Company News INFRASTRUCTURE SPECIALIST MAGDALENE AWARDED NEW FRAMEWORK Infrastructure specialist Magdalene has been selected as a supplier for Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) Design & Build Telecommunications Infrastructure Services Framework. Magdalene, a leading UK technology solutions specialist and a part of M Group Services, have recently been awarded a framework contract to provide design and project delivery services linked with the ongoing upgrade of SSEN’s Transmission and Distribution telecommunications network infrastructure which extends across North of Scotland, Scottish Islands, as well as central southern England. Magdalene will undertake a range of activities linked with the delivery of SSEN’s Operational Telecommunication capital build programme which will encompass design, multi-vendor equipment supply, fibre and cabling infrastructure renewal works and communications network implementation. The framework contract will support SSEN Transmission’s RIIO-T2 planned communication upgrade programme. In addition, the contract will be supporting the remaining RIIOED1 investment period as well as the forthcoming RIIO-ED2 investment period for SSEN’s two distribution businesses in the north of Scotland and central southern England.
Could an R&D claim put a halt to financial challenges for construction businesses?
KIER APPOINTED BY NETWORK RAIL TO DELIVER THE NEXT STAGE OF £65M IMPROVEMENT PROJECT AT OXFORD RAILWAY STATION Kier has been appointed by Network Rail to deliver the detailed design and enabling works package at Oxford railway station, as part of the Oxford Corridor Phase 2 Project. Kier has secured the contract to take Phase 2C and 2D of the project through Governance for Railway Investment Projects (GRIP) Stage 5 ahead of the final funding decision by the Department for Transport, which is expected in the coming months. Phase 2C Botley Road enhancement includes the replacement of the existing railway bridge spanning Botley Road with a new, wider structure which will incorporate 4-metre-wide cycle/footways on either side of the road. Highway lowering and realignment will provide additional height clearance resulting in double-decker buses being able to comfortably pass underneath the bridge for the first time. This will also see the replacement of the existing footbridge.
Companies within the construction industry are still navigating a perfect storm of rising overheads and continued disruption to global trade patterns. The price of materials rose steadily last year and the cost of living, fuel and energy prices have rocketed to an all-time high in 2022.
Phase 2D platform 5 and station improvement works will involve the construction of an additional platform and overhead canopy, a new western station entrance, ticket office, waiting room, toilets, café and shops, alongside the construction of a subway to connect the western entrance to the new platform.
Research and Development Specialists Ltd (RDS) is an expert in helping companies navigate the government’s HMRC tax incentive. It believes that many more construction firms could be eligible to claim.
The package includes the demolition of buildings surrounding the station, and road alignment works at Roger Dudman Way, including the replacement of Sheepwash Bridge, to improve safety at the junction with Botley Road.
RDS has already helped to recover around £2.1million solely for 27 construction industry clients. The average R&D claim is around £53,000, a sum that could be even more valuable in the current economic backdrop. An initial fifteen-minute conversation is all it takes.
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28 Construction UK Magazine - April 2022
Artist impression of the new western entrance to Oxford Station (© Network Rail).
