Projects £3-£17m

Client: BAA
Project: Heathrow, Terminal 3 redevelopment, phase 3.1b. Demolition, strip out and fit-out of a space of approximately 8200m2 to create a new security area, ticket presentation area and retail facilities
Form of contract: BAA Multiworks
Contract final account: £14.5m

When Nigel Cole joined the project team the concept design had just been signed off, but the client was disenchanted with the ability of the construction industry to deliver its promises. By the time the contract had been completed and more than 20% of additional work had been absorbed within a construction programme that had been shortened by almost 20%, the client was reassured.

This project was part of the phased redevelopment of Terminal 3 which, when complete in 2003, is intended to increase passenger capacity and to improve the levels of passenger services and retail opportunities.

Building in a working airport meant that security and health and safety were top of the list of priorities for Cole. Security restrictions from working airside meant that all goods and the construction workforce had to go through customs each day. Thorough planning by Cole ensured that this was completed quickly and efficiently.

Cole had extensive experience working at Heathrow so he realised the importance of limiting security restrictions. He negotiated for the relocation of the airside/landside boundary. This increased site productivity and helped achieve 18 of the 19 programmed handovers, with the 19th being just 12 hours late.

The main handover, which involved the relocation of the security search area, including ten X-ray machines, ticket presentation desks and staff facilities, involved over 120 people and was a meticulously planned operation, programmed almost to the minute. The successful early completion of this work has allowed the following phase to start early, which should allow the client to realise significant additional income from its commercial partners.

Cole had overall responsibility for the design co-ordination, planning, programming, site co-ordination and production for the project and was given authority by the client to cover some of its own contractual duties. He was also ultimately responsible for health and safety and was able to record no reportable accidents in over 150,000 man-hours worked.

Cole made sure that he understood what was important to the client, in particular the client's increasingly important retail requirements. He maintained a close liaison with various parts of the client body and ensured there were no surprises – financial or operational.

BAA commented that Cole left nothing to chance and said that it was delighted with the finished product. There is little doubt that Cole was the dominant driver in the success of this project.

Peter Whitmore, Laing, Hemel Hempstead

Client: Ministry of Defence
Project: Wattisham airfield, Suffolk. Physical and recreational training centre. The design and construction of an army training centre including a new sports hall, swimming pool and associated accommodation
Form of contract: Prime Contract
Contract final account: £4.2m

This was one of two projects chosen by the Ministry of Defence to develop and test the new Building Down Barriers or prime contracting process. The scheme originated with the findings of the Latham report, published in 1994, and is part of a wider government strategy to improve construction procurement.

Peter Whitmore was appointed to lead the team from Laing, initially as part of the research and development group, and then as the bid manager/project manager for the design and construction stages.

At the beginning of the project there was no process in place for the client's proposed Building Down Barriers project, and it was up to the research and development group to create the toolkit from scratch and to ensure that the client's objectives could be achieved.

While the toolkit was being developed, Whitmore was selecting his own team and the supply chain, and was developing the design and tender programmes so that a bid could be submitted to the client.

The traditional project management structure was replaced with "cluster groups". Each was responsible for its own part of the project, for the integration of the design team and specialist contractors and for efficiency. Whitmore's collaborative style ensured that this process went smoothly. The complete absence of variations and contractual letters during the contract were proof of this success. The 11-week programme gain and the 12% savings in whole-life costs were further evidence of Whitmore's exceptional skill.

Much about this project was innovative and required new ways of thinking and working. It is to Whitmore's great credit that he was able to guide the project team to a highly successful result and help the MOD to develop its new procurement strategy.

John Shannon, Wates Construction, Stockport

Client: New Schools (Penweddig) – a special-purpose PFI company
Project: Penweddig New School, Aberystwyth. The construction of a new secondary school of over 9000m2 and playing fields of over 55,000m2
Form of contract: Bespoke PFI
Contract final account: £10m

With the formation of the new National Assembly for Wales, the go-ahead was given for the first PFI-funded school project in the principality. Wates Construction provided the design and construction input into the consortium and John Shannon was appointed to lead the team.

His first task was to prove the whole scheme to the consortium's financial backers before financial close could be achieved. Within days, work commenced on site, but an exceptionally wet winter resulted in a delayed programme. With progress payments linked to programme milestones, this could have damaged the project's cash flow. But by careful short-term planning in close co-operation with the main subcontractors, the financial situation was controlled, and the contract was completed on time.

Another early problem was associated with the site's former use as a Victorian bottle dump. Its location was posted on the internet and souvenir hunters were only deterred by the eventual presence of full-time security guards on site.

Shannon also had to ensure special treatment for the local colony of protected water voles. It had to be guaranteed that the voles would not be disturbed by the activities on site.

Shannon had taken great care from the start to ensure that he understood the needs of the school and how it would "work" in the new building. He made sure that the head teacher and the consortium were fully briefed on all developments as construction progressed. He even took the trouble to explain technical matters in layman's terms.

Overall, he ensured that the school staff felt that they were included within the project team. As the school building progressed, Shannon organised various visits to site for the staff and pupils. This enabled everyone to become more involved with the school and allowed the staff to make their own minor amendments to the final designs and furniture layouts.

Shannon's achievement in communicating so effectively with staff and pupils is even more remarkable given that Penweddig is a Welsh-speaking school, and much of the liaison was done through a local Welsh co-ordinator.

All visits from staff and pupils were carefully organised, with particular attention paid to health and safety. Similar attention on the construction operations ensured that there were no reportable accidents on site.

As one of Shannon's citations suggests, the success of this project is largely as a result of "his meticulous planning, his organisational skills, his care of this workforce, his ingrained courtesy and good humour . . . and his genuine desire to see that . . . the pupils and staff got the school that they deserved".