Mr John Gormley, T.D., Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, today (18 June 2010) officially opened his Department’s new office on the Newtown Road in Wexford.

There are now almost 200 staff working in the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government’s Wexford office, with more due to arrive in the coming months. The impact of this number of staff now living and working in Wexford will have a beneficial effect on the local economy. All Divisions of the Department are represented in the Wexford office and many of the Department’s priority policies are being delivered from this office. The Minister praised the commitment, energy and enthusiasm of the staff working in the new building and wished them continued enjoyment of the very positive working environment provided by the new office.

The building of six and half thousand square metres is situated overlooking the Slaney estuary on the outskirts of Wexford town. The building was commissioned by the Office of Public Works and was designed by Scott Tallon Walker Architects and built by Pierse Contracting.

The  building is designed and built to be a sustainable building for the 21st century. It incorporates  many environmentally friendly features. It has high levels of natural daylight and natural ventilation. Its high performance glazing helps to retain heat in the winter and reduce solar gain in summer. Other environmental measures include intelligent lighting systems to reduce energy wastage, high insulation standards, water conservation measures including reducing rainfall runoff with a sedum roof and reinforced grass car parking.

Minister Gormley said “High quality architecture and urban design have a real place in the pursuit of sustainability. I believe this building shows how we get it right when we invest in good quality design and high building standards. “
 

Sustainability was a key driver in determining all aspects of the building design and influenced the decision making process at every stage in both design and construction of this office.

Posted June 2010 (extracted from Department of Environment Website

As part of the MPFI Consortium, Pierse are delighted to announce the signing of the contract for the Schools Bundle 2 PPP. Pierse will be the design and build contractor on the schools in Bantry, Athboy and Kildare.

Extracted from the Department of Education and Science Website, 02 June, 2010:

Tánaiste announces signing of contract for six new schools                    

School places to be provided for 4,700 pupils under PPP programme

Tánaiste & Minister for Education and Skills Mary Coughlan T.D. today announced that the contract for the provision of six new schools had been signed with Macquarie Partnerships for Ireland (MPFI). These six schools will provide places for over 4,700 pupils and make up the second bundle of PPP schools projects to be delivered under the Department's Public Private Partnership (PPP) Programme.
 
Under the PPP model, the schools will be designed, built, financed and maintained for 25 years by MPFI.

"I am conscious of the importance of this project to the schools and to the construction industry at this particular time and I am delighted to announce that the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) has today signed the contract with MPFI and that construction will commence immediately. The six new schools will be available by the end of 2011," said the Tánaiste.

The six schools in the second bundle are:

• Bantry Community College, Co. Cork.  An amalgamation of St. Goban's College and Ard Scoil Phobail to provide 700 pupil places.
• Gaelscoil Bheanntraí, Co. Cork. A new eight classroom primary school to provide permanent accommodation for the Gaelscoil established in 1994 and provides 200 pupil places.
• Kildare Town Community School, Co. Kildare. An amalgamation of St. Joseph's Academy, Presentation Secondary School and Vocational School to provide 1000 pupil places.
• Abbeyfeale Community College, Co. Limerick. An amalgamation of St. Ita's College, St. Joseph's Secondary School and Vocational School to provide 850 pupil places .
• Wicklow Town Community College, Co. Wicklow. An amalgamation of Abbey Vocational School and De La Salle Secondary School to provide 1000 pupil places.
• Athboy Community School, Co. Meath. An amalgamation of St. Joseph's Secondary School & St. James' Vocational School to provide 950 pupil places.

"The new schools in Bantry will be built on one site while retaining their separate identities." explained the Tánaiste.

"For the five post-primary schools today's announcement should be regarded by the schools concerned as an affirmation of the work they did in agreeing to consolidate provision. In each location the new school will ensure the students in those centres will be able to access a broad subject range," added the Tánaiste.

The Tánaiste said that staff and students in all six schools can look forward to using the most up-to-date designs and facilities. The PPP model allows the schools' management and staff to concentrate on their core educational duties and it is a particularly attractive feature of the process.

As well as providing new accommodation the facilities will be maintained by MPFI for 25 years. Under the PPP process, MPFI will provide a range of facilities, management services including building maintenance, cleaning, security, grounds maintenance and specialist equipment support. The principle of 'everything works' applies under the PPP process - classrooms, laboratories, specialist equipment, heating and lighting all have to be available every day.
 
The six schools have been designed by domestic design consultants and are to be constructed by Pierse Contracting and John Sisk & Son Ltd, two of Ireland's principal construction companies. The construction period will be approximately 18 months, during which time in excess of 1,000 construction workers will be employed across the project sites. 

The Tánaiste paid tribute to all those involved in bringing the project to this stage and in particular to the management and principals of the schools, for their support of the PPP process. She also acknowledged the work of her Department's staff and the staff of the NDFA who are responsible for the procurement and delivery of the six schools. 

Brian Murphy, C.E.O. of the NDFA noted that this signing marks an important milestone in the delivery of the Schools PPP Programme. He also welcomed the support of the European Investment Bank for this project.

Posted 3 June 2010

Please click on the below link for updates and contacts details in relation to the Motorway Service Areas Projects underway on the M1 and M4 by the Superstop Consortium.

www.superstop.ie

The Motorway Service Areas (Tranche 1) have been shortlisted for the Best International Project at the Public Private Finance Awards being held in London this year. Pierse is currently constructing these motorway Service Areas and is a partner of the Superstop Consortium.

Posted: May 2010