Briefing: Making soldiers’ lives better

The use of modular accommodation has been one of the key factors in the success of the UK Ministry of Defence’s private finance initiative infrastructure project, Allenby/Connaught. The contract, which was awarded in March 2006 to Aspire Defence, a joint venture between Carillion plc and KBR Ltd, is for a contract period of 35 years and provides high-quality, modern living, leisure and working accommodation across the garrisons of Salisbury Plain and Aldershot. It is aimed at improving the quality of life for the military personnel based there, or, simply put, ‘making’soldiers’ lives better’. The work includes the construction or refurbishment of 550 buildings of which 368 are new. Of these, 254 are modular single living accommodation blocks and the remainder are steel-frame-constructed administrative or technical buildings. Completed buildings are being handed over at a rate in excess of one a week over the 8 years of the construction programme.