New training facility for Army Engineers

A new engineering training facility has been completed by The Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) at MOD Lyneham.

The two-year project has been completed with Contractor Hercules (a 50:50 joint venture between Kier Group and Balfour Beatty), and has transformed the former RAF base into a new training facility for the Army’s Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME).

The £121M project is part of a £230M investment in redeveloping the site.

Other projects on going at Lyneham include new and refurbished Single Living Accommodation for trainees, purpose-built enhanced training facilities such as: classrooms, training suites, a large outdoor training area, a medical and dental centre, a gymnasium, outdoor sports facilities, refurbished offices, a refurbished Sergeants’ and Officers’ Mess with a new extension and REME’s new regimental museum, developed in the Old Officers’ Mess.

Some 60,000sq m of new buildings have been constructed and 65,000sq m refurbished.

DIO lead project manager Graeme Wildridge said: “This is a significant milestone in the delivery of the new REME facility at Lyneham. This project is a fantastic example of how DIO is supporting our Armed Forces by providing the right facilities in the right place to meet their needs. The close working relationships and team effort between all those involved within this project has resulted in the successful handover of facilities.”

DIO Director of Projects and Programme Delivery Air Vice-Marshal Elaine West visited the new facility and said: “MOD Lyneham will be a fantastic place to train our Military personnel. The new facilities will enable REME to come together in one location. We’re all proud of the contribution we’re making to the Armed Forces – DIO’s purpose is to support the Armed Forces by providing what they need to live, work and train, and this project ticks all three boxes in one development.”

Roger Frost, Project Director for Hercules, said: “We are delighted to have worked on such a high profile major project for DIO.

“The scale of the 93-week construction project, which spans a 1,200 acre site and has employed over 1,400 individuals at construction peak and 40 local companies during its lifetime, should not be underestimated – it reflects Balfour Beatty and Kier’s reputation for safely delivering high-quality, sustainable solutions.”

Hercules worked with the Forces Career Transition Partnership, which assists military personnel to secure permanent work on completion of their service, and Enterprise Works, a Swindon-based organisation which supports individuals with a disability, specifically injured ex-services personnel, to secure employment.

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