The MOD has announced the four bidders short-listed for a major new contract to provide up to £500 million of Hard Facilities Management (Hard FM) to the Defence estate across Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The Regional Prime Scotland and Northern Ireland is the first of Defence Infrastructure Organisation's (DIO) four contracts to deliver maintenance and repairs at UK Defence bases from 2013.
The shortlisted bidders are: Carillion Enterprise Ltd; Interserve (Defence) Ltd; Babcock Support Services Ltd; and TurnerHenry.
The contract is currently estimated to be worth between £300 million and £500 million over a five-year period. It will also include options for estate management and maintenance of rural areas, and smaller construction projects.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can potentially benefit under the new arrangements by working closely as part of the successful bidder's supply chain.
Steve Rice, Head of DIO's Next Generation Estate Contracts (NGEC) Programme, said:
"DIO's top priority is to support our Armed Forces as they prepare for operations, but value for money must underpin everything we do for the Defence frontline. This requires closer collaborative business partnering in key regions like Scotland and Northern Ireland.
"We've received a strong response to this contract opportunity, and the evaluation of pre-qualification questionnaires has been intensive but thorough. The onus is now on finding the right industry partner for Scotland and Northern Ireland. I am delighted that we have a strong and competitive shortlist of bidders with whom to discuss our requirements."
DIO's Next Generation Estate Contracts (NGEC) team has used electronic tendering software to evaluate evidence of bidders' capacity and capability, submitted in pre-qualification questionnaires (PQQs). This included technical capability, health and safety, financial standing, quality assurance, environmental management, and equal opportunity and diversity.
John Brennan, DIO's contract project manager, said:
"This is a challenging area of the estate, requiring an innovative, flexible and value-driven partner, so we have worked exhaustively to ensure that every questionnaire is given consistent analysis, so that we leave no stone unturned."
The contract is expected to be in-service from early to mid 2013, replacing the current regional prime contract for Scotland and two separate 'term service' contracts for the estate in Northern Ireland.
Bidders will now be invited to participate in competitive dialogue, with a view to submitting their final 'tender solutions' from December 2011. It is expected that a preferred bidder will be announced by August 2012.
Developed under the NGEC programme, the Regional Prime Scotland and Northern Ireland is one of four such Regional Primes, the other three covering: North of England, Wales, the Midlands and East Anglia; Southwest England; and Southeast England. Industry will now be invited to submit expressions of interest in these three regional prime contracts later this year.
To help SMEs identify potential supply chain and subcontracting opportunities, the NGEC programme is publishing details of potential main and prime contractors in the online Potential Bidders Directory. To access the directory, please see related links.
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