GRAHAM is part of a consortium which has won a £320m DBFO project in Scotland.
Dunmurry based Farrans Construction and GRAHAM are part of The Highway Management (Scotland) Ltd consortium, also comprising Bilfinger Berger, which has reached financial close on Transport Scotland’s M80 Stepps to Haggs project. The contract, secured by the Highway Management Group, is one of the largest Scottish construction projects to date. The project involves the construction of 18km of dual two/three lane motorway with associated slip roads and infrastructure from Stepps in North Lanarkshire to Haggs in Falkirk.
Farrans Joint Managing Director, Eamonn Sweeney said “This is one of the largest road projects ever to be let in Scotland and the involvement of two of Northern Ireland’s premier contractors is yet another example of the level of expertise available in the Province to construct projects of international standards.”
Mr Sweeney continued: “This is without a doubt a very difficult time for the whole industry, and therefore we are very pleased that by winning a contract of this scale, we have been able to secure in excess of 100 Northern Ireland construction jobs.”
Leo Martin, Operations Director (Civils), GRAHAM, reinforced that sentiment by adding ‘’Following on from the success of the Westlink project, this is an excellent opportunity for GRAHAM and Farrans to continue their close partnership with Bilfinger Berger, to pool our knowledge and resources, and to demonstrate that we in Northern Ireland possess skills and expertise that are as good as any in the business.’’
Martin Pugh, Managing Director at Bilfinger commented:
“Tremendous effort has been demonstrated by all those involved, to achieve financial close in challenging times is something we can all be proud of. I would like to thank the team for their tenacity and hard work. HMG is providing a high quality solution for Transport Scotland, which incorporates innovation in design and delivery solutions, including phasing of the works to allow each section of the motorway to open as early as possible. We are very much looking forward to working further with Transport Scotland in the coming years.”
Transport Minister for Scotland, Stewart Stevenson said:
“The Scottish Government is absolutely clear that an efficient transport system is essential for enhancing productivity and delivering faster, more sustainable growth. This project is another example of how our continuing investment is helping the hard pressed construction sector, creating hundreds of construction jobs. It will also complete the missing gap between Stirling and Glasgow bringing real benefits to the surrounding communities and across the central belt as a whole.”
The 18km motorway project includes:
8km new dual two-lane carriageway and hard shoulders between Stepps and Mollinsburn.
2.7km on the existing A80 road upgraded to dual three-lane motorway between Mollinsburn and Auchenkilns.
7.3km on the existing A80 upgraded to dual two-lane motorway between Auchenkilns to Haggs with hard shoulders and climbing lanes.
The scheme will provide a significant reduction in congestion for road users when it opens in terms of improved journey times and reliability. In the opening year, the decrease in travel time will amount to approximately 40% between Stepps and Haggs during peak periods which equates to savings of up to 15 minutes. Beyond this, the scheme will continue to offer greater operational benefits than if it is not constructed. For example, risk of accidents will be reduced; creation of jobs and accessibility to freight deliveries will be improved.
Early preparatory works have already started along the route and construction will begin immediately for the motorway to be fully opened in 2011.
Pictured above at the Stockmans Lane flyover are (L-R) HMC Directors, Eamon Sweeney and Leo Martin