Construction and Engineering Awards 2020

69 Construction & Engineering Awards 2020 BUILD BUILD Construction & Engineering Awards 2020 68 s a design-led practice, it is Croft’s mission to develop tailored buildings in order to create the best possible living environment. Based in London, the team have developed its services to meet demand and deal with changes in the economic climate over the years. To begin with, Chis provides us with a brief overview of the firm and offers more insight into its typical clientele. “As a leading structural engineering consultancy, we get to work with the best construction professionals in the business. These amazing collaborations have resulted in us been involved on a number of award-winning projects, including this year’s 2020 Don’t Move Improve Awards, where the renovation of a Victorian terraced property we worked on won ‘The Compact Design of the Year Award. As our projects have captured the imagination of the population, we were also voted the most popular in 2019 and 2020 by the HOUZZ Community, an online community showcasing design and home improvements. “Naturally, our services include new build, renovation, and refurbishment (experts in historic period properties), commercial, temporary works, basements, basement impact assessments and construction method statements (required by most London Boroughs), site surveys and investigation works.” When undertaking a new client, communication is the key to the success of any new project as Chis goes on to explain. “Communication is at the heart of our approach and from the outset of each project we listen, challenge and explore the requirements of our client. Being open and honest with our clients, employees, and fellow consultants means we build mutual trust and respect in our relationships, which we are continuing to see the benefit from. “Currently, we are involved in the development of new build houses in the heart of Notting Hill. Having been involved in the development from 2015, we contributed to the planning documentation for the Basement Impact Assessment and RIBA stage 2 designs. “The project has a large basement 25x15m and 6m deep located against an elevated section of a London Underground Best Structural Engineering Consultancy 2020 - London Founded in 2004, Croft Structural Engineers Ltd is a vibrant, growing practice of young professional Structural Engineers whose principle, it is to improve the ‘built’ environment. Following their success in the Construction & Engineering Awards 2020, we got in touch with Chis Tomlin to find out more. A Sep20906 station. The design team is currently in talks with LUL and our geotechnical engineer on the construction. In due course, we are confident that an agreement will be reached.” The team on the project is led by a technical director who is a chartered civil engineer. Under his guidance, there is a team of four engineers providing the technical support needed on a project of this complexity, with a specialist drainage engineer complimenting the team. The final piece to the puzzle is an external consultant geotechnical engineer whom we are working closely with.” Exploiting the opportunities which some rivals have chosen to avoid has been the key to remaining one step ahead of its closest competitors, as Chis explains further. “The team’s ability to see beyond simple solutions by working with and understanding our clients and their customers has been a key factor behind us leading the way in structural engineering. Unlike other structural engineers we offer services in temporary works designs. Many engineers avoid this because the level of work required for the temporary works is typically more than the amount needed for the permanent structures. Having developed our engineers to be specialists in this field, this has enabled the company to provide a more holistic service by combining the permanent and temporary works design in one service.” Despite the recent outbreak of COVID-19, there are reasons for Croft Structural Engineers to be positive as we look ahead to the future. As Chis points out, the firm’s operations have not been affected too much with many people able to work from home. “In spite of the pandemic, the sector is buoyant and the workload we are receiving is encouraging. Due to a lack of office space our practice had been restricted, however with our current setup we are now looking to grow the practice with home working and hot desking, aiming to double the number of staff.” Company: Croft Structural Engineers Ltd Contact: Chis Tomlin Web Address: www.croftse.co.uk Best Cooling Tower Design and Construction Firm - North America nternational Cooling Tower (ICT) is a major North American manufacturer and service provider of industrial cooling towers. ICT designs, manufactures and constructs a complete line of industrial cooling towers for the petrochemical industry, power plants, petroleum refineries, pulp and paper mills and steel factories. The company also provides training, maintenance programs, and inspection services to all its clients. For ICT, it is never a case of building the towers and leaving. They continue to provide service even after the last brick is laid. The ICT team and their values are the foundation of the company’s success. Among all levels of employees, there is a culture of excellence, integrity and respect. Continuous engagement with employees promotes continuous development, improving both the company as a whole and each member as an individual. When dealing with construction projects on the massive scale that ICT does, safety has to be at the core of each operation. ICT takes safety very seriously. “We want all of our employees to return home safely to their families each and every day,” said Jeff Colliou McKay of ICT. “We have a lot of behavioural-based and on-site safety assessments that occur throughout the day on any given project. There are no shortcuts when it comes to safety. It’s always paramount. ICT is a family, so we watch out for each other and want everyone to be safe at all times.” The targeted Safety Program, Employee Engagement Program, and Leadership Feedback Process utilised by the company all work to create a safe environment and a constantly improving team. With a history stretching back to 1958, it is no surprise that ICT are so adept when it comes to their processes. The years of experience has seen ICT grow into the market leader that they are today and aim to become throughout the world. In large part, the success of the company is down to their focus on their customers. Over the sixty-plus years of history, of engineering and operational knowledge, of experience and growth, the company has developed a flexibility that allows them to adapt to their customers’ needs. ICT recently completed a multicell, turnkey cooling tower replacement for one such customer. The team were hired to tear down a dilapidated cooling tower for a refinery in the Gulf of Mexico and perform a complete rebuild. The refinery had a very short outage window that the tower replacement had to be achieved within. The key to this project, Jeff says, was planning and communication. The client allowed the team at ICT to develop a suitable plan then gave the go-ahead for them to carry it out precisely as they laid it out. “ICT had to remove all of the existing mechanical components from the tower. We then had to start from scratch and build two new cells, but the team was prepared for any obstacles. We were able to really focus on project management, control, and planning, which mirrored how well the project went. Because we were able to develop risk planning and a very good communication plan, if any risk came up — whether it was planned or unknown — we had a game plan on how to fix everything effectively. We had the ideal amount of people in a very small space to efficiently finish the work on time.” The flexibility and laser focus that ICT displayed with this project is typical of the standard to which they perform. For instance, in some cases, they adapt their plans so that some cells can remain running while they work on new ones, or, as with this project in the Gulf of Mexico, they can perform their operations inside a shutdown window. Having their engineering, procurement and construction groups all under one roof allows them to utilise a vast array of experiences and skills to ensure every project can be a success. ICT has a very bright future. They have seen substantial growth over the past five years — growth that looks to continue as they move forward. The company’s manhours in the US went from 300,000 five years ago to approximately 1.2 million in 2019. The company has even developed its own fabrication facility in Arizona in order to facilitate their builds and make projects more efficient. The quality level of planning and execution that ICT has demonstrated in their past projects is commendable. As they move forward, their expertise and experience will serve them well as they continue to grow and expand. Contact: Jeff Colliou McKay Company: International Cooling Tower Inc. Web Address: www.ictower.com I Cooling towers are a vital part of the industries that keep society turning. They are crucial for keeping the lights on in your house and putting the fuel in your car. As such, we are fortunate that a company as dedicated, responsible and reliable as International Cooling Tower are behind a large number of the towers that you see on the skyline. Sep20005