Contractors keen to win work on the landmark £121m RAF Lyneham military training centre development in Wiltshire are being invited attend a free one-day promotional event next Tuesday, 18 March.
The first phase of the project, to create the UK’s first combined armed forces training centre on the former airbase, will be carried out by Hercules, a 50:50 joint venture between Balfour Beatty and Kier Construction for the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), which manages and maintains land and property for the MOD.
Next week’s “meet the buyers” event, hosted by construction pre-qualification service Constructionline at The Wiltshire Golf Club in Swindon, is intended to help Hercules develop a local supply chain to deliver the project, which includes elements of newbuild and refurbishment, demolition, infrastructure works and M&E.
The event will provide an opportunity for potential supply chain partners to find out about the planned works and selection criteria to qualify to bid for work.
"It can be challenging for local construction companies to get involved in projects on their doorsteps. It is great to see Hercules sourcing local subcontractors, suppliers and trades people on such a high profile scheme and supporting the local economy."
Claire Makin, Constructionline
The completed building will provide training facilities for all three armed forces in one location, bringing together more than 1,100 trainees and 800 staff from the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force. It will include new single-living accommodation for military trainees, purpose-built enhanced training facilities, including a large outdoor training area, and a museum dedicated to the Corps of Royal Electrical & Mechanical Engineers.
Claire Makin, business development manager at Constructionline said: “It can be challenging for local construction companies to get involved in projects on their doorsteps. For this reason, it is great to see Hercules sourcing local subcontractors, suppliers and trades people on such a high profile scheme and supporting the local economy.”
The first phase of the project is scheduled to start early next year, and will be completed by the autumn of 2015. It will involve the refurbishment of roughly 73,000 sq m of existing building stock, about 56,000 sq m of newbuild, infrastructure works including utilities, drainage, roads, car parks, M&E and security, plus development of external and internal training areas, sports pitches, vehicle recovery training facility and soft landscaping.
Hercules has committed to working with the Forces Career Transition Partnership, which helps ex-services personnel secure permanent work, as well as Enterprise Works, a Swindon-based organisation that helps injured ex-services personnel get employment. At construction peak, the project will employ 900 people.
