Modular manufacturing business Fleetwood has secured a contract with Multiplex to help deliver Melbourne’s 1000-bed Centre for National Resilience at Mickleham.
In July this year, Multiplex entered into a Managing Contractor Contract (MCC) with the Australian Government Department of Finance to deliver a new purpose-built centre to support Australia’s response to the current pandemic and any future pandemics.
Multiplex has been engaged to construct the facility, with 80 per cent of the buildings to be prefabricated off-site. The centre can be extended to 3000 beds but will be operational as soon as the first 500 beds are ready later this year.
The Federal Government established a panel of providers and Fleetwood was selected as one of the suppliers of modular buildings that will make up the purpose-built quarantine facility.
The contract is expected to result in revenue of approximately $32 million for Fleetwood in the 2022 financial year.
“Fleetwood is delighted to be playing a key role in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and Australia’s road to recovery,” Fleetwood Chief Executive Officer Bruce Nicholson said.
“This is an outstanding outcome for the company and highlights the strengths of using innovative offsite manufacturing to deliver highly effective and efficient products with strong sustainability credentials.”
Under the subcontract arrangement, Fleetwood will utilise its manufacturing facilities in Victoria and Queensland to build modular accommodation units as part of Multiplex’s plans to deliver the first 500 beds by the end of 2021.
The Centre for National Resilience at Mickleham will be built and owned by the Federal Government, and will be operated by the Victorian Government for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Finance Minister Simon Birmingham, when awarding the contract to Multiplex following a competitive tender process in July, said the new centre would also enhance Victoria’s medium and long-term capability to respond to future emergencies and crises.
“This is another step in our ongoing management of the COVID-19 pandemic and increases our ability to continue to safely return travellers into Australia for any ongoing quarantine requirements,” Minister Birmingham said.
Construction has already started on the facility, with the camp scheduled to open by the end of 2021.
The project is being modelled on the Howard Springs centre in the Northern Territory, which has proven to be highly effective at preventing leaks of COVID-19 into the community compared to hotel quarantine.
All returning Australians are required to undertake 14 days of mandatory supervised quarantine at their own cost.
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