Name: Gary Price
Employer: Carillion Building
Project: Swansea Civic Centre Redevelopment
Gary Price was very much the captain of his project ship. Every time the many phases of this refurbishment scheme concluded, he remained onsite until all issues had been resolved so that services could operate immediately out of the new facilities. He even blew his wedding anniversary by staying on until 1.30am to finalise works on the eve of the official launch of the civic centre.
The project was procured in a series of six individually priced and contracted works packages so the client could decant its employees around the building while works progressed, developing design and cost certainty as it went.
Given the political sensitivity of the scheme – it relocated key public services in one sea front building and was the jewel in the council’s crown – cost control and complaint minimisation were crucial. Gary undertook detailed cost and design verification exercises to identify and close out the risks inherent in fitting the new design, particularly the services, to the existing building.
He ensured no issue ever escalated beyond the immediate client team by putting a great deal of effort into onsite management. There were daily liaisons and regular reviews with the client, and newsletters ensured good communication with the 900 council staff who remained onsite during the works.
And he introduced formal risk procedures into the project so that by the time the final phase began, there were a full risk analysis, risk register and mitigation measures. These tools were used to decide programme and costings and were reviewed monthly by senior management.
Gary value-engineered a number of the works packages, resequencing to make savings on preliminaries, and kept a full-time quantity surveyor onsite to measure the many variations that arose as areas were opened up for scrutiny.
In an industry where teamwork is essential, Gary led a team that turned in a highly professional and profitable job that left the client well satisfied.