Sustainability Case Studies

A leading bank

REMOTE CONTROL FIT-OUT

Focus: Consolidation centre efficiencies

Completing major fit-outs in the midst of a busy urban environment can be a tricky business. A constrained site, bordered on all sides by busy roads and hordes of passers-by makes delivering, unloading materials and equipment difficult and occasionally dangerous but how can you reduce these challenges?

During a recent major project in central London for a major banking group posed just these problems. Two nine storey office buildings required a fit-out that included AV suites, a restaurant, kitchens, office space, reception and an external roof terrace but their location posed serious logistical challenges. The answer, a remote consolidation centre, where all Overbury's and its sub-contractors' materials could be delivered, inspected, sorted and bundled ready for specially scheduled delivery to site.

CONSOLIDATE TO SUCCEED

Project manager Jed Gardner says:

The consolidation centre was based out in Silvertown, East London. It provided good transport links with no need to drive through the city centre. All types of deliveries went there - from floor and ceiling tiles, M&E equipment, to carpets and decorator's materials, you name it - and they could turn up any time of day. If they had tried to do that at the site there would have been chaos in the surrounding streets and on the job.”

Instead, once at the consolidation centre - a 5,570 sqm warehouse with a further 550 sqm of external storage space - materials for all trades were instantly off-loaded, logged into the computer and inspected by the logistics coordination team. This safe storage method also means that insurance against breakages is available, something difficult to do if materials are delivered to a building site.

DELIVERING THE GOODS

But the materials still have to be delivered to site. This is done by a specialist sub-contractor in coordination with the contractors. Gardner says:

Each week the contractors have to specify what equipment they'll need, where it has to be and when it needs to be there. The logistics team creates mixed loads of materials, delivers them to the job and to exactly where they are required on-site just in time for them to be used.”

This seemingly simple idea reduces the amount of vehicles travelling to site by a whopping 68%. It offers a 95% improvement in delivery performance - the right materials getting to the right place at the right time - and increases site productivity by around 47%.

SUBBIES SIGN-UP

Gardner says:

This is the first time we had used a consolidation centre, and I was sceptical at the start. However, after we'd explained it to the subbies, got their sign-up and set up weekly meetings to plan work and material required, it soon became apparent that this system is really efficient.

There was far less damage to materials on-site and it enabled us to keep track of exactly what had been delivered to the consolidation centre and to site, so subbies couldn't pull the wool over our eyes. It also prompted better planning because everyone had to schedule deliveries in advance, so defining their work pattern in accordance with other trades.”

The proof was in the pudding, as they say, and this method of working was estimated to have reduced materials wasted through damage by 15%. It also cut the calculated carbon emissions of vehicles delivering to site by 75%, providing the desired environmental benefit as well as productivity improvements. Overbury, its sub-contractors and the client were all-round winners it seems. So were there any drawbacks? Gardner says:

There is an extra cost for the consolidation centre, for renting a site and paying for the logistics service but I believe it more than pays for itself in terms of time savings, productivity, reduction in damage and waste, and environmental efficiencies. The consolidation centre is something that could and should be used on future tight city centre projects; it just makes sense.”