Bennetts Associates: Five Insights
Working within a team of several architects on a £70 million office building in the City of London, Tomas Kangro enjoyed the opportunity to work directly with a key specialist contractor. He begins with an email from them at the end of the project.
Gavin/Tomas,
I’ve just returned from holiday to find that you have sent our workshops guys some wine and a thank you note for their work on the helical staircase whilst I was away.
I just wanted to say a big thank you for this gesture and to let you know how pleased they were, that their effort and skill was being acknowledged.
Our Supervisor Bill White has been in the metal fabrication industry for 40 years and said it was the first time he had experience of it from a client team member and was suitably impressed.
These positive messages go a long way in motivating people from time to time so it’s a thank you from me as well.
Phil
This email was received following the successful completion of 70 Mark Lane, a 15-storey speculative office building a stone’s throw from the Tower of London, for joint clients Stanhope and Mitsui Fudosan. It was sent by the Managing Director (Phil) of the specialist metalwork subcontractor PAD in response to us (the project architect, Gavin Pike, and me) sending a thank you note and a gift to express our appreciation for their excellent work in fabricating the helical feature stair connecting levels 14 and 15 within a series of terraced atrium spaces.
The project went exceptionally smoothly with Sir Robert McAlpine as the main contractor, under a construction management contract. This was largely due to the strength of working relationships built between client, design team, and contractors. The dictionary definition of collaborate is “To work in conjunction with another or others, to co-operate”, so it is no surprise that collaboration is fundamental throughout all stages of construction. So, why are gestures like the above a rare occurrence? It got me thinking about what went right with the stair and what I had learnt working with specialists.
For further details on the book, please refer to Bennetts Associates’ website.
© Hufton + Crow
© Hufton + Crow
© Hufton + Crow
© Hufton + Crow
Book Details
Bennetts Associates: Five Insights
With thanks to Bennetts Associates, awarded Practice of the Year at the Building Awards 2016, for providing the information for this article.
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