RAF Leeming
Dated: 14/04/2011
Click here to see pictures of the Servery Counter in The Junior Ranks Mess - RAF Leeming
VICTOR COUNTERING TAKES OFF AT RAF LEEMING
RAF Leeming is home to 609 squadron, motto ‘Tally Ho”, and was formed in 1936 at Yeadon, Yorkshire. In the darkest year of the Second World War, 1940, the squadron moved to the South East where it’s Spitfires flew patrols over Dunkirk to cover the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force and the ultimate successful D-Day landings.
609 (West Riding) Sqn was reformed on 1 Oct 1999, at RAF Leeming near Northallerton in North Yorkshire, a major base and home to a Tornado F3 Wing. Today's Squadron recruits almost exclusively RAF Regiment Gunners, who are an integral part of No 2 FP Wing together with their regular counterparts. Whilst there are no aircraft on site today, the spirit of those wartime days lives on in the present modern Squadron.
MoD’s Defence Infrastructure Organisation Kitchen Design Equipment Authority (KDEA) was very much hands on with the project which was provided by the Regional Prime Contract (RPC) system through the Defence Infrastructure Organisation DIO). The RPC appointed distributor James Scott & Sons as the principal catering equipment supplier who in turn appointed Victor Manufacturing to oversee and take care of the food servery area. Whilst Victor worked towards meeting the MoD specifications with members of the KDEA team, James Scott & Sons coordinated the whole project, liaising with suppliers, MoD and contractors ensuring deliveries and installations in the kitchen, servery and wash up areas all successfully completed to deadline.
The server counter tops are 2 mm-thick 304 grade stainless steel with radius edges and 48 mm turndown with counter fronts and ends in Formica Oslo (which translates as Airforce blue/grey) laminate with stainless steel shadow gaps. The counter bodies were constructed with fully welded stainless steel construction to the MoD’s stringent specification 42. Tray slides are made of Matterhorn Corian with 100mm turndown and fluorescent lights under – with stainless steel tray slide runners inlaid in the tops.
All were supplied with toughened glass screens and protective tapping strips all round. The counter is fully plinthed to the floor with stainless steel kick plinths.
The MoD has worked with Victor before on individual counter units for various MoD sites. A spokesperson for the DIO says: “The countering was manufactured to meet the requirements of DIO Specification 42 – Catering Equipment Specification, a mandatory MoD document. Previous visits to the Victor factory determined manufacturing specifications and the project team viewed the counters assembled in the factory prior to shipping and installation.
Mike Moore of the KDEA says: “We wanted a bespoke design based on all-day service with areas designed to open and close according to demand level. It is too early to say whether the RAF Leeming model will act as a template for other MoD projects as all designs tend to be tailor-made to meet specific end user requirements.”