DIO awards SFA contracts to Vivo, Amey and Pinnacle for FDIS

Image courtesy Serco

The four new regional accommodation contracts will cover the maintenance of properties across the UK, including plumbing, electrical works, repair services and the maintenance support helpline.

The contracts will create and sustain thousands of jobs across the UK supply chain and service family accommodation sites including Portsmouth, Marham, Aldershot, Edinburgh and Cumbria which are all set to benefit from it.

The seven-year contracts have been awarded to:

• Amey Community Ltd: £84-million contract for the northern region of the UK including, Scotland, Northern Ireland and North Wales. Amey has also been awarded a £126-million contract for the central region of the UK, covering the Midlands and Mid and South Wales

• Vivo: Vivo Defence Services, a 50/50 Joint Venture between Serco and energy and services company Engie, was awarded a £148 million contract for the South East of England and an additional £148 million contract for the South West of England

In addition to the facilities work, military families will also profit from a new customer service centre acting as a single point of contact to streamline and resolve accommodation issues quicker. Pinnacle Group Ltd has won a £144 million contract to deliver these services.

Minister for Defence People and Veterans, Leo Docherty said: "Our military families are at the heart of the Armed Forces community and delivering high-quality accommodation services demonstrates how important they are to us.

"These new maintenance contracts, accompanied with a brand-new call centre, will deliver essential services to our world-class military and their families."

Announced by the Prime Minister last November, Defence has received an increase in funding of over £24 billion across the next four years. This investment reflects the MoD’s commitment to improving service accommodation and prioritising funding for critical infrastructure and services.

Air Commodore James Savage, DIO  Head of Accommodation, said:   "Accommodation is such an important part of family life for Servicemen and women, which is why we  collaborated closely with representatives of our Service personnel and their families to develop these contracts and ensure that their needs are fully considered.

"These new contracts offer the opportunity to break decisively from the past and to build on the commitments made by all suppliers to innovate and deliver more responsive and flexible services to the Armed Forces and their families."

The new contracts will require suppliers to work differently, such as fixing faults on an initial visit to a property and undertaking simple preventative maintenance while attending properties to reduce disruption to families.

The contracts ensure industry suppliers adopt and adhere to recognised industry standards for the allocation, management and maintenance of military homes, implementing robust mechanisms to address poor performance alongside incentives to exceed contracted standards.

In the last financial year, the DIO spent £160 million on major improvements and the modernisation of its housing stock. The new FDIS contracts will enhance this even further.

The accommodation services contracts follow the recent announcement of a £1.6 billion to deliver hard facilities management services across the UK Defence estate. The final phase of the FDIS programme will see a contract awarded for the management and maintenance of the UK Defence Training Estate. 

Colin Macpherson, Divisional CEO for Engie in the UK & Ireland, said: “By implementing smart and modern home technology, we plan to take a more proactive approach to maintenance, while encouraging open dialogue with families to offer peace of mind for all involved.

“Military families face many unique challenges, including uncertainty and separation. That unsurprisingly leads to greater levels of stress and anxiety. We have had extensive conversations with the DIO and service families and understand just how important a safe, secure, and stable home environment can be.

“Engie and Serco are both proud signatories of the Armed Forces covenant and are wholly committed to delivering a service that will not only support service families but alleviate any unnecessary pressures.”

Paul McCarter, Managing Director of Serco’s Defence business, said: “We are delighted that Vivo has been chosen by the MoD and the DIO to deliver improved accommodation maintenance services for the UK’s service personnel and their families.

“Vivo combines Serco’s deep understanding of the UK’s Defence requirements and experience of the public sector with the housing and FM expertise of Engie. We are excited to be working closely with the team at the DIO to deliver a step change in the maintenance of their accommodation.”

Earlier this month, Vivo was also awarded two of the four regions being tendered under Lot 3 of the FDIS programme, which supports the asset and facilities management requirements of the MoD’s built estate, with a potential total value of £3.4 billion.