The Sunesis Leisure brand is an extension of Willmott Dixon’s initiative in the schools sector where standardised designs cut costs and speed-up construction times.
Sunesis Leisure is aimed at local authorities who are struggling to make leisure centre revamps economically viable.
The system cuts 12 months from the overall programme from initial inception to operation along with 25% in cost savings.
Steve Elkin, Development Director at Scape said: “The business case for Sunesis Leisure is extremely strong.
“Local councils keep telling us that they cannot afford to manage, run and upgrade or develop existing facilities, especially those with swimming pools. That’s because many are old, require extensive maintenance and are restricted in space and functionality.
“Closing such centres down often makes economic sense, but isn’t an acceptable option from a social perspective, particularly as the country is gearing up to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in just a few weeks time.
“We’ve listened to this feedback, and have come up with a solution that will help authorities to provide a high quality facility that is commercially viable and can trade without subsidy.
“Sunesis helps schools and leisure facilities become more valuable assets to both the organisations that run them and the communities they serve.”
Clients can choose from three standardised designs which each feature a swimming pool and learner pool of varying sizes, and can then be customised as needed.
A range of colours and finishes, as well as optional extras are available. These include wet and dry changing accommodation; a reception area; viewing and refreshment space; health and fitness suite; racket sports hall; aerobics studio; and spa, sauna and therapy options.
Scott Corey, Scape National Framework Manager at Willmott Dixon, said: “Sunesis Leisure is an extension of our offer to help the public sector deliver more for less in this competitive market.
“We’re delighted to be able to showcase this latest innovation in a landmark year which will see London 2012 raise the profile of sport across the UK.
“An added benefit of Sunesis is that it offers business information modelling (BIM) as standard. That means authorities will be well on their way to helping the Government meet its target of slashing construction costs of up to 20% for publicly funded projects by 2016.
“There’s no doubt that BIM is changing the way that schemes are being planned, and we are embracing this approach on behalf of our clients as we know if will pay dividends financially over the long term.”
Full details will be on show at the LGA Conference from 26th to 28th June 2012 at Birmingham’s International Convention Centre. Scape and the Willmott Dixon team will be on stand B33.
