Robertson Construction North East completes new building at Port of Tyne ahead of schedule

Robertson Construction North East has delivered a new design and build border control post (BCP) building at Port of Tyne which will support enhanced Border Control inspections following the UK’s departure from the EU.

The new 60.5m x 24.8m building, which was delivered ahead of schedule, will be utilised to inspect food and plants imported via DFDS vessels from the Netherlands and will be operational from January 2022. Split into 3 distinct working zones, each area has its own changing, inspection and toilet facilities alongside a shared office space.

Garry Hope, regional managing director, Robertson Construction North East, said: "This project was delivered under fast-track, to enable the Port to support new requirements in line with the UK's departure from the EU. We are proud to have delivered this important facility ahead of an already tight schedule.

"Throughout the build, the Port was required to continue its operations 24 hours a day and our positive working relationships along with our local supply chain and the project team all played a critical part in supporting the speed of delivery."

Kevin Emmett, Head of Infrastructure Developments at Port of Tyne, commented: "The works at the border control post have been designed and constructed to a very high standard within time and budget and have been undertaken in compliance with health and safety regulations throughout. We have completed the project ahead of schedule which has been positively endorsed by the Border Protocol Group Infrastructure Delivery Team. The project team - both internal and external - and the contractor have managed to do a great deal since works began in February."

Teun-Wim Leene, Route Director at DFDS, which sees daily ferry sailings between the Port of Tyne and the Netherlands, commented: "We are very excited about the completion of the new BCP, ensuring our freight customers can continue importing food products, plants, and greens in the brand new, state of the art BCP at Port of Tyne."

The post at the Port of Tyne is built in alignment with the Government's Border Operating Model and received a £4.2m grant from the UK Government.

Project management services were provided by Total Project Integration Ltd.