A Scottish technology company founded by two former nuclear submarine design engineers has completed a breakthrough UK deal.
The Edinburgh-based property software firm set up by the former "Q-branch" experts has hailed a major UK expansion following the conclusion of a nationwide roll-out.
SME Professional will now provide property software and customer relationship management support for all of Belvoir and Northwood’s 250 letting and estate agent offices from Aberdeen to Plymouth.
The groundbreaking SME Professional property management platform has had steady growth since it was first launched in 2011, and it currently enjoys a customer base of more than 1,000 companies. Initially covering 70 per cent of the market in major cities such as Edinburgh and Dundee, the company became the largest provider in the Scottish lettings agency market before expanding across the rest of the UK in recent years.
The completion of the Belvoir and Northwood roll-out marks a successful 12 months for the company, having also secured a prestigious Silver Award for Agency Software Supplier of the Year in the national Negotiator Property Awards ahead of some of the UK’s most well-known and established industry names.
The SME Professional, which now employs over 50, story began in 2006 with the combined ambition of the two entrepreneurially-minded nuclear submarine design engineers, Fraser Sutherland and Robin Lyles.
Whilst working for the elite “Q-branch” of the Ministry of Defence’s research organisation, they first discovered a flair for innovation with disruptive ideas for the transfer of defence technologies to other industries successfully converted into a range of multi-million-pound projects.
“It’s exciting to complete this work, and a pleasure to work with Belvoir and Northwood’s directors and franchisees to develop custom software functionality to meet their specific business needs,” said Mr Sutherland, managing director of SME Professional. “This cements SME Professional’s status as one of the leading property CRMs in the UK, which is also reflected in our recent award win.
“It’s very satisfying to see our platform grow almost entirely through recommendation by our users. With 18 years of continuous research and innovative development, the SME Professional property management software platform has evolved into a comprehensive, multi-level product which provides a depth of functionality, detail and automation which remains unmatched. We look forward to consolidating our market position with our latest artificial intelligence and client accounting features which are set to fuel future growth across the UK.”
The SME Professional software platform includes automated client accounting and lettings and sales.
Adam Noonan, Northwood’s commercial director, said: “We have been working with SME Professional for a number of years, and it’s fantastic to see our brands using the software which has proved to be a huge time-saver for our franchisees.
“The platform's seamless integrations with the property-based tools that our franchisees use have made our processes more efficient. Their customer service is outstanding and it's great to see how SME Professional is continually developing and enhancing their software to meet the ever-evolving needs of our agents - especially in crucial areas such as compliance and financial control.”
Scotland's largest community solar farm gets green light
Scotland's largest community solar farm has been given the green light.
Arran Community Renewables, a Community Benefit Society based on the Isle of Arran, has been granted planning consent for a 6 MW solar farm, with the aim of generating 5,600MWh of clean renewable energy from 2027.
Glenkiln Solar Farm will be located around 1km west of Lamlash and will provide enough renewable energy to meet one quarter of the island’s domestic power needs.
The £5 million project will be the largest 100% community owned scheme of its kind in Scotland.
Glasgow architect firm announces raft of promotions
One of Scotland’s most experienced architectural practices has announced 'across-the-board' promotions.
Mosaic Architecture + Design's enhanced management team sees Stuart Black and Dan Challis become studio directors, while Ciaran Bennett and Louisa Macrae become associates working alongside the existing management team of Iain McIntosh and Alex Temple.
Meanwhile, Francesca Perer becomes a senior architect and Siobhan Murray a senior designer at the Glasgow-based firm.
Stephen Mallon, director of Mosaic, said: “We’re delighted to announce this raft of promotions across all levels of the business and a range of specialisms as a reward for the tremendous contribution made by all six staff members over recent years.
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