Name: Peter Lynton-Jenkins MCIOB
Employer: Bowen
Project: The Old Bailey, London
Contract: JCT 2005
When his client’s demolition contractor was hauled before an Old Bailey judge and threatened with contempt of court for being too noisy, Peter Lynton-Jenkins realised just how unique his project was. There aren’t many schemes where ignoring the neighbours can land you in the slammer, but that was the case for this one, which shared a party wall with the Old Bailey.
Peter immediately stepped in to take over the behind-programme demolition contract, completing it in parallel with the construction programme. He then acted as the liaison with the law courts, personally handling the day-by-day and often hour-by-hour management co-ordination of court sittings and construction works. He successfully pulled back the delayed demolition without ending up in the dock himself.
He brought in plant and equipment to reduce the environmental impact on neighbours and to minimise the risk of noise. He deployed a single tower crane, rather than the pair proposed by rival bidders for the contract. And he located specialist piling rigs that greatly reduced noise and vibration.
As Bowen’s first project in the UK, this one needed to be a success for the startup, not only commercially, but also to demonstrate it could deliver safety, quality, programme and client satisfaction. No surprise, then, that it had been awarded the contract on condition that Peter, who had successfully completed a string of major schemes for the client, was the resident project manager.
His leadership proved faultless in handing over the building a week early despite a long string of challenges. There were weather delays of all kinds, electrical services connection hold-ups, no materials storage areas, and closure difficulties surrounding the sole road in and out that had to be shared with prison escort vans. There were also archaeology finds that demanded resequencing, noise-related working restrictions imposed by nearby St Paul’s Cathedral, and an unrecorded services tunnel found running under the site.
Peter showed tremendous energy in closing out all these challenges and keeping the team constantly focused on its goals.
Value: £22m