Name: Stephen Waldron
Employer: Willmott Dixon Construction
Project: Forest Way SEN School, Leicester
Contract: NEC option 3
In delivering this project on time (well, 10 weeks early, to be accurate), on budget and to the delight of the client, Stephen Waldron simply did what every construction manager aspires to. But what makes for a knockout achievement was that he did so in the face of a rarely experienced level of design disruption.
The design discontinuity created by a succession of architects quitting the scheme severely tested the project. It made finishing the building envelope enormously stressful and left Steve having to lead the design as well as run the project. In essence, he held down two jobs during the second half of the project, regularly working 12-hour days and a great many weekends.
But not only did Steve manage, he managed brilliantly. He resolved many of the design issues himself, and even came up with superior solutions to those originally planned, according to the admiring head teacher. He worked hand in glove with the users at the fit-out stage to understand their requirements at the same time as agreeing budgets with internal designers.
Honest, calm and thorough, he formed an excellent working relationship with the users. He never tried to patronise them or blind them with science; instead he took the time to explain everything clearly. When he disagreed with a suggestion, he never dismissed it but simply pointed out an alternative that would work better.
He augmented his day-to-day project management with regular meetings with the client, architects, key suppliers and subcontractors. And he focused on outstanding quality, personally checking every task on completion to achieve an admirable standard of finish.
The client and the users were thrilled with the building, and gave it and Steve a 100% score on the customer satisfaction survey. Delivering an impressive two months early, he gave them everything they wanted and more.
Value: £9.7m