Highways England goes live with new way of working

Highways England has introduced its new asset-led delivery model in the East Midlands that for the first time will see key asset management capability brought in-house.

The new method of work is now in action in Area 7 of the East Midlands as the previous managing agent contract in the area, held by A-one+, ended on 30 June.

Highways England will now take more ownership of investment decisions, increasing its intelligence on local factors that influence where work is needed and taking on board many roles not previously undertaken.

These include network occupancy, scheme identification and decision-making around incidents such as severe weather.

By taking an asset-led approach to maintenance and delivery Highways England will be able to take direct ownership of the aspects of delivery, which are key to performance, which will most directly affect customers and reputation.

Highways England expect by having direct control of investment decisions and increasing direct knowledge of the asset and the factors will see a cut in waste and inefficiency.

They will also seek to create new, collaborative and direct relationships with the supply chain community to target innovations in planning, scheduling and the methods employed to improve the quality and value for money of these services.

The asset-led delivery model will be rolled out in the South West (Areas 1 and 2) and either side of the Pennines (Areas 13 and 14) later this year.

In Areas 13 and 14, tenders have already been invited, with contracts set to go live from 1 April 2017. Tenders for the South West will be invited from mid-August, with contracts set to go live in July 2017.

Mike Wilson, Highways England Operations Director, said: “This is a massive achievement for Highway England. This new delivery model is symbolic of our commitment to continually driving improvement in how our roads are maintained, improved and operated, so that we can provide the best possible quality of service to our customers.

“We are looking forward to working collaboratively with our new colleagues from the supply chain over the coming months and years, and believe that this approach will benefit all parties, from the supply chain through to drivers on our roads.”

 

If you would like to read more articles like this then please click here

The post Highways England goes live with new way of working appeared first on UK Construction Online.