Pipe Center is delivering a major supply contract for Lorne Stewart as part of the final phase of a project to modernise accommodation for service personnel across the UK.

The project, which is said to be one of the largest newbuild and refurbishment schemes in the UK, is worth more than £1bn over 10 years.

Construction work started in 2003 and involves the upgrade and re-provision of bed spaces, together with utility and common areas and ancillary facilities across the country.

Lorne Stewart’s contract for the final phase of work will run for around 18 months. It includes refurbishment of accommodation facilities at a number of sites and draws on products from across Wolseley UK’s range.

Mechanical building services equipment and ancillaries will be supplied via strategically located Pipe Centre hub branches.

The agreement builds on the highly successful supply partnership established between Lorne Stewart and the distributor during earlier work on the same programme.

The contractor originally developed its one-stop-shop approach with Pipe Center for a project at Brize Norton. Instead of multiple suppliers delivering products and materials to site via fleets of vehicles, the approach provides a single vehicle with a consolidated delivery across all product sectors.

As well as big reductions in vehicle miles travelled, and resultant cuts in carbon emissions, the approach reduces road congestion, improves health and safety onsite and provides a single point of contact for invoicing and administration.

In addition, all packaging and waste material is removed from site for recycling, as part of an audited “total materials” approach.

Following the success of the trial, Lorne Stewart adopted the approach for the project roll-out nationally.

Ross Maynard, Lorne Stewart’s framework director, said: “It solves many of the problems the industry has traditionally wrestled with. As a result of the excellent collaboration with Wolseley UK, we have been able to dramatically reduce carbon and deliver genuine environmental benefits.

“There are many ‘sustainable’ initiatives in our sector. This one delivers concrete and measurable benefits that are both good for the environment and streamline the whole procurement and delivery process. The approach has proven itself, and is a huge step forward.”

Bill Freemantle, national sales manager at Pipe Center and Climate Center, said: “What makes the approach possible is that Wolseley UK’s brands share a common platform and logistics support, which means we can act as a single supplier across the breadth of our offering.

“It’s a unique proposition in the market, and delivers significant benefits in terms of business efficiency and environmental protection. We are very proud that the approach forged with Lorne Stewart has effectively created a new model for successful collaborative working for the rest of the industry.”