Construction and civil engineering specialist GRAHAM is celebrating a double win at the national Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) Awards 2020.
The contractor scooped the Fosroc Engineering Award, before then being named as the Overall Winner of the CIHT Awards 2020, both of which were for its work on Carpenter’s Land Bridge, a project that connects London’s East Bank to its International Quarter.
The CIHT Awards is an annual global competition that celebrate innovative work, what it takes to be the best and the incredible benefits thatthe highways and transportation sector and its work bring to society.
Carpenter’s Land Bridge is a vital pedestrian and cycle bridge that links the £1.1 billion East Bank culture and education district on Queen
Elizabeth Olympic Park to International Quarter London.
The project saw GRAHAM’s civil engineering teams design and install a 66m long steel bridge, formed of a portal frame and bearings, a concrete cill beam and bearings within an existing retaining wall structure, that crosses both Network Rail and Docklands Light Railways lines.
The bridge was designed using Business Information Modelling software, consisting of both object-oriented 3D geometrical and non-graphical data, which was updated throughout the course of the project.
Judges at the CIHT Awards praised the scheme, stating they were particularly impressed with GRAHAM’s creative approach to design and implementation.
Judges stated: “The innovative solution, using off site fabrication and novel construction techniques provided a potential model for others to follow.”They added that there “were significant benefits in delivering during a constrained time window with large social values for the community and business.”
On being named winners at the awards, Leo Martin, GRAHAM’s Managing Director of Civil Engineering, said: “It is a great honour to receive not just one, but two prestigious CIHT Awards for our work at the Carpenter’s Land Bridge. I would like to thank our project team for the dedication and commitment that was essential to completing the scheme on schedule and to budget.
“The team went the extra mile on this project, taking advantage of the rail network shutdown to minimise disruption, and installing the bridge during overnight works on Christmas Eve, working into Christmas Day morning to ensure our programme was met.”
Leo added: “Collaboration, as always, was also key to the delivery of this scheme and I’d like to thank our clients at the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), our partners COWI designers and Briton Fabricators, MACE – the LLDC’s project management partner and principal contractor for the East Bank development,and all the stakeholders involved in the work for making this a success.
The CIHT Awards are a highlight of the industry’s calendar and to be recognised at them is a fantastic achievement.”
The CIHT Awards were announced at a virtual awards ceremony on the 23rd June.
About East Bank
East Bank is a new £1.1 billion powerhouse of culture, education, innovation and growth being built on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, east London. East Bank will be spread across three sites – UCL East (UCL’s new campus), Stratford Waterfront (Sadler’s Wells, BBC, the V&A including a partnership with the Smithsonian Institution and UAL’s London College of Fashion) and Here East (the V&A’s new Collection and Research Centre, and an existing space for UCL).
The scheme, which is receiving £385m from the Mayor of London and £151m from the Government, will provide skills and jobs for local people, bring over 10,000 students to the site, and attract thousands of visitors from London and beyond. East Bank will help to cement the capital’s reputation as a world leader in culture, education and innovation creating 2,500 jobs, £1.5 billion of economic benefit and 600 new homes. East Bank will build on the area’s existing creative credentials, and East Bank partners have been building relationships and delivering projects with the thriving arts, fashion and community organisations based in the area, including the artistic community in Hackney Wick, East London Dance, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Studio Wayne McGregor and many more.
About GRAHAM
GRAHAM is a privately-owned company that specialises in the delivery of award-winning building, civil engineering, interior fit-out, facilities management and investment projects. A truly national business, with an annual turnover of £735m (2019), it operates from a network of 23 regional offices throughout the UK and Ireland and employs over 2,200 colleagues. Proudly “delivering lasting impact” since 1778, it is currently completing over 100 live projects across a range of key sectors including education, healthcare, commercial, retail, highways and rail.
Winner of the Major Contractor of the Year at the 2017 Building Awards, GRAHAM was the first contractor in the UK to achieve Investors in People (IIP) Platinum and IIP Wellbeing accreditations. It was also the first UK wide company to achieve the British Standards Institute (BSI) Kitemark™ certification for both BIM Design and Construction (PAS 1192-2) and Asset Management (PAS 1192-3).
With an exceptionally strong £1.2bn pipeline, GRAHAM was ranked 95th in the annual Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 100 – a league table which ranks Britain’s top 100 private companies with the biggest sales.