More For Less
12 July 2010
In a tough financial climate, UK councils want a 'more for
less' search for improvements. For contractors such as
Costain, with innovation to the fore, this is presenting
opportunities.
Area councils are currently looking at their
infrastructure budgets to save money. Traditionally, highways
maintenance contracts run for five years with options to extend and
the easy option for councils is simply to extend existing
arrangements, says Costain's new Highways Maintenance Services
Director, Chris Tyerman.
Now, however, they are responding to impending cuts in their
grants by going out to tender on these maintenance contracts, in
the search for cost-effective solutions to their funding problems,
through innovative delivery of their highways maintenance
services.
"There are very good prospects in this sector," says Chris, who
was previously Deputy Managing Director of Community. "The simple
fact is that once you've got an asset you have to maintain it and
to maintain it needs investment, good management and a good process
of risk and asset management."
His newly-created role takes account of two facts: that Costain
wants to push further into the £1billion annual highways
maintenance sector, which will require some dedicated resources;
plus the Group's existing workload in this field, which has reached
a critical mass and now needs someone to look after it.
Chris will take this piece of work off the desk of Highways
Sector Director, Tim Bowen.
"We already have three Managing Agent maintenance contracts with
one of our key Customers, the Highways Agency - MAC 7 in East
Midlands, MAC 10 in Greater Manchester, Merseyside and
Cheshire, MAC 12 covering Yorkshire and, from 1 July, MAC 14 for
Durham and Northumberland," says Chris. "I'm also responsible for
other capital works framework contracts such as East and
South-East, and the Midlands."
Just 12 months ago, he reckoned that two or three highways
maintenance contracts would come up for re-tender this year. Now,
it looks as though 15 to 25 will be up for grabs over the next 12
months as councils seek a better deal from suppliers to cope with
their financial constraints.
Costain will seriously consider around five of them, he
believes: "It's a great opportunity for us."
Ends