It is inviting places across Britain to compete to host one of four new off-site logistics hubs. Suitable locations will have good connectivity, access to a relevant supply chain and strong local skills. The hubs are seen as the key to Heathrow’s plans for building as much off-site as possible, with the aim of making the project more affordable and environmentally sustainable while driving growth across Britain.
Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye announced that the airport would be making a major push to support more off-site construction in the UK. The announcement comes as new research from economic consultancy WPI Economics said that growth in the sector could lead to a £15bn boost for the construction industry outside London by 2020 alone.
The new logistics hubs will pre-assemble components of the expanded airport before transporting them in consolidated loads to Heathrow. One of the benefits is seen as spreading the jobs created by the project across more communities.
Holland-Kaye said: “The global construction industry is set to be worth £15 trillion by 2025 – that’s a huge prize that Britain deserves a bigger share of and Heathrow can help. We want to use Heathrow expansion to not only upgrade Britain’s infrastructure, but cultivate a new world-leading sector and drive growth across the whole country. Boosting off-site construction will help make expansion more affordable and environmentally friendly and give Britain a lasting legacy of expertise that it can sell around the world – helping Britain lead the pack in global construction.”
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