The £6.6 million project to replace the Army Reserve Centre (ARC) at Dunfermline is under way.
The site offices have been set up, and groundworks have started. Initial works (pictured above) have seen a small brick building demolished, a portable building relocated and a trench for the high voltage cable excavated.
Work on the project had to be suspended temporarily on 16 November after hazardous material was uncovered during the initial works. The material was of a historic nature (self-igniting phosphorus incendiary devices) and had been buried following the Second World War. The devices were intended for use by the Home Guard.
Experts from the British Army’s 11 Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search Regiment, 521 Squadron Edinburgh Troop, attended along with the other emergency services. They removed the devices and safely disposed of them on site by carrying out a controlled explosion on 17 November.
The incident was then stood down.
After the discovery a temporary exclusion zone was put in place as a precaution, leading to a road closure and evacuations of properties and a nearby business.
The Bothwell House project had originally been due to get under way in March 2020. However COVID-19 hit and the national lockdown that followed halted all projects that weren’t already in progress.
In 2022 Henry Brothers won the contract to design and build the new ARC and demolish the original Bruce House. Mott MacDonald is acting as the technical service provider, supporting the Highland RFCA Estates team with project management. The Army-funded project is due to be completed in 2025.
The Dunfermline ARC serves as the Regimental Headquarters for 154 (Scottish) Regiment Royal Logistics Corps (RLC); and is home to 239 (Fife) Transport Squadron and the Dunfermline Detachment of The Black Watch Battalion Army Cadet Force (ACF).
The new building will provide first-class facilities, allowing all the units housed there a chance to grow, and will impact positively on training, recruitment and retention.
Find out more about 154 (Scottish) Regiment RLC.
