A record of saving customers time and installation costs, plus the ability to create bespoke flat roofing solutions, was all the evidence needed for Gradient single-layer tapered roof insulation to be chosen for a £60m PFI police project.

The UK expert in the design and manufacture of high-quality, single-layer tapered insulation has provided roofing solutions for six Norfolk and Suffolk Police force investigation units. These are located in King's Lynn, Aylsham, Wymondham, Great Yarmouth, Bury St. Edmunds and Ipswich.

The units have been designed and built by leading inter-disciplinary consultancy McBains Cooper. They will accommodate custody, detainee processing and administration functions, and represent one of the largest PFI projects within the police sector. Three of the developments will house 30 cells, two include 24 cells and one is an eight-cell development.

The new developments are designed to be the most efficient and secure custody facilities in the country. "Efficiency lies at the heart of our manufacturing process,” comments Gradient's Richard Milward. “This allowed us to create bespoke insulation components under controlled factory conditions and deliver them to the sites ready for immediate installation. A multi-layer system would have to be built-up on each individual site and so would have been far more difficult and time-consuming to install across the six new buildings."