Staffordshire County Council announce contractor for eco-development
Stoford Developments has appointed contractor VolkerFitzpatrick to design and build new cutting edge council offices for Staffordshire County Council, which are designed to become one of the most eco-friendly buildings in the UK.
The £23m contract for the four storey offices, which will sit at the heart of the on-going regeneration of the centre of Stafford, involves a reinforced concrete frame cast in-situ and features biomass boilers, up-flow ventilation, innovative acoustic and energy insulation, BREEAM Excellent and an EPC rating of A.
The office building has already been praised by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) for its community-centric design, which will bring together 17 council offices from across the town, housing 1,700 employees. Not only does the design provide improved access for pedestrians in the town centre through new hard and soft landscaping, but it will also improve access to council services.
Andrew Wilbram, regional director at VolkerFitzpatrick, said: "Not only is this an important scheme for Staffordshire County Council, it is also a scheme we are very proud to be involved with. Having recently completed our head office at VolkerFitzpatrick, which has reduced our carbon footprint by 70%, we are pleased to share this expertise with Staffordshire County Council to help achieve their sustainability ambitions."
Philip Atkins, Leader of Staffordshire County Council said: "We are delighted to announce the appointment of VolkerFitzpatrick. This follows an extremely competitive tendering process that will ensure the best value for money for Staffordshire taxpayers.
"This process has reduced construction costs by around £5 million. It will also deliver efficient accommodation that will provide the county council and the county's taxpayers with annual savings of around £250,000 per year. This compares to an annual cost of £500,000 for the proposals we inherited in June."
VolkerFitzpatrick is working in a project team with architects 3D Reid and engineering consultants Arup.
The civil engineering and building contractor won the contract from Stoford Developments on behalf of Staffordshire County Council and will start on site before the end of the year. The contract is expected to take 18 months to complete.