BT Selects Partnership for Facilities Management

BICC PLC
2 May 2000


BT SELECTS PARTNERSHIP FOR MAJOR FM CONTRACT
============================================

BT has selected a partnership led by Carillion with Balfour Beatty subsidiary,
Haden Building Management, and Reliance Integrated Services as its preferred
supplier for the delivery of facilities management services to over 8,500 of
its buildings.

Subject to the satisfactory conclusion of final negotiations, the proposed
contract is likely to be worth over £500 million, making it the largest
private sector facilities management contract to date in the UK.  The contract
period will be five years, but there will be an option to extend this through
the inclusion of an 'evergreen' clause, which reflects the partnering
philosophy that is fundamental to the contract.

The partnership has worked closely with BT to develop a ground breaking model
agreement under which the management of all BT's FM related services will be
brought together into an integrated solution that will deliver improved and
sustainable standards of service across the whole of BT's estate.

The facilities management services to be provided range from support services
for cleaning and catering to maintenance of the fabric of buildings and
external ground maintenance.  The buildings involved include large offices,
computer centres, research centres, telephone engineering centres, motor
transport workshops and telephone exchanges.

Speaking on behalf of the consortium, Balfour Beatty Chief Executive, Mike
Welton, said:

'I am delighted that our consortium has been selected by BT for this important
contract.  The innovative agreement being adopted has been made possible
through the development of a strong partnership with BT, which I believe will
set new standards for quality and efficiency in the delivery of integrated
facilities management services.

'This contract represents a further important step forward for the growing
support services portion of Balfour Beatty's business.  It also reflects Haden
Building Management's growing reputation as a leader in asset management.'


For further information, contact:-

Tim Sharp
Balfour Beatty
Tel:  [phone]


Notes to Editors
----------------

Under the terms of the partnership, Carillion has a 51% share and Reliance
Integrated Services and Haden Building Management each have 24.5%.

The proposed model for the agreement with BT is based on the principles of
franchising, with the consortium acting as the enabling organisation, managing
change and innovation through a network of eight Regional Service Providers,
who will adopt common systems, processes, and work practices to deliver
consistent standards.

The eight Regional Service Providers will be formed by bringing together BT's
existing best practice suppliers to create a multi-skilled workforce capable
of delivering the full range of services required.  In addition to their
enabling role, the members of the partnership will also be service providers
through this regional structure.  Some 4000 people will be employed across the
regional businesses.

The model is highly flexible, enabling the services identified now to be
provided efficiently, while accommodating changes in services to match the
size and scope of BT's estate.

E-commerce will be used extensively for the procurement of goods and services
and a 'data warehouse' will be created to facilitate open access to
information and a linkage to BT's 'Legacy' systems.

Haden Building Management is one of the country's leading asset management and
facilities management service providers.  It is part of Balfour Beatty, the
£2.5 billion international engineering, construction and services group, which
has a support services business, of which Haden Building Management is a part,
currently worth more than £600 million per annum.  Haden's clients include
Shell, HSBC, Barclays, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, the BBC, British Gas,
National Power, Intel, BAA, Tesco and Sainsbury's.  Balfour Beatty's other
support services activities include rail maintenance for a number of Railtrack
areas, road management and maintenance for the Highways Agency and a number of
county authorities and power system management for the London Underground.

Carillion is one of the UK's leading construction to services groups with an
annual turnover of around £1.8 billion.  Its service related businesses, in
the areas integrated facilities management, infrastructure management and
Private Finance, have been the focus for growth over the last five years and
now have an aggregate  turnover of some £650 million.  Carillion Services is
already the leading supplier of non-clinical support services to the NHS, a
leading supplier of property maintenance services to the Ministry of Defence,
the manager of the Metropolitan Police Estate and a leading supplier of
building control and property legislation services.

Reliance Integrated Services Limited is a provider of innovative total
facilities management solutions to industrial and corporate customers.  It is
part of Reliance Security Group plc which has grown organically over the last
25 years.  Reliance provides a wide range of support services and is an
established market leader in the provision of contract security management,
manpower and electronic surveillance.  With a turnover in excess of £130
million per annum and employing over 7,500 people, the company operates from
more than 30 offices nationwide and the customer base includes over 60% of the
FTSE Top 100 UK companies.