SCAPE SET TO CONNECT AT BUILDING FUTURE EDUCATION (BFE) EVENT

‘Connect,’ the UK’s first standardised fixed price schools extension will be launched in London at this week’s BFE exhibition, the country’s only dedicated event for the education space building sector.

The new product is being brought to the education market by Scape, Derbyshire County Council (DCC) and Faithful+Gould (F+G) and brings together the procurement and design expertise of all three organisations in one place.

Scape, the local authority controlled company that’s at the forefront of driving down UK public sector building procurement costs, has a proven track record in this sector. The firm is behind the award winning Sunesis initiative, which is successfully delivering Design Council endorsed standardised school building design and build programmes, saving clients time and money.

Steve Elkin, Scape Development Director, said: “Scape’s experience, alongside that of its partners, is second to none in terms of generating cost effective solutions for the public sector. ‘Connect’ takes this one stage further, and offers the price certainty of a modular construction approach but without losing the quality aspect that’s usually associated with a traditional, bespoke building scheme. That allows local authorities to plan programmes of work with absolute confidence from a cost perspective, which is critical when public sector budgets are being slashed.”

DCC is one of the first authorities looking to progress schemes using ‘Connect.’ That’s why it is working closely with Scape and is involved in showcasing the initiative at this high profile event.

As Sarah Morris, DCC Assistant Director of Property, explained: “Local Authorities have an obligation to maintain education standards, but that’s become a real challenge with the increased need for spaces coupled with the shortfall of money. Being able to provide something that is future proof with defined cost and time parameters will help us deliver financially without a compromise in quality.”

As well as being able to extend existing school buildings, ‘Connect’ is flexible enough in its design to meet changing space requirements in the future.

Shaun Lunn, F+G Director, added: “At the heart of the ‘Connect’ approach is some smart thinking. We use innovate construction techniques to provide a robust, high quality structure that extends space but that can also be adapted because there are no internal load-bearing walls. This is what all local authorities want – a strong and flexible solution. This is a great example of how the public and private sector can work together to address an issue, as the answer is always better than the one we would come up with on our own.”

Building Future Education (BFE) takes place on Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th May 2012 at the Business Design Centre in London. Scape, F+G and DCC representatives will be in Mezzanine 68.

‘Connect’ will also be on show at the Education Building and Development Officers Group (EBDOG) conference on Friday 11th May in Coventry.

ENDS

For more information about this press release, please contact Clare Farley or Kathryn Greenwood at Eden PR on 0115 958 8850 or email clare@edenpr.co.uk / kathryn@edenpr.co.uk

Scape is a local authority controlled company, based in Nottingham, whose shareholders are Derby City, Derbyshire County, Gateshead, Nottingham City, Nottinghamshire County and Warwickshire County Councils. The company’s objectives are to bring economy and efficiency to the whole building process - including for new buildings and refurbishment projects – and it achieves this through the development of standard designs and strategic procurement arrangements. www.scapebuild.co.uk

Derbyshire County Council is a unitary authority which has a property folio of 1,500 properties across the East Midlands. www.derbyshire.gov.uk

Faithful+Gould operates at the forefront of the transport, property and industry sectors and is one of the world's leading construction consultants providing project management and cost management. Using a flexible and multi-disciplinary approach, we provide an independent service in: construction consulting, construction project management, construction cost management and building surveying. www.fgould.com/uk