This week, we’re celebrating MAKAR, pioneers in sustainable off-site construction, who are helping to tackle Scotland’s housing and climate challenges with innovative, timber-rich homes built right here in the Highlands – read more below:
Established in 2002, MAKAR has been at the forefront of sustainable construction in Scotland for over two decades. They have successfully delivered over 250 of the UK’s most innovative net-zero ecological buildings and timber-rich homes. MAKAR’s expertise lies in crafting healthy, energy-efficient timber-rich homes, including an affordable terraced home product designed to accommodate a growing workforce. This scalable solution addresses both Scotland’s housing crisis and the pressing climate emergency. By focusing on locally sourced natural materials and employing advanced off-site manufacturing techniques, they champion an approach now widely recognised as essential for achieving net-zero buildings.
Meet Scott Reid, leading on Design and Business Development at MAKAR.
“Coming from a family construction background, I went on to study architecture before joining MAKAR in 2004. Early on, I focused on developing off-site construction methods—an approach that was sometimes seen as unconventional. Two decades later, its significant environmental benefits are widely recognised as the future of housing and the built environment.
Throughout my time at MAKAR, I’ve taken on various roles as we’ve refined our system to the high standard it is today. Now, at the forefront of sustainable housebuilding in Scotland, we’re proud of the impact we’re making.”
We are proud to share that MAKAR has been recognised for their commitment to sustainable construction and design excellence. Their projects have received accolades for innovation in net-zero building practices and contributions to ecological architecture.
By highlighting the business through the ICC, MAKAR hope to engage with these organisations to collaboratively tackle Scotland’s housing crisis. Their goal is to ensure people live in healthy, beautiful, toxin-free, and affordable homes. A significant advantage for these businesses is the net-zero emissions from the construction of these homes, aiding organisations in their journey to reduce emissions and environmental impact.
In response to Scotland’s housing crisis, MAKAR have diversified their product range. Alongside their established Example Home designs and commercial buildings, they’ve introduced affordable homes. This strategic shift required some restructuring and a renewed focus that has ensured the MAKAR team is fully equipped to deliver these new houses. They are now well-positioned to provide these net-zero homes, aiming to support Scotland’s expanding rural workforce. It’s an exciting place to be.
Over the next year, MAKAR plan to scale production of affordable homes alongside their popular Example Home range. They aim to partner with forward-thinking businesses, councils and organisations to demonstrate that affordable homes can and should be inspiring and healthy places to live, designed with community prosperity in mind.
MAKAR’s pioneering off-site construction methods and swift assembly times enable these homes to be scaled across Scotland, meeting the needs of a growing workforce amidst a national housing emergency, without compromising on design, beauty, energy efficiency, or health.
MAKAR are also excited to promote their energy-efficient terraced homes. These residences are inspiring places to live, offering superior energy efficiency and significantly reduced running costs compared to standard terraced houses.
Through the off-site construction process, these homes can be assembled quickly, in just 10 weeks, from groundworks to assembly and external finishing.
Constructed from natural materials, these healthy affordable homes can be built to Passivhaus standards, sequestering and storing more carbon than they emit. Importantly, all this is achievable while adhering to stringent affordable housing cost benchmarks.
As a new member, MAKAR are just getting started with the Chamber and it’s networking events and are keen to get involved.
Scott notes that, “through our membership, we’ve learnt that collaboration can lead to innovative solutions to shared challenges, so we greatly value the opportunities to connect with local organisations with similar outlooks if any members are interested in home building in the Highlands, we’d love to connect!
You can reach me, Scott, at scott@makar.co.uk”.