5.12.1 On the 18th April 2016, it was reported at a meeting of the CIMT that the ability of the engineers to draw conclusions in relation to the Phase 1 schools, particularly in relation to the need or otherwise for wall head restraints, was being hampered by the unavailability of as-built or as-designed drawings. Without access to the appropriate structural design drawings, it would be necessary for the teams of structural engineers to undertake calculations from first principles as to whether individual brick panels had sufficient structural strength to resist the required wind-loadings.
5.12.2 If these calculations demonstrated the need for head restraints, bed joint reinforcement or windposts and there was insufficient evidence from their on-site surveys of the presence of such restraints, then the only option would be to assume they were not present and design and fit the required elements as part of the programme of remedial works.
5.12.3 This necessitated significant design work by the structural engineers employed by ESP and a commensurate delay to the implementation of the remedial works on the Phase 1 buildings.
5.12.4 In this regard, on 14th April 2016, the City of Edinburgh Council had contacted, by phone and email, WSP, the consultancy firm that had been responsible for the original structural design of the 17 PPP1 projects, to seek copies of the original design and construction drawings for the Phase 1 schools. The requests from the City of Edinburgh Council pointed out that access to these documents could greatly assist ESP's team by reducing the amount of work and time that would otherwise be necessary to finalise the design and specification of remedial work required on the Phase 1 schools.
5.12.5 As explained above, the liability period on the Phase 1 schools under the original design and build contract between ESP and AMJV had expired.
5.12.6 In a reply by email on 18th April 2016, WSP advised the City of Edinburgh Council that the appropriate route for seeking these drawings was through their client for the schools, AMJV. The email also stated that, to date, AMJV had not contacted WSP on the matter.
5.12.7 While this statement may have been correct, the evidence provided to the Inquiry showed that, in respect of the four Phase 2 schools, Galliford Try had received copies of at least some of the structural drawings from WSP in the first week of April 2016. According to written evidence provided by Galliford Try, these drawing had only been provided by WSP following Galliford Try raising Court proceedings to compel them to release these drawings which WSP had been unwilling to do on a voluntary basis.
5.12.8 Over the next weeks, there followed a series of email communications all of which failed to result in the information requested being provided by WSP. ESP on several occasions sought the release of the drawings for the Phase 1 schools from WSP, whose approach was to restate that they could only release them with the approval of their original clients AMJV, or the component parts of AMJV, i.e. Amey and Galliford Try. From the email evidence provided to the Inquiry, despite both these latter parties having given their agreement to WSP to release the information to ESP, none of the requested information was released to ESP, to their professional advisors or to the City of Edinburgh Council.
5.12.9 While some of the Phase 2 information had clearly been retained by WSP in their archive, their responses ultimately, as seen below in the emails below, suggest that the drawings for the Phase 1 schools had not been retained by them, however their email correspondence was in this regard initially confusing to the City of Edinburgh Council.
5.12.10 The Council's Project Manager on 2nd June 2016, in an attempt to help a frustrated ESP to get access to drawings that would have been very helpful, in an email to WSP specifically requested design information on one of the Phase 1 schools, Drummond High School.
5.12.11 WSP replied as follows:
"We do not want to appear unhelpful but as you will understand from your conversation with --------, we are constrained by our contractual relationship with Amey/Miller JV and are not in a position to provide information directly to a third party until we are instructed to do so. May we respectfully request that you raise any further requests for information directly with Amey/Miller JV.
We can however, advise you that we have relayed your request to Amey/Miller and have provided them with such information as we are able in relation to Drummond High School."
5.12.12 On 6th June 2016, an email from WSP, replied to a follow up question by email from the City of Edinburgh Council as to what information WSP had on Drummond High School, with the following response:
"We would confirm that we have advised Amey/Galliford Try that following a review of the information we retain in our archive we do not have any information relating to Drummond High School."