Inbox

Balfour Beatty starts building Dundee station concourse

Balfour Beatty has started work on the new Dundee station concourse after bagging the £28m contract in late August.

The new station building will replace the former concourse and was redesigned to create a new landmark within the Central Waterfront development.

The project includes the new passenger concourse, ticketing facilities, a restaurant and retail space, as well as new 120 bedroom hotel being accommodated on three floors above the concourse.

Hector MacAulay, Balfour Beatty’s managing director for the east of Scotland, said: “Following on from our recently completed New Olympia Pool and Leisure Centre in East Marketgait, this is a key project in the exciting programme to regenerate the Waterfront in Dundee.

“We are particularly pleased to be able to work with the council to generate significant community involvement in the construction phase through local employment and apprenticeships, which will deliver sustainable benefit to the city in the long term.”

Ken Guild, leader of the Dundee City Council, said the work will bring more than 120 construction jobs per year during the two-year building timeframe, with almost £12m of gross added value to the local economy and knock-on benefits to the local supply chain.

The contractor scooped the award despite bidding a more expensive option than the client’s original estimate, largely because of a lack of competition in the marketplace at the moment, where there is a risk-averse approach to rail-related projects.

The company submitted the lowest tender to the city council, but still £7m over the initial pre-tender estimate, and received the highest quality score for its bid, including its commitment to create local jobs.

The project dug into funding identified in the council’s capital plan in order to support higher prices, given that it was classed as ‘vital’ due to its wide-reaching community and infrastructure benefits.