KIER Group has highlighted the strong pipeline of working flowing from its construction division in Scotland as the listed infrastructure giant booked a nine per cent rise in underlying profits to £137 million – ahead of forecasts.

Kier Construction Scotland, which turns over around £150m from its operations in Scotland and the North of England, flagged a raft of contract wins on procurement frameworks, spanning health, education, the heritage sector and work for the Ministry of Defence.

It came after first half which saw Kier complete the £43m William McIlvanney Campus for East Ayrshire Council, under the hub South West Scotland procurement framework, and continue work on long-running projects such as the refurbishment of the historic Aberdeen Music Hall.

The company is on site at the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, which is undergoing a £66m refurbishment. The initial phase has seen the company remove non-load-bearing fittings before the wider refurbishment takes place, with the project due to complete in 2020.

Kier in Scotland has also been appointed to the £19.4m refurbishment of the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow and will shortly complete projects for the University of Edinburgh, namely Murchison House on the King’s Buildings Campus and the College of Art.

The update came shortly after Kier Construction Scotland, which employs around 220 staff, severed its contract with Glasgow School of Art in June. It had been the main contractor on the restoration of the Mackintosh Building after it was hit by fire in 2014, and had made significant progress on the project before the school was hit by a second blaze in June.

Brian McQuade of Kier Construction Scotland, said: “In Scotland, Kier has secured a solid stream of new business wins. We have also strengthened our healthcare portfolio with a number of recent wins, including a £6m refurbishment programme at Royal Cornhill Hospital in Aberdeen and Dr Gray’s hospital in Elgin.”