Name: Cathal Montague ICIOB
Employer: Farrans Construction Ltd
Project: Wallace Hall Primary & Academy, Thornhill, Dumfriesshire
Contract: PPP
With three contractors signed up to a single contract to build 10 schools in eight different sites, Cathal Montague fostered a competitive team edge that set the pace in programming and in quality. His success is clear from his project’s KPIs, which consistently outperformed those of the other schemes.
His site was a model of good contract planning practice. Cathal established a clear model and a process to ensure that all stakeholders contributed to project success. He organised the meetings of the various teams, leading them professionally, with clear agendas and concise minutes.
His management was underpinned by effective communication and teamwork. Even though there was no contractual obligation, he established a partnering relationship with the end-user. He used all his interpersonal skills and organisational ability to motivate and focus the team. His open personality and determination to succeed were infectious.
His innovative approach to design management generated big benefits on the sloping site. The ground had to be filled up to 2.4m in places, with the foundations cut into it. Rather than do this as two separate tasks, Cathal did it as a combined operation, in two phases of 1.2m. It was a safer methodology, which eliminated shuttering and ground support.
He halved the cost of the drainage channel by changing the product installed without affecting the spec. And he increased the specification where the benefit to the programme outweighed the initial cost. For example, he made the floor screed a structural element to gain earlier access to areas and reduce the scaffolding requirement.
Value: £15.8m