The  key points covered were:

- Top soil strip and removal (80,000m³)

- Archaeological excavations

- Trial holes and classification of materials

- Rock trial (2,000m²) Dig /Process / Sample

- Compaction trials with Class 1 and 2 variables 

- Earthworks processes

- Cut and fill overburden

- Processing of rock onsite

- Design and build of earth bund

- Wind / Dust reduction

- Site walk and talk

The Branch would like to thank all those who attended and look forward to seeing you at their forthcoming CPD events.

Special thanks also go to AMEY, and in particular the informative guide,  Site Agent Lee Norton, for a very interesting visit to this incredible site.

The 2019 IHE Mercia Branch awards took place at the Birmingham Conference and Events Centre on Thursday 23rd May and for the first time in the event’s history, the awards had been open to entries from across the UK. Also a first for the event, the IHE Mercia Branch had teamed up with the Local Council Roads Innovation Group (LCRIG) as their event delivery partner. The event was kindly supported by Tracsis and Applied Driving Techniques as the Mercia Branch sponsors.

The event was very well attended with over 140 attendees with various businesses and organisations from across the industry represented. The decision by the branch committee to open up the event from regional to national entries had also proven successful, with a broad range of high quality entries.

Martin Polland (IHE Council Junior Vice-Chair) was in attendance, as well as Richard Hayes (IHE Chief Executive). Martin delivered an excellent and inspiring speech covering current IHE developments and wider industry challenges and in particular the skills shortages and the need to adapt to future technologies.

For the second year running, the event supported Brake, The Road Safety Charity with £797.50 raised on the night through donations.

Richard Harman the IHE Mercia Branch Chair said: “we’ve really been pleased with this year’s event and we had great feedback from the judges over the quality of the schemes submitted for awards. The branch committee put a lot of effort into organising the event, so it’s really great to see so many people from across the industry enjoying the evening and winning awards. A special mention must go to LCRIG, Tracsis and Applied Driving Techniques for their support this year, as obviously we’re all very busy in our day jobs keeping the West Midlands road network moving! So without their support the event wouldn’t be possible. We’ve also been really pleased to raise so much money for Brake, who play an excellent role in road safety education to prevent and support those people injured on the highway network.” 

Winners and Highly Commended Entries with judges’ comments: 

Large Project of the Year 

Winner
Crewe Green Roundabout
Cheshire East Council, Jacobs, Balfour Beatty

This excellent piece of new infrastructure will have a significant impact, both locally and across the wider area.  The project involved high levels of quality engagement with the local community (generating positive feedback) and has had a positive impact on congestion, local jobs, whilst supporting local growth, all within budget and programme. 

Small Project of the Year 

Winner
Better Safe Barton – Barton-under-Needwood Village Enhancement Scheme
Staffordshire County Council / Amey

This project caught the judge’s attention in being a Parish Council led and driven initiative.  The completed scheme has provided an enhancement which has not only improved the village ambiance, but has also provided better facilities for cyclist and pedestrians, as well supporting speed reduction and traffic management measures. 

Safety and Innovation Project of the Year 

Winner
Jacobs SafetyWeb + Solution – UK Wide
Jacobs

This project had demonstrated a ‘grass roots’ approach to road safety.” The judges were impressed that the project demonstrated a passion for better information management and sought to address the efficiency, accuracy and risk when sharing safety information across large delivery teams.

Environmental Sustainability Project of the Year

Winner
A4440 Toucan Crossing – Reduced Impact Bat Lighting
Jacobs

Within this scheme the project team has effectively balanced the needs of supporting growth and protecting the environment. As part of this innovative project, a rare bat colony has been protected using state of the art lighting technology, ensuring the construction of a key piece of new highway infrastructure is harmonious with its surroundings 

Highway Partnership Award 

Winner
East Midlands Asset Delivery (EMAD) – Highways England Area 7
Highways England, Kier, Amey, Carnell, WJ, nmcn, McCann and others. 

The judges were impressed by the vision and objectives of the EMAD community of Highways England and its 22 industry partners.  This is a truly collaborative approach in which all partners are equal (SME’s and large enterprises) working collectively in the delivery of highly efficient and customer centric maintenance and improvement schemes. 

Judges Special Merit Award

Winner
Telford Central Replacement Footbridge Project
Jacobs, Balfour Beatty PLC, Telford & Wrekin Council, SH Structures Ltd, Nicoll Russell Studios Ltd

The judging panel wanted to make specific mention of the Telford Footway Bridge Project by awarding a Judges Special Merit Award.  This project was highly commended in the Large Project section, a particularly strong category.   However, given the high quality and innovation within this project, the judges felt it appropriate to single out this project for special recognition. The resultant, futuristic bridge – not only extremely impressive to look at and in terms of engineering, also provides key transport links for the local community, essential for the regeneration of the local area.

Highly Commended
Telford Central Replacement Footbridge Project
Jacobs, Balfour Beatty PLC, Telford & Wrekin Council, SH Structures Ltd, Nicoll Russell Studios Ltd

A54 Buxton Road Safety Barrier
Cheshire East Council, Ringway Jacobs, Jacobs and Harry Fairclough Construction Ltd

 Jacobs/ ADT/ Tracsis
Road Safety Week 2018

Valley of Stone Greenway
Nu-phalt Group/ Lancashire County Council

Road Safety Week 2018 Walk to School Safety Review
Jacobs/ Tracsis

Professional Review of the Year

Winners
Antony Clewes – Engineering Technician
Jonathan Gall – Incorporated Engineer
Steve Windass – Chartered Engineer

Kindly sponsored by:

The Mercia Branch committee recently held its AGM at Jacobs house in Shrewsbury. We were very pleased to welcome two new committee members: Hannah Clarke and Owen Witherow, who both work at Jacobs. William Painter is now the branch vice-chair and Richard Harman has moved up to the role as chair. Mark Fleming and Trevor Fletcher remain as the branch honorary secretary and treasurer respectively. The branch committee currently has some vacancies, so if you’re interested in getting involved then please get in touch! It’s a rewarding way to give something back to our industry, helping other people develop as well as contributing to your own CPD.

Pictured: William Painter (left) is the new branch vice-chair, Richard Harman (centre) accepting the role as chair from Daniel Byles (right) as the outgoing chair.

Awards Evening 2019 – LAST CALL FOR ENTRIES!

Our annual awards evening returns to the Birmingham Conference and Events Centre on Thursday 23rd May. Entries for this year’s awards evening close on Friday 12th April 2019 and we’re accepting entries for schemes located across the UK. Please get in touch with us if you want to discuss your entries or details of the event. Further details can be found at: https://www.theihe.org/ihe-mercia-branch-national-awards-2019/

Branch Sponsorship

We’re delighted to announce that we have two main sponsors for 2019: Tracsis and Applied Driving Techniques.

Tracsis are a leading supplier of traffic surveys, data collection and analytics, along with event traffic management services. They have been a long-standing supporter of the IHE Mercia Branch and awards evening, so we thank them for their continued support. https://tracsistraffic.com/

Applied Driving Techniques (ADT) are a welcomed new sponsor for 2019. They provide fleet safety and management solutions and have strong links with Brake, the road safety charity. Their business is based around promoting occupational road safety solutions, so they’re a great fit for the branch and we would like to express our thanks for their support. https://applieddriving.co.uk/

CPD Events

The committee is currently working on a programme of free training events to take place across the Mercia area on a variety of topics, so details will be published soon. We are always open to suggestions for events, so if you have an idea or would like to host an event then please drop us a line at mercia@theihe.org

The categories this year are:

• Large Project of the Year
• Small Project of the Year
• Environmental Sustainability Project of the Year
• Safety and Innovation Project of the Year
• Highway Partnership Award
• Professional Review of the Year

More information on each category can be found by downloading the entry information below.

The deadline for entries is 12th April 2019.

Whilst this is a Mercia Branch awards event, for the first time in the Branch's history, we are inviting entries from across the whole of the UK. There is no restriction on the number of entries that can be submitted and this is a great opportunity for organisations to showcase the great work they do and provide some great PR for organisations/companies.

Winners will be announced at the awards evening on 23rd May 2019.  For information or to book visit: https://www.theihe.org/ihe-events/ihe-mercia-branch-national-awards-2019/

Downloads

• How to enter
• Rules and Guidelines
• Entry Form
• Awards Flyer

A light buffet will be served from 17:00 for a 17:30 start for the CPD lecture ‘Fatal Distraction’ by Nick Newton of Amey Consulting. The AGM will commence at 18:30

Booking is required for catering purposes. - Book Now

All the information you need to enter can be found here: https://www.theihe.org/last-chance-to-enter-the-2018-mercia-branch-awards/