Name: Steven Turner
Employer: Kier Longley
Project: HMP Lewes Houseblock & associated Infrastructure, Lewes East Sussex
Contract: PPC 2000
Going by the avalanche of enthusiastic letters of support for Steven Turner from the stakeholders − everyone from architects to the governor, from subcontractors to graduate trainees − his determination to build a can-do collaborative team on this project was a complete success. The size of the team, with 170 operatives onsite at peak tackling six different workfaces at any one time, makes his achievement even more striking.
Given the challenges, team focus was an absolute necessity. Naturally, there were the standard problems of pressure on logistics from a tight site with constrained access: the Grade II listed building is on a steep hill in a residential area. And the client demanded a compressed programme to ensure that the security risk of operating a major construction site in a live prison did not persist a day longer than necessary.
The bizarre also turned up on a daily basis. Drugs thrown over the perimeter walls for the inmates repeatedly ended up onsite. The loss of keys to secure parts of the prison, held by some of the construction team, would have cost 500k in relocking costs. And dog searches had to be included in the handover procedure.
Steve developed a collective drive and spirit though continuous communication. His partnering approach galvanised the supply chain, brought the users into the design decision-making, and impressed the client and architects.
He struck the difficult balance between the client’s expectations and user requirements without upsetting either. And he delivered the guaranteed maximum price by driving some sterling value-engineering initiatives.
His proposal for a biomass boiler rather than boreholes streamlined the build. He championed prefabrication to cut costs, push quality and promote the programme. His king post system solution for a retaining wall problem saved £500k. And for the roof and louvre installation, he designed an innovative beam system that eliminated scaffold and towers.
Value: £29.9m