number of staff employed there would jump from 90 to 120, he added.

“We expect a significant increase in the timber-frame activity,” said the head of the Aberdeen-based company. “Our order level is 70 per cent higher.”

The increased demand was largely due to house builders viewing timber frames as an alternative to concrete blocks, which had been affected by a shortage of skilled workers and higher costs, he said.

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Mr Allison forecasts turnover for the timber systems division to be about £40m in the 2014-15 financial year.

This would represent a 79 per cent increase on the £22.3m recorded for the division in the year to June 30.

However, timber systems turnover in 2013-2014 fell 19 per cent from 2012-2013, mostly due to a number of delayed building projects, he said.

“It took a lot longer to get through the regulatory process,” the CEO said after the release of the company’s financial results on Tuesday.

The Witney factory, which started in 2000, generates about half of total turnover from the timber services division, with the other half coming from the company’s Aberdeen factory.

One of the timber systems division’s key projects is the UK’s first eco-town at Bicester, for which Stewart Milne is supplying timber frames for 100 houses in the first phase.

The environmentally-friendly town project, which began earlier this year, will ultimately include 1,800 houses.

Timber services made up 11 per cent of total group turnover, which was £209.7m in 2013-14, down one per cent from the previous year.

Turnover for the group’s major division, house building, rose six per cent to £187.4m in 2013-14.

Total operating profit was up three per cent to £15.6m, while net profit after tax was £1.5m, compared to a £4.9m loss the previous year.

“We’ve had a very strong performance over the last year,” said Mr Allison.

The company continued its debt-reduction policy, with bank debt falling by £12.2m over the 12 months to £193.8m at June 30.

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