Main Contractor, Dairy Nexus

Dairying (dairy farming, milk processing and attendant supply industries) has been a major activity in the Borderlands for centuries, producing food, providing employment, creating wealth, sustaining communities, and shaping the physical environment. Now dairying is under threat. Slow productivity growth and volatile milk prices challenge the economic resilience of the sector. Concerns over environmental damage (most notably greenhouse gas emissions) and farming practices (e.g. antibiotic use and animal welfare), and the rise of dairy alternatives are coming together to challenge the future of dairying as we know it today Dairy Nexus will provide a flagship facility that re-positions the Borderlands at the forefront of industry-focused, rural co-innovation and knowledge exchange. It will drive transformational research and innovation to decarbonise the dairy sector and move it towards a circular bioeconomy. In doing so, Dairy Nexus will deliver significant and inclusive regional growth to underpin the rural communities that are so important to the Borderlands economy and its regional identity. The project forms part of the Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal and will be funded by SRUC, Scottish Government and UK Government as part of an GBP 8m investment.

The project is approaching the end of RIBA Stage 2 with initial planning discussions ongoing with Dumfries & Galloway council for the development of the new two storey, 1,095m² GIA building. To fulfil SRUC’s requirements, the building will comprise of the following:

• Co-innovation Hub with modern Knowledge Exchange facilities (linked electronically to other sites in the region) and co-working spaces
• “UK-first” Digital Twin of a dairy farm that will use cutting edge digital technologies to decarbonise forage-based dairy farming, safeguard animal health and wellbeing, accelerate productivity growth and optimise milk composition for the downstream dairy processing sector
• Modern biorefinery facilities for R&D around biorefining of manure, grass and milk, creating new value streams for dairy farming
• Modern milk technology laboratories for R&D aimed at maximising value and reducing energy consumption and waste in on-farm milk handling and storage.

The construction cost is anticipated to be approximately GBP 5.4million and the tender for the main contractor is intended to commence early 2023, following Final Business Case approval from Borderlands. The main contractor is intended to be appointed on a single stage design and build basis. It is intended that the contract will be awarded by mid-2023 and the works complete by mid-2024. A project bank account will be utilised for the main contractor and sub-contractors with a >1% share of the contract value.

SRUC are seeking to engage with Tier 1 contractors with experience in constructing net zero carbon multi-purpose buildings, including research spaces to gauge their interest in participating in the opportunity. A ‘meet the buyer’ meeting will be held via Teams to provide further information on the project Additional information: Indicative date for meet the buyer event

Week commencing 2 May 2022 to suit SRUC.

Contact details for registering interest:

Max Banks - [email protected]