Sir Robert McAlpine’s John Roper upset the bookies last month by taking the Construction Manager of the Year title even though his project, an £8.5m cancer research lab at Newcastle University, was not one of the biggies.
In theory, a gold medallist from any of the categories can win the award, but looking back, the odds seem long for anyone not in the top bracket.
But the judges chose him. And since CMYA is easily the most rigorously adjudicated contest among the growing plethora of awards – with 30 judges crisscrossing the country over five months – we’ll have to take their word for it.
And rightly so. John Roper shows what can happen with the right mix of skill, experience, and the ability to foster good chemistry among the project team. This was a project that finished on time and to budget, with Sir Robert McAlpine enjoying a profit and an enhanced relationship with the client at the same time – all using a traditional JCT contract with contractor’s design.
It’s disheartening when projects, especially high-profile ones, run into difficulty, when the parties fall out and end up in court. Unfortunately it happens all too often. But that’s the value of CMYA. It’s an annual review of where it all goes right.
You can read about John, and all the other medallists, in our full coverage starting on page 33. It makes fascinating reading. All manner of technical breakthroughs are there, such as when Skanska’s Bill Brock installed his roof in five days rather than the originally scheduled nine weeks by using off-site assembly on the new Radisson SAS Hotel at Stansted.
There are also stirring examples of personal flair and leadership, like when Sir Robert McAlpine’s Brian Peckam got a rope access qualification so he could inspect the roof of the Wales Millennium Centre properly.
We’re sure you’ll enjoy this celebration of what construction should be and, a great deal of the time, is.
Source
Construction Manager
