Bridge project team of the year

This award recognises teams working collaboratively on any type of bridge project, bridge maintenance or bridge management, who can demonstrate excellent culture and collaboration on projects within the last 18 months.

BakerHicks and Balfour Beatty
Tynybryn Active Travel Bridge

Tynybryn bridge is one of the first Active Travel Bridges in South Wales to use a light-weight fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) deck solution with a localised ground improvement system of injected geopolymers to improve the ground bearing. Using the geopolymer injection as a pre-construction activity rather than a post remedial solution has not been used like this before, especially for accommodating a fast flowing river in a highly constrained site. The collaborative project realised savings in programme (6 weeks), costs (up to £113,000), and whole life embodied carbon (15% saving) helping to reduce reliance on traditional materials and resources.

Balvac, National Highways, Amey
Area 10 Bridge Repair and Maintenance

Collaboration and a genuine desire to deliver complex and challenging structural repair, strengthening and protection projects was instrumental in the development of this successful team. Trust, honesty and openness led to more efficient work practices, with a deep understanding of each others’ requirements, capabilities and expertise. We developed solutions that improved working environments, reduced key health and wellbeing risks. Together, we have extended the life of critical highway infrastructure, safely and sustainably returning essential assets to full capacity, for the benefit of the travelling public. Our experiences have been taken forward into the next National Highways frameworks across England.

Bam Farrans Joint Venture

To meet Norfolk County Council’s (NCC) needs, BAM Nuttall and Farrans Construction formed a joint venture (BFJV), bringing together industry leading engineering knowledge and supply chain to deliver this technically challenging £121m scheme. From the outset, BFJV, NCC and supply chain had leadership and a culture of collaboration. The team bought international experience in design and construction, providing cost effective solutions. Supply chain was fundamental in minimising carbon through design, incorporating temporary works into permanent, and the installation of the bridge decks over tidal water. The team also achieved excellent Return on Social Value, 33% of tendered price.

Beca the SH25a team: Beca, Tonkin+Taylor, Fulton Hogan, McConnell Dowell and NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi)

Major weather events destroyed 120 metres of the State Highway into New Zealand’s Coromandel Peninsula, a tourism hotspot recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic downturn. Reopening the road required a three-span bridge to be designed and built – typically a 24-month process. Beca (Bridge Engineer), Tonkin+Taylor (Geotechnical) and McConnell Dowell and Fulton Hogan (Constructor JV) formed a team that drove an unprecedented level of collaboration with New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, local supply chain and community, delivering a robust bridge across the slip in six months: three months ahead of time, under budget, and with no lost time injuries.

C1-Align Integrated Project Team

From its inception, the HS2 C1 Package strived for full integration and collaboration within its team. It is being delivered by Align, a joint venture of Bouygues Travaux Publics, VolkerFitzpatrick and Sir Robert McAlpine. It includes 21.6km of high-speed rail infrastructure, including a 3.4km viaduct. Align, working with Align-D design consortium partners Jacobs and Rendel-Ingerop, and HS2, have created a truly integrated project team, (the IPT) branded C1-Align. It is an innovative model that has not previously been implemented in the UK, it champions collaboration and has successfully broken through traditional barriers between clients, designers and construction teams.

Crouch Waterfall, Balfour Beatty Rail, Network Rail

The Nuneham viaduct line was re-opened in only 66 days at 90mph, including design, installation and handback of a new southern abutment and bearing shelf due to the established relationships between client Network Rail, main contractor Balfour Beatty and designer Crouch Waterfall, resulting from the seven-year framework contract, and past work together. Normally the £18m project would have taken 1.5 years to design and install. NR with BB and CW support allowed weekly TV reporter visits, and daily reports to ensure all stakeholders were kept informed of progress and to build confidence that the line would open on time.

Mott MacDonald Systra Design JV with Weston Williamson + Partners and Balfour Beatty Vinci JV
Excellent Collaborative Culture in Action on HS2 Phase 1 Main Works Civils Contracts N1 and N2

Mott MacDonald, SYSTRA and Weston Williamson + Partners were appointed by Balfour Beatty VINCI Joint Venture on the largest HS2 Main Works Civils contracts. The excellent collaborative culture, leadership and hard work of hundreds of engineers, architects, town planners and site teams, has seen the design enable construction start of 58 bridges; some of the largest and most complex bridge structures in the UK. This has been a global effort with teams from 10 different countries rising to the enormous technical challenges whilst prioritising people and planet, engaging local communities and achieving the Excellent rating under BREEAM for new-build infrastructure.

Skanska
SAS Bridge 13

SAS13 was mobilised and early works commenced during the COVID pandemic when teams had to form working relationships quickly within new working environments. It demonstrates our collaborative approach with many stakeholders and our capability when providing complex engineering solutions that reduce possession working, maintain line speeds, improve efficiency and save £12m while protecting the rail corridor. Working collaboratively during all works resulted in no speed restrictions, less possession than envisaged and no possession overruns, therefore no delay minutes, no disruption to railway services, zero local community complaints and no environmental incidents, no HS2 programme delays and 7200t CO2e savings.

Waldeck, Network Rail, Nottingham Trent Univerity, Birmingham City University
Panoptic Bridge Management Solution

Network Rail manages numerous bridge structures, requiring ongoing examination, assessment, maintenance, and repair. Traditional methods for managing these structures vary across the organisation, leading to inefficiencies in cost and time. Through a culture of collaboration and knowledge sharing, the Panoptic Bridge Management project, developed by Waldeck, Nottingham Trent University (NTU), and Birmingham City University (BCU), aims to address these challenges. It introduces a web-based system for bridge examination and visualisation of examination data to improve safety, quality, and efficiency. By leveraging innovative technologies, the project aims to streamline on-site inspections, reducing person-hours through a comprehensive bridge management process.