Highways Agency engineers and contractors (including Costain) in Greater Manchester have won an award for innovation, after delivering improvements along the M61 at the same time as reducing inconvenience to drivers.

The use of the Dynamic Roadspace Utilisation Manager (DRUM) for the first time anywhere outside the South East shaved two weeks off the time needed to deliver the £4.1million scheme between Junctions 3 and 4 of the motorway near Bolton.

By utilising DRUM, engineers were able to calculate windows when contractors were able to extend work beyond traditional working times - enabling them to finish the work to install a new concrete safety barrier and other improvements more quickly.

The system works by using trailer-mounted sensors to acquire live, real-time data on traffic flow. By combining this fresh information with historical statistics, specially-designed software then calculates the optimum time for lane closures, improving the pace at which roadworks can be undertaken.

The work on the M61, which also included bridge improvements, began at the end of May and was finished two weeks ahead of schedule on Saturday, September 12, saving £250,000 in the process.   

Around 80,000 drivers use this section of the M61 each day and Highways Agency Project Sponsor John Mather said, "No one likes roadworks but they are a necessity to keep our motorways operating safely.  By using DRUM we were able to ensure that the work was completed and roadworks lifted sooner than originally anticipated.

"Using DRUM on this scheme has saved us time and public money as well as reducing inconvenience to our customers using the motorway network."

The benefits of deploying DRUM along the M61 included fitting in 20 extra hours work at the weekends with day and night shifts getting on with work without getting in each other's way.

DRUM was devised by contractor Costain, transport consultancy TRL and technology supplier MTS. It will now be considered for use during other schemes in the North West.

Its use on the M61 scooped first prize for innovation in the Agency's own Phil Stanton awards.  The internal competition is designed to encourage fresh construction solutions from contractors within the Highways Agency's Construction Management Framework. The framework covers south Lancashire, Merseyside, Greater Manchester, Cheshire, Herefordshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire and the West Midlands.

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Costain, which will announce preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2009 on Wednesday 10 March 2010, is issuing a trading update ahead of entering its Close Period.

Trading during the final quarter of 2009, and consequently for the year as a whole, remained in-line with the Board's expectations.

The Group's operations continued to benefit from the deliberate focus on targeted blue chip customers whose major spending plans are underpinned by strategic national priorities in chosen sectors. Costain has a proven scale and capability to deliver complex solutions to major customers and as a result has entered 2010 with a strong order book and pipeline of opportunities.

As at 31 December 2009, the Group's Forward Order Book had grown to £2.6 billion, a 30% increase on the previous year (2008: £2.0 billion). Whilst we believe that market conditions will remain uncertain in 2010, the Order Book includes over £850 million of work secured for 2010, ahead of the position for 2009 at this time last year.

The order book has benefited from a number of major contract awards during the year, including:

- five-year AMP 5 water frameworks for Severn Trent and United Utilities;
- the major Evaporator D nuclear project at Sellafield;
- the Midlands Works Contract 4 and five-year MAC 12 Highways contracts reflecting the Group's strategic growth in maintenance activity;and
- the Manchester Waste contract, part of Europe's largest waste project.

In addition, the Group has preferred bidder positions of over £400 million reflecting success in converting previous preferred positions into firm orders.

The Group maintained its strong cash position significantly in excess of £100 million.

Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive, commented:

"Costain continues to differentiate itself as a result of its strategic focus on customers who are expected to continue with their major investment programmes despite the current economic environment. We have a significantly increased order book, a strong cash position and an ongoing rigorous management of costs."

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Costain Energy & Process has announced two key appointments.

Andrew Pennington will be taking Strategy & Business Development Director and Martin Land becomes Power Sector Director.

Andrew has more than twenty years experience in the oil & gas and nuclear industries. He has an honours degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Surrey and an MBA from Cranfield School of Management. Andrew's responsibilities will include developing long term strategies to achieve the Company's growth targets in the energy and process sectors.

Martin joins Costain from E.ON where he held responsibility for the development of a portfolio of power projects with a potential installed capacity over 5 GW. His early career began with ICI in the North West. He subsequently held positions of increasing responsibility with other blue-chip organisations including Alstom, Westinghouse and Bechtel. He has both domestic and overseas experience in the bidding and execution of power plant projects.

Martin has an honours degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Nottingham and is a member of the Association of Project Managers. His role will be key in the development of Costain's business in the power sector.

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Sophie May, a civil engineer working on the Costain Church Village bypass project, has become chartered and now joins the illustrious membership of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Sophie has also been nominated for the coveted Karen Burt Memorial Award that is made annually to a woman engineer of high calibre who has newly attained full corporate membership and Chartered Engineer status through her relevant institution. 

Sophie, who lives in Caerphilly, joined Costain in 2003 having graduated as a civil engineer from the University of Warwick. During her time with Costain she has worked on the A34 Chieveley, Sirhowy, Porth Relief Road, A2/A282 Dartford and is currently managing the road works associated with the Church Village bypass. 

Barry Woodman, Project Manager for Costain, said: "Sophie has worked extremely hard to achieve this prestigious award and nomination and her efforts are acknowledged in her role at Church Village not only in terms of her engineering skills but also the support she has provided to schools and wider community."

Sophie added: "It has been hard work but I have received tremendous support from the team at Costain and I am proud to have achieved my chartered status and the nomination for the Karen Burt Memorial Award." 

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Costain for the second year running, celebrated success at the annual Institute of Water* awards held in Cardiff. The prestigious awards recognise and reward outstanding innovations within the water industry.

The team, from Dwr Cymru Welsh Water, received the Customer Service award. Team members were presented with the award in recognition of the 'drop-in sessions' that were held for DCWW customers living in the Prestatyn and Rhyl areas, who have been deeply affected by flooding.

The primary function of the 'drop-in process' is to anticipate potential customer issues and diffuse the situation through data collection and good customer communication. Comprising of five stages, the process initially involves setting up a Flood Forum with affected residents and local authority representatives to gain an understanding of the issues. Further resident interviews are undertaken and an open 'drop-in session' is held for customers to speak to our team of experts. Progress is communicated through the distribution of a newsletter and finally, a formal close out at the conclusion of the investigative and mitigation work. 

In Prestatyn, this new process facilitated the development of a better working relationship with other authorities, relieved the pressure to deliver an unfunded scheme, and most importantly, it led to improved customer satisfaction.

Costain Framework Director, John Madden, said: "This award demonstrates the Costain teams' commitment to the 'Being Number One' strategy and is another great example of the excellent customer service we pride ourselves on. We will be taking this process and developing it further to ensure that customers in other areas will also benefit from the 'drop-in process'."

* The Institute of Water is the only professional body dedicated to supporting the careers of people working in the UK water industry. Founded in 1945, the Institute of Water offers a unique and independent learning, development and networking framework to the water industry.

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A major  milestone has been achieved at the St Germans Pumping Station nr. King's Lynn in Norfolk when water was introduced into the cofferdam for the first time.

Costain Project Manager Ritchie Burcombe and his team are delighted to have achieved this landmark after three years working on this complex contract. It was in April 2008 that the cofferdam was pumped dry to allow works to commence and in the succeeding 9 months, some 450 CFA piles and 12,000 cubic metres of reinforced concrete were constructed by Costain, before starting work on the structural steel framework for the Pump Hall itself. The building was handed over at the end of May 2009 to allow the pumps and M&E equipment to be installed whilst Costain completed the rest of the building and prepared the works for the controlled flooding of the cofferdam.

Over the next six weeks the remaining works within the cofferdam will be completed and the water levels increased to allow the pumps to be commissioned at the end of February. Once the pumps are commissioned, the diversion channel will be closed and the cofferdam removed. Demolition of the existing pumping station and earthworks to the channels will complete the works.

The contract, being carried out for the Middle Level Commissioners, is to replace the existing pumping station that serves to drain a large part of the Fens. It was constructed in the 1930's and the age of the existing pumping station, together with greater water run-off within the catchment area and rising sea levels, led to the decision to replace the existing pumping station. The new pumping station is situated within the tidal section of the Great Ouse and the cofferdam, that is now being flooded, is one of the largest in current use in this country.

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The Costain Group has come to the aid of people hit by the recent Cumbrian floods.

The UK's leading contractor, as part of its community work associated with the nuclear project at Sellafield, has donated £5,000 to the Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund which helps businesses and people hit by the floods.

Elaine Wise, Development Director for the Cumbria Community Foundation, said the recovery fund total stood at £1.7million but was still rising because proceeds from fundraising activities over the Christmas period were still rolling in.

She thanked, on behalf of the Foundation all those individuals, families and businesses who have made donations.

Pictured left to right: Elaine Wise, Development Director for the Cumbria Community Foundation, Rob Phillips, Costain Construction Manager and Bill Monan, Storeman for Costain Evaporator D.

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The Costain A40 project recently played host to a large group of Welsh students.

The students, from Ysgol Preseli School (The Pembrokshire Welsh medium High School) were given a presentation on the project's history and the key elements of the construction programme.

The visit was organised by Phil Baker, Costain Public Liasion Officer, and Andy Watts, Costain Safety Advisor, gave a presentation on Health, Safety and Environment.

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Rhondda Cynon Taf Council's contractors Costain acknowledge its corporate responsibility to promote waste reduction and to ensure that every opportunity is taken to utilise locally sourced and recycled material.  

With the support of the Council, stringent waste and sustainability targets have been set and as the completion date of Autumn 2010 grows nearer, all of these targets are expected to be achieved or surpassed. 

The construction industry is responsible for an estimated 120 million tonnes of waste every year, approximately one third of all UK waste.   

A key aim of the project is to incorporate as much site-generated waste as possible into the works to eliminate disposal to landfill. To date over 99% of waste arising from site activities has been re-used in the construction works.  

As part of the value engineering exercise undertaken, the alignment of the new carriageway was engineered to both reduce the volume of earthworks required and also balance the earthworks. 

This has meant that no material has had to be imported to complete the earthworks nor has any waste material been sent to landfill. 

The culvert and bridge structures have been designed to reduce the volume of materials required in construction and these have then been manufactured off-site in factory environments, further reducing the waste normally associated with in-situ construction. 

Secondary aggregates have been used to form the carriageway and to reduce the impact of using virgin aggregates. 

Blast furnace slag has been locally sourced for use in both the carriageway sub-grade and the tarmacadam surfacing. It estimated that by the time the project is completed, over 250,000 tonnes of this material will have been used. 

During the construction of the earthworks, the site has excavated almost 20,000 tonnes of peat and some is being re-used with other site-won earth to manufacture topsoil replacement. 

This means the site will avoid the need to import topsoil to complete the landscaping works and ensures that potential waste material is re-used effectively on site. 

The project team has set a range of waste targets that are continually monitored to ensure that materials are not wasted. Material use is reconciled on a central database with progress against targets issued regularly to the project team. 

Following close liaison with the Environment Agency, appropriate licences were obtained enabling the project to utilise approximately 300,000 excavated tyres, 60,000 tonnes of pulverised fuel ash  and 50,000 tonnes of construction waste into the construction works.  

The tyres, which can no longer be sent to landfill, were cleaned, guillotined and compressed into bales which were used in the landscape design. 

Dan Powrie, Costain Construction Manager said: "We have worked very closely with our client Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council and the Environment Agency to ensure that every opportunity has been taken to minimize the environmental impact of our work".  

Cllr Andrew Morgan, Cabinet Member for Transport and Customer Care explained: "Waste reduction and sustainability is a priority for Rhondda Cynon Taf in all of the services we provide and clearly this message is just as important when undertaking the Church Village Bypass. 

"With careful planning, our contractors have successfully ensured that 99% of waste arising from site activities has been re-used in the construction work. The movement of 100,000 cubic metres of soil at Power Station Hill and the baling of 300,000 tyres found nearby is a perfect example of this. 

"The sustainability record so far has been exemplary and as the completion of the Church Village Bypass grows ever nearer, we will ensure such high standards are maintained for the benefit of the local and for that matter, global, environment."

(ENDS)

Costain announces that it has been appointed, in joint venture with Lagan Construction and Ferrovial Agroman, to Phase 1 of an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) contract for the A8 Belfast to Larne dualling scheme in Northern Ireland.

The A8 is a strategically important road within Northern Ireland.  This stretch of the A8 carries in excess of 17,000 vehicles per day and is important to the economy of Northern Ireland because the port of Larne must be serviced by an efficient road link.

The client for the contract is Roads Service, Northern Division.  The contract, which has a total value of £80 million, is to support Roads Service in taking the scheme through the statutory processes, including Public Inquiry, and in designing and constructing the scheme.

Commenting on the contract award, Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive of Costain, said:

"This ECI contract, for a new blue-chip client with a large portfolio of future schemes, strengthens our position as one of the UK's leading solution providers in highways and adds to our portfolio of significant highways projects."

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Costain's staff at the Bell Common M25 tunnel refurbishment programme for the Highways Agency, have gone into 2010 determined to maintain their 2009 safety performance that saw them turn in more than a million man-hours without a single reportable accident.  

Up to 200 people are working on the £90million programme to bring the tunnel on the northern stretch of the M25 London orbital motorway up to the latest safety standards.

The project got underway in October 2008 and is currently "significantly ahead" of the projected March 2010 completion date, although Project Manager, Andy Firth, cautions that much commissioning work remains to be done before the tunnel can be handed back to the Highways Agency.

He puts much of the speedy progress to date down to an established supply-chain and an integrated project delivery team with the client's representatives, Mouchel.  Extensive off-site precasting and prefabrication of components for the refurbishment has also helped.

Moving this work off-site has also helped in the project's fine safety record to date, says Firth. By the end of 2009, around 1.1 million man-hours had been completed without a reportable accident. Firth puts the safety record down to "Very careful planning and lots of innovation in terms of the work. There's also very close interaction with the supply chain, which is the same as on our similar previous M25 job, the Holmesdale tunnel."

Other factors helping to keep down the accident rate include a site drug and alcohol policy, plus medicals for all personnel before they start work.

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The Tesco Gerrards Cross project, with Costain as main contractor, has now exceeded 600,000 working man-hours without a RIDDOR reportable incident in the four years since work first commenced in early 2006.

This milestone was achieved in January 2010, and underlines the degree to which health and safety is the number one commitment for all Costain staff and subcontractor operatives on the Tesco Gerrards Cross project. RIDDOR reportable incidents include over-3-day injuries, injuries to members of the public and dangerous occurrences on site.

Costain Project Manager, Martin Baughurst, commented: "This achievement is demonstrable proof of the safety level we've made paramount in all aspects of the project; we will strive to maintain our perfect safety record for the remainder of the works."

The project's client representative, Tesco Stores Limited Development Manager, Andy Lloyd, added: "This is a well managed project; 600,000 man-hours is an excellent reflection on what is a safe site."

The project, a technically complex scheme to repair a partially collapsed rail tunnel and subsequently construct a new reinforced concrete arch structure over the top, with the existing tunnel employed as permanent formwork, is progressing well. The reinforced concrete overbuild is due to be completed in June 2010, which will be followed by the completion of backfilling works utilising both conventional aggregate and light-weight foamed concrete. The new Tesco store to be built on top of this structure is due to be completed and open for trading before the end of 2010.

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One of Britain's major energy projects was given the spotlight at the Costain Group's fourth 'Celebrating Success' Awards at the Radisson Edwardian Hotel at Heathrow.

Costain's EVAP D Team from Sellafield received the Team of the Year award from Andrew Wyllie, Costain Chief Executive, in front of an audience of 400 people. Moments before the EVAP D Team took the stage, Andrew made special mention of Ken Stewart, former Costain Rail Director, who tragically died last year. Andrew said that Ken had embodied all the ingredients of a true team player and, in memory of him, the Company was donating £10,000 to a cancer charity.

The awards are an annual event and are given to Costain people for outstanding achievement. These latest awards attracted a record total of 1096 nominations.

The winners and those short-listed were as follows:

Contribution to Safety

Short-listed
• David Brown
• Alan Cheung
• Phillip Drummond
• Mike Field
• Mark Hughes
• Paul Williams
• Mark Wotton

Winner
• Alan Cheung

Trainee of the Year

Short-listed
• Ayaz Bauhal
• Alan Fawzy
• Gareth Jones
• Andy Prest
• Kirsty Todd
• Rebecca Westall
• Bryan Williams

Winner
• Rebecca Westall

Supply Chain Partner of the Year

Short-listed
• Bourne Steel Limited
• Bowercross Construction Limited
• London Bridge Associates
• Stephenson Construction (South) Limited
• V V B Engineering Services Limited
• Walters UK Limited

Winner
• Bowercross Construction Limited

Business Development and Customer Satisfaction

Short-listed
• Tim Bowen
• EVAP D Team
• Alex Goude
• Peter Horsburgh
• Greater Manchester Waste Team
• Severn Trent Team
• Stephen Wells

Winner
• Stephen Wells

Innovation of the Year

Short-listed
• A34 Wolvercote Team
• Belvedere EfW Team
• Bourne Steel Limited
• Communications Team
• Evap D Team
• Felixstowe Piling Team
• Richard Holbrook

Winner
• Evap D Team

Contribution to the Community

Short-listed
• A34 Wolvercote Team
• Phil Baker
• Brian Greaves
• Sharon Lawton
• Tesco Gerrards Cross Team
• Patricia Walker
• Catherine Warbrick

Winner
• Brian Greaves

Unsung Hero of the Year

Short-listed
• Anthony Davies
• Mike Field
• Rodney Hiscock
• Alison Kendall
• Raheel Khan
• Paul Lidsey
• Sandeep Mashiana
• Shafali Shown-Keen
• Tracey Tull
• Bob Wilford

Winners
• Rodney Hiscock
• Paul Lidsey

Manager of the Year

Short-listed
• Mark Berg
• Andy Bull
• Stuart Campbell
• Darren Dobson
• Brian Fisher
• Frank Millar
• Bill Price
• John Russell

Winner
• Brian Fisher

Team of the Year

Short-listed
• A34 Wolvercote
• Bell Common
• Belvedere EfW
• Evap D
• Greater Manchester Waste
• Tesco Gerrards Cross
• Worcester University

Winner
• Evap D

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Costain Staff at the M53 Bidston Moss Viaduct Strengthening Project have been digging deep in their pockets to raise over one thousand pounds for their chosen local Charity - Claire House Children's Hospice at Bebington, Wirral. 

The Charity is for children with life limiting, life threatening conditions across Merseyside, Cheshire, North Wales and the Isle of Man.

Funds have been raised by the site team at a number of site social events including a raffle at the 'Greyhound Racing Night' to celebrate the first 100,000 man hours worked without a reportable accident.  Prizes were donated by Denholm, Cleveland Bridge, Concrete TS, BHL Electricals, Conemasters, BMSL and Costain.

The cheque was warmly received by Kirsty Wright and Claire the Bear at a presentation at the Bidston Moss site. The M53 Bidston Moss Viaduct Strengthening team will continue to support the charity for the duration of the project (which is due to be completed spring 2012) with further initiatives, including a visit to the kids at the hospice by the site team who will be bringing along a JCB.

Simon Ellison, Costain Project Manager, said: "The next major safety milestone will be one million man hours without a lost time accident and a site trip to Chester races if successful! The site is well on the way to achieving this with 280,000 man hrs recorded and an AFR (accident frequency rate) of zero."

Pictured (left to right): Kirsty Wright (Claire House), Costain's Chris Warrington and Theresa Winter, and Claire Bear.

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Thames Water has given Costain's project team at Hornsey Water Treatment Works 'top marks' for its outstanding Health and Safety performance.

The team saw off competition from Thames Water's major contractors by attaining the highest audit score and demonstrating a high level of best practice which earned the Costain team the quarterly Health and Safety award. 

The award was judged by the Thames Water Health and Safety advisor and a representative of the Construction Group and was an acknowledgement of the work undertaken by the team at Hornsey and the overall AMP4 team.

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Costain, as a member of the A-one+ joint venture with consulting engineers Halcrow and contractor Colas, has been awarded a five-year £115million Managing Agent Contractor ('MAC') contract to carry out routine operational and maintenance services and deliver improvements on the motorways and trunk roads in Area 14, which covers Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Durham and North Yorkshire.

The Highways Agency's network in Area 14 contains 635 kilometres of motorway and trunk roads as well as 419 structures such as bridges and gantries.
 
The contract will take effect from 1 July 2010.

Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive, said:

"This is an important contract award for Costain.  We have targeted maintenance contracts as a key priority in line with our strategic goal of achieving a significant market share in this area."

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Costain announces that it has been appointed, in joint venture with Serco, as one of the Delivery Partners to the Highways Agency's National Framework Contract.

This framework contract, which will primarily involve the delivery of earlier schemes in the Managed Motorway Programme, is focussed on enhancing the capacity and reliability of England's motorway network by installing, testing and commissioning a technology solution to allow hard shoulder running and other improvements to the network.

Up to £2 billion of contracts will be delivered through the framework of four Delivery Partners including the Costain/Serco joint venture. 

Commenting on the award, Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive of Costain, said:

"This is a strategically important win for Costain.  We identified some time ago the trend towards prioritising capacity enhancement through efficiency initiatives alongside new road build.  Our joint venture with Serco was formed specifically to win contracts like this.  We are delighted to have secured this contract with such an important client and one that further strengthens our position as one of the UK's leading solution providers in the Highways sector."

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In an increasingly 'green' world, waste is no longer a negative commodity but a potential fuel and source of opportunity. An opportunity that Costain can help the waste industry to maximise.

That was the message given by Group Strategy and Business Development Director, Stephen Wells, when he addressed representatives from across the UK waste sector.

In a speech at the Institution of Civil Engineers to groups including local authorities, regulators, equipment vendors, consultants, competitors and major waste operators, Stephen noted Costain's extensive experience in process plant design, management, delivery and commissioning as well as Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts.

Most major new waste plants are PFI projects, with contractors providing local authorities with waste services for terms of up to 25 years.

"My presentation was on the value of the construction sector to solving the UK's waste management problem," said Stephen. "It was about how the UK construction sector can add much more value than simply building these new plants.

"We're not just a Design & Build entity, we're bidding municipal waste schemes as a special purpose company and as someone who can take on the maintenance side of the Operation & Maintenance of these facilities.

"Traditionally, waste operators have been landfill site operators. We've been delivering PFI schemes across a variety of sectors and customers for 15-20 years; we understand their complexities and have delivered water and wastewater plants over that period - indeed, we're the market leaders in those sectors.

"We can help waste management landfill operators make the transition to owning and operating complex Mechanical Biological Treatment plants, which transform waste into fuel or compost. We also understand the processes, risk and operational drivers for maintaining these plants. We can add more value to the whole waste spectrum."

Feedback to Stephen's presentation from the organisers of the seminar had been positive, he said: "They said it went down very well and they were pleased with Costain's contribution."

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Costain achieved another safety milestone recently by completing three years without a reportable incident on the Dwr Cymru Welsh Water AMP 4 Framework.

The Costain Health and Safety team, led by Ian Boam, run numerous safety incentives alongside the supply chain that have contributed to the increased safety awareness on Costain Dwr Cymru Welsh Water sites.

John Madden, Costain Framework Director, said: "To have exceeded 1,770.824 man hours without a *RIDDOR since January 2007 is a safety performance that the team can all feel very proud of. Safety always has and always will be the number one priority for all Costain Staff and supply chain. We will endeavour to continue this excellent record as we strive to improve on our current standards and practice."

The Framework intends to mark this achievement with a celebration involving all staff from Costain and the supply chain who have contributed to this success.

*Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations.

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Children at Telscombe Cliffs Community Primary School in Sussex learnt about the dangers of playing near construction sites during a talk by Southern Water's supplier *4Delivery, which is working on a large construction project in the area.

4Delivery is carrying out the £300 million project to bring cleaner seas to Sussex by building a new wastewater treatment works and sludge recycling centre in Peacehaven along with an 11km sewer tunnel between Brighton Marina and the new treatment works. The work also includes building a new pumping station at Portobello near Telscombe Cliffs.

During the health and safety talk at the school, 4Delivery Community Liaison Manager James York explained the dangers of playing near construction sites.

Head teacher, Gillian Webb, said: "We would like to thank 4Delivery for coming along to the school as part of our community awareness programme and speaking to the pupils about the dangers of playing on a construction site. Our pupils engaged positively in the workshop and it has given them a good understanding about how to keep safe."

4Delivery Project Manager, Craig Reade, said: "Safety is our number one priority so when we are working in the community it is essential that children are made aware of the dangers of playing on and around construction sites. We are always pleased to have the opportunity to talk to schools in the areas where we're working."

4Delivery is a consortium comprising United Utilities, Costain and MWH, and is carrying out a programme of environmental improvement and water quality schemes for Southern Water until 2015. The improvements are taking place across Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, and include the £300 million scheme to bring cleaner seas to Sussex. For more information go to www.southernwater.co.uk/cleanerseas.

*A Costain Joint Venture.

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Conservative Shadow Minister, Charles Hendry, this week attended a special dinner organised by the Costain Group to discuss the many energy and power issues facing Britain.

Mr Hendry was joined by representatives from CBI, Nuclear Industry Association, EDF, RWE, ABB, BG Group, Centrica, ConocoPhillips, Imperial College, SSE, Scottish Power, Storengy and Alstom. Senior Costain management were also in attendance including Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive.

"The dinner was extremely successful," said Stephen Wells, Costain Group Strategy and Business Development Director, who organised the event. "Costain has staged similar events with regard to other sectors such as Highways and Rail. We invite some of the major people relevant to the sector in question and it gives all attending the chance to exchange information and views."

Pictured are Charles Hendry (left) with Andrew Wyllie

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A Royal visit marked the formal opening of the Costain-built New Johnson Community Hospital in Spalding, Lincolnshire.

The Princess Royal performed the honours for what Steve Merrin, Costain Project Manager, describes as a "well over due" facility for the area. It replaces the original Johnson Hospital as well as the Welland and Holland Hospitals. 

The new 8500m² hospital, set over two storeys, gives The Fens town and the surrounding area a comprehensive range of medical facilities, including a 32-bed in-patient ward, child, adolescent and adult mental health units, x-ray department phlebotomy, consulting / examination rooms, ambulance station and administrative spaces.

In a pleasant departure from the norm, the site was not the usual, tightly-constricted patch of ground. "It's a 10-acre greenfield site on the outskirts of Spalding," says Steve. "It's a nice plot, with plenty of parking space and reasonable access all round."

Of course, with a semi-rural setting, you would expect to have some rare species making an appearance, and you'd be right. Voles had to be carefully cleared from inland drainage ditches that ran along two sides of the site.

Apart from that, however, says Steve, the job was relatively straightforward. The reinforced concrete and steel-framed building with a variety of claddings to give visual appeal went up on schedule in the 95-week, £24million project.

Initial opposition to the use of a greenfield site diminished as the team involved local people in several users' groups. "It has been an incredibly rewarding and enjoyable project to be involved in," said Steve. 

Pictured: HRH Princess Royal (left) and Steve Merrin, Costain Project Manager at the opening of Johnson Community Hospital, Spalding.

Photography: Veena Cornish www.veenacornish.co.uk

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Major construction work on a vital Costain joint venture scheme to reduce congestion and improve safety on the M1 in Bedfordshire was officially started this week by Transport Minister, Chris Mole. 

When the Managed Motorways scheme is complete in spring 2013, motorists travelling on a 15-mile stretch of one of England's busiest motorways will be able to use the hard shoulder as a traffic lane during busy periods - increasing capacity and improving journey times.

The Transport Minister today witnessed the official start of major construction of the scheme between junctions 10 (Luton) and 13 (Milton Keynes). Preparatory work started in August 2009 - six months earlier than planned thanks to £16.6m of Government fiscal stimulus funding.

Chris Mole said:

"The M1 in Bedfordshire is the first stretch of motorway outside the West Midlands where we are introducing a Managed Motorways scheme. This means the hard shoulder can be opened as a running lane at busy times to ease congestion.

"The M1 is a key artery which impacts upon both national and local economies, moving goods and people around the country, and supporting investment. I am delighted that the proven benefits of hard shoulder running are being brought to road users on this vital national transport spine. This crucial scheme will make an invaluable contribution to business and economy by increasing capacity, improving journey time reliability and safety.

"This is part of the Government's commitment to delivering innovative solutions to tackle congestion. Two Managed Motorways schemes are already successfully operating on sections of the M6 and the M42 in the West Midlands. Results from the M42 pilot demonstrate more reliable journey times for drivers and a reduction in the number of accidents - and now users of the M1 in Bedfordshire can look forward to these benefits."

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Costain, one of the UK's leading engineering and construction groups, has established a new North East operation for its Energy & Process business.

Costain's Teesside Operations is based in Stockton and is part of its specialist Energy & Process division. The new base on Teesside forms part of Costain's strategy for growth.

The company has chosen the Tees Valley because of the region's strong energy and process industry cluster, together with a pool of highly skilled workers. These factors when combined present an excellent opportunity for Costain in terms of the strategic investment planned for the UK in these sectors.

Initially, the business will employ 30 people based in its office on Preston Farm Industrial Estate, which will provide engineering services for new facilities and revamps including conceptual design studies, Front End Engineering Design (FEED) and Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC). The new operation will build on previous projects successfully executed by Costain in the region.

Costain Energy & Process also provides maintenance and turnaround management and is committed to high quality services incorporating the highest standards of safety, environmental protection and performance.

The company specialises in three key sectors:
• Hydrocarbons and chemicals; comprising upstream oil and gas, refineries, petrochemicals and biofuels
• Power generation; encompassing fossil fuels, renewables, nuclear new build and carbon capture
• Nuclear process plant; including decommissioning, fuel reprocessing and waste reprocessing

Peter Laing, General Manager Teesside Operations at Costain Energy & Process said, "This investment demonstrates the confidence Costain has in the North East of England and the region's role in realising our growth plans for the Energy and Process Division. We are one of the UK's leading companies with significant resources to draw upon and we've chosen to invest in the North East for good reasons, it has tremendous potential.

"Although the recent economic downturn has taken its toll on the traditional industries in the Tees Valley, we're confident the region will be at the forefront of the massive investment needed to develop the new energy and process technologies that are required to underpin the economic and environmental security of the UK. This is an exciting time for the sector and organisations with long-term vision can see real opportunities here in the years ahead.

"Costain selected the Tees Valley as the most attractive option for its new operational centre, not just because of the established process industry cluster but also because there is a large, highly skilled workforce resident in the region.

"We will initially seek to employ 30 people at Stockton and have ambitions to grow this number over the next couple of years."

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Costain, in joint venture with Skanska, announces that it has been awarded a contract by Crossrail, as part of the enabling works framework, to construct the Royal Oak Portal, the first tunnel-related construction contract for the Crossrail project.

The Royal Oak Portal is near to Paddington main line station and will act as the transition ramp for Crossrail trains when entering and exiting the central London tunnels.

Work will begin immediately and is scheduled for completion in March 2011.

Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive of Costain, commented:

"We are delighted to have been awarded this first tunnel related construction contract for Crossrail. To be involved in the Crossrail project is a significant step forward for Costain and a valuable addition to our strong rail portfolio."

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ADS (Addiction Dependency Solutions*), has been selected as the charity of choice by Costain staff working on the Greater Manchester Waste project.

Costain holds regular events at which project staff donate money to a charity of their choice, and they were keen to lend their support to ADS.

Stephen Samuels, ADS Oldham Service Manager, said: "We are delighted to be selected by Costain. We are going to spend it on our drop-in centre, which is central to our work with clients. We always aim to give all our clients a warm welcome, and to work with them in friendly surroundings."

Rhona Bradley, ADS Chief Executive, says: "As an organisation we like to foster good relationships within the community, and especially with other organisations and businesses. We offer a number of services to business, including staff information training, as well as volunteering opportunities. We are very pleased to have been chosen by Costain. My thanks to the staff who donated money, and I hope that there will be ways in which we can work with them in the future."

John Boyd, Costain Project Director, said: "Following representations from the charity, the Costain staff on the Greater Manchester Waste project are delighted to be able to offer support to the valuable work undertaken by ADS within the local communities."

Pictured left-right: John Boyd, Costain Project Director, with Mary Harris and Stephen Samuels from ADS.

* ADS is the North West's largest drug and alcohol treatment provider, with 35 service sites around the region. 

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Costain announces a strong operational performance, a record year-end order book and an increased dividend for the year. 

Please click here to view the announcement

Costain sponsorship helped a team of student racers power their way to the national finals of the Formula 1 (F1) in Schools Technology Challenge.

The competition challenges students to design, build and race a model F1 car made from a block of balsa wood and powered by a compressed air canister. Points are awarded not only for design and speed but also marketing and presentation.

The car designed by Stephanie Thompson, daughter of Costain's James Thompson, Emma Banerjee, Hannah Ward and Zoe Irwin from West Houghton High School, Bolton covered 20 metres in just 1.137 seconds to win the north west regional heat. At the national finals held at the NEC, Birmingham, the car went even quicker, clocking 1.124 seconds to make it third fastest of the 30 competing cars and only 0.011 seconds behind the fastest. The students, known as Team Wipeout, were placed fourth overall.

Costain's sponsorship helped the team develop the car and buy materials.

Proud dad James, Aftercare Manager on the Greater Manchester Waste Project, (a Costain contract) says the students were: "disappointed not to win but they know that it wasn't for want of trying - they gave it their best.

And he says they will be back on the grid next year: "This year's performance was a massive improvement on what they did last year. Hopefully in next year's competition, with slight improvements to the car, they'll be able to improve even more."

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The Welsh Assembly Government is supporting a campaign by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to reduce slips, trips and falls in the workplace, and has held up a flagship road scheme in Pembrokeshire as an example of good practice.

During 2008-09, slip, trip and fall incidents in the workplace resulted in 2,520 workers in Wales suffering major injuries or injuries requiring more than three days off work, and construction work carries some of the greatest risks. The "Shattered Lives" campaign involves raising awareness of the impact of slips, trips and falls in the workplace and direct people to the new Shattered Lives website (www.hse.gov.uk/shatteredlives) for practical advice and guidance.

Work is well underway on the A40 Penblewin to Slebech Park improvement, and the principal contractor, Costain Ltd, has worked with the Assembly Government to ensure that the site is kept in good order and staff have all the right equipment to work safely at height.

Project Manager for Costain Ltd, Mark Young, said:

"The new road will include a number of safety measures for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians, so it makes perfect sense that we maintain high safety standards during the construction phase too.

"Building sites can be very dangerous places. Slip and trip hazards include trailing cables, general building debris on the ground and dusty, uneven floors. Working at height presents its own hazards too, and using the right equipment could be the difference between life and death.

"On a scheme of this scale it is essential to ensure that the risks are identified and managed, which is why we provide rigorous training for all staff and contractors."

Deputy First Minister, Ieuan Wyn Jones, said:

"I am delighted to be able to support HSE's campaign which reinforces the pledge made by the Welsh Assembly Government last year to support the HSE in promoting good health and safety amongst businesses.

"The A40 improvement is one of our flagship schemes, and there is a clear expectation on companies fulfilling these contracts to be leaders in providing the safety working environment possible, as Costain have done.

"The human cost of slips, trips and falls can be significant. In Wales, there is also a cost to business and the economy in terms of lost working days and putting things right when incidents do occur. It is far better for companies to invest in safety measures beforehand, than have to deal with the aftermath of a serious incident."

Terry Rose, Director for HSE Wales, added:

"These figures highlight the very real and serious nature of preventable slip, trip and fall incidents in the workplace.  Slips, trips and falls might sound funny but they shatter the lives of thousands of British workers ever year."

In Wales during 2008-09, there were more than 880 major injuries to workers, as well as 1,640 workers having to take over three days off work. In Pembrokeshire, there were 56 major injuries and 53 injuries requiring more than three days off work reported in the same period.

As well as the tragic human cost, preventable slips, trips and falls are having a serious financial impact. HSE estimates that the combined financial costs incurred by society as a whole is around £800million a year, at a time when both businesses and individuals are struggling financially during the current recession.

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Costain is pleased to announce that it has been retained as a Capital Delivery partner by Dwr Cymru Welsh Water for the Asset Management Programme 5 ("AMP 5") period which begins on 1 April 2010.

The 5-year Framework follows on from AMP 4 where Costain has successfully delivered the wastewater capital programme in North Wales. It is anticipated that AMP 5 will realise an overall programme value of £60 million and provide both clean and wastewater programmes for Costain to design and build.

Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive of Costain, said:

"We are delighted to announce that we have been retained by Welsh Water as a Capital Delivery partner. Costain is a market leader in the water sector and this award is a direct result of our strategy to focus on repeat order work with key customers."

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BBC TV presenter Christine Bleakley may have fallen over eight times and thought she had it tough when water-skiing across the English Channel for charity recently. But she never had to contend with having to leave the waterway due to a fire alarm.

That situation faced Manchester Project Manager, David Richardson, while swimming 22 miles - equivalent to crossing the Channel - in his local swimming pool as part of Costain Energy & Process's campaign to raise money for Breast Cancer Awareness (BCA).

David, who had a close family member diagnosed with the disease last year, began his personal fund-raising effort before he learned Energy & Process was supporting the 'Wear it Pink' campaign.

Taking up a challenge advertised at his local sports centre, he set off on 1,416 lengths of the 25-metre pool.

He initially intended to complete the distance over a 12-week period, but improved his stamina so much that he was able to finish it in less than seven. He faced some obstacles not normally confronted by Channel crossers during his 15 hours of swimming, including traffic jams of slow swimmers and 'dive-bombing' youngsters. "There was even a fire alert that involved me having to evacuate outside in my Speedos!"

David's efforts raised £1,400 in sponsorship - part of the £3,500 raised by Energy & Process. Events organised by the Operations Admin team and held within Costain House included a 'Wear It Pink' day where staff raised £1,100 by dressing down for the day (and were encouraged to wear pink to show support for BCA). A competition for employees' children to design a suitable t-shirt was won by Bethany Rothwell, 9, daughter of Planning Engineer, Julie Rothwell. Costain Energy & Process donated £1,000 to make up the total.

• January's Haiti earthquake again brought Energy & Process's charitable nature to the forefront, with £1,500 being raised by a dress-down day.

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Key issues facing the water industry and its consumers were the intellectual fare at a 'discussion dinner' held by the Water Related Livery Companies at London's Glaziers' Hall.

Declining global water resources, inadequate sanitation for billions and energy usage by water companies in developed nations were the topics under debate, attended by Costain in its capacity as the UK's leading supplier of construction and maintenance services to the water industry.

Leading the debate were Jonathon Porritt, well-known environmentalist and now a non-executive director of Wessex Water; and Ken Harvey, Chairman of Pennon Group, parent company of South West Water and Viridor.

Costain's guest at the event was of particular interest to the assembled guests, said Mike Sawyer, Head of the Group's Environment division: Regina Finn, Chief Executive of UK water regulator OFWAT, had recently delivered her Final Determination on the water companies' charges for coming years. "A lot of the debate was angled towards her, and she responded willingly and authoritatively" commented Mike.

The event was valuable for Costain as it provided an insight into the industry's thoughts on how it would be regulated and managed in future, as well as discussions on how it could make itself more carbon-efficient for the future.

Mike Sawyer, Head of Costain's Environment division, hosted as the Group's guest Regina Finn, Chief Executive of water industry regulator OFWAT.

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Two years of planning came to fruition at the weekend, as the Costain team on the Wolvercote viaduct project carried out one of the largest bridge slides ever completed in the UK.

Over the course of 19 hours, eight huge hydraulic rams pushed a 5,000-tonne, 250-metre-long bridge deck 16 metres horizontally from where it had been constructed on temporary piers alongside the A34 near Oxford, to become the new southbound carriageway of the viaduct.

The new structure replaces its 1960s predecessor that had suffered badly from water penetration. The Costain-built replacement has been designed to have a 120-year lifespan.
 
"It was a long weekend, but a fantastic achievement," says Project Manager, Darren Dobson.

Proceedings began with the closure of the southbound carriageway to traffic at 7pm on Saturday. The expansion joints and components attaching the deck to its temporary piers were removed and the entire deck lifted 20mm for the sideways slide.

"We slid it 16 metres to its new, online position and set it back down on its new crossheads. It was a perfect fit" says Dobson.

The expansion joints were reconnected, the bearings fixed and the road was reopened to traffic at 3.15pm on Sunday. This was two hours later than planned, due to the general complexity of the job plus individual problems such as re-siting some of the hydraulic rams and the failure of a power pack near the end of the procedure.

Despite the overrun, "We only received two complaints and those were massively outweighed by the congratulations from all quarters," says Dobson. "I think everyone understands what we've achieved in terms of construction techniques."

The temporary piers atop which the southbound deck was built will now be demolished, the ground landscaped and the project completed by June - three months ahead of schedule.

• The only known larger slide in the UK occurred in 1996 when a 5,500-tonne, 400-metre deck was moved. However, that procedure took an entire 48 hours and involved a smaller distance to slide.

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The Costain Group has launched a new Investors section on its Company website www.costain.com. 

This section contains the online Annual Report, share price information plus other facts and figures to give Investors a comprehensive picture of the Costain Group.

The Company has also issued online the latest Costain Corporate Responsibility Report.

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The Costain Group paid tribute this week to a much valued colleague who sadly died last year.

Ken Stewart was Costain Rail Director. As a tribute to his memory, the Company donated £10,000 to Cancer Research UK and the cheque was presented to the charity by David Allvey, Costain Chairman, and Andrew Wyllie, Costain Chief Executive.

Lorraine Williams, from Cancer Research UK, accepted the cheque and said that the money would greatly help in the battle against cancer.

Lesley Stewart, Ken's wife, and Alex, Ken's daughter, also attended the presentation and received a specially made framed tribute (pictured) to Ken highlighting his contribution to Costain.

"Ken Stewart embodied the values which make Costain special," said Andrew Wyllie. "It was great to see Lesley and Alex and it gave Ken's colleagues a chance to show their appreciation for a colleague who is sadly missed."

Pictured left to right in front of Ken Stewart's photograph: Andrew Wyllie Chief Executive, Lesley Stewart, Alex Stewart and David Allvey Costain Chairman.

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Church Village Bypass, a Costain project, has created an impressive 70 new jobs for economically inactive individuals in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf.

While many jobs have been lost during the recent economic downturn, the Council's contractor Costain continues to fulfil its contractual arrangements to employ 70 individuals during the course of the contract.

In April 2008, the first person was employed and since then the range of jobs filled have included engineer assistants, security officers, land surveyor assistants, traffic management operatives, forklift drivers, chefs and groundworkers.

In each case there is an intention to provide a minimum level of training up to NVQ level 2 standard to ensure that at the end of the contract each of the employees, if not retained by the host employer, have the skills to seek and secure employment elsewhere.

The type of training provided includes health and safety, CSCS accreditation, first aid, computer skills and other professional training associated with their role. In two cases the employees have engaged with their new roles to the extent that they have enrolled for degree courses in engineering and quantity surveying.

One of those new jobs has been filled by Philip Johnson from Cardiff, who joined Costain as a trainee quantity surveyor in November 2008 and has worked exclusively on the £90million Church Village Bypass project.

His duties in Costain involve measuring the costs associated with design drawings, competitive tendering and sub-contract management.

Philip explained: "Costain has funded me to start the Civil Engineering Foundation Course for surveyors in conjunction with the University of Glamorgan. I am also studying towards a Graduate Diploma in Quantity Surveying at the University of West of England (Bristol UWE).

"I will soon be working to secure a chartership and the support, encouragement and opportunities afforded to me by Costain, thanks to the Church Village Bypass project, have been superb."

Rhondda Cynon Taf Council's Cabinet Member for Transportation and Customer Care, Cllr Andrew Morgan, said: "Church Village Bypass is already having an immediate effect on unemployed individuals throughout the county borough by creating 70 new posts.

"As part of our contractual agreements, we have ensured that these job opportunities are made available, particularly during this difficult time, and also support businesses throughout the South Wales region by sourcing materials directly from them."

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An £80million scheme, delivered by Costain, to stop more than 800 West Ham homes flooding with sewage has been completed.

The three-year project, one of the largest sewer flooding schemes Thames Water has ever carried out, includes:

• a new, two-mile sewer, 2.8 metres wide - one of the largest sewers built in London - to carry away excess rainwater and sewage during storms, preventing flows backing up into streets and properties;
• a new sewage pumping station at Abbey Mills in Stratford, east London;
• 3.5 miles of new and larger sewers linking to the main sewer tunnel.

The two-mile sewer was dug by tunnel boring machine Theodora, known locally as "Dora the Bora", who spent seven months munching through 70,000 tonnes of earth 20 metres below the Jubilee Line, Forest Gate, Woodgrange Road, West Ham Park, Vicarage Lane, Abbey Road and over the channel tunnel rail link.

Lawrence Gosden, Head of Capital Delivery for Thames Water, said:

"Protecting customers from the misery of sewer flooding is a top priority for us. No-one should have to put up with this truly horrible experience.

"Hundreds of homes in West Ham have been badly affected in the past and I am extremely pleased that a long-term solution is now in place to protect them.

"I would like to thank the local community for their cooperation and patience during the works."

John Couch, Interim Deputy Divisional Director, Highways, Transport and Parking for Newham Council, said:

"This scheme is very important for the borough as it will provide long-term protection from flooding during times of heavy rainfall for several hundred businesses and homes in West Ham."

The tunnelling machine was named Theodora by local schoolgirl Eileen Edusah, after her mother.

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Secondary school students in north Wales have benefited from a presentation given by Costain employees on the Welsh Water Framework which may help them to choose their future career.

Approximately 100 students at Castell Alun School in Hope received an insight into what it takes to carve out a career in the construction industry. During the talk they learnt about the various roles and responsibilities which are needed to deliver a large project such as the Penyffordd Habitats Scheme, which the Company are currently undertaking in the area.

The existing Penyffordd Waste Water Treatment Works (WwTW) will not meet stricter consent standards which come into force from April 2010; and therefore flows will be transferred to the nearby Hope works.  The scheme involves conversion of the Penyffordd WwTW into a pumping station, whilst retaining the site's storm storage capacity. Over 3,500 metres of 250mm diameter rising main is then being laid across agricultural land and along the highway - as well as through Hope village. A number of external factors influenced the development of the pipeline route; including railway and river crossings, mitigation for great crested newts, badgers and archaeological remains.

The students listened to presentations from various Costain employees who explained why the scheme was taking place and the role they played in getting the project from feasibility to completion. 

Costain's Framework Director, John Madden, said: "The work at Penyffordd and Hope is part of a large investment programme by Welsh Water which will benefit customers and the local environment. It is great that local students had an opportunity to discover what the scheme entails and how this work will benefit the local community whilst also showing the students the opportunities that exist for them within the industry."

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Costain Energy & Process is continuing to strengthen its engineering capabilities in Abu Dhabi with the relocation of a Lead Process Engineer from Manchester.

Costain has a well established, highly-regarded construction operation in the oil-rich emirate, mainly based on Das Island. Clients of Costain's Abu Dhabi-based operation (CADCO) have requested that their corporate engineering capability is brought to the local market. On the basis of CADCO winning an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) type contract earlier last year Engineering Manager, Steve Coulson, was assigned from Costain's specialist oil and gas engineering office in Manchester to provide leadership for this project and further develop CADCO's engineering capability.

Recently, Lead Process Engineer David Wilkinson has been assigned to the Gulf state, enabling Costain to execute high-value concept and front end engineering design (FEED) projects from Costain's Abu Dhabi office, thus further satisfying their clients' request.

"Being based in Abu Dhabi enables direct communication with the clients, which is required to ensure Costain clearly understands the requirements needed to deliver high-quality concept and FEED work" he says. "Additionally, my role is to support CADCO's engineering manager in the preparation of bids and execution of further EPC projects."

The short-term aim is to enhance CADCO's relationships with Abu Dhabi's national oil company (ADNOC) by bringing Costain's gas processing technologies to its facilities.

Longer-term, the aim is to widen this concept/FEED capability in the Arabian Gulf in the six nations that make up the Gulf Co-operation Council - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates - of which Abu Dhabi is one.

David will provide support to Costain's Business Development Manager, who regularly visits the region.

Pictured left to right: David Wilkinson, Costain Abu Dhabi's Lead Process Engineer and Sandy Dunlop, Costain Energy & Power International Business Development Manager.

Ends.

Costain has won two national awards recognising the quality of its training and development schemes for graduate recruits.

The Association of Graduate Recruiters classed the Group as best in the fields of graduate induction and strategic alignment. The latter category requires a company to demonstrate that its graduate development is co-ordinated with the needs of the business.

Group Professional Development Manager Julia Calleja, together with colleague Kirsty Todd and external consultant Terry Sexton of Creative Edge Consulting pulled together Costain's entry, enlisting the help of 12 graduates from the Group's 2020 Board III who created a first draft within a week.

The task was ideal for Board members, who are often given projects that the business wants tackled but does not have the time to undertake. Handling the competition entry was "very directly linked between their own personal development and Costain's business development", says Julia.

Judges from organisations including Imperial College London, nPower and PriceWaterhouseCoopers placed Costain top of the Strategic Alignment category for several reasons, including:

• 'clear and impressive evidence of professional development'; and
•  
• its application of a variety of tools to monitor and evaluate engagement to aid continuous improvement.

In the Graduate Induction category it cited:

• Thorough and well-presented evidence of the role of the induction within the business.
• individual feedback from the assessment centre that helped guide the graduates and formed the start of their development.

"These awards represent four years' hard work - I am delighted Costain is recognised as number one for graduate development," says Julia.

Pictured right: Terry Sexton and Julia Calleja.

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Costain Civil Engineer Ruth Thompsett has responded to an appeal by TV personality Professor Robert Winston to join a tough, women-only cycling challenge in China to raise funds to improve the health of women and babies.

More than 1,400 women from across the UK have already helped Professor Winston raise over £2million for the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Trust's Women for Women fund by taking part in cycling challenges around the world.  Previous women-only rides have taken place in Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Cuba, Turkey and India.  This Morning television presenter Fern Britten took part in rides in Egypt, India and Cuba and will be cycling for Women for Women again in China in 2010.

Ruth, 29, is joining Women for Women Cycle China and will cycle some 450km over five days through the countryside of China's Beijing region, along rivers and through steep gorges, past tiny villages, ancient tombs and historical landmarks.  She will experience a China that few westerners get to sample.  As well as training hard, she needs to raise a minimum of £3300 by 2nd July 2010 to fund groundbreaking medical research work at the Wolfson and Weston Research Centre for Family Health in London, and she is asking local people and companies to help her reach that target.

Funds raised by Cycle China will support women scientists and clinicians to specialise in research affecting women and babies, empowering more women to lead in this field.  They will work in the research centre to improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment of a range of devastating conditions which cause genetic diseases, miscarriage, infertility, cancer and brain damage.  The fundamental aim is to improve women's health and to ensure that more women have a normal pregnancy with a healthy baby.  With up to 250 babies dying every week in the UK from complications during pregnancy, their work has never been so essential for women and babies worldwide.

Women for Women is administered by the Institute of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Trust and Professor Winston is Chairman of both the Trust and Women for Women.

To pledge your support for Ruth, either post your sponsorship donation, made payable to The Institute Trust Fund, to her at 12 Renown Way, Chineham, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG24 8XD or telephone her on 07720 748 409.  Alternatively sponsor her online at www.justgiving.com/ruththompsett.

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Costain Graduate Civil Engineer Steve Bodenham, currently working on the 4Delivery Brighton & Hove project (Costain joint venture), is pushing for a place in the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Steve has an impressive history with clay pigeon shooting.  His talent was noticed at an early age, gaining a place in the Gloucestershire county squad at 14. He also received a Talented Athlete Scholarship for his place at University, where he was able to compete on the international stage and is now a regular member of Team England.

Last season Steve was part of the victorious England team at the home internationals tournament, and more recently has won the national inter counties championship for Gloucestershire.  Steve has set his sights firmly on gaining a place in the GB squad before August 2011 to qualify for a place on the Olympic team. With another excellent victory recently winning a CPSA registration event, hitting 199 clays out of 200, his chances look very promising.

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Costain has harvested another heavy crop of awards from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) in the organisation's latest annual awards.

The Group took no fewer than 35 gold and 12 silver awards for its efforts to maintain safe working conditions - in offices as well as on building sites.

"We've done well," said Group Safety, Health and Environmental Director Peter Fisher. "It's another good result and demonstrates the hard work the sites are putting in to try to constantly improve the standards of safety. It's nice to have external acknowledgement of the sites' efforts."

The top award, an Order of Distinction, went to COGAP for its remarkable achievement in winning no fewer than 15 consecutive gold awards.

COGAP also took a President's Award (a minimum of 10 consecutive years of gold award-standard performances) for Costain Abu Dhabi, while the division's DAS Island operations in the Gulf emirate took a Gold Medal for five years' unblemished operations.

Other Gold Medals went to 4Delivery, Leeds office, Manchester office, Wales and West Region and Yorkshire Water.

While loathe to single out individual sites, Peter said that some had picked up lesser awards but had achieved "fabulous results" in doing so "in terms of the conditions they've had to work in.

"Now we've set this as a benchmark, the challenge is to improve further. The awards are nice but it's the actual performance on site going forward that will be measured."

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Costain is issuing, ahead of its AGM to be held later today, an Interim Management Statement covering the period from 1 January 2010 to the current date.

Overview

Following on from the excellent performance in 2009, the Group has continued to perform well and in line with the Board's expectations.

The Group's operations continue to benefit from its focus on targeted blue chip customers whose major spending plans are underpinned by strategic national priorities, regulatory commitments or essential maintenance requirements in chosen sectors.

The Group continues to demonstrate its resilience in a difficult economic environment.

Building on our success and as announced in March, we are now implementing the next stage of our strategy, 'Choosing Costain', which will ensure that the Group enhances its position as one of the leading players in the industry. This will expand further Costain's market position across the design and engineering, construction, and operations and maintenance spectrum. This is designed to enhance and broaden the spread of business and earnings profile over the medium-term.

Order book

As a result of a number of significant new contract awards since the beginning of the year, the Group has maintained its order book at the record year-end level of £2.6 billion. In addition, it has preferred bidder positions of over £600 million, ahead of the level at the end of 2009.   

To date over £950 million of revenue has been secured for 2010.

Since we reported the Group's results in March, the level of tendering activity has remained high in our targeted growth markets of Infrastructure, Environment and Energy & Process.

Operations

Our Infrastructure division, which focuses on the Group's activities in the highways, rail and airports sectors, continues to perform well. Since the beginning of the year, Costain, in joint venture, has been awarded a five-year £115 million Managing Agent Contractor ('MAC') contract to carry out routine operational and maintenance services in Area 14, which covers the North-East of England. This fourth MAC contract has helped to establish Costain as a major player in the UK highways maintenance market.

The Group has also been appointed, in joint venture, as one of the Delivery Partners to the Highways Agency's National Framework Contract involving the delivery of up to £2 billion early schemes in the Managed Motorway Programme.

Costain, in joint venture, has also been appointed to construct the Royal Oak tunnel portal, part of the enabling works for the important Crossrail project     

In Environment, which includes the Group's activities in the water, waste and marine sectors, Costain has secured a five-year contract with Welsh Water for the next Asset Management period, AMP5, which began in April 2010. This contract, in addition to other AMP5 contracts previously secured, reinforces the Group's position as one of the leading players in the UK water sector.

Work continues on a £397 million four-year contract to deliver part of the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority's (GMWDA's) PFI Waste and Recycling Contract, the largest municipal waste contract in Western Europe. We are currently pursuing, in joint venture, a number of waste PFI opportunities.

The Energy and Process division, which focuses on the Group's activities in nuclear, power and hydrocarbons & energy, continues to perform as expected and offers significant opportunity for future growth. Work is progressing to programme on the major Evaporator D nuclear project at Sellafield.      

In Spain, market conditions remain challenging. No land sales are anticipated in 2010 and actions have been taken to reduce costs. The 600-berth yacht marina, adjacent to the Spanish border with Gibraltar, is close to completion and will become operational in the summer.   

The Community division, which includes the Group's activities in the health, education and retail sectors is, as previously reported, being scaled down as we focus on more attractive opportunities. The division is trading in line with our expectations.

Financial Position

There has been no material change in the financial status of the Group, which continues to have a strong cash position of in excess of £100 million, and has no significant borrowings. 

Outlook

With trading in line with our expectations and an order book maintained at the record year-end level, the Board is pleased with the start to the current year.

The economic environment remains challenging but, with a strong operational business and a strategy for the ongoing development of the Group, the Board remains confident that the outcome for 2010 will be in line with its expectations.

A further stage in the reinvigoration of Bradford's school stock is underway as a group of four new primaries open their doors to pupils for the first time.

As part of the ongoing programme to renew the schools portfolio of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, the Costain/Ferrovial Agroman joint venture has completed a £40 million project to supply three special educational needs (SEN) schools - Delius, Chellow and Phoenix - plus a mainstream primary, Guardhouse, which is co-located with Phoenix in Keighley.

The design and build contract was signed in November 2008. Guardhouse accepted its first pupils in late February, with the other three due to 'open for business' on April 26.

"They were all fairly simple and straightforward," says Project Director, Charly Clark. Although all the sites were those of existing schools, for once access was reasonable, particularly Phoenix/Guardhouse, which was on a greenfield plot.

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The Costain team working on the AMP4 Welsh Water Framework has won a prestigious national accolade for the considerate way that it completed a £1million investment scheme in Colwyn Bay.

The site team won a Silver Award at the Considerate Constructors Scheme 2010 National Site Awards for its work in the Victoria Park area last summer. The Welsh Water scheme involved upsizing two sections of combined sewer and installing associated connections to alleviate the risk of internal flooding to local homes.

The Considerate Constructors Scheme is a national initiative which was set up to recognise and reward examples of best practice within the construction industry. Just over two percent of more than 7000 eligible UK sites completed during 2009 received the 2010 Considerate Constructor Scheme National Silver Award.

The Costain construction site was particularly commended for its exceptional achievements in the Environment, Neighbour, Respectful and Responsible categories. The judges commended the team on their 'very high level of compliance in all aspects of the scheme'. They stated 'It is clear the whole project team have a desire to achieve high standards and have pushed new boundaries'.

John Madden, Framework Director for Costain said: "This is a fantastic achievement for the whole team who have worked closely with all stakeholders to ensure the project considered sympathetically the needs of the workforce, the environment and the project's neighbours."

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Costain sustained its profile in the rapidly-developing market for new-build nuclear power stations with its presence at a major London conference on prospects for the sector.

The Group was a gold sponsor of the two-day event at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, which attracted several of the power generation companies planning to build new nuclear generating plants, as well as representatives of the nuclear industry regulators and the reactor vendors.

It was organised by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the Nuclear Institute and the Nuclear Industries Association.  HRH the Duke of York was in attendance.

Topics covered by speakers included issues such as global opportunities for nuclear power, the supply chain and the skills gap in the UK workforce: the UK has not built a new nuclear power station for more than 15 years.

However, with a rapidly looming 'energy gap', caused partly by old nuclear stations reaching the end of their working lives, a fleet of around 10 new stations is being proposed by investors within the regulatory framework set out by the government.

"It was very worthwhile," reports Brian Slaney, Business Development Manager, Costain Nuclear. "It was a good opportunity to update and network with others in the industry. A lot of joint ventures (JVs) and consortia are being formed, so it was very useful to keep abreast of developments."

Costain has formed two consortia to pursue nuclear new build opportunities. The first is with Sir Robert McAlpine to form a strong British 'brand' that will focus on the preliminary works, which include earthworks, marine works and tunnelling.

This JV has been enhanced with the inclusion of Hochtief and Heitkamp to focus on larger construction packages, which include the nuclear & turbine 'islands' of the stations, and the balance of plant.

This enhanced JV has been branded Construct Energy and offers more than 50 years of nuclear construction experience including current builds at Flamanville in France and Olkiluoto in Finland.

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Costain has reached a major milestone in its work on the Tesco Gerrards Cross tunnel project with completion of the reinforced concrete over-build above the busy Chiltern Main Line railway between London Marylebone and Birmingham Snow Hill.

A 30-metre stretch of the 320-metre long tunnel, which was developed by Tesco to enable a new supermarket and car park to be built atop it, collapsed in June 2005 as it was being constructed by a previous contractor. In the subsequent proceedings Costain as main contractor and engineering consultancy Scott Wilson as lead designer were brought in to complete the project.

While Costain has kept - and replaced where necessary - the original precast concrete tunnel arch units, it has effectively used these as structurally redundant but permanent formwork, and constructed a new, contiguous reinforced concrete arch above them. Whereas the original opposed precast units met in the middle at a pivoted crown joint, the new reinforced concrete arch is seamless, adding greater strength to allow it to securely bear the weight of the backfill that will be laid over it and on which the Tesco store and car park will be constructed.

The works to backfill above the reinforced arch with a combination of conventional aggregate and innovative, lightweight foam concrete are due to be completed in July this year, with work on the Tesco store itself starting immediately thereafter. The store is due to be open for business, on programme, by the end of 2010.

"Obviously after the collapse, everyone had a heightened awareness of the difficulty of this site," says Project Manager Martin Baughurst. As a result, "the levels of review are massive and to get everyone's buy-in took time".

The biggest challenge, he says, was to get Network Rail's agreement that Costain could work above a live railway in standard daylight hours, minimising the requirement for costly and publically intrusive rail possession work.

To gain approval from Network Rail and reassure other stakeholders, Costain commissioned and installed a pair of goliath cranes specifically engineered for the job, allowing for the safe and controlled transfer of materials and equipment.

This was necessary as there were stringent limits on the impact loads that the precast concrete tunnel arch units could withstand if a conventional crane accidentally dropped a load on them at height.

With the concerted and determined effort of Costain and its subcontractors, the project is anticipated to be completed on schedule later this year.

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A Costain-sponsored student has won a university award for her role in helping provide a community centre in an impoverished West African village.

Southampton University final year civil engineering and architecture student Claire Gott and her friend, Emily Hill, set up the charity organisation Cameroon Catalyst last autumn and are now close to completing construction of an educational and medical centre in the village of Bambouti.

Claire, Emily and a group of fellow engineering students are within £6,000 of a £50,000 target to build the centre. After linking up with Cameroon charity the Mosame Trust they employed a variety of fund-raising events such as selling doughnuts, organising football tournaments and seeking donations from firms and family for the project.

Claire's efforts won her the 'best student-led community volunteering project' in Southampton University's Excellence in Volunteering Awards. The judges considered criteria such as the amount of work contenders put into organising their projects and how successful they had been.

"Emily and I wanted to do something to use our engineering skills in our last year at university", explains Claire. "I'd done a lot of charity work before, including helping refurbish an orphanage in Tanzania.

"We started to look at countries and regions that weren't getting much support and heard about the Mosame Trust through a friend. Bambouti, a village of around 900 people, is where the founder of the Mosame Trust grew up."

The centre will include a classroom, library and community hall as well as medical facilities. Construction started in February and is due to finish in June. The Cameroon government has agreed to provide two teachers and a nurse for the new clinic.

"All 19 of us in the civil engineering group will be heading out there in June to help with the completion," adds Claire, who is waiting to discover to which Costain project she will be assigned.

Pictured right: Engineering students Claire Gott (right) and Emily Hill flank Patrick Mballa, founder of the Mosame Trust, as they receive planning permission for the new community centre from the village mayor of Bambouti.

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Costain, in joint venture with Skanska, announces that it has been awarded a second contract by Crossrail, as part of its enabling works framework, for the construction of the Pudding Mill Lane Portal.

The value of the contract is similar in size and scope to the Royal Oak portal previously announced in March.

Pudding Mill Lane Portal, which is close to Stratford and adjacent to the existing DLR, overland railways and the Lea River, will act as the transition ramp for Crossrail trains when entering and exiting the north east section of the central London tunnels.

Work will begin immediately and is scheduled for completion in summer 2011.

Commenting on the contract award, Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive of Costain, said:

"To have secured another contract on Crossrail so soon after the Royal Oak contract is excellent news for Costain and reflects our recognised skills and capabilities in this arena. Crossrail will be one of the greatest engineering projects seen in the UK for some time and we are delighted to be playing a major early role in its delivery."

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Costain announces that it has been awarded an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) contract by Lancashire County Council (LCC) to develop and construct a major road decongestion and regeneration scheme.

The scheme will link the A589 Morecambe Road near Torrisholme to a fully remodelled junction 34 on the M6 motorway near Halton.  The total cost of the scheme is £139m.

The contract includes supporting LCC in taking the scheme through the statutory process, including a Public Inquiry, together with developing the design and construction of the scheme.

The route is a 4.8km long two-lane dual carriageway. Around 20 major structures will need to be built including bridges over the West Coast Mainline railway, Lancaster Canal and the River Lune.

Commenting on the contract award, Andrew Wyllie, Chief Executive of Costain, said:

"We are delighted to have been awarded this ECI contract which further underlines our position as a market leader in the construction and maintenance of highways in the UK."

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The latest chapter in Costain's long-running relationship with the Port of Felixstowe is now less than a year away from its targeted completion, with the team behind the current Felixstowe South Reconfiguration project aiming to bring it in on time despite the past winter's abysmal weather.

The first phase - 440 metres of quay - has been completed and handed over for delivery of the new quay cranes. The second section, involving a 300-metre length, is now underway, together with paving work inland.

The freezing winter weather presented a number of challenges in the first phase due to the low temperatures affecting the laying of the concrete sub-base, says Deputy Project Director Nigel Desert. Although the team was able to claw back some of the deficit, losing that amount of time close to the end of that section of the project had an inevitable effect on handover schedules.

Nevertheless, the aim is still to finish the second stretch of quayside by 12 September and the overall project on time in May 2011.

The new quay wall consists of 2.56-metre diameter piles capped with site-fabricated precast concrete units, the heaviest of which weighs 90 tonnes.

The project requires huge amounts of fill; to date, more than 3 million m³ of material has been dredged from the seabed just outside the port and from off Great Yarmouth.

As well as the quaysides themselves, which will offer deeper berths for the largest container vessels, there is also a huge expanse of container stacking areas to complete on the 35-hectare site, requiring more than 18 million paving blocks.

Image courtesy of 'Airshots'

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Costain is striking up a closer relationship with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), as part of its strategy to develop its Mechanical and Electrical (M&E) capabilities.

The move is driven by the increasing importance of M&E in providing solutions to Costain's customers. This is being seen in all sectors as asset and infrastructure owners strive to get more for less - be it a road using variable speed signs, water and waste infrastructure adapting to new sustainability legislation, a school meeting environmental requirements or better solutions in the power and energy sectors.

Matt Crabtree, Sector Director for Water explains: "In water it stems from our success in winning a series of contracts with water utilities for the fifth of the sector's Asset Management Programmes (AMP 5). The new AMP has an increased reliance on M&E within the business."

"Increasingly, our workload in the water sector has a strong mechanical bias to it. As we go through the AMP process we're finding a lot of the projects are smaller and more capital maintenance-related and a lot of that maintenance tends to be M&E related".

"Historically we've been very much focused on civil engineering and are now looking to strengthen our training and relationship with the IMechE. We have accredited training schemes that have been validated by the Institution and for the first time have mentors for all our Mech Eng graduates."

The strengthened relationship will include Costain taking a place on the Institution's employer panel. "A lot of its current members are manufacturers and it is keen to get a representation from infrastructure providers on the panel," explains Crabtree.

The Panel is being developed to create more employer engagement with IMechE and to provide a business-focused contribution to the Institution's strategy, policy and activities by considering key issues. Costain now has the opportunity to contribute to that debate.

In the near future Costain will be holding an IMechE membership day for graduate engineers with a view to making them aware of the benefits of joining the Institution, striving for chartered status and thus improving the depth of skills within the Group, he adds.

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Five Costain sites have struck gold in this year's Considerate Constructors Scheme (CCS) national awards.

The M27 J3-4 Widening, St German's Pumping Station, Lewisham Schools, and the A34 Wolvercote Viaduct Replacement Scheme each won a gold award. The Church Village Bypass won two, for construction activities monitored in 2009 and 2010. In addition, five sites earned silver awards and five earned bronze, making the 2010 CCS award tally one of Costain's best yet.

The Costain sites were among the 580 winners selected from the 7600 sites signed up to the CCS. These sites are monitored against a Code of Considerate Practice designed to encourage best practice beyond statutory requirements. The Code requires contractors to be considerate and good neighbours, as well as clean, respectful, safe, responsible, accountable and environmentally conscious.

"The beauty of the CCS awards is that they are independently assessed, which makes them a valuable benchmark," said Peter Fisher, Health, Safety and Environment Director.

For Dan Powrie, Project Manager at Church Village Bypass, the site's gold awards are also acknowledgement of the team's hard work.

"These two prestigious awards recognise our efforts to minimise disruption to the public, to reduce the impact of the project on the environment and to support our workforce.  We will continue to put good public interface at the forefront of all our efforts." 

Added Peter: "Our success in this year's awards is recognition of the hard work put in by all our site teams. And it's yet another reason why clients should choose Costain. Well done everybody."

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The Costain Group has made several key changes in line with its recently announced strategy 'Choosing Costain'.

The Company is combining, with immediate effect, the existing Environment and Community Divisions into a single enlarged Division (click here to view the structure PDF) which will focus on new opportunities particularly in the water and waste markets and meeting the needs of the existing long-term customer relationships.

Alan Kay, formerly Chief Operating Officer, will be Managing Director of the new Division in addition to retaining his responsibility for the Group-wide co-ordination of health and safety initiatives, design management and engineering. David Jenkins, previously Managing Director of Environment, is retiring early due to ill health and Alex Vaughan, Community MD, now becomes Corporate Development Director with responsibility for shaping and growing the Group in line with the objectives set out in the 'Choosing Costain' strategy. Alex will play a key role in the acquisition, disposal and allocation of resources in alignment with 'Choosing Costain'.

Andrew Wyllie, Costain Chief Executive, said: "'Choosing Costain' is a strategy for further profitable growth based on our established success and provides an ambitious vision for the  development of the Costain Group.

"Our vision is to be one of the UK's top solutions providers, with the scale and resources to meet successfully the increasingly complex and challenging needs of our major customers.

"Costain will continue to focus its efforts on customers with major multi-billion pound strategic investment programmes which, irrespective of economic environments, are core to the UK's sustainable 'life support systems' and are therefore deemed essential.

"Over the next decade, we believe that those programmes will be primarily in three growth markets:-

• Infrastructure - particularly highways, rail and airports
• Environment - particularly water and waste
• Energy and Process - particularly nuclear, power, and hydrocarbons & chemicals

"Our large customers are imposing increasingly strict criteria in selecting their preferred contractors. In particular, customers are looking for contractors capable of providing the full 'life-cycle' of services. This process is in turn creating significant barriers to entry. In order to succeed, it is essential that Costain has the scale and ability to deploy the resources required by such customers.

"Consequently, Costain will look to build on its current strengths - and broaden and improve the quality of earnings streams - by accelerating the development of an integrated front-end engineering consultancy, and care and maintenance operations to sit either side of our proven strength in construction:

Consulting - one of the fastest growing areas of the Costain business
Construction - strong market position with world class expertise in delivering major complex projects
Care - operations and maintenance, already 13% of our Group order book

"The 'Choosing Costain' strategy provides significant opportunity for growth by developing our capability across the full life-cycle of products for our customers. In addition, we are able to deliver an over-arching solution through a concession or private finance approach.

"Resources will always be targeted on those opportunities that provide the greatest potential return at an acceptable risk profile.

"In conclusion, I would like to thank David Jenkins for over 40 years of service to the business. We have, as a Company, achieved much in recent times. Now these changes will ensure that we are well positioned to capitalise on future opportunities and continue our successful path."

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A Costain-sponsored student has helped a team from Birmingham University share first place in a national competition to find solutions to a topical question faced by the power industry.

Adam Flory, 21, who is due to graduate in summer 2011 with a Masters in civil engineering, receives annual sponsorship funding from Costain and undertakes summer work placements with the Group.

He was a member of a four-strong team that entered an RWE nPower challenge to universities in which the power generator set the question of how an organisation like it could deal with the effects of climate change.

Adam's team put forward the idea of controlled, sacrificial flooding of flat plains upstream from highly-populated areas to protect homes and commercial premises, then running the water off through turbines when the flooding danger had passed.

"We initially had to submit a 500-word synopsis of our scheme. We were successful and chosen to go forward to the next round, giving a six-minute presentation at Ferrybridge power station near Leeds," says Adam. "We then had to give an eight-minute presentation held at Wembley Stadium in front of senior nPower board directors in the final."

An accompanying model of such a scheme, made out of the trusty modelling standbys of chicken wire, paper and plaster of Paris, then painted, attracted the attention of the judges, says Adam.

Each team member received a cheque for £1,250 and their university department was also awarded £5,000. They are also due to present their project to a selected audience at the House of Commons on 23 June and receive a certificate from the Prime Minister.

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The Costain Group has achieved Gold standard in the field of Corporate Responsibility (CR).

In this week's Financial Times Responsible Business Supplement, it was announced that Costain had achieved a score of 93.1% - a Gold banding in Business in the Community's (BITC) CR Index.

The BITC Index is the UK's leading voluntary benchmark of CR. It helps companies to integrate and improve CR throughout their operations by providing a systematic approach to managing, measuring and reporting on business impacts in society and the environment.

The Gold banding is awarded to companies which: "demonstrate openness and transparency through effective public reporting of its material, environmental and social issues, programmes and performance. Gold companies also tend to expand and adapt their risk management processes by incorporating relevant aspects of CR risk and opportunity."

Stephen Wells, Costain Group Strategy and Business Development Director, has executive responsibility for CR. He said: "This Index includes many of our key customers such as EDF Energy, National Grid, United Utilities, Severn Trent and Network Rail. Those companies and many others understand how critical it is to have credible and respected third party assessment of their CR operation. BITC provides just that and we are delighted to have achieved Gold.

"CR is of critical importance to Costain. It is at the core of our culture, operations and overall performance. Everyone in Costain has been committed to the CR cause and Catherine Warbrick, our CR manager, has worked extremely hard to ensure we achieve our targets. Now we must improve further this year."

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Costain, one of London Gatwick Airport's two main construction partners, has been highly praised by the Considerate Constructors Scheme, following a recent audit.

Started in 1997, the scheme was established by members of the industry to improve the image of construction. Membership of the scheme is voluntary and all participating companies sign up to a code of practice which includes being considerate on site and a good neighbour.

Other measures include how contractors manage their environmental impact, safety, site cleanliness and on-site facilities for construction workers.

Costain was praised for its work in redeveloping the forecourt interchange at North Terminal, and was awarded 'very good' site status.

There was also recognition for the way Costain worked in partnership with their stakeholders including London Gatwick, its airlines and handling agents.

Commenting on the awards, Ray Melee, London Gatwick's Project Director said:  "As a major independent airport, we're investing nearly one billion pounds to modernise Gatwick and provide a better experience for our passengers. We will do this with our business partners, safely and responsibly.

"I'm delighted that Taylor Woodrow (Gatwick's other construction partner) and Costain have been recognised by the Considerate Contractors scheme.  To deliver major construction projects without impacting the day-to-day operations of the busiest single runway airport in the world is a major achievement."

Brendan Conlon, Project Director, Costain said: "Costain is delighted to receive this rating which was the first assessment at Gatwick under this scheme.

"The interchange project is particularly challenging due to its location within the heart of the North Terminal. Work has been carefully planned and managed to avoid impacting on those organisations that work close to the construction site. The positive assessment from the Considerate Constructors scheme is testament to everyone's hard work."

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The Costain Group is sponsoring a major UK nuclear event this week.

The Company is supporting  the Nuclear Industry Forum, organised by Marketforce, on June 15/16 in London.

The Nuclear Industry Forum has become the UK's premier nuclear event and is now well positioned as an important date in the diaries of the sector's executives and decision makers. With a consistently impressive speaker line-up, this conference critically addresses a wide range of key topics from financing issues for new build to overcoming regulatory challenges for decommissioning.

Martin Land, Costain Power Sector Director, said: 'We are committed to playing a significant part in the construction of new energy assets in the UK and this is the first major Nuclear Forum since the General Election. 

"Charles Hendry, as new Minister of State for Energy, Department of Energy & Climate Change, will be attending and we have our senior team present including Paul Campbell, Nuclear Sector Director and Alistair Smith - who has just joined us to strengthen further our offering across the whole of the energy sector."

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The UK's biggest rail infrastructure project is stepping up a gear. A Costain-Skanska joint venture has won the initial contracts for two tunnel portals that will take the Crossrail railway underneath London.

After years of planning, Crossrail is now underway. When complete in 2017, it will offer a new, high-frequency rail route starting at Maidenhead in the west through central London and out to the east, forking to Shenfield, near Brentwood in Essex and to Abbey Wood in southeast London.

It will add 10% to London's public transport capacity. Crossrail will carry close to 75,000 passengers every hour, significantly reducing journey times and providing quicker and easier interchanges.

Last May a Costain-Skanska joint venture was selected as one of several contractors for Crossrail's advance works civils framework agreement, a four-year programme worth £100 million.

Now, the JV has won the contract to create the tunnel portal at Royal Oak, just outside Paddington Station in west London. This will be the transition ramp for Crossrail trains entering and exiting the central London tunnels.

Costain-Skanska has also won the contract for the second portal at Pudding Mill Lane, near the Stratford Olympic site.

A major challenge for the JV team will be working in close proximity to existing, live LU and NR railway lines and the A40 Westway. "Royal Oak is incredibly cramped," notes Lee Davies, Costain's Sector Director for Rail. "There's a lot of heavy engineering to do in a small space, which will require careful planning and sequencing and be constructed without any disruption to the railway."

Work on both sites is already underway. Royal Oak is due to be completed in June and Pudding Mill Lane in 2013.

The longer timescale for the second portal is necessitated by waiting for other aspects of the project to catch up. "There's a lot of works at the front end, then a period of relatively little work where other works are undertaken. We then complete our part."

Among the complications at the east London site is the diversion of an 11 Kv underground electricity cable, diaphragm walls for the tunnel and construction of the City Mill River Bridge adjacent to Docklands Light Railway.

These advance works are just the start, however. "The main works are an order of magnitude bigger," says Davies. For the civils work, Costain and Skanska are teaming up with Bilfinger Berger, Europe's leading tunnelling contractor. Davies hopes that Costain's early involvement in the project will give it an edge when it comes to bidding for the main works.

"Being involved in the advance works gives us an insight into the client, his methods of procurement and, in a small way, the challenges of the job," he says. Technical challenges for whoever wins the main works, he adds, will include picking a route through the sheer density of underground utilities criss-crossing the capital and securing the necessary resources and skills for the job. Pre-qualification work for stations and civils aspects of the main project is underway.

Around £2 billion has already been spent on Crossrail, mainly on design and land procurement. "It's at the position where it's gone too far to be easily and sensibly cancelled," believes Davies. "Having said that, we will always be tasked with demonstrating value for money, affordability and a commitment to driving down costs."

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Costain Abu Dhabi is pressing ahead with plans to win more business through focusing on the refurbishment of giant oil storage tanks in the desert emirate.

Home of the United Arab Emirates' federal capital, Abu Dhabi has vast reserves of oil and Costain's activities focus on providing services to the various operating companies that form the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).

Much of Costain's work is concentrated on Das Island in the Arabian Gulf, around 150km off Abu Dhabi's coast. There, a team of personnel under Costain Abu Dhabi's General Manager, Alastair Smith, works to ensure that the process of refurbishment of the tanks - typically up to 25 metres tall, 80 metres in diameter and each holding up to half a million barrels of crude oil - progresses smoothly.

"The tanks must be drained down, checked and have both their shell and bottom plates repaired every few years." says Alastair. "The tanks are located within vast hydrocarbon processing plants and are connected to the rest of the facility by a mass of pipework that has to be sealed off to allow work to begin."

The Costain team is close to completing a contract to refurbish three of the vast tanks and the company is hopeful of winning further contracts which it has recently bid.

Costain Abu Dhabi's projects are carried out year-round in temperatures that can exceed 45 degrees Celsius in summer, and continues to bring in a steady flow of contracts - £6m in the past 10 months.

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The team behind Europe's second-largest land drainage scheme is tackling its final major challenge before completion of the project.

Demolition of the old pumping station at St German's, near King's Lynn in Norfolk, is starting now.

Its replacement, built for local flood defence and navigation authority the Middle Level Commissioners, had four of its six pumps fully commissioned at the end of March. All six together are capable of pumping 100 tonnes of water every second during a 1 in 100 year rainfall event, key in preventing 70,000 hectares of low-lying East Anglia from flooding.

Meanwhile, its 76-year-old predecessor is being stripped internally before demolition of the main structure starts.

Among the items being saved from its interior is a rare Crossley engine, a type of diesel, which is being gifted to the Anson Engine Museum in Cheshire.

The old pumping station, which is constructed predominantly of mass concrete and straddles a waterway, will be demolished by a long-reach excavator tipped with a mechanical breaker specially adapted to work underwater.

While demolition is underway, it will be vital to retain a clear flow of water between the old and new pumping stations.

Simultaneously, work is proceeding on dismantling a series of temporary coffer dam cells around the new station that had been erected to allow construction of it to be undertaken within a locally widened section of the discharge channel.

Three crawler cranes - one of 300 tonnes, the others 280, serviced by two smaller vehicles - are now well into the programme to remove the coffer dams. More than 500 piles in 16 cells have to be removed.

Project Manager, Ritchie Burcombe, said there had been close involvement with residents of nearby St Germans village over the demolition. Not only is there some unavoidable noise, but removal of a major building that was part of the village for 75 years has led to heavy goods vehicle movements close to residents' homes.

To minimise waste, none of the excavated material created during the construction phase of the project has been sent off-site. Instead, it is being used to create landscaped bunds around the location. "Ironically, Norfolk is getting some hills for the first time!" joked Burcombe.

Target date for substantial completion of the project is December, with Costain due to be off-site in March 2011.

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Costain, which will announce interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2010 on Wednesday 25 August 2010, is issuing the following trading update ahead of entering its Close Period.

Since the announcement of the Group's Interim Management Statement on 6 May 2010, the Group has continued to perform in-line with the Board's expectations.

Costain has again demonstrated its resilience in an uncertain economic environment.

The Group's operations continue to benefit from its strategy to focus on targeted blue chip customers whose major spending plans are underpinned by strategic national needs, regulatory commitments or essential maintenance requirements in chosen sectors. In this regard, it is encouraging that the Government has recently reiterated its commitment to maintain investment in key major infrastructure schemes.

In line with its strategy, the Group has recently amalgamated its Environment and Community activities into a single enlarged division, which will focus on new opportunities particularly in the water and waste markets and meeting the needs of their existing long-term customer relationships. Its Infrastructure and Energy & Process divisions will continue to target opportunities in their markets.

As a result of a number of significant new contract awards since the beginning of the year, the Group has a forward order book of £2.5 billion.  Circa £1.0 billion of work has been secured for 2010. In addition, the Group has Preferred Bidder positions of over £500 million.

The Group has maintained its strong net cash position of in excess of £100 million, and has no significant borrowings.

The Group will today and tomorrow host a site visit for analysts to its operations, which will include the major M1 Junction 10 - 13 managed motorway project, and the UK's largest waste to energy plant being constructed at Belvedere.

No new material information will be disclosed and all presentations will be posted on the Group's web site at www.costain.com.

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Gatwick Airport, this week, hosted an official 'handover' event to mark the completion of the new inter-terminal shuttle.

Bombardier Transportation Ltd, Costain Group and Vinci Construction presented the keys to Gatwick's Stewart Wingate, Chief Executive Officer and Ray Melee, Projects Director.

For Gatwick, this signifies the first major milestone in its £1billion development programme that will modernise the airport and provide a better experience for passengers at every step of their journey.
 
The original inter-terminal shuttle at Gatwick was installed more than 20 years ago and was removed from service in September last year having completed more than two and half million miles. 

With an investment of £43million, the project included the installation of a completely new shuttle system, new shuttle cars, refurbishment of the rubber track and transformation of the terminal stations. 

The new shuttle will speed up the passengers' journey, taking under three minutes to travel between terminals. Further benefits also include: extra seating; live journey information; greater security with monitored onboard CCTV cameras and full access for passengers with reduced mobility.

Gatwick's Director of Capital Projects, Ray Melee confirmed its £1billion investment programme is a top priority for Gatwick. 

"Delivering this significant project two months early, is a reflection of how well the Gatwick team and our construction partners worked together to make sure our passengers can enjoy a great experience at the airport this summer.

"Airports are complex environments to work in, the shuttle had to meet the challenges of maintaining the highest level of safety at all times, while also minimising disruption to our passengers journeys through Gatwick - I'm proud of what we have achieved," added Ray.

Costain Infrastructure Managing Director, Darren James said, "Costain is delighted to be handing over the inter-terminal shuttle and station as part of its North Terminal Interchange project.   

"This is a complex project, that involved us working without impacting on a fully operational airport and included the erection of 900 tonnes of structural steel and 5,000m2 of an inflatable roof.  In addition ten lifts, two escalators and two 75 metre inclined conveyors." added Darren.

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Costain's current work on the Evaporator-D plant at Sellafield which is currently the largest nuclear construction project in the UK gives the company a strong position to benefit from approaching nuclear power plant construction contracts, believes its new Nuclear Development Director.

"The prospects are very good. There will be up to 12 nuclear reactors built in the next 10 years, a market that's worth around £50billion," says Alistair Smith. My role is to help Costain win some of the major opportunities in building these new nuclear power stations."

Costain has formed a consortium, ConstructEnergy, with Sir Robert McAlpine, Hochtief and Heitkamp to take advantage of the potential opportunities in the nuclear new build sector. Costain will bring its experience from its current nuclear construction projects and its ongoing interests across the Power market.

Although the country's economic situation has led to the Government cutting back on spending, Smith believes that the nuclear reactor construction programme will go ahead, both because nuclear power can be the cheapest form of generating low carbon power and because the construction programme will require no Government subsidies.

Additionally, with North Sea oil and gas in rapid decline and many of the older generation of nuclear power station approaching closure, new generating capacity is urgently needed. "Power utilities know that they need to invest in a mix of power generation technologies, including renewables, efficient gas power plants and nuclear to provide the country with secure, low-carbon and affordable electricity," Smith commented.

Smith, 50, who has recently joined Costain from consultancy Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB), hopes to bring a lifetime's experience in the nuclear sector to win work for Costain.

Before his five years with PB, where he was Director of Nuclear services, he was with the National Nuclear Corporation (NNC) for 23 years. NNC was the organisation that designed and built the previous generation of nuclear power plants. He is Chairman of the Power Industries Division of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and holds the same position with the Industry Affairs Group in the Nuclear Industry Association, which represents the interests of industrial members in discussions with clients, Government and regulatory bodies.

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Two major Costain projects in Wales have achieved premier safety status.

The Costain A40 Penblewin to Slebech Park Improvement (or Robeston Wathen by-pass) has recently passed a safety milestone -  500,000 hours without a reportable accident and a zero Accident Frequency Rate.

The Early Contractor Involvement project for The Welsh Assembly Government commenced on site in the heart of Pembrokeshire in February 2009, with just under five kilometres of "2+1" carriageway to construct, 1.5km of side roads, four bridges, two underpasses, 10km of drainage pipe, 5 water treatment ponds, 250,000 m3 of material excavated and 8,000 trees and shrubs to plant.

With so many disciplines and a whole range of construction elements the planning and implementation is critical to ensure a safe and healthy environment for the Costain team, which averages a total workforce of 130.

Costain Project Manager, Mark Young, said: "The entire staff and supply chain had shown a dedication to the safe delivery of the project from day one, and I am extremely proud of the dedication of all contributors to this achievement. The support of the Client and his Agent has also been key to this achievement."

The Welsh Assembly Project Engineer, Martyn Leech, commented: "Reaching half a million man-hours of site work without a reportable accident is a significant achievement and is testament to the importance given by Costain to the safety of their workforce on site. The target now will be to maintain this throughout the remainder of the contract."

The Costain team working on the Dwr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW) framework has won the prestigious 'Occupational Health and Safety Excellence Award' at the 4th annual DCWW Health and Safety Awards held in Swansea.

In addition to this award, Project Manager, Mark Jones, was Commended in the award category 'Outstanding Individual Contribution to Health and Safety'.

John Madden, Framework Director for Costain said: "The whole Costain team in north Wales is delighted to receive these awards from Welsh Water. They recognise the team's contribution to Welsh Water's drive to improve Health and Safety standards. It is particularly pleasing that at the end of AMP4, Costain has been recognised as the winner of the much coveted Excellence Award."

The Excellence award was judged by an independent panel of assessors who commented:

"This was a comprehensive and focused presentation which clearly demonstrated Costain's commitment to the overall development of its health & safety management systems and resulting in demonstrable improvement - there was a clear commitment to 'raise the bar'. There was clear demonstration of leadership from the top and evidence of focussed risk management initiatives relevant to site challenges. These included initiatives such as health promotion and safety critical medicals for selected high risk operators, along with continued commitment to supervisor training and behavioural safety initiatives. Additionally, the company has innovatively undertaken a climate survey of its supply chain to engage its sub contractors in the health and safety drive for improvement."

Costain will receive a cheque for £2,500 from DCWW to be presented to a charity or charities; Costain staff in north Wales have been asked for suitable nominations.

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In a tough financial climate, UK councils want a 'more for less' search for improvements.  For contractors such as Costain, with innovation to the fore, this is presenting opportunities.  

Area councils are currently looking at their infrastructure budgets to save money. Traditionally, highways maintenance contracts run for five years with options to extend and the easy option for councils is simply to extend existing arrangements, says Costain's new Highways Maintenance Services Director, Chris Tyerman.

Now, however, they are responding to impending cuts in their grants by going out to tender on these maintenance contracts, in the search for cost-effective solutions to their funding problems, through innovative delivery of their highways maintenance services.

"There are very good prospects in this sector," says Chris, who was previously Deputy Managing Director of Community. "The simple fact is that once you've got an asset you have to maintain it and to maintain it needs investment, good management and a good process of risk and asset management."

His newly-created role takes account of two facts: that Costain wants to push further into the £1billion annual highways maintenance sector, which will require some dedicated resources; plus the Group's existing workload in this field, which has reached a critical mass and now needs someone to look after it. Chris will take this piece of work off the desk of Highways Sector Director, Tim Bowen.

"We already have three Managing Agent maintenance contracts with one of our key Customers, the Highways Agency - MAC 7 in East Midlands, MAC 10 in Greater Manchester, Merseyside  and Cheshire, MAC 12 covering Yorkshire and, from 1 July, MAC 14 for Durham and Northumberland," says Chris. "I'm also responsible for other capital works framework contracts such as East and South-East, and the Midlands."

Just 12 months ago, he reckoned that two or three highways maintenance contracts would come up for re-tender this year. Now, it looks as though 15 to 25 will be up for grabs over the next 12 months as councils seek a better deal from suppliers to cope with their financial constraints.

Costain will seriously consider around five of them, he believes: "It's a great opportunity for us."

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The Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR) has named Costain the winner of the Best Graduate Development title in its 2010 awards.

The latest award followed on from the AGR naming the Group top of two sub-categories - strategic alignment and graduate inductions - in the field earlier in the year. That was enough for Costain to outpace seven major organisations including Barclays, Boots and PriceWaterhouseCooper to the overall prize.

At the award ceremony, held at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, Wales, the AGR's judges cited "impressive evidence of professional development schemes for [Costain's] graduates, plus a variety of tools to monitor and evaluate engagement and to aid continuous development" as the reasons for their decision. The AGR Awards, now in their 32nd year, recognise and reward graduate recruiters for creative and innovative campaigns that attract the best graduate talent to their organisations.

The award "is a huge opportunity to enhance the reputation and brand of Costain in the graduate market", says Talent and Skills Manager Jeremy Galpin.

Terry Sexton, Managing Director of Costain's training partners Creative Edge Consultants, adds: "In the light of our new corporate vision, 'Choosing Costain', if you're a graduate out there in the construction industry and you're looking for development, you're going to choose Costain. It's really good news."

Fittingly, the submission for the annual awards was put together by a team from the 2020 Board, which identifies and develops future business leaders from the graduate community.

Kris Ramsey, one of the team and a Graduate SHE Advisor, said a six-strong team took two weeks to complete the submissions, which focused on Costain's strategic alignment - demonstrating that everyone in the company was pulling in the same direction - and the quality and impact of Costain graduate induction courses.

Pictured right: Some of Costain's award winning graduates

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Costain MWH has achieved preferred bidder status on a potential £15 million contract tendered by Severn Trent Water to construct a new treated water pumping station at one of its major water treatment works in Birmingham.

The award is the first competitively tendered contract by Severn Trent Water in the south of its region during AMP5.

Frankley water treatment works supplies water to around 1.4 million people in Birmingham and the surrounding area, making it a major piece of national infrastructure and a vital asset for Severn Trent Water.

In addition to the new treated water pumping station, the scheme also includes a new tank to replace the existing one that has reached the end of its functional life, and potentially, an additional new chlorine contact tank. This would help ensure drinking water standards can continue to be met while enabling existing chlorine contact tanks to be inspected and maintained.

The improvements will further increase the security and reliability of water supplies to Severn Trent's customers, while improving the overall operation and control of the treatment works. The new pumping station will ensure routine inspections and maintenance can be effectively carried out without interruptions to customers' supplies.

Early works are planned from December 2010 with major construction activities expected to be underway in the summer of 2011. The scheme is expected to take around two years to complete.

"Costain clearly put a lot of time and effort into its tender submission, and has deservedly won the opportunity to progress this highly significant project," said Severn Trent's Jonathan Wagstaff, programme manager for the project.

Costain's Water Sector Director, Matt Crabtree, said: 'This is excellent news for us. The fact that Severn Trent has chosen to entrust work on this critical asset to us is a testament to the confidence it has quickly gained in Costain MWH's ability to deliver.'

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The project team on one of Costain's Greater Manchester Waste sites has taken a group of school pupils studying for a new diploma under its wing.

Students from Hope Valley College in Derbyshire have been making regular visits to Bredbury Parkway, one of the sites in the Greater Manchester Waste contract, as part of their Diploma in Construction and the Built Environment (CBE) course.

Costain's involvement with the pupils began when Project SHE Manager, Des Roy, was attending an 'options evening' at Hope Valley, where parents discuss with teachers which non-core subjects their children will take between the ages of 14 and 16.

The CBE diploma, which was newly introduced last year, comprises a number of construction-related subjects that are studied in the classroom, with field visits used to give a practical element to the course. Pupils who successfully complete it get the equivalent of seven GCSEs. The syllabus covers every aspect of a project; from inception to completion, involving the theory and practical aspects of design, the construction process itself through to operation, plus maintenance and facilities management thereafter.

"I spoke with the Course Leader running the diploma, introduced myself, said it sounded very interesting and offered him any help Costain could give in the delivery of the diploma," says Roy. "He got in touch and we decided we could help by arranging regular site visits for the students to offer a practical insight that would help with the delivery of the diploma."

The result has been a series of monthly visits to Bredbury Parkway by the 12 youngsters taking the diploma. "The visits are aimed at informing the students, but it is also important to make them enjoyable. We are, after all, trying to encourage the next generation into our industry."

When they visit the site the students are kept busy with a full programme including presentations from Costain and its design team, site tours and completing learning outcome assignments based on the visit and the information the team gives them to take away. The youngsters are encouraged to participate in question-and-answer sessions with the team which is usually "quite an interesting session" says Roy.

"The site team at Bredbury Parkway has really taken to the kids and a great relationship is developing. Bredbury is one of the last sites to finish on the Greater Manchester Waste contract and usefully spans the full length of the diploma, so the pupils will be fortunate enough to see the project progress to completion.

"The feedback we get from the school is very, very positive; the kids like coming and the visits do help with the teaching of the course." The pupils will sit their final examinations for the diploma next summer.

Costain has, in recognition of the work they are doing on the Greater Manchester Waste Project, received from the Peak 11 Consortium the Employers Recognition Award; details of the diploma and the Recognition Award can be found at www.cbediploma.co.uk.

Ends

Work is getting underway on a permanent flood barrier to protect a water treatment works that serves hundreds of thousands of Severn Trent Water customers in Gloucestershire, in the event of future extreme weather.

In 2007, unprecedented flooding swamped the Mythe water treatment works (WTW) in Tewkesbury, leaving some 350,000 people in the region without clean water supplies for 17 days.

With climate change likely to make weather patterns more unpredictable, Costain has been called in by Severn Trent Water to help safeguard the Mythe plant.

The £5.5million permanent flood barrier project involves the installation of  a combination of above- and below-ground sheet pile walls, a concrete gravity wall, earth embankments, drainage ditches and dewatering boreholes.

The work itself is relatively straightforward, but Costain has to take account of nearby structures. Concerns were raised that vibrations for the sheet-piling could affect the nearby Grade II-listed Thomas Telford Bridge and its toll booth.

Local residents were also worried that their homes might be affected by the vibrations.

"We've done a survey of the area and are monitoring the bridge," says Matt Crabtree, Costain's Sector Director for Water (South).

"We did some trial piling in June very close to the bridge and measured the vibration, which turned out to be less than that generated by trucks going past."

The flood defences around the Mythe WTW will vary in height depending on the vulnerability of various areas of the perimeter. At their highest they will be 1.5 - 2 metres high, with the earthworks being landscaped to blend into the surrounding countryside.

The improved defences are calculated to protect the WTW against a 1 in 1000-year flooding event.

The project is due to be completed in spring 2011.

Pictured right: Costain's work at the Mythe water treatment works aims to protect it from floods such as the 2007 inundation shown.

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A trainee Quantity Surveyor with Costain has put in place a valuable addition to the Company's knowledge base.

Adam Golden has created a database that identifies the key representatives responsible for innovation in Costain's top 100 supply chain partners. This allows staff to search for external expertise to help solve clients' problems.

Golden joined the Costain student sponsorship programme in 2007 from Northumbria University in Newcastle and is now finishing his year in industry on the Greater Manchester Waste project.

To develop the database he created a questionnaire for supply chain members, collated all the necessary data, then developed a computer tool allowing the information to be viewed, filtered and used within the Group. The information sits on iCosNet, the Group's internal knowledge base.

During his final year, Adam intends to develop a dissertation on his project. When complete, it will provide Costain with a greater insight into the relationships with innovation that exist within the supply chain. The intention is to refresh the data annually to ensure the database is kept up-to-date.

"This initiative is another example of Costain's objective to encourage open and honest relationships with its supply chain and further demonstrates that Costain is fully committed to meeting clients' needs through innovation," commented Greater Manchester Waste Director, John Boyd.

Golden's work, done mainly in his own time over a four-month period last year, so impressed the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) that when he returns to university in October for his final year of study he will do so with a £1,500 CIOB bursary.

Ends

Construction plant always holds a fascination for youngsters, which helps explain why Costain's stand was the place to be at Newbury's annual Sunday Funday.

Three staff from the team constructing the Newbury Parkway development in the Berkshire town - Andy Smith, Sharon Lawton and Gareth Buisson - gave up their time to give the Company a presence at the event.

They were needed, as a steady stream of visitors (about 1,000 by the end of the day) poured over the exhibit.

Star of the show, said Liaison Manager Andy Smith, was the digger. "For most of the day we had a queue of about 30 youngsters waiting to sit in it and have their picture taken for the family album.

"It was just a pity they discovered the horn still worked even when the digger was immobilised!"

A Bob the Builder colouring table and two sand pits were also very popular with the younger children. The team also dished out hundreds of lollypops to the children who visited the stand (including quite a few that were nearer pension age than school age!)

"The team also raised over £100 for the town's fire brigade charitable efforts, by running a Hidden Treasure competition where entrants had to guess the weight of a sand-filled jar with a prize hidden inside. The money was handed over to station commander Matt Frayne after the day was over," said Andy.

Ends

It was raucous and it was rhythmic ... it was Construction Rocks 2009, an industry 'battle of the bands' charity event.

Helping to keep the event's running order was Costain's Birmingham-based  Innovation Manager Peter Ball, himself a keen musician but on this occasion helping out on the organisational side.

Held in St Pancras, London, the event brought together 10 bands from construction companies or with involvement in the sector, with the aim of raising money for Great Ormond Street Hospital and Sports Aid.

Costain helped sponsor the event by providing Peter's services; his stage manager duties covered everything from setting-up to clearing up at the end of the night.

With each band putting up £100 as an entry fee and refreshments being sold to the crowd of several hundred that turned up for an evening of rock, a very respectable £5,000 was raised in just a few hours.

ends

Costain announces that it has been appointed, in joint venture with Lafarge, to the Midlands Works Framework Contract 4 by the Highways Agency.  This framework has been established to undertake structural work, surfacing and roadworks in the Midlands Area up to a total framework value of £250million over two years. 

This framework enables the Highways Agency to implement the Treasury's fiscal stimulus initiative and is also available to several Local and Unitary Authorities including Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland, Peterborough and Staffordshire.

Ends 

The UK has to press on and get a new generation of power stations off the stocks if blackouts are to be avoided a few years from now.

Stephen Wells, Group Strategy and Business Development Director, delivered this message to a high-powered London conference debating whether the country has the right mix of energy supplies for the years ahead.

The CBI-organised conference attracted around 150 energy specialists, power generating companies, funders, regulators, the construction sector and media. They listened as speakers from Government, power companies, plus the financial and energy sectors, gave their opinions on the ideal balance of energy sources.

Costain and power generator EdF supported and sponsored the event respectively, held at the Royal Society's headquarters near Pall Mall.

The CBI recently produced a 12-point recovery plan for whichever party wins next year's general election, which included energy gap and security of supply as a key issue. It believes that the current emphasis on renewable energy should be scaled back from the planned 30%+ to around 24%, partly because it believes the target is simply too ambitious and partly because delivery of renewable energy projects in the past has been slow.

In his comments from the platform Stephen stressed the need to get construction of new nuclear power stations underway - a policy underlined by the Government a few days later when it announced plans for 10 new nuclear stations around the UK within the national policy statements.

Setting aside his Costain hat later, Stephen added that the British loved debating major programmes like this, but that the time for debate was fast running out: "I'm also a taxpayer and citizen and it concerns me that we could get to the point where we have power cuts. Do we have to get to the point where power supplies are disrupted to make the UK public aware of the problem?"

The Government has recently set up the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) to speed up the planning process for critically important UK infrastructure projects such as new nuclear stations. However, the Conservatives were talking of abolishing it, said Stephen, because they feared central government would lose control of the process given its independent status.

Such a move risked scaring off European nuclear power companies, who feared any investment in new power stations would get bogged down in years of planning process.

The conference, he added, had been useful for Costain as it had raised the Group's profile in the marketplace. "We've been seen to have an opinion on the whole subject, not just the construction aspects of it. We were there supporting a nationally-important debate for the future wellbeing of the British people and our economy."

Picture caption shows Costain's Stephen Wells (left) pictured with Martin Lawrence, Managing Director of Energy Sourcing & Customer Supply, EDF Energy.

Ends

A Costain joint venture project, the construction of the breakwater at the Energia Costa Azul LNG Terminal in Mexico, has won a British Expertise* International Award.

The Costa Azul breakwater is one of the largest offshore caisson breakwaters in the world. The Scott Wilson Group, structural designer for the China Harbour Costain Joint Venture team, won the award for the Major Consultancy Project of the Year. Warren Hibbs, the Costain Project Director for the contract, represented the project team at the awards ceremony.

The British Expertise International Awards recognise excellence in design, planning, management and construction of overseas projects. They support the continued outstanding success of UK professional services throughout the world.

* British Expertise is the leading UK private sector organisation for British companies offering professional services internationally. The 210 member companies range from large general consultancies to specialist individuals. They offer their services across a wide range of sectors and in almost every country in the world. They have a high reputation for quality.

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The Parkway project at Newbury, with Costain as main contractor, played host to West Berkshire councillors recently.

David Woodhouse, the Costain Project Director, gave a presentation about the logistics of the retail/development project and the way in which Costain was dealing with the problems of ground water and diversion of services.  The councillors were shown drawings together with artist's impressions of the structures that were being erected and a series of aerial photos that showed the progress to date.

The councillors also heard about details of the work and co-operation Costain was undertaking with local schools in the area. Costain also invited one of the outstanding work experience students along - Sophie Cath, from St Bartholomew's School - to give a first-hand account of her recent stay with the project that has prompted her to seek a career in Civil Engineering.

After the presentation, the councillors were taken on a tour of the site where they were able to see the progress being made on the massive excavation for the underground car park and the erection of the steelwork for Debenhams and shops in the new East Street. The councillors expressed their gratitude for the tour which had given them a better understanding of the size and complexity of the work involved and thanked Costain for their efforts in minimising disruption to the Newbury Town Centre.

Ends

Steel framework for the new three and four storey buildings is now rising from ground level behind the listed, 18th century frontages that have been retained on Northbrook Street. The buildings, which will be located on either side of the new East Street entrance to the development, will provide a link to the many new shops at the heart of the scheme. 

This combination of old and new is a key theme throughout Parkway, which has been designed to be both contemporary and yet in keeping with Newbury's historic market town environment.

On opening in spring 2011, Parkway - which is being developed by Standard Life Investments - will boast over 50 new shops, including a new full range Debenhams department store, as well as new restaurants and cafés. It will also include 184 new homes.

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Twenty months after successfully bidding to revitalise one of the UK's busiest trunk roads, a Costain-Skanska joint venture has reached a major milestone in the A14 Contract.

The publishing of Draft Orders for the Ellington - Fen Ditton scheme, which calls for the joint venture to build the first section of 36km of road on the A14, "really sets the clock ticking", says Project Director Mark Berg.

The A14 stretches from Felixstowe Docks in Suffolk to the M1/M6 junction northwest of Northampton. The section, being tackled by Costain-Skanska, runs through countryside roughly from Huntingdon to Cambridge.

The project is designed to relieve heavy congestion on the route. Some new sections of road will be built off-line from the existing A14, others will run parallel to it and some will see the existing road expanded.

One major interchange is "almost like Spaghetti Junction" in its scale and complexity, says Mark Berg. Other sections of the road will require bridges to be demolished (including one straddling the East Coast Main Line rail route) and two new structures built across the rivers Ouse and Cam.

A few statistics from the past 20 months show the scale of the challenge:

• 7869 drawings were created;
• nearly 640 people were involved at some stage, as were 35 different offices;
• almost 300 meetings were held with local councils, businesses and landowners;
• in total, 12,662 documents were produced.

The publishing of the Draft Orders is a significant stage in the statutory process. A public enquiry is due to be held in June 2010. It is anticipated that, if the go-ahead is given, work will start in spring 2012 and be completed in late 2015.

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A recently completed Costain contract is helping breathe new life into a previously derelict part of Worcester city centre.

The £19million project on the first phase of Worcester University's new City Campus involved the construction of two new student residences. The Costain team also carried out repairs to Grade II listed buildings that were part of the former Worcester Royal Infirmary.

The pre-cast concrete residences provide high-quality, en-suite accommodation for 178 students. Each of the four and six-storey blocks is fitted with solar panels to heat water, and has a rainwater harvesting system. 

Work on the listed Georgian and Victorian buildings - including one where the first British Medical Association (BMA) meeting was held in 1832 - involved internal strengthening, the cleaning and repair of masonry, and the re-roofing of the main building.

The site's city centre location didn't present too many access problems, said Geoff Hunt, Project Manager, but its proximity to the Worcester-Hereford railway line did mean close collaboration with Network Rail.

"The railway was next to the gable ends of the building and we had to make certain our tower crane didn't oversail the railway line. We also had to ensure we had all the right permits from Network Rail when it came to erecting and dismantling the crane."

Nevertheless the 13-month job came in right on time and was completed
on 7 September. Students moved into their new home twelve days later.

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Costain bikers will be remembering Britain's fallen troops in a charity bike ride on 10 October.

A group of COGAP colleagues will be joining thousands of other motorcyclists in this year's Ride To The Wall (RTTW) - a ride to the National Memorial Arboretum near Lichfield, Staffordshire. The National Memorial features the names of more than 16,000 Service men and women killed on duty or by terrorist action since the end of World War 2 engraved around its walls. Last year's inaugural RTTW raised £10,000 to help with the upkeep of the memorial, and this year the organisers hope to raise even more.

"All are welcome to come along - you can register on the day," said Chris Goodwin, Section Leader in the 2D CAD piping department, who'll be riding his Benelli Tornado TRE.

The Costain bikers will be meeting up with the Royal British Legion Riders at Knutsford Services on the M6 at 8am. They will then ride down to Drayton Manor Park in Tamworth, where the 12-mile long RTTW will start at 11am.

"It should be quite a day," said Chris. "Last year there were more than 2000 motorcyclists at the event, 800 of whom registered on the day. This year 2000 people have already registered, so there should be a good turn-out."

For more information contact Chris on chris.goodwin@costain.com or go to the RTTW website www.rttw.org

Ends

Costain's £397million Greater Manchester Waste contract has reached a significant milestone, with the completion of the first in-vessel composting plant.

The Waithlands plant in Rochdale - currently undergoing final commissioning tests - is now processing up to 480 tonnes of green waste and food waste collected from households every week. Over a period of 14 days it turns the waste into pasteurised compost to be used as soil improver.

The composting plant - the first of four planned - will be officially opened in November. The opening will coincide with the fifth Annual Waste Management Conference, this year hosted by the Greater Manchester Waste Delivery Authority.

Five of the 43 facilities planned - two transfer loading stations and three household waste recycling centres - have already been handed over to the client, Viridor Laing (Greater Manchester) Limited.

Meanwhile other elements of the contract continue at a pace with construction activities progressing on 14 sites.  On the main technology sites, preparations are being made for the arrival this year of some of the primary process components. These include the 'Pulper' units from Germany for the Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) plants, and key parts for the Materials Recycling Facility in south Manchester, which are presently being shipped from San Diego, California.

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A Costain team from Manchester is about to scale the heights in order to raise money for the nation's heroes.

The team, based at Styal Road, will embark on a 'lung-bursting' mission to tackle the famous Yorkshire Peaks of Penyghent, Whernside and Inglebrough in just one day.

The eight staff and partners aim to raise funds for the Help for Heroes* charity.

Costain's David Watkins said: "It will not be easy but it will be worthwhile.  We expect cramp and blisters but we also expect to complete the task.  If you would like to contribute to the Help for Heroes charity then please use Ian Hollands' Just Giving site below."

http://www.justgiving.com/Ian-Holland

* Help for Heroes is a British charity launched in September 2007 to help provide better facilities for wounded British servicemen and women.

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One of Costain's recent flagship projects - the restoration and refurbishment of the famous St Martin-in-the-Fields Church in Trafalgar Square London - has received a major award.

The project received the Heritage Award for Buildings from the Institution of Structural Engineers for achievement in structural design involving restoration, conservation, extension or refurbishment of a heritage building, where the style and integrity of the original building is maintained and made evident in the final concept.

Standing at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square, St Martin-in-the-Fields is a famous London landmark.

Built by James Gibbs in 1730, it is Grade I* listed and was later added to by John Nash in the 1830s with a terrace and underground vaults. All of Nash's work is Grade II* listed.

St Martin-in-the-Fields is famous for its charitable work, offering shelter to the homeless and others in need.

This shelter was provided partly in the Nash terrace and partly in the underground vaults. Neither of these spaces were suitable for this sort of use - the vaults, particularly, being dark and damp.

The major part of the scheme designed by Eric Parry Architects and Alan Baxter & Associates and built by Costain involved the removal of the vaults, replacing them with a new two-storey deep basement.

It says something of the significance and influence of St Martin-in-the-Fields that permission was given for the removal of so much listed fabric.

The great hole in the ground needed to make this transformation had to be carried out without damaging either of the buildings, which were kept in place by a combination of secant piled walls and conventional sheet-piling.

This skilful and carefully executed piece of engineering has transformed the use of a very tight urban site.

The Nash terrace was also significantly reorganised, with a number of sensitive structural interventions.

Ends

Costain, the engineering and construction group, is issuing its Interim Management Statement covering the period from 1 July 2009 to the current date.

Overview
In August, the Group reported a strong operating result for the first half of 2009, and that it had entered the second half of the year with a record order book, robust finances and a net cash balance in excess of £100 million.

Since then, Costain has continued to perform in line with the Board's expectations.

The Group's strategy remains focused on major blue-chip customers, particularly those whose capital investment programmes are necessitated by legislation or regulation, or where projects are of high priority in the current uncertain economic environment.   

Order Book
The Group's quality forward order book has increased further to a new record level of £2.7 billion, up from £2.5 billion at 30 June 2009.

This increased order book follows major contract awards including:

- an extension to its current 5-year AMP4 framework contract with United Utilities worth £170 million;
- a £297 million contract for Sellafield Ltd for the Evaporator D project extending the project from the original planning into the delivery phase; and
- Bradford Schools Phase 2 PFI, in joint venture, valued at £230 million

Costain continues to see strong levels of tendering activity, both in established sectors such as water and infrastructure, and in newer business areas such as nuclear and waste. The Group's preferred bidder position is currently in excess of £400 million reflecting recent successes in converting previous preferred positions to firm orders.

The Group has already secured revenues of over £800 million for 2010, substantially ahead of the position for 2009 at this time last year.

Pension
Following the proposals as reported in August, the Group has now completed the 90-day consultation period with staff and closed the defined benefit pension scheme to future accrual with effect from 1st October 2009.  

 
Financial Position
There has been no material change in the financial status of the Group which continues to enjoy a strong cash position of well in excess of £100 million and has no significant borrowings.  The average month-end cash balance in 2009 to date is running slightly ahead of the average for 2008.

Outlook
The Group's ongoing strategic focus continues to provide Costain with a strong platform and the Board remains confident that the outcome for 2009 will be in line with its expectations.
 

 Ends

The St Martin-in-the-Fields refurbishment/restoration project, with Costain as the main contractor, has picked up its second national award this month.

The famous London Church received the British Construction Industry Awards (BCIA) top prize in the Conservation category. Only days earlier the project won the Institution of Structural Engineers' Heritage Award for Buildings.

The 2009 BCIA once again brought a huge entry representing over 170 of the best projects in the UK and those abroad for which UK Companies had a significant input. The Awards are rigorously judged with each of the 35 UK shortlisted projects visited by members of the judging panel and their project teams quizzed on site. Teams representing the International shortlist of six projects were interviewed in London and visits made for the judges to glean further information.

It is well known that the BCIA is not a design competition - while excellence of architecture or engineering are factors, these Awards are all embracing with the judges considering many aspects from procurement, performance against prediction, quality of design and construction, safety, innovation, sustainability, usability and benefit to the community among many others listed in the Awards application form.

The BCIA made its award to St Martin-in-the-Fields 'for a project designed and executed with respect for original fabric, design and form while making a minimum intervention consistent with safety and structural integrity.' 

The judges stated: 'The renewal of St Martin-in-the-Fields in London's Trafalgar Square is a significant and highly complex public building project offering a great deal more than just the famous Church. It's Grade I listed Crypt and three Grade II listed buildings have been completely upgraded and extensive new spaces created to provide additional facilities.

'The project is a showcase for the construction industry with a real wow factor and an uplifting atmosphere. A classic scheme using a wide range of design and construction skills to upgrade the buildings. Sensitive refurbishment and upgrade of historic features have been coupled with totally appropriate new build sections.

'A chaotic working environment has been transformed. St Martin can now fulfil its important role in London life, with facilities for the homeless, the local Chinese community and the general public.'
   

 
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The Castleford Bridge in Yorkshire, a Costain project, has won the RIBA CABE Public Space Award.

This award is sponsored by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE), the government's advisor on architecture, urban design and public space.  Presented to the architects and landscape architects of the best RIBA Award-winning public space in the United Kingdom, the award recognises the valuable contribution that a well-designed public realm makes to the quality of the built environment and to our daily lives.

The Bridge spans the river with a subtle S-bend that is set lightly on three supports. The timber boardwalk has been elegantly detailed to align with the line of movement. Benches arc out of its surface giving a range of seating heights for all ages and the balustrade provides a leaning rail to view the river. The architect's attention to the human scale makes the bridge accessible and much loved by the inhabitants of Castleford. The community's local pride in their involvement and achievement of building the bridge should help it stand the test of time.
 
Speaking about the bridge, Sarah Gaventa, Director of CABE Space said:

"The Bridge over Castleford 'Bay' is a really engaging public space. It provides a real meeting place for local people and has helped strengthen Castleford's relationship with its river.

"It is greatly loved and enjoyed by the local community who played a big role in its design, and it has pushed the definition of public space, proving that a bridge can offer as much as a street, public square, or park. It is a true public space because it can be used and enjoyed by everyone."

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Thousands of discarded tyres, acres of power station waste...and butterflies. All problems that Costain's team on the Church Village Bypass in South Wales had to overcome to relieve local residents from challenging traffic conditions.

The 7.5km bypass will take 70 per cent of traffic off the A473 where it runs through the village. It's the latest in a series of such schemes Costain has tackled for Rhondda Cynon Taf Council in recent years to alleviate congested valley roads.

The £90million contract includes four roundabouts, three foot bridges, two road bridges and one equestrian underpass. However, a major value engineering exercise has hugely reduced the complexity of the scheme, says Project Manager Barry Woodman.

"In value engineering terms I think we've done a job that would be hard to beat," he says. Originally there were to be nine bridges. A 500m retaining wall has also been deleted and structures generally reduced to a minimum.

The two road bridges and culverts are being pre-cast in sections off-site, which brings both quality and safety advantages.

Work began in spring 2008 and progress has been so good that virtually all the structures are already in place, a year ahead of the scheme's completion date of autumn 2010.

Environmental considerations have been high on the agenda: dormice, otters, bats and a rare type of fritillary butterfly have had to be protected or relocated.

The team has also made several positives out of negatives along the route. One landfill site concealed 300,000 old tyres, while others contained huge quantities of pulverised fly ash from a disused power station. "That made ground conditions particularly interesting," says Woodman.

However, the tyres have been bound together to help create a retaining wall and the ash reshaped into bunds and landscaping features to screen the site from homes.

With much of the heavy work complete and around 20 per cent of the roadway laid, the team is keeping its foot on the accelerator to finish on schedule next year.

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Some of Costain's top young executives mapped out their Costain of Tomorrow when the Company staged its annual series of staff road shows this month.

The team joined other presenters including Chief Executive Andrew Wyllie, Finance Director Tony Bickerstaff and Chief Operating Officer Alan Kay. In total there were six road shows at venues in Coventry, London, Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff and Maidenhead.  The Manchester venue was staged at the Odeon Printworks which included one of the UK's largest cinema screens (73ft wide).

The Costain of Tomorrow presentation, a highlight at every venue, involved the seven young executives speaking about their hopes and aspirations for the Company.  Andrew Wyllie's theme was Driving Costain Forward which focused on the many future opportunities available to the Company in areas such as Energy, Waste and Transport.

The Costain of Tomorrow presenters pictured are left to right: 
Andy Bull, Isabel Coman, Ritchie Burcombe, Claire Carr, Rob Phillips, Catherine Warbrick, Frank Millar

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Swathes of sheeting and scaffolding currently cover it, but the building under construction by Costain in Gracechurch Street, in the City of London, is shaping up to cut a prestigious figure in the capital's cityscape.

The high quality nine-storey office block, with retail units on the ground and lower ground floors, will be clad in Portland stone to blend in with a retained facade on part of the site.

The £31million development, close to Monument Tube station, is the fourth project Costain has handled for Arab Investments. The Gresham Street project, completed in March 2009, was the third.

"In Gracechurch Street, two banks were demolished to create one building," explains Senior Project Manager Mark Sowerby.

The usual tight site problems in Central London - the building occupies the entire site footprint - are compounded by the presence outside of a 'no stopping' Red Route and months of negotiations with Transport for London were required to agree temporary suspensions of a nearby bus stop, which is used as a loading bay, he adds.

To minimise traffic problems, Costain has constructed a steel platform inside the site boundary on to which delivery vehicles can drive and unload. Concrete trucks, for example, park there and discharge their loads into a static pump, the material is then directed to wherever on site it is required.

The client set up noise and vibration monitors on adjoining party walls (including the historic St Clements church) to ensure disturbance to neighbours was minimised.

The project is two-thirds complete and is expected to finish on schedule next June.

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Costain is pleased to announce that Integrated Bradford, a consortium that includes Costain, HSBC, Building Schools for the Future Investments and Amey Ventures, has reached financial close on the £230million Bradford Schools Phase 2 PFI Project.

The scheme, which is part of the Bradford 'Building Schools for the Future' Programme, includes the provision of four secondary schools for Bradford Metropolitan District Council. The four modern campus environments also comprise four smaller schools and will provide dedicated learning for students with special educational needs. Design and construction of the schools will be provided by Educo, a Joint Venture between Costain and Ferrovial Agroman.

Phase 1 of the Bradford BSF Programme provided for three new secondary schools, all of which are now in full operation. A further three new primary schools, currently in construction, will be handed over in early 2010.

BSF is a £45billion Government initiative to modernise England's secondary school estate by refurbishing or rebuilding every school within the next ten years. Bradford BSF was one of the pathfinder projects, in which the development of new schools is undertaken by a Local Education Partnership that includes Bradford MDC, Costain, Amey and Building Schools for the Future Investments.

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The £44million project to rebuild the Wolvercote Viaduct (a Costain project) on the A34 in Oxfordshire reached a new stage this month as traffic was allowed onto the new northbound carriageway for the first time.

Northbound traffic has been using the old southbound carriageway for the past six months while the Highways Agency (H.A) built the new section. Southbound traffic will continue to use a temporary carriageway while the old southbound structure is demolished and rebuilt.

Following the completion of the switchover, two narrow lanes are remaining in each direction with a 40mph speed restriction, enforced by average speed cameras. There will also be 24 hour CCTV monitoring and a free vehicle recovery service. The speed limit is for the protection of road users and roadworkers.

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Costain announces a strong overall performance with profit from operations up 11% and a record forward order book up 25% since the beginning of the year.

Please click here to view the announcement

Costain has been named Major Contractor of the Year by New Civil Engineer magazine for 2009. The previous year Costain also beat all rivals to take the prestigious Award.

New Civil Engineer magazine stated: "Costain has had a massive year - it's as simple as that. Years of positioning itself in the waste industry came home big-style with its £397million Greater Manchester waste PFI contract win in May, and the company's order book now stands at a record £2.4billion."

The New Civil Engineer Award is the second major national media recognition for Costain this year. The Company won the Supreme Award at the Construction News 2009 Quality Awards for the best overall performance which involved being shortlisted six times and winning two categories - Training and Corporate Social Responsibility.

New Civil Engineer also stated in this week's magazine: "Awards are nothing new to the modern Costain. Management Today rates it as "one of the most admired companies in the UK". In the Considerate Constructors Scheme it has won 15 awards, including three Gold Awards. And it is now the first firm to retain a NCE/CECA Contractor of the Year award."

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State-of-the-art facilities designed and built by Costain are coming into service at Cheltenham General Hospital as the Gloucestershire NHS Foundation Trust improves its services for its patients.

The £13.5million St Luke's Wing Phase 2 was officially opened in July, while a building housing a linear accelerator enhancing services for cancer treatment is due for completion in early September.

The four-storey St Luke's wing extension houses stroke and rehabilitation wards, plus an intensive care and high dependency unit. Project Manager Kevin Miners explained that the new structure was slotted into a gap between two existing buildings and then linked in to existing services all within an extremely tight area.

Working on a 'live' hospital site naturally meant minimising noise, dust and disruption, with much work on the 82-week job taking place at weekends and late at night. "There was a lot of close liaison with the hospital trust," says Kevin. "We were connecting to a lot of existing services, and had to break in to their live systems."

This meant, for example, giving the hospital ample warning that certain wards would have no water supply for specific periods as connections were made to the new building.

The second building, a two-storey structure housing a Linear Accelerator, features a concrete 'bunker' designed to house the accelerator, which emits radiation as it is used in cancer treatment.

Containing the radiation required special construction and methodology measures. "We built big concrete boxes, effectively, with walls up to 2.4 metres thick," explains Construction Manager Alex Garwood-Gowers. The concrete was of higher than normal density, achieved by adding magnetite, a type of iron oxide. The floor, walls and roof of the bunker each had to be completed in single pours, to prevent any joints that could allow radiation to leak.

Two pumps, plus one on standby, were used, and a second concrete plant was also placed at readiness to ensure supplies if problems arose at the primary facility. With only two concrete wagons able to get on to the tight site at any one time, the remainder were held offsite in a staging area and guided in by marshals as each wagon finished pumping its load.

In all, 1100m3 of concrete was used in the bunkers.

Both buildings are built around steel frames, hollow rib decking and concrete slabs, with brick cladding and render facades.

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Two Bristol Water schemes, both designed by Black & Veatch and built by Costain, will be presented with CEEQUAL 'Excellent' Awards at the Annual CEEQUAL* Seminar at the Institution of Civil Engineers this week.

The Awards will be presented to members of the project team by ICE President Jean Venables.

Both projects were assessed as Whole Project Awards under CEEQUAL and achieved scores of over 90 per cent. The first project, the Axbridge Raw Water Treatment Works, achieved a 91.2 per cent score, which was just pipped by the Barrow Gurney Additional Reservoir scheme with 92.3 per cent.

*CEEQUAL is the assessment and awards scheme for improving sustainability in civil engineering and public realm projects. It celebrates the achievement of high environmental and social performance and demonstrates the commitment of the civil engineering industry to environmental quality.

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Costain has achieved a number of key milestones on the *Riverside Resource Recovery Ltd, Energy from Waste Facility Project in London.

The Flue Gas Treatment area, Stack Foundation and Air Cooled Condensing areas have been handed over on time to VonRoll, the EPC contractor. A further key milestone was achieved this month when the Boiler/Incinerator line 1 area was released to VonRoll, on programme, for their critical process equipment installation. Lines 2 and 3 have quickly followed.

VonRoll's Civil and Building Manager Arthur Green said:

"VonRoll would like to complement the entire Costain team for their efforts to date in making this a successful project for all of us."

In addition there has also been a Safety Milestone of One Million man hours worked without a reportable accident and a zero AFR (Accident Frequency Rate) for 2009.

Francois Charriere the VonRoll Project Director added:

"Despite the worst winter for nearly 20 years and the daily challenges of such projects, the project is on time and the close cooperation between VonRoll Inova and Costain allows an efficient project execution."

* For the project, Costain is providing design, site infrastructure and building works for the main building, jetties, roads and offices. Overall investment in the project is seen at £350million. The completed facility will be able to process up to 585,000 tonnes of London's residual waste from 2011 and will be able to generate electricity for 66,000 homes.

The new facility will enable the majority of the waste to be transported by river in place of upwards of approximately 100,000 lorry trips per annum.

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Lewisham Council has reached two new landmarks in its multi-million pound programme to transform secondary education in the London borough.

The signing of the latest contract in Lewisham's Building Schools for the Future programme means that work can start on building the new Northbrook School complete with significant investment in award winning information and communication technology (ICT) and fully integrated facilities management services. 600 pupils, teachers and staff will move into their new school in January 2011.

Design and Construction work will be undertaken by Costain and ICT and Facilities Management services will be provided by VT.

Father Richard Peers, who joined Northbrook as Head teacher in September 2008, said: "Students and staff are thrilled that work has started on our new school building. We cannot wait for the opportunity to learn in an environment designed for the 21st Century."

In the same week, the Local Education Partnership has signed a contract to remodel and refurbish the Hatcham Temple Grove junior school. The work, which will be completed over a number of phases will be finished in September 2010.

Earlier this year, Lewisham's BSF programme opened the major phases of Sedgehill School and Catford High School where 2,650 pupils are already enjoying their new learning facilities and services.

Welcoming the news of the latest contract, Sir Steve Bullock, Mayor of Lewisham, said:

"This is great news for pupils, parents and teachers across the borough. They are seeing brand new buildings go up as we deliver on our promise to renew our primary and secondary schools.

"Now that work has started on Northbrook and Temple Grove schools, pupils and teachers can look forward to great new buildings and facilities that will inspire learning and teaching for years to come.

"We have established strong links with our partners and, together, we will continue to work hard to make one of the most ambitious BSF schemes in the country a reality for Lewisham's young people."

The Lewisham Schools for the Future Local Education Partnership, created between the London Borough of Lewisham, Partnerships for Schools (via Building Schools for the Future investments), Costain and VT Group, was established in December 2007 to implement the BSF programme.

Terry Hanafin, Chairman of the Lewisham Schools for the Future LEP, said:

"We are delighted with the latest progress in the Borough's BSF programme. It shows what good partnership working can achieve."

Alistair Handford, Costain PFI Director and LSF LEP Board Director said:

"This is another important milestone for the Local Education Partnership and for Costain in the provision of education services including new schools to the borough of Lewisham and to the children and staff at Northbrook. We look forward to developing the partnership at Northbrook and the other schools in the programme."

Tim Byles, Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools said:

"Lewisham's BSF team and partners have worked hard to ensure these projects reach financial close and I now look forward to charting their progress as delivery of new and remodelled schools gathers momentum."

Northbrook School will provide a new secondary school facility for 600 students aged from 11 - 16, funded through the government's Building Schools for the Future Programme.

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Costain is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a £297million contract by Sellafield Ltd for full Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Inactive Commissioning of the Evaporator D project, one of the largest nuclear projects in the UK.

The contract is an extension of an original Purchase Order awarded in September 2006 for Front End Engineering Design.

Costain has developed and defined the design of the facilities that will be used to expand Sellafield's ability to process nuclear waste material and ultimately reduce inventories at the site.

A crucial innovative solution employed by Costain is off-site and modularized construction. The modules will be shipped in by sea and transported across the River Ehen and the Barrow to Carlisle rail lines.

The housed Evaporator building will consist of 15 in-cell modules, over 22km of pipe work bound together by over 10,000 welds, 300 tons of specialist steel and 400 major plant items.

The project is scheduled for completion in 2014.

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Costain announces that, in joint venture with Galliford Try and Atkins, it has secured an extension to its current 5-year AMP4 framework contract with United Utilities. The extension will cover the period from 1 April 2010 through to 31 March 2015.

The original contract commenced in 2005 with responsibility for implementing United Utilities non infrastructure capital delivery works programme in its southern area. The majority of projects are likely to be improvements to both clean and waste water processing plants, as was the case with AMP4. The total value of the framework contract to the GCA joint venture is worth approximately £400million, and the value to Costain around £180million.

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Costain announces that, as part of the 4D consortium, it has won a new capital delivery contract with Southern Water to manage the design and build of a new wastewater treatment works in the Brighton and Hove area.

The £225million contract will begin with immediate effect. The construction phase is expected to take approximately three years, followed by the potential for a two year contract to operate and maintain the plant.

The other members of the consortium are United Utilities and Montgomery Watson Harza.

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Primary school pupils in Pembrokeshire were recently given a taste of the construction industry.

Eleven schools were invited to take part in a Grand Design challenge held at Prendergast primary school in Haverfordwest. Organised by Pembrokeshire County Council and Construction Skills and supported by Costain, the schools were set the challenge to construct a four meter high tetrahedron and the designing and building of a crane jib. The event aimed to give pupils a practical taste of construction skills, an insight of the industry and helped develop links between the community, businesses and schools.

Phil Baker, Costain Public Liaison Officer based at the A40 improvement project in Pembrokeshire, was on hand to give a presentation of the scheme to the youngsters and as a Construction Ambassador led the tetrahedron challenge. Phil commented that the children were eager to take part and listened intently to the safety instructions and the construction methods.

The crane challenge had been developed by Cambridge University and encouraged pupils to design, build and test a crane jib using rolled paper components, bolted together and tested on a rig. The testing of the jib was the highlight of the day with one kilogram bags of sugar used to load the construction.

This is the only event of its kind in Wales and was supported by a number of Construction Ambassadors, Cllr Huw George Pembrokeshire Cabinet member for Children, Young People, Learning and Welsh Language, said:
 
"The Grand Designs Event at Prendergast School was a challenging yet enjoyable day for all the pupils (and their teachers).

"The young peoples' determination shone through enabling many of them to complete the test successfully. They learnt so much as individuals and as teams and I know that they returned to their respective Schools with great pride.

"It would be beneficial to challenge Secondary School Pupils in the same way!

"Good Event - well organised - totally worthwhile."

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Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, which delivers mental health services across Lincolnshire, has appointed Costain to build the county's new £15million rehabilitation facility. 

Len Hartley, Project Manager at the Trust, said: "We're delighted to be able to announce the appointment of Costain to design and build the new rehabilitation services buildings on the St George's Hospital site in Lincoln. Costain can clearly demonstrate a particularly good understanding of mental health facilities, a strong partnering ethos, and a practical and economical approach to the design and build of the new facilities." 

The building work involves the demolition of the existing Yarborough Court located at the rear of St George's Hospital on Long Leys Road.  It will replace the two existing in-patient wards already on the site and a third female-only ward will be built which is a new development for the Trust.  The one-story rehabilitation facility will be fully operational by March 2012 and will accommodate a total of 45 service users at any one time. 

Alex Vaughan, Managing Director for Community Sectors, Costain said: "I am extremely pleased that we have this opportunity to work in partnership with the Trust to support its ambitions to deliver an excellent service comprising first-class facilities.  This is an important project for the Trust and everyone in the project team is excited about working together to achieve a successful outcome."

Service users, their families, carers and the local community, along with the Trust's clinical staff have been involved throughout the consultation process and have made valuable contributions to the overall design.

The Trust's Clinical Coordinator, Ann Dodd said:  "The new facility will enable local service users to access mental health rehabilitation services that will best meet their needs and be closer to their local community and families.

"The whole service is focused on working towards independence and recovery to enable service users to regain health and mental wellness before moving to live as independently as possible when they are discharged."

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Budding engineers and architects from a Llantwit Fardre school paid an exciting visit to the Church Village Bypass project to view the massive construction work currently being undertaken.

A group of 30 children from Year 6 of Maesybryn Primary School in Crown Hill visited the Church Village Bypass Visitors centre in Cross Inn to learn more about the scheme that is being built close to their classrooms.

Rhondda Cynon Taf Council's contractors for the £90million scheme welcomed the children for the visit that was jointly coordinated with engineers Capita Glamorgan and the Education Business Partnership.

The Council's Cabinet Member for Transport and Customer Care Cllr Andrew Morgan explained: "This was one of a total of 10 visits planned for local schools who are undertaking a Church Village Bypass-related project as part of their curriculum.

"During their visit they certainly had an ideal opportunity to learn more about the complexities of developing what is the largest highways scheme currently being undertaken by any local authority in the UK.

"This was an ideal opportunity for them to see the tremendous amount of work already completed and the remaining developments yet to come before Autumn 2010."

The Maesybryn pupils chose to review the different occupational roles involved in undertaking a major construction project and interviewed a Quantity Surveyor, a Designer, an Engineer, a Business Manager and a Plant Operator.

They also received a presentation on site safety and witnessed a display by the plant operator in the car park of the site offices in Cross Inn. Before leaving, all the pupils were able to wear safety clothing and were taken to Tonteg to view the construction works on Power Station Hill.
 
Brian Greaves, Community Relations Manager for Costain, said: "The visit was a great success and we have provided some material and background information for the children to continue with their project back at school.

"The construction team is very conscious the project provides a considerable learning opportunity for many educational groups in the community and we are doing our best to maximise the opportunity for schools and colleges to visit the project."
 
Philip Monk, a teacher at Maesybryn Primary School, added: "The children really enjoyed the visit and like with many learning experiences great benefit was gained by the opportunity to interview at first hand key workers, to see a JCB operator demonstrating the use of the machine and actually visiting a key section of the construction.

"The children have been given a good start with some really good material and I am looking forward to seeing the project progress in the classroom over the next few weeks."

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The Evaporator D Project at Sellafield, with Costain as main contractor, has recorded 500,000 working man-hours without a first aid incident.

That achievement is underlined given that a first aid incident includes even the most minor accident such as a plaster to cover a scratch.

The Costain team runs a safety bonus scheme that benefits local charities and it is the workforce which will choose the charity to receive the financial reward for this achievement.

The project is progressing well with over 200 in-house designers and a large site team that is involved with construction of the reinforced concrete structure and the temporary bridge that will enable the major elements of the project to be delivered by sea.

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The Costain Group is one of the top 100 most admired companies in Britain.

The construction/engineering Company is placed 88th in the latest 'Most Admired' league table climbing up from last year's 190th position.

The table is compiled by Management Today magazine in conjunction with Birmingham City Business School. Top management in the largest public companies around the UK are asked to evaluate their peers and their views form the basis of this highly respected survey. Analysts at leading City investment firms are also polled. 

In total, the table comprises 236 names such as Cadbury, BP, Rolls Royce, J Sainsbury, Royal Dutch Shell, Tesco and Marks & Spencer. Costain was the highest climbing construction company and ahead of such rivals as Carillion and Morgan Sindall.

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Costain is one of two organisations recognised for outstanding work in education and training with a prestigious award from Careers Wales West.

The Regeneration and Economic Development department at Pembrokeshire County Council and Costain in Pembrokeshire have been awarded a Careers Wales West Valued Partner Award for their commitment to work with local students and teachers.

Engineering and construction company Costain works in partnership with Careers Wales West and Construction Skills to raise teachers and students awareness of the construction industry and the exciting developments currently underway in the area. The company has been delivering interactive sessions to local primary school pupils on the importance of health and safety and has even been offering professional development opportunities for Careers Wales West advisors so they can provide the most up-to-date advice and information on the sector.

The Regeneration and Economic Development department at Pembrokeshire County Council has also been awarded for the role it has played in growing the Careers Wales West Enterprise Education programme. It introduced the Pembrokeshire Enterprise Fair, which saw young people from across the region setting up and running their own companies and even taking part in a trading event. The department has also been working with Careers Wales West and local teachers to develop new ways of introducing enterprise into the school curriculum.

Ray Collier, Chief Executive of Careers Wales West, said: "Both Pembrokeshire County Council and Costain have shown unwavering support to our clients in recent years. It is so important that we have partnerships with local organisations like these so that we can continue to provide local people and businesses with careers information, advice and guidance to provide brighter futures.

"Their commitment has meant that many more lives have been enriched, whether it is the experience of running your own business to learning more about a new industry and what's happening in your community. We are proud to call them our partners, which is why we have named them our Careers Wales West Valued Partners 2009."

Phil Baker, a Costain Public Liaison Officer, at the A40, commented: "Costain is delighted to be honoured with the Valued Partner Award, following our close work with Careers Wales West and Construction Skills on the A40 Robeston Wathen By-pass. As a company we take our responsibilities seriously when working in the community and would like to believe that by engaging with the young people of Pembrokeshire we may light a spark which could lead them into a construction career."

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Robert Smyth, a Costain Graduate Process Engineer, has been named the Best Individual Newcomer to the Industry at the annual Energy Awards for NOF, one of the leading business development organisations involved in the UK oil, gas and energy sectors.

Robert, 27, from Reading, works for Costain Energy & Process based in Manchester.  He collected the prestigious accolade, which is sponsored by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, for his role in driving forward the business' Carbon Capture programmes. The award was presented at the event at Hardwick Hall in Sedgefield, County Durham, which was hosted by NOF Energy, the UK business development organisation for the oil, gas and energy sectors.

In addition to the award itself, Robert has won an expenses-paid trip to one of the oil & gas industry's major events, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC), which takes place in Houston, Texas in May 2010.

Robert, who has an MSc in chemical process design, has been with Costain for just over a year. In that time has been heavily involved with the design and commissioning phases of major gas infrastructure projects.  He was particularly praised for playing a major role in developing a carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) market strategy and initiatives for innovative CO2 processing.

Robert said: "This is a fantastic honour and I am really excited about the trip to OTC in the United States.  It is the event which attracts the best of the world's technical minds from the energy sectors so it will be a really beneficial experience.  The support I have received from Costain during the past year has been exceptional.  Working with a dynamic and creative team has already taken my career forward."

Terry Tomlinson, Costain Energy & Process' Front End Solutions General Manager who nominated Robert, said: "Robert has applied the technical knowledge he gained from his MSc to become an impressive member of our team.  His ambition to drive forward the company's interest in Carbon Capture is particularly notable."

George Rafferty, Chief Executive of NOF Energy, said: "With the ongoing shortage of skilled people in the energy industry, this award recognises the importance of new entrants, whether they have come straight to the industry following education, or transferring skills from a different sector.  Robert is a shining example of fresh talent that has been attracted to the sector and a very deserving winner of this award."

Photo right - Robert Smyth (left) collects his award from sponsor Bill Cattanach (right) from The Department of Energy and Climate Change.

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Costain's Community Division staged a Safety, Health and Environment day to recognise outstanding performances by members of the supply chain.

Alex Vaughan, Community MD, and Peter Fisher, Group SHE Director, presented the Awards. Recipients were as follows:

Demolition contractor, Clifford Devlin, for its approach to safety on the Parkway project at Newbury.

Stephenson for finishing the concrete frame contract six weeks ahead of schedule at the Gloucestershire Royal Hospital whilst still maintaining premier safety standards.

Smiths of Gloucester for showing continuous improvement on safety at the University of Worcester Project.

Bourne Steel for exceptional collaboration when delivering the steel frame on the Gracechurch Street project in London.

Building Schools for the Future project acknowledged the roofing work supplied by Briggs Amasco.

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