CIOB: Constructive conductor wins top management award

Friday, 14 October 2011 3:29 PM

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What does it take to be crowned the UK’s top construction manager? Well in numbers it doesn’t hurt if you can say your project will have a significant impact on people’s lives and was worth well over £500 million. That it took over 4 years to build with no serious injuries in 14 million man-hours, and that each of your 34 sectional handovers was delivered on time and to budget.

That is only part of the story that gave Birmingham a new state of the art hospital and saw Roger Frost MCIOB, a Project Director at Balfour Beatty, crowned Construction Manager of the Year by the Chartered Institute of Building.

“With such a large project I couldn’t be ‘hands on’ with everything so I compare my role to that of an orchestra conductor. It’s my job to guide the teams and ensure they work in harmony to deliver ‘music to the clients ears’ or in this case a hospital,” said Roger Frost.

He added, “Building hospitals is my passion. I thrive on the challenge and knowing that I have been able to provide facilities that will make a difference to thousands of people makes me proud to do this job.”

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEHB) is Birmingham’s first new hospital for over 70 years and the second largest Private Finance Initiative (PFI) health building in England. Designed to provide clinical services in a modern environment, the hospital includes a 100 bed critical care unit, the largest in Europe, The Royal Centre for Defence Medicine with a separate ward for military casualties. And the UK’s only National Institute of Health Research Centre for Surgical Reconstruction and Microbiology – which uniquely focuses on both military and civilian care and treatment.

Chris Blythe, CIOB chief executive said. “Roger’s determination, dedication and direction kept this juggernaut of a scheme rolling. With hospital projects you have added pressure knowing the direct affect it will have on people’s lives. In this case the Trust treats over 700,000 patients a year and far from shrinking from the challenge Roger rose to it.

“When a key subcontractor went bust, he closed out the risk to quality and delivery by persuading the project to buy the firm. He made the unusual choice, for a hospital, to build from a steel frame to reduce the interface risk. And he was vindicated time and again as the succession of sectional handover dates came and went, and the project hit every one with ease. That sort of innovative thinking and passionate leadership is the hallmark of a great construction manager.”

The awards, run by the CIOB, are widely recognised as the Oscars of the industry and the premier accolade for management in the built environment. It takes thirty judges six months of meticulous site visits and interviews (including the nominee, client and contractors) before the overall winner can be decided upon.

This year’s competition included more than 100 finalists who represent the successful management of projects with an aggregate value in excess of £4.4 billion. It was held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London on 13 October.

The sponsors for CMYA 2011 are: Construction Manager Magazine, Construction Books Direct, Hays Construction. IHS, WEXAS Travel, BT Global Services, COINS, CITB-ConstructionSkills and PG Surveyors.

For further information please contact Saul Townsend on t: 01344 630 766 e:stownsend@ciob.org.uk.

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) represents for the public benefit the most diverse set of professionals in the construction industry.

Our Mission

To contribute to the creation of a modern, progressive, and responsible construction industry; able to meet the economic, environmental and social challenges faced in the 21st century.

Our 7 Guiding Principles

· Creating extraordinary people through professional learning and continuous personal development.

· Promoting the built environment as central to the quality of life for everyone everywhere.

· Achieving a sustainable future, worldwide.

· Advocating exemplary ethical practice and behaviour, integrity and transparency.

· Pursuing excellence in management practice, and technological innovation rooted in evidence based science.

· Being socially responsible and working responsibly.

· Enabling our members to find an emotional resonance with the Institute; their success is our success.

We have over 47,000 members around the world and are considered to be the international voice of the building professional, representing an unequalled body of knowledge concerning the management of the total building process.

Chartered Member status is recognised internationally as the mark of a true, skilled professional in the construction industry and CIOB members have a common commitment to achieving and maintaining the highest possible standards within the built environment.

Further information is available by contacting Saul Townsend CIOB Press and Communications Manager on t: 01344 630 766 or e: stownsend@ciob.org.uk.

*To unsubscribe from the CIOB’s press distribution service please reply to this email with the word ‘REMOVE’ in the subject field. Or contact the press office directly on t: +44 (0) 1344 630 766.

Saul Townsend MCIPR

Press and Communications Manager

The Chartered Institute of Building

t: +44 (0) 1344 630 766 f: +44 (0) 1344 630 770

e: stownsend@ciob.org.uk Twitter: CIOBsaul

w: www.ciob.org www.artofbuilding.org

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