Growing trees: The secrets to delivering a benefits-led project successfully

The Newton Tree Nursery redevelopment in north eastern Scotland, which was delivered on time and on budget, was the culmination of a five year journey. Its success lies not only in what was delivered, but in how a great multidisciplinary team worked to clearly define benefits and maintain disciplined oversight throughout a long and complex life cycle.

Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) faced a clear national challenge. Scotland’s climate and biodiversity ambitions for woodland creation required far greater volumes of healthy, resilient trees, which existing tree nursery operations across the UK could not meet. Transplanting capacity was limited, and reliance on chemical treatments was increasingly unsustainable.

The strategic outline case set an ambitious response to produce more trees, more sustainably and at scale. Four key benefit measures were agreed:

Increase quantity of trees grown
Increase productivity of seeds
Improve working conditions
Reduce environmental impact

While the building itself had measurable specifications, these benefits guided decision-making, ensuring the design, procurement and operational choices reinforced outcomes that mattered most.

Success factors: Cost certainty, value engineering and the right team

Cost certainty was a key driver, championed by a strong senior responsible owner who held the line without stifling innovation. Value engineering ensured decisions did not compromise benefits. Items initially removed could be reinstated using confidence gained from disciplined budget and risk management.

When the main contractor was appointed, a collaborative ‘one team’ approach enabled problems to be overcome, and value engineered elements could be restored, all while remaining on budget.

Delivering these benefits required the FLS team to recognise this project was not a routine construction project nor a standard procurement exercise. It involved complex technology integration and multiple contracts across the UK and Europe. Specialist commercial, technical, legal and construction expertise was embedded in the team, strengthening FLS’s role as an intelligent client and enabling confident navigation of procurement and risk.

The role of innovation, governance and assurance

In parallel, a CivTech challenge (a Scottish government programme connecting public sector problems with tech innovators) developed a new mechanised tree growing system that accelerated seed germination, reduced chemical use and increased transplanting rates from 60,000 to one million trees per day.

The business case was built around this technology, which would triple germination rates. Procurement of Swedish machinery and artificial intelligence technology further automated the process of growing trees within the new glasshouse and ensured that the system was production ready within construction timescales.

Sustaining momentum over five years required strong and consistent leadership and project management with robust but adaptable governance. Scottish government independent assurance gateway reviews, aligned with RIBA work stages, tested delivery against rigorous criteria, provided independent insight and highlighted improvements.

The leadership team valued these reviews highly to make the project team stronger and guide decisions that kept the focus on benefits and outcomes.

Sustainability was embedded throughout. Advanced facilities included solar power, bio beds and boreholes, while local contractors and off site manufacture minimised transport emissions. Workforce wellbeing was actively monitored, reducing reported stress from 42% to 25%.

Impact and lessons

Annual production has risen from seven million to nineteen million trees, creating a resilient supply for decades to come. The project shows that, through project discipline, the ambition to transform decades old operational practices can be translated into operational reality, on time, on budget and with lasting impact.