The 10-year framework deal is expected to deliver 拢4.5bn-worth of highways work, installing variable message board gantries and removing motorway hard shoulders to install all-lane running.
The alliance comprises, in old fashioned terms, a project manager in overall charge, three contractors and two consulting engineers.
In modern parlance, however, they are described as production management partners, on-site assembly partners and digitally enabled design partners.
The project manager/production manager, who will lead and coordinate the alliance members, is Fluor 鈥� a US firm (with $19bn annual revenues) better known in the UK for its work in the petrochemcial and energy sectors.
Fluor previously led the National Roads Telecommunications Services project for Highways England, a 10-year public-private partnership (PPP) to put in the roadside communication technology that links to the national traffic control and police control centres.
The three contractors/assemblers are Costain, Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering and BAM Nuttall/ Morgan Sindall Joint Venture.
The consulting engineers/digitally enabled designers are WSP and Jacobs.
The smart motorway programme was recently paused for a few weeks while the safety of existing stretches was re-assessed, following a revelatory BBC Panorama documentary. [See our previous report here.]
Highways England said that the alliance will start with a two-week initiation phase within the next couple of months. During this phase of mobilisation of the alliance the partners will come together to establish how they will best work together.聽
A Highways England spokesperson said: 聽鈥淭oday鈥檚 announcement marks the start of a pioneering new approach to how Highways England does business. The 10-year framework will see us join forces with six partners to safely deliver a key element of the government鈥檚 second road investment strategy.
鈥淭he framework will enable the industry to put greater emphasis on the standardised design, so where there are common elements across a programme, such as gantries and variable message signs, they can be produced and can be ordered 鈥榦ff the shelf鈥�.聽
鈥淏y establishing this building block approach to road building, the intention is to transform productivity by increase efficiencies and decrease overall costs.鈥�
Costain chief executive Alex Vaughan said: "This programme approach seeks a step change in delivery performance.鈥�
Got a story? Email news@theconstructionindex.co.uk
