Breaking New Ground—Stories from Defence Construction Breaking_new_ground | Page 141
A rendition of the Long-Term Accommoda-
tion (LTA) facility to be built for Commu-
nications Security Establishment Canada
(CSEC) in Ottawa. This project is one of
Canada’s largest public-private partner-
ships, formed to design, build, finance
and maintain a 72,000-square-metre
high-security building with LEED Gold
accreditation.
Project: CSEC LTAP—A study in
partnerships
In May 2009, DCC took on one of Canada’s largest
public-private partnership projects: an $880-million
construction value, five-year capital project to build
a Long-Term Accommodation project (LTAP) for
Communications Security Establishment Canada
(CSEC), Canada’s national cryptologic agency. CSEC
contributes significantly to national security and,
indeed, to global security, as it provides two key services:
foreign signals intelligence in support of defence and
foreign policy; and the protection of electronic informa-
tion and communication.
DCC was pleased to undertake this project, given
the Corporation’s highly specialized construction
procurement and contract management expertise, and
its proven track record for delivering complex defence
projects quickly. The result? Within 20 months, DCC’s
experts took the 30-year, highly specialized project from
concept to award, and commencement of construction
in February 2011.
To achieve this success, DCC created a special LTAP
team and opened a dedicated project management office
where DCC and CSEC staff could work together. When
the LTAP is completed in 2015, the combined office
and special-purpose-space building will encompass
more than 72,000 square metres.
With its existing Ottawa-area premises overcrowded and
its infrastructure, such as the electrical power delivery
system, strained, CSEC required a new, purpose-built
facility so that it could fulfill its mandate more efficiently.
The agency struggled for years, however, to develop
a construction plan using conventional procurement
methods. As a result, it turned to an alternative
procurement option: a public-private partnership model
that would allow private industry to design, finance,
construct and maintain the building more effectively.
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DEFENCE CONSTRUCTION CANADA
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