Construction firm wins contract on £12bn broadband project

Huthwaite firm nmcn has been awarded a lucrative contract by Openreach to support a massive £12bn project that’s bringing ultrafast ‘full fibre’ broadband to millions of homes and businesses throughout the UK.

nmcn will be involved in building new fibre infrastructure to premises in Arnold, Nottinghamshire and there will also be additional network build in previously announced locations in the East Midlands including Nottingham, Gedling, Broxtowe, Rushcliffe and Derby. The detailed planning activity for the build is already under way and construction is due to start in the coming months.

The contract award follows a competitive tender process and will see nmcn supporting Openreach’s ambition to build full fibre infrastructure to 20 million premises throughout the UK by the mid-to-late 2020s – delivering significant economic, social and environmental benefits for urban communities.

Openreach’s full fibre network is already available to more than three million homes and businesses across the UK and nmcn is one of nine partners to win contracts which will see that extended to at least a further two million premises. As part of the contract, nmcn will be responsible for construction tasks such as: surveying, building, testing and supporting Openreach to commission the network so that customers can place orders.

John Maloney, managing director of Telecoms at nmcn, said; “At nmcn we are committed to our vision of having a positive impact on everything we touch and the results of this prestigious contract will certainly benefit thousands of households across the Midlands by providing ultrafast and reliable Full Fibre broadband. We look forward to further developing our working relationship with Openreach to deliver this project.”

Kevin Murphy, MD for Fibre and Network Delivery at Openreach, said: “Great connectivity is more important than ever, whether it’s to support home working, to keep in touch with family and friends, or to access digital services like health and education. Full Fibre broadband enables this in spades, and we’re ramping up our own efforts to build our new network to as many homes and businesses across the UK as we can.

“This is one of the largest infrastructure projects in the UK today, and if we’re going to deliver the enormous social, environmental and economic benefits that full fibre can bring, it’s important we can build the new network efficiently, safely and without compromising on quality.

“We’re delighted to be partnering with nmcn because they’ll be pivotal in helping us achieve those aims for our customers and for the UK as a whole.”

The Spine survey and build will begin later this year and the Access build which provides fibre connectivity to homes will begin in April 2021 with the build scheduled to last 18 – 24 months