Ogilvie Construction News
Company news and updates

The team behind the design and build of the Great Tapestry of Scotland visitor centre in Galashiels is celebrating after the building was won the Design Award for New Build (Commercial) in the Scottish Borders Design Awards.

The building, designed by Page\Park Architect and built by Ogilvie Construction, consists of gallery spaces, a visitor centre, café, workshop area and offices. The front of the neighbouring B listed post office was refurbished to accommodate staff and studio space.

Commenting on the visitor centre, the judges said: “This is a flagship building set in a highly sustainable location, which makes a strong contribution to revitalising the Galashiels High Street. The integration of the old post office is a very positive move which has helped save this important listed building and reduced the embodied energy of the project.”

The award comes hot on the heels of the visitor centre being awarded the highest quality assurance rating of 5-stars by Visit Scotland.

The Great Tapestry of Scotland is a unique project to stitch the entire story of Scotland from pre-history to modern times and through its artistry and visual storytelling, making Scotland’s history, heritage and culture accessible to all.

Ogilvie Construction was proud to recently complete the new purpose-built Great Tapestry of Scotland visitor centre in Galashiels for Scottish Borders Council.

The latest addition to Scotland’s national cultural scene is home to one of the world’s largest community arts projects. Hand stitched by a team of 1,000 stitchers from across Scotland, the Great Tapestry of Scotland incorporates over 300 miles of wool in 160 linen panels to create a pictorial history of Scotland.

The building, designed by Page\Park Architects, consists of gallery spaces, a visitor centre, café, workshop area and offices. The front of the neighbouring B listed post office was refurbished to accommodate staff and studio space.

 Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said:

“We are proud to have delivered such a prestigious project that will play an important role in Scottish culture and the regeneration of Galashiels, attracting over 50,000 visitors to the town each year.

 “Our team worked closely with Scottish Borders Council and all of the stakeholders, managing the project though the challenges of the pandemic to successful completion.  The building has been designed and built to the highest quality creating a world class attraction.”

 The Great Tapestry of Scotland is a unique project to stitch the entire story of Scotland from pre-history to modern times and through its artistry and visual storytelling, making Scotland’s history, heritage and culture accessible to all.

Ogilvie Construction is celebrating landing an internationally recognised award for demonstrating high health and safety standards for the eighth consecutive year.

Ogilvie has received a RoSPA Gold Medal Health and Safety Award for working hard to ensure its staff operate in the safest possible working environment.

Organisations receiving a RoSPA Award are recognised as being world-leaders in health and safety practice. Every year, nearly 2,000 entrants vie to achieve the highest possible accolade in what is the UK’s longest-running H&S industry awards.

Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said: “Safety is at the heart of everything that we do and we are delighted to make it eight in a row with this gold award. We continue to invest heavily in achieving the highest possible health and safety standards across our operations. It has been a challenging year for everyone in construction managing the pandemic risks, but our team made have been exceptional in their dedication to maintaining those standards throughout.”

Julia Small, RoSPA’s achievements director, said: “RoSPA is very proud of the achievements of its entrants, and with this award we recognise the best of the best, those organisations that have gone the extra mile, raising the bar for the delivery of safety in the workplace. Employees, wherever they may be should be able to go to work safe in the knowledge that they will return home unharmed and healthy at the end of every day. Our RoSPA Award winners are central to achieving this goal.”

The majority of awards are non-competitive and mark achievement at merit, bronze, silver and gold levels. Gold medals, president’s awards, orders of distinction and the Patron’s Award are presented to organisations sustaining the high standards of the gold level over consecutive years.

Ogilvie Construction is part of the Ogilvie Group, one of Scotland's most consistently successful family owned businesses. The company is over 65 years old and employs more than 600 people across its various business operations.

Ogilvie Construction has joined the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) as a training partner, giving employees a route to supported training and chartered status.

Under the scheme, CIOB will create a joint venture with Ogilvie, developing bespoke learning and development plan for the company’s staff.

Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said: “The training partnership initiative is part of our ongoing commitment to skills development across our workforce. It sets high standards and provides the necessary support for staff who want to develop their professional competence and qualifications, giving direct access to advice and guidance from a recognised partner.”

Ogilvie Construction is part of the Ogilvie Group, one of Scotland’s most consistently successful family owned businesses. The company is over 65 years old and employs more than 600 people across its various business operations in the UK.

Ogilvie Construction celebrated the topping out of the new AC by Marriott hotel development in Glasgow with client Chris Stewart Group, as the building reached its full hight.

The 245-bed hotel will form part of a £100 million mixed use development by CSG to transform the north east corner of George Square.  It will incorporate the refurbished grade A listed Parish Halls alongside the new build section, filling an 80 year old gap site in the city.

Duncan Ogilvie, Chief Executive, Ogilvie Group, said “We are delighted to be working with CSG to deliver their vision for a new AC by Marriott hotel in the city centre. Our site team has made excellent progress in driving forward the construction programme, despite the challenges of the pandemic.  The next phase of work will see the application of windows and facade, along with internal partitions, as we continue the momentum through to completion next year.

“This project is the latest chapter in our successful track record for quality and performance in the hotel and leisure sector. It is our fourth major hotel build in Glasgow and eighth in Scotland in recent years."

Ogilvie Construction has started work on an £17 million project to build new homes and a care facility for Midlothian Council in Dalkeith.

The development will create 50 new houses of mixed size and style for rent on the site of the former Dalkeith High School at Newmills Road.  It will also include a 40-bed intermediate care facility, along with infrastructure and landscaping and is due for completion in 2022.

Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said:

“We are delighted to have been chosen by Midlothian Council to deliver this significant development as part of their house building strategy. It’s great to see our team now starting site operations and we look forward to handing over a mix of quality homes and care facility next year. Our site team will engage with the local community throughout the build to consider their needs and ensure the minimum of disruption in the immediate area.”

Midlothian Council’s cabinet member with responsibility for housing, Councillor Stephen Curran said: “We’re really pleased to be working with Ogilvie Construction on this major development. It is part of our most ambitious capital programme ever, which will see record investment of more than £0.567 billion through to 2025.

“The project won’t just bring high-quality, affordable council housing along with excellent care facilities, it will also mean job opportunities, apprenticeships, training  and work placements for local people. Ogilvie Construction is committed to working with our community benefits team to finalise the community benefits associated with this project.

“Ogilvie Construction estimates that at the height of construction, around 120 people will be employed on the project. Local people will be targeted for new job opportunities whenever possible and the company expects at least six new jobs will be created. We’re looking forward to local people benefitting from this build programme in the not too distant future.”

Ogilvie Construction is part of the Ogilvie Group and one of Scotland’s most consistently successful family owned businesses.  The company is over 65 years old and employs more than 600 people across its various business operations in the UK.

Ogilvie Construction has started work on an £8 million project to build 59 new homes in Cardenden, Fife, for Kingdom Housing Association.

The development will create new affordable housing in Balgonie Grove, on the former coal mining site behind Jamphlars Court in a mix of two, three and four bedroom homes with infrastructure and landscaping. The project is due for completion by Spring next year.

Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said:
“We are delighted to be working with Kingdom Housing Association to deliver their vision for new high-quality affordable homes in Cardenden. Work has now started on site and will continue with full compliance of the COVID 19 protocols across every aspect of our operations. The site team will engage with the local community throughout the build to consider their needs and ensure the minimum of disruption in the immediate area.”

Kingdom Group Chief Executive Bill Banks, said:
“Ogilvie Construction is delivering a diverse range of new affordable homes for Kingdom, designed with the current and future needs of residents in mind. The new homes will be highly energy efficient which not only bring financial benefits in terms of reduced energy costs for our tenants, but they also have environmental benefits too."

Ogilvie Construction is part of the Ogilvie Group is one of Scotland’s most consistently successful family owned businesses. The company is over 65 years old and employs more than 600 people across its various business operations in the UK.

Ogilvie Construction has completed work on Edinburgh’s first voco™ boutique hotel for Axcel Group.

The 150 bedroom hotel is located in Torphichen Street in the city’s West end incorporates a restaurant, bar and leisure facilities in the brand’s characteristically unstuffy quality surroundings.

The new hotel has been built to eight storeys with a façade of mostly natural stone. It is the Axcel Group’s second hotel in the city, complementing the company’s 110 bed Mercure Hotel in Haymarket.

Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said:
“We are extremely proud of the new hotel and worked closely with the team at Axcel Group throughout the build to ensure that every aspect of the project has been delivered to meet the exacting standards for voco™. It will provide a refreshing new hotel experience for visitors in the heart of the city.”

voco™ is an international upscale hotel brand owned by the InterContinental Hotels Group. Since launching in 2018, voco™ has opened hotels in the UK, Australia, UAE and Saudi Arabia. The name voco is based on the Latin word meaning ‘to invite’ or to ‘come together’.

Ogilvie Construction is part of the Ogilvie Group is one of Scotland’s most consistently successful family owned businesses. The company is over 65 years old and employs more than 600 people across its various business operations in the UK.

Ogilvie Construction has started construction work on new Community Custody Units (CCU) in Dundee and Glasgow for the Scottish Prison Service (SPS).

These community based units are part of a new approach to the management of women in custody in Scotland, with the women who will be living there assessed as suitable.

The Dundee facility is being built on the site of the old Our Lady’s Primary School in the Hilltown area of the city accommodating 16 women. The unit in Glasgow is in Shawpark Street, Maryhill on the site of the former health centre and will accommodate 24 women.

The new facilities will provide modern reception areas as well as a communal space with kitchen facilities, bedrooms and secure gardens.

Donald MacDonald, Managing Director, Ogilvie Construction, said: “After some delays to the original timetable due to COVID 19, we are delighted to have started site operations in Dundee and Glasgow. We look forward to handing over the two high quality facilities for the Scottish Prison Service in early 2022. Our site team will engage with the local communities throughout the build programme and ensure the minimum of disruption.”

Ogilvie Construction is part of the Ogilvie Group, one of Scotland's most consistently successful family owned businesses. The company is over 65 years old and employs more than 600 people across its various business operations.