University of Liverpool Construction Company (Special Projects) Ltd

The University of Liverpool Construction Company (Special Projects) Ltd (ULCCO- SP) is a construction company operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of the University of Liverpool. ULCCO-SP operates under the principle of an independent construction company.

ULCCO (SP) was formed in March 2013 as a result of the contractor, Ocon Construction, entering into administration and being unable to complete a project for the University which was the construction of 1,259 units of student accommodation at Crown Place.  In order to safeguard the delivery of Crown Place and to maintain both the technical and commercial skills of the staff, the University took the decision to set up a special projects vehicle. The staff were transferred from Ocon via a TUPE agreement in February 2013.  The framework for this company was in the first instance to deliver the student accommodation within budget and to the timetable critical for student occupation, producing a high-quality product.

The business has now been operating since 2013 and has taken responsibility for delivering much of the residential strategy – Crown Place, Melville Grove and Greenbank. This amounted to 2958 student bedrooms with additional services to a value of £163M.

We have also successfully delivered many non-residential projects for the University including Management School extension, Law & Social Justice and the new Yoko Ono Lennon Centre. Additionally, we have carried out Public Realm improvements and in recent years several small projects over at the Leahurst Campus. The spend on these types of services now exceeds £70M.

The business is unique as its sole purpose is to operate within a framework set by the University and, to a certain degree, is not affected by the economics and open marketplace of the construction industry.  However, it does operate within the open market with respect to the supply chain and procurement for the various construction services.

This continued workflow has enabled the company to ensure that the experienced and skilled staff of ULCCO SP remain dedicated to the long-term delivery of future construction projects for the University of Liverpool.

Details of past projects can be found in the ‘Completed Projects’ section.

Accreditations and Awards

ULCCO SP has BSI accreditation for our Quality Management System (BS ISO 9001 2015), Environmental Management System (BS ISO 14001 2015) and Occupational Health & Safety Management System (OHSAS 45001). BIM (BS ENG ISO 19650-2 2018)

ULCCO SP has been awarded the Silver Award from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), and are two-time winners of the Green Apple Award. The Green Apple Awards is an annual award programme that recognises and promotes environmental best practice.

Considerate Constructor’s Scheme

This independent scheme continues to monitor all of ULCCO SP’s construction sites using the Code of Considerate Practice. Organisations registered with the Considerate Constructors Scheme make a commitment to conform to the Code of Considerate Practice.

Through consideration to community engagement, the environment and workforce wellbeing they strive to improve the impact of the construction industry and leave a positive legacy through the implementation of best practice.

The Code of Considerate Practice Covers:

  • Respect the Community 
  • Care for the Environment
  • Value their Workforce

Environmental

ULCCO Special Projects work in partnership with our client’s ecology specialist consultants to ensure that we are compliant with all applicable environmental legislation regarding the management of our projects and the potential environmental impacts during the construction phase.

Each project is subject to an environmental impact assessment and prior to any works commencing, the assessment will highlight any potential issues that may need further risk management strategies such as the local ecology (Flora and Fauna).

ULCCO SP is also working closely with the University to help develop and implement the “Sustainable Built Environment Investment Framework”, including attending workshops which have been Facilitated by external Consultants. The aim is to create a framework which will encompass specific sustainable issues across the whole of the University of Liverpool, and enable everyone involved with the University to take ownership for the Environment. In time this will help reduce the overall impact we all have on the environment.

There are two key areas that ULCCO-SP can have a positive impact:

  • Construction Energy Management
  • Construction Waste

ULCCO SP is exploring the potential for implementing the International standard ‘ISO 50001 - Energy Management’ into its construction processes and its Project Offices. This will have the potential to feed into the bigger goal set by the University for achieving ‘Net Zero Carbon’ by 2035.

ULCCO SP are currently working with the University of Liverpool’s Sustainability Team looking at waste management and ways to reduce waste. The process will require the cooperation of our supply chain, ensuring everyone takes ownership of the waste management for the varying elements of works associated with our projects.

We already carryout ‘pre-demolition’ waste audits on all of our larger projects to help establish a base line for monitoring waste. This information is used to compare against the actual waste production records and make recommendations for improvements.

The ethos across all our site regarding waste management will be inline with the hierarchy of waste management:

                         Reduce – Reuse - Recycle - Recover – Dispose

Working with academics and colleagues within professional services at the university we are looking at initiatives such as reducing plastics from the construction process along with setting up a recycling centre for excess and waste materials to be re-used on other projects or offered to the local community and charities to be put to good use.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

ULCCO SP is committed to being an inclusive employer. We welcome everyone regardless of; age, disability, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion or belief. We are committed to promoting an environment which recognises and values people's differences, capitalises on the strengths that those differences bring and supports all staff in maximising their potential to succeed.