Fyrish and Loch Buidhe projects recognised at national awards

Gold and silver awards were presented to two projects being delivered by the transmission business of Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) at this year’s Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS) Awards ceremony on Monday.

Fyrish, a new substation near Alness received the highest accolade of a  gold award whilst Loch Buidhe substation, near Bonar Bridge was awarded silver. Both of the sites form part of the Caithness-Moray scheme and represent £146m of investment in the transmission network by SSEN.

The annual awards recognise the highest levels of consideration and care demonstrated by construction sites towards their local neighbourhoods, the general public, their workforce and the environment. They are judged by scheme monitors who visit the site and rate performance against the Code of Considerate Practice.

The Fyrish and Loch Buidhe teams introduced several initiatives to go the extra mile and achieve sites recognised as “exceptional” by the CCS Assessors.  The initiatives deployed by the project teams include installing electrical vehicle charging points, gritting local public roads, providing a staff library and hosting nature walks with the local communities. Healthy living campaigns were also conducted to add to the staff welfare provided at the remote sites in the north of Scotland.

Lead Project Manager Daryn Lucas said: “This is an outstanding achievement for the Loch Buidhe and Fyrish projects teams who have been working in remote and challenging conditions.

“As a responsible developer, we try to work actively with local communities to show care for the environment where we are working and to minimise disruption and support long term economic benefits.

“We place workforce safety and welfare above all else and this has been recognised by the CCS Assessors at both sites. It is also pleasing to see our efforts to protect the environment recognised, particularly at Loch Buidhe which is within a European designated protected area.”

Construction at the sites is being undertaken by Siemens-BAM as the Principal Contractor and both sites will be completed by July 2018.