SMARTPLY OSB SITE HOARDING FOR FIRST IRISH MOTORWAY SERVICE AREA

Last month saw the opening of the first of three motorway service areas in Ireland, at Lusk’s M1 motorway, Co. Dublin. Leading building and civil engineering contractor in Ireland, Pierse Contracting and local subcontractor Mulligan Fencing Co. turned to locally manufactured and FSC certified SmartPly OSB (oriented strand board) from Coillte Panel Products to provide security hoarding for the site.

Each new motorway service area site is around 50 times the size of an average service station and the facilities are on a par with the most advanced sites in continental Europe. The sites have capacity to deal quickly and safely with a large volume of traffic with specific areas for private cars and larger HGV vehicles and offers safe, relaxed travel for road users travelling on the NRA's motorway system, contributing to better and safer motoring.

The three sites are amongst the “greenest” of their type, incorporating a range of features to conserve energy and minimise environmental impact. Rainwater will be collected via the forecourt canopy and recycled as car washes, toilet flushes and other suitable purposes. The buildings also feature high specification insulation and glazing which cuts down on energy consumption for lighting and heating.

Geoff Rhodes, marketing and business development director, Coillte Panel Products said, “SmartPly OSB is an excellent choice for a wide range of applications, including secure site hoarding, for projects which require a high quality, reliable and truly sustainable product. The new motorway service areas in Ireland demonstrate that construction is not limited to public and private buildings, and Coillte Panel Products continues to play its part in Irish, British and European projects of all shapes and sizes.”

The motorway service areas are run and managed by Applegreen on behalf of the SuperStop Consortium (made up of Applegreen, Pierse Contracting and TOP), as part of a tender process that saw the 100% Irish consortium win the PPP Contract from the National Roads Authority to provide these state of the art motorway service areas.

The overall project, comprising the three locations in Lusk, Castlebellingham and Enfield, represent an investment of more than € 70 million on behalf of the consortium. In addition to providing a valuable service to private Irish motorists, the new motorway service areas represent a major development to Irish business.

27 October 2010