The biggest vehicle procurement project in police and emergency services history will see 34 organisations work together to save over £7 million.
This ambitious plan, spearheaded by West Midlands Police, pulls together the vehicle buying power of police and fire and rescue services from across the country from Devon & Cornwall through to Northumberland.
The success of the project is down to the expertise and professionalism of the procurement and fleet departments across the organisations.
As a result, over 3,000 vehicles will be ordered by the organisations over the next two years, with 1200 of them being built in Britain and 248 of them coming to the West Midlands.
As the biggest vehicle collaboration of its kind in the UK, it is estimated that the overall spend resulting from this contract is in excess of £100 million when taking in to account the ‘whole life’ costs of the vehicles (the initial purchase along with fuel, maintenance, parts and repairs). The group will make savings of between six and seven million pounds.
Breaking that down locally, the vehicle whole life costs for WMP would be over £8 million with a saving in excess of £1m.
The contract is for the full range of police vehicles, from ‘beat’ cars, through to high performance cars used for traffic and motorway policing. Suppliers were selected from a list of companies on the national government framework agreement, specifically for ‘blue light’ services.
David Wilkin, WMP’s Director of Resources and the national policing lead for the procurement of vehicles (pictured right), commented: “A vehicle purchasing collaboration between police forces and partners on this scale has never been seen before and I am delighted to say it has been a huge success in terms of the savings made and how well the organisations have worked together.
“The success of this group builds on the achievements of a large scale vehicle procurement project led by West Yorkshire Police earlier in the year.
“While cost is clearly a driving factor, the most important aspect is that these vehicles need to be the most suitable and safest available for our staff and the public.
“How we buy and operate them has to represent good value to the public. We are committed to ensuring that where posible the associated costs will be invested in the region, whether that is fuel purchases or using local garages and businesses for parts and repairs.
“All suppliers in the process had to demonstrate their working relationship with local dealerships to ensure that going forward maintenance of the vehicles such as warranty repairs are carried out locally, ensuring we continue to support the local economy.”
West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson(pictured left) said: “West Midlands Police are leading the way by bringing together a group of over 30 police and fire forces to buy vehicles together. By working together greater value for money for the public purse has been achieved. All of the maintenance of West Midlands Police’s vehicles is done in the region to support the local economy too.
“This deal represents a significant investment in British manufacturing. This deal is value for money and therefore good news for the public.”
The group has selected the following suppliers:
Cars: General Motors UK Ltd t/a Vauxhall, Volvo, BMW.
Vans: Ford, General Motors UK Limited t/a Vauxhall
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