Construction Manager of the Year Awards 2020: Office

• Gold winner: Kevin English MCIOB
• Lendlease
• Project: 2 Redman Place, Stratford E20
• Scope: Construction of nine-storey office block, completed in 119 weeks
• Client: Stratford City Business District
• Contract: D&B
• Value: £108m

Operational safety manager for the entire IQL development in Stratford, health and safety was a key consideration for Kevin English on this nine-storey, 280,000 sq ft office block construction.

He eliminated work at the leading edge wherever possible through innovation in design, fabrication and installation. With the project close to a mainline railway, he had the entire superstructure screened from the ground floor up. As falling materials had been an issue during services installation on previous projects in the business park, he had service holes preformed into the risers, and used magnetic paper to further minimise the falling-object hazard.

Having concluded that the roof handrail design created an unsafe environment for installing the copings, the external cladding and the handrails themselves, English had permanent rails factory-installed as part of the cladding fabrication. The external copings were also factory-fitted.

He eliminated the need to install a plywood topping on falsework by using steel-frame table formwork. The system delivered substantial benefits not just in safety and quality but also in cost by taking a huge quantity of plywood out of the structural formation.

The result of all his efforts was a project with zero reportable incidents and an enviable safety record.

• Silver winner: Richard Kirkpatrick MCIOB
• Skanska
• Project: The Marq, 32 Duke Street, St James’s, London
• Scope: Construction of nine-storey block with 67,000 sq ft of office space, completed in 103 weeks
• Client: The Crown Estate
• Contract: JCT D&B
• Value: £34m

Proactive and driven, Richard Kirkpatrick delivered emphatically on programme and on budget within the confines of a difficult site in his first role as project director. 

He also delivered outstanding quality, as is clear from the delighted client’s rapid letting of the office and retail space. 

Kirkpatrick’s success has been a tribute to his expertise in building and leading the team, as well as his enthusiasm and tenacity, and his exceptional organisation and management skills.

Other finalists:

Paul Epton MCIOB
Robertson Construction, 10 George Street, Edinburgh

Daniel Miller
Wates Construction, 7&8 Wellington Place, Leeds

Ian Rowe MCIOB
Oakmont Construction, LONDON 1 Data Centre, Dagenham

Craig Stokes MCIOB
Laing O’Rourke, The Brunel Building, Paddington