Name: Eric Swithenbank
Employer: Miller Construction
Project: Carnival House, Harbour Parade, West Quay III, Southampton
Contract: JCT 2005
It was by forgetting to take off his site boots that Eric Swithenbank, against the odds, won this contract for Miller Construction.
How? Well, having initially convinced the client to expand its intended four-strong shortlist to five to include him, Eric came into the final interview, which was held at his then site, with all the focus of the committed construction manager, still wearing his work boots. The client noted his single-mindedness with approval, and duly awarded Miller the job.
Committed to partnership and collaboration, Eric led a series of design workshops for the client, professional team and project team. He selected and proposed issues and problems for analysis and dissection as a way of ensuring all stakeholders came to the project with knowledge and understanding of each other and saw him as the single point of contact. It built the relationships and set the team approach that characterised the project and laid the foundations for success.
He kept the key stakeholders informed of construction progress and his lines of communication open. The neighbouring West Quay shopping centre was particularly important, and Eric ensured that construction works did not affect shoppers. He even banned site workers from wearing PPE when visiting the mall to reduce the visible impact of the site.
He offered 30 NVQ building students at a local college onsite seminars, making himself available to provide information and give advice. And he promoted an art competition for local schools, displaying the artworks on the site hoarding and having the site team install a mirror ball and lighting in the winning school’s hall.
Eric’s strong planning background was apparent in his meticulous breaking down of the project into its component parts to help him understand how to build it. It was a key enabler in correctly engaging with the project’s many complex issues, such as sequencing the piling with the basement groundworks. He successfully plugged into 1the expertise of the supply chain to produce a fully co-ordinated and robust contract programme that brought the project in three weeks ahead of schedule.
Value: £29.3m