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Wednesday 21 Jul 2010

NETWORK RAIL ANNOUNCES KEY CONTRACT FOR MK NATIONAL CENTRE

Region & Route:

| North West & Central

Work to begin next month after construction contract is awarded

Network Rail’s plans to bring up to 3,000 employees together under one eco-friendly roof took a huge step forward as BAM Construction was awarded the main contract to build the company’s new National Centre in Milton Keynes.

The National Centre is expected to save Network Rail millions of pounds as the amount of office space it rents at a number of locations across the country will be greatly reduced. Bringing together national functions in one place will also improve teamwork and planning and help support Network Rail’s route and area teams based in places like Manchester, Swindon, York and London.

The 400,000 sq ft building is being constructed on the site of the former National Hockey Stadium, revitalising an underused corner of Central Milton Keynes and bringing valuable new jobs to the local economy. Network Rail already has several hundred staff at its offices close to the station, many of whom have been recruited from the local area.

Network Rail’s chief executive Iain Coucher said: “Now that we have BAM Construction on board, building work can begin next month to bring our new National Centre to Milton Keynes.

“Once completed, the new National Centre will, for the first time, unite many of our national teams and functions under one roof, helping us to work more effectively together in meeting the challenges of delivering a better, more efficient railway for passengers and freight.”

Nigel Comben, Director of BAM Construction in the South East, said: “This is an ambitious and exciting project with a premier client in Network Rail, to be constructed in a location of importance. BAM Construction is delighted to have been selected to deliver this fantastic facility for Network Rail.

“We will bring to it the same attention to detail and thoughtful approach to the construction as our other major projects in Milton Keynes and indeed for the local community. Network Rail is a very important client for BAM and we look forward to enhancing that relationship through this project.”

Eco-friendly

The National Centre is being constructed with sustainability in mind and the development has been awarded a BREEAM Excellent design stage rating, underlining the building’s environmental credentials.

The building will take advantage of a range of measures designed to regulate temperature and reduce energy use, including optimising the building’s orientation and facade, narrow floor plans, high overhanging soffits to provide shade and natural ventilation which are all complemented by very high efficiency, low carbon systems. 

Other eco-friendly features include extensive ‘living roofs’ which will encourage diverse habitats for flora and fauna in the centre of the city and a rainwater harvesting system which will be used to flush toilets and irrigate landscaping.

A number of suggestions put forward by local residents during public consultation events in 2009 were also incorporated into the design, including recharging points for electric vehicles and an allotment on site for fruit and vegetables.

Network Rail has salvaged a range of materials from the National Hockey Stadium which used to occupy the site ready to be recycled and will source as much material as locally as possible to help limit the number of lorries and further reduce the development’s carbon footprint.

Mr Coucher continued: “As one of the most sustainable methods of travel, rail has a big role to play in the low carbon economy of the future and our plans for the National Centre demonstrate our commitment to reduce our environmental impact at every turn. We recognise the importance of urban planning to the history of Milton Keynes and the way the city has been designed. Our building will be one of which both the city and Network Rail can be proud.”