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Case study · Border operations · £40m · Solution design

Continuous improvement design for HMRC border facilities

Our Solutions Director led the solution design for a UK public services provider bidding to run HMRC’s £40m inland border facilities contract, at sites where heavy goods vehicles are checked and goods inspected away from the port.

The challenge

HMRC re-procured the operation of its inland border facilities and asked bidders to show how continuous improvement would cut the cost of running them year on year without weakening the service. HMRC’s own data showed traffic around 50% below what had first been expected. At Sevington, the largest site, 660 staff ran the operation, and any reduction had to follow the transfer of those staff to the new provider.

What our Solutions Director did

Our Solutions Director led the design from the enterprise operating model to a costed programme of improvements. The work covered:

  • An enterprise operating model in three layers: site-based operations from arrival and park-up to inspection and departure, the site supporting services, and the back office, with each role marked as from HMRC’s model or added by the solution design
  • Simulation-led capacity planning: a model of vehicle volumes by day and night that set the lanes and sheds needed, at most 12 lanes and two inspection sheds with a third for surges, then fed a workforce model, the cost model and the project timeline
  • Each improvement designed as a micro-solution: self-service kiosks that allocated drivers a parking space while their vehicle was searched, signage and road markings, lane traffic lights, a security review that replaced fixed guarding with patrols and CCTV, and demand-based inspection with multi-skilled staff. Each carried its staffing effect, training, project plan and risks.
  • A target operating model for Sevington: from 660 staff to 307 without new technology, or 237 with it, and from 112 to 89 at Holyhead, with every change going live together so transferring staff went through a single consultation
  • A continuous improvement method for the life of the contract: five Lean Six Sigma stages (identify, scope, governance, deliver and assess), a monthly improvement register shared with HMRC in real time, and quarterly proposals with gain share, each taken through change control
  • Social value delivered locally: apprenticeships and local jobs, a supply chain programme with prompt payment, an innovation fund with a local college and school, and a Green Ambassador environmental programme

Services: Solution & Service Design · Business Development & Strategy

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While AI can rapidly generate a strong structural foundation, it will only get your draft 70% of the way there. To achieve maximum evaluation scores, guarantee  compliance, and genuinely resonate with evaluators, expert human intervention remains non-negotiable. 

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We architect commercial strategies that balance competitive pricing with sustainable, long-term delivery. We ensure your financial models withstand buyer scrutiny and align with public sector value-for-money criteria. 

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  • Operational & Workforce Modelling: We convert raw operational data into scalable staffing models. We design shift patterns, resource allocations, and management structures that meet government value-for-money criteria while ensuring safe delivery. 
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We manage intelligence-gathering and positioning activities required to shape the buyer's requirements. 

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Winning complex, high-value public sector contracts demand a carefully architected strategy long before the procurement officially opens. At FBS, we leverage our insider experience from leading major bids to help you design, position, and deliver a competitive growth strategy. 

We act as an embedded extension of your executive team, providing the architecture and commercial rigor necessary to confidently enter new markets and unseat established competitors.

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