Thirteen civil engineering contractors have signed a £96m highway maintenance framework with the North East Procurement Organisation (NEPO).

NEPO, which represents 12 local authorities in the northeast, has put together the four-year framework in partnership with the North East Highways Alliance.

The collaborative agreement, which was led on behalf of NEPO by Darlington Borough Council, covers 16 specialist lots ranging from standard carriageway resurfacing to road markings.

A pipeline of works has been forecast from the local authorities planned maintenance programmes, worth £24m a year, with both direct awards and further competitions emerging in various package sizes. 

The contract will be delivered under the NEC3 Form of Contract and specific key performance indicators (KPIs) have been developed to deliver and monitor ‘social value’.

The contractors are:

• Bardon
• Colas
• Hanson
• Henry Williams
• Jointline
• JPCS
• Kiely Bros
• Miles Macadam
• Northumbrian Roads
• Rainton Construction
• Road Techs
• Tarmac
• Textone Blast.

Jeff Alexander, chair of Construction Alliance Northeast (CAN), an organisation which was recently formed to lobby for fairer procurement methods on behalf of its 500-plus SME member companies, welcomed the approach adopted by NEPO and Darlington Borough Council.  He said: “It is encouraging to hear about the more collaborative approach to highways procurement which has been adopted in the case of this framework. By using local firms with local knowledge, it is possible to provide a greater range of value added benefits.  This is not only good news for the client, but for the regional economy as a whole.”