THE MD of Insite Group has told Project Scotland that avoiding disputes and instead talking through problems with clients and subcontractors is the key to success in the construction sector.
With the majority of the Glasgow-headquartered contractor’s work being repeat business, the comments from Scott McMillan come as Insite Group celebrates 15 years of work with pharmaceutical firm, Merck Group, with a new multi-million contract at one of the German firm’s Scottish bases.
“We are very, very focused on customer satisfaction and making sure we do the best job we can,” Scott explained. “I’ve been in the business now for nearly 20 years and I’ve never fallen out with a client. We’ve never ended up in a dispute with a client or subcontractor because I always think it’s best to talk a problem through and get to the bottom of it. I’m focused on making sure our customers are happy with the product they get.”
Scott revealed that the firm’s unconfrontational way of working has been pivotal to its success in being able to expand its offering. Insite has a contracts division, as well as cladding and roofing, facilities management, and specialist services.
Further to the work with Merck Group, Insite is also set to start an office fit-out project for Altrad Babcock, which will see two floors of the company’s Glasgow base refurbished. And history will be made in the Silverburn Shopping Centre through Insite’s creation of Scotland’s first car showroom inside a shopping centre on behalf of Polestar.
The company’s work was on show at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow when Insite was contracted to use its environmental biosecurity systems to protect over 30,000 delegates from around the world in the middle of a pandemic.
“COP26 was fantastic for us,” Scott said. “Personally, I think we provided a great service and anything we can do to enhance Glasgow and Scotland as a whole is great to be involved in.”
The technology, which was created following an investment of over £300,000, is utilised by a number of businesses in a range of settings. Insite uses it in its own office, with its Room to Breathe system continuously sanitising the air and anti-microbial coatings on desks and tables to help prevent the spread of viruses and bacteria.
“We have a very, very low sickness rate in here,” Scott stated, adding that if the system prevents just one colleague from being off for two days in a month, it pays for itself.
Furthering Insite’s desire to help make the local and national landscape better is the firm’s work on Glasgow’s Golden Z project, which involved the creation of letting space above a Deichmann store on Sauchiehall Street, which will form part of the wider effort to get people back into Glasgow city centre.
The company is carrying out similar work in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Dundee as the cities look to rebrand themselves amidst changing consumer shopping habits.
In Falkirk, Insite was contracted to overhaul the facades of the town’s retail park to enhance the experience for people going into stores.
Work was also carried out at the University of Edinburgh and Heriot Watt University, with Scott estimating the best part of over £2 million was spent on four different projects at the learning institutes. This included work at the B-listed Sanderson Building which required a ‘fair amount’ of detective work to track down the specified stone. Other tasks included a project at student accommodation in Galashiels.
“The Group provides that complete, holistic service to clients,” Scott said. “Whether you require new build, refurbishment, fit-out, FM support, waste management, or roofing and cladding, or have issues with your indoor environment, we have that expertise in-house. There are few contractors who can truly state the can match our range of services under the one roof.”
