Project Principles and Objectives
The site is the home of the MOD military sea mounting centre and although it will remain the hub of the military sea movement, the site is being developed further to allow for the offloading and storage of vehicles and goods to free up space in the port of Southampton.
Ryebridge was awarded the project by competitive ten-der in November 2023 and tasked with carrying designing and constructing a vast vehicular storage hard-surface area with all kerbs, surfacing, drainage, ducts and manholes, including 18 acres of parking facilities.
The project, which got underway in October 2023, involved the demolition of existing site buildings and off-site highway upgrades, including the old armoury and security buildings, alongside the realignment of the internal highway network and upgraded railway crossing points, and the installation of new high mast lights, site CCTV and the electrical infrastructure.
Project Works and Key Quantities
Having won the contract through competitive tender, Ryebridge was tasked with creating a design for the new entrance to the port together with a new security building, traffic management car parking and high and heavy load areas.
The main challenge was the short period allowed for construction and the flexible nature of the port, meaning we needed to design paving strong enough to take not just cars and HGVs but in some cases tanks and armoured vehicles.
Ryebridge assumed responsibility for design management and coordination of all civil engineering, highways, drainage, attenuation, lighting, utility infrastructure and traffic management design packages. Ryebridge managed consultant appointments, design reviews, value engineering, authority approvals and integration of all design outputs through to construction delivery.
Ryebridge coordinated design development from RIBA Stage 3 through technical design, authority approval and construction stages.
2000 linier meters of new pre-cast slot drainage.
3 new interceptors.
188m/Cu of attenuation in the form of 2 tanks. 6282 meters of fibre reinforced concrete to a new high and heavy area.
15.4 acres of car parking.
3.6 acres of HGV parking.
15 new high mast lighting columns.
26,000 tons of type MOT type 1.
Planning
As principal contractor on the Marchwood project Ryebridge led the discharge and management of 43 planning conditions together with associated Section 106 commitments, Section 278 highway approvals and Marine Management Organisation licence requirements.
The team coordinated submissions, consultant inputs and regulator engagement to secure approvals across ecological, drainage, groundwater, archaeology, transport, environmental and operational management disciplines.
A design and build procurement route was selected to enable early contractor involvement, integrated design development, efficient management of planning conditions and improved programme certainty within a live operational port environment.
Ryebridge appointed an expert planning consultant, Rumboll’s Sally Thompson, who achieved the consents in good time and order.
To derisk the project Ryebridge undertook a detailed and robust enabling programme at the pre-planning stage which helped drive the success of the project.
Delivered within a live operational military and commercial port environment, the project required extensive stakeholder engagement and interface management. Ryebridge coordinated activities with ABP operational teams, local planning authorities, National Highways, Hampshire County Council, the Marine Management Organisation, Natural England, environmental specialists and technical consultants to maintain programme certainty while protecting operational continuity throughout the port.
Ryebridge held overall design management responsibility and retained ownership of the highways, drainage, logistics planning, traffic management and earthworks design packages, whilst coordinating specialist lighting, ecology and utility designers.
Ryebridge adopted a proactive risk management strategy centred on early planning-condition discharge, regulatory engagement and design development.
Dedicated trackers were implemented to monitor planning, environmental, archaeological, drainage, transport and marine consent activities.
Early consultant appointments and regular stakeholder reviews enabled risks to programme, compliance and operational continuity to be identified and mitigated before construction activities commenced.
Logistics planning formed a critical element of project delivery. Ryebridge developed Construction Traffic Management Plans, Freight Routing Strategies, operational transport plans and Section 278 highway improvement works to minimise disruption to the local highway network and maintain uninterrupted port operations. The innovative use of marine transport for imported material further reduced local road traffic impacts.
Programme
Marchwood 1a came with five sectional completions which were all linked to ABP commercial operations and the ability to be able to generate income via the vehicular parking areas.
All vehicular areas were available on time with 30 per cent of Section 2 being available three weeks early. Where there was programme issues it was directly related to local authority requirements with Hampshire Council revisiting the Section 278 and dramatically increasing the scope of works well beyond what was originally programmed.
Design Management and Design Development
Ryebridge managed multidisciplinary design development throughout the project, coordinating highways, drainage, flood mitigation, lighting, utility infrastructure, landscaping, ecology and operational access requirements. Through regular design reviews and stakeholder workshops, Ryebridge coordinated consultant inputs and drove design progression to support planning condition discharge, Section 278 approvals and construction delivery.
Design assurance activities included drainage validation, lighting compliance reviews, flood risk mitigation measures and operational traffic management planning.
Innovation and Best Practice
Ryebridge identified the value of early engagement with local authorities to define Section 278 requirements before programme commencement, the benefit of early planning consultant involvement to accelerate discharge of planning conditions and the effectiveness of marine logistics in reducing traffic impacts and programme risk.
At the pre-planning stage, Ryebridge attended a community meeting initiated by Marchwood Parish Council in which residents expressed their concerns about the air pollution and traffic dangers of lorries passing through the village, including close to two schools.
The route would have mainly used country lanes past neighbouring villages of Totton, Hounsdown and Marchwood, with various traffic hotspots to contend with, including central Southampton, M27, A33, A35 and A326, with the potential for slow-moving traffic adding to carbon emissions and journey time.
At this time we agreed to take steps to mitigate the impact through other means, with a view to using sea as an alternative means of transporting materials.
In a company first for environmental excellence, Ryebridge transported the 13,000t of material needed for the work on two boats, eliminating 3,800 lorry movements and the generation of 307 metric tonnes of CO2 emissions (based on 25 tonne vehicles each travelling 10 miles).
Although this meant double-handling the material as it was loaded onto and off the boats, it was deemed to be worth the effort to ensure there was minimal impact on the local community.
The use of prefabricated buildings in lieu of traditional building saves on waste and makes the installation time on site quicker, removing numerous deliveries to site.
The use of pre-cast concrete slot drains in lieu of traditional Aco slot drains saved a lot of time on installation.
Installing fibre reinforced concrete to the high and heavy area removes mesh, allows larger bays, and saves time on installation and labour.
The project achieved all sectional completion dates required by ABP. The main programme risk arose from revised Section 278 requirements introduced by Hampshire County Council. Ryebridge mitigated this through proactive stakeholder engagement, design reviews and programme resequencing, maintaining overall completion dates and delivering the project within the £18.7m approved budget with no material cost overruns despite additional Section 278 requirements.
Moving forward and lessons learned
Ryebridge has continued to build a strong relationship with ABP and we have subsequently opened an office in the Southampton area. Local projects we have been engaged in on the back of our initial work at Marchwood include works for DP World and Start Point lighthouse for Trinity House.
Ryebridge’s ongoing commitment to Southampton has seen the company’s workforce grow from 10 local people and sub-contractors in 2022 to a staff of more than 50 people fully employed and drawn from the local workforce.
Early engagement with regulators, planning authorities and operational stakeholders proved essential in reducing programme risk and securing approvals in a timely manner. The project also demonstrated the value of detailed pre-construction planning, integrated design management and robust interface control when operating within an active port environment.
The successful management of planning conditions, Section 278 approvals, MMO licensing requirements and operational constraints has equipped the project team with extensive experience in navigating complex stakeholder and regulatory environments.
The innovative use of marine logistics to remove approximately 3,800 HGV movements demonstrated how alternative delivery solutions can reduce environmental impacts, minimise disruption and improve programme resilience.
Ultimately, Marchwood demonstrates Ryebridge's ability to act as Principal Contractor on significant Design and Build infrastructure projects within live operational ports, providing the governance, stakeholder management, engineering expertise and operational awareness.
Collaborative and Commercial Management
Ryebridge adopted a collaborative delivery model built around early engagement with Scott Wilmore and the wider Associated British Ports project team, enabling design development, planning approvals and construction activities to progress concurrently within a live operational port environment.
As Principal Contractor and Design Manager, Ryebridge coordinated specialist designers, environmental consultants, planning advisors, utility providers and key supply chain partners through regular design reviews, risk workshops and programme coordination meetings.
Operating under an NEC4 Engineering and Construction Contract, Ryebridge promoted transparent communication, early warning management and proactive risk mitigation throughout the project lifecycle. Regular commercial reviews were undertaken with the client team to monitor programme impacts, manage change and maintain cost certainty.
When Hampshire County Council significantly increased the scope of the Section 278 works, Ryebridge worked collaboratively with stakeholders to redesign, resequence and integrate the additional requirements while maintaining critical programme milestones and avoiding disruption to port operations.
The project benefited from a one-team approach across client, consultants and supply chain partners, providing clear governance, rapid decision making and successful delivery within budget and programme constraints.
Health and Safety
Ryebridge delivered the Marchwood project within a live operational military and commercial port environment where maintaining safe access for port users, military operations, vehicle movements, rail interfaces and construction activities was critical to project success.
Ryebridge implemented a project-specific Health, Safety, Environment and Quality (HSEQ) management plan aligned with its wider ISO-certified management systems and safety culture. The project team managed multiple high-risk activities including demolition, bulk earthworks, deep drainage excavations, reinforced concrete construction, utility installations, highway works and operations adjacent to active port infrastructure.
Early risk identification formed a key part of project delivery. Detailed construction phase plans, task-specific RAMS, permit-to-work systems, temporary works controls and daily coordination meetings were used to manage interfaces between construction activities and ongoing port operations. Close collaboration with ABP operational teams ensured safe segregation of workforce, plant, commercial traffic and military movements throughout the works. Dedicated logistics planning, traffic management arrangements and controlled access procedures maintained operational continuity while minimising safety risks to port users and the travelling public.
The project-specific management team included experienced port-sector personnel and NEBOSH-qualified HSEQ leadership, providing ongoing monitoring, inspections, audits and workforce engagement. Regular safety briefings, behavioural safety initiatives, leadership tours and subcontractor performance reviews promoted a proactive reporting culture and reinforced safe working practices across the project. The team maintained rigorous controls for excavations, services, heavy plant operations, lifting activities, lighting installations and rail-adjacent works.
Through robust planning, effective supervision and collaborative working with ABP and stakeholders, Ryebridge successfully delivered all sectional completions whilst maintaining high standards of health and safety performance.
